186 
OBSERVATIONS ON INFLUENZA IN HORSES. 
bronchial tubes*. The mass of blood itself is strangely altered. 
It will not coagulate like healthy blood, but the coagulum remains 
soft and flabby, and occasionally has more the aspect of currant 
jelly than blood. And I once found the blood after death, fluid — 
uncoagulated — in the heart and large bloodvessels. 
This, no doubt, is the state of blood which was brought to our 
notice by that talented member of our profession, Mr. Karkeek. 
So long back as 1837, that gentleman remarked, in a paper he sent 
to The Veterinarian “on the epidemic of 1836,” that in the 
years 1832-3, he was “ particularly struck with the appearance of 
the blood he found it “ black in colour, thin in consistence, and 
it flowed in wiry streams from large orifices.” This led Mr. K. to 
make farther observations, and he came to the belief that “ the blood 
is actually diseased previous to the commencement of the attack :” 
confirming an opinion expressed by him in a former paper, that, 
“in all diseases arising from aerial poison, the blood is injured in 
its vital properties.” And acting on the supposition that the blood 
was “ diseased in influenza,” Mr. K. became convinced that it was 
his duty “ not to lessen the quantity , but to endeavour to improve 
the quality ” of the vital fluid. Previous to this he had made some 
experiments, the result of which confirmed the opinions of Dr. 
Stevens*. Mr. K. submitted some black blood taken from a 
horse that died of influenza to oxygen gas, and found no change 
of colour produced. He then added some small quantity of a solu- 
tion of chloride of sodium (common salt), and “ instantly the red 
colour was restored :” thus proving that “ the blood was diseased, 
and that the blood owes its red colour entirely to the presence of 
saline matter,” as asserted by Dr. Stevens. This induced Mr. K. 
to administer salts — the carbonate of soda and nitrate of potash — 
in influenza. In some instances he was “ under the necessity 
of bleeding;” but this practice he has “always avoided when 
possiblet.” 
Causes. — With ourselves, as well as with horse-folks in ge- 
neral, it has become customary to ascribe influenza to some state 
of weather or soil, or to some unusually high or low degrees of 
temperature of the air, & c. Cold and humid weather, damp foggy 
situations, north-east or easterly winds, &c. &c., have all been 
charged with this baneful influence : medical philosophers, how- 
ever, who have made it their business to collect facts and examine 
them, are now one and all pretty well agreed that such agents 
have little or nothing to do with the production of influenza. On 
the contrary, they say it proceeds from other causes — from some 
* Observations on the Healthy and Diseased Properties of Blood, 
t Veterinarian for 1837. 
