LAMENESS IN HORSES. 
604 
to be scraped or pared out with the drawing-knife before the 
discolouration is made visible. The red stain may amount to 
a. broad patch, or only to a spot or marbled surface ; and the 
dye, though ordinarily red, may assume a brownish or even a 
blackish cast ; or, it may so happen that there is hardly any 
or no blush at all to be seen. But, on the contrary, there may 
be softness or bogginess of the horn over the part, owing to a 
serous or ichorous issue from it : this constituting a soft corn , 
in contradistinction to the other, which may be denominated a 
hard corn ; since in the latter the horn is not only often thick, 
but dry and hard over it. 
A Festered or Suppurated Corn ordinarily indicates 
an advanced stage of the disease, though it is possible a corn 
may take on suppuration from the very beginning. In the 
usual course, in consequence of inflammation, serous issue suc- 
ceeds to extravasation, and afterwards pus is secreted ; or the 
two effusions may be present together, producing a sero-puru- 
lent discharge. This condition of corn is commonly owing 
either to neglect, or to aggravation of the primary stage of the 
disease. The horse, though evincing tenderness or even lame- 
ness, has not had, as he ought to have had, his ailing foot 
attended to ; and the consequence is, abscess of a part which 
would but for this negligence or aggravation have remained in 
the state of ecchymosis. When this is the case, the shoe is 
no sooner pulled off, and the pincers, or even the thumb of the 
smith, applied to the site of the corn, than the animal flinches 
to that degree that he quite rears up with the exquisite pain 
the pressure gives him : an expressive act which at once re- 
veals to the veterinarian the true nature of the case. He feels 
quite assured there is matter present, and he insists on the 
corn being pared until vent be given to it. In doing this, dis- 
covery is commonly made of the pus having, to a greater or 
less extent, under-run the horny sole at the angle; and the 
horn being required to be taken away on account of its being de- 
tached, leaves exposed the surface of the living tissue, more or 
less altered in character according as the matter has been long 
pent up or not, and according as the corn be a recent or a 
chronic and relapsed one. Indeed, when matter has been long 
confined from being unable to obtain any outlet below, it has 
been known to make its way upwards, contrary to gravity, and 
break forth at the coronet, and in this manner turn to a quittor. 
LAMENESS is commonly the symptom which leads to the 
discovery of corn. A horse is found going gingerly upon one 
or both fore feet, or actually lame ; and this induces an examin- 
ation of his lame foot, when the heel of the shoe is detected 
pressing upon the sole in the seat of corn. Or, the lameness 
