686 
THE EDINBURGH VETERINARY COLLEGE. 
the fracture extended through the bone to a corresponding one on 
the contrary surfaces. 
The newly deposited bone was about three-eighths of an inch 
across, and extended along the whole line of fracture, displacing 
the extremities of the portions that distance ; appearing as if, that 
although there was at first no displacement between the opposing 
surfaces, the new bone had separated them during its deposit, in 
order, as it were, to admit of a sufficient quantity of material for the 
formation of the medium of union. There was so little external 
callosity, that the line of fracture, though evident to the sight, 
could scarcely be felt without passing the hand with a little 
pressure along the surface of the tibia. It is also a singular cir- 
cumstance, that, whilst these two cases should so closely resemble 
each other in the particulars already noticed, they each occurred in 
the near hind leg of the respective animals. 
The case of opened synovial cavity which occurred in a well-bred 
six-year-old mare was one of a very aggravated character, and 
somewhat similar to that related in a former report. It was like 
that one in which the knee joint had been extensively opened for 
some weeks, in consequence of the animal falling while travelling 
at considerable speed ; and during the time between receiving the 
injury and being brought here little had been attempted by way of 
cure. She was put under treatment by having the limb firmly 
fixed in a cradle constructed for such purposes, so that the exposed 
articulation was rendered motionless. The wound, which was in a 
sloughing state, was brought into a healthy condition under the use 
of appropriate dressings; digestive applications were then lightly 
laid upon it, and the case has now recovered. There is some 
enlargement round the joint, but no appearance of bony deposit 
likely to interfere with its action. It is the custom with some 
practitioners, in cases of this kind, to bind upon the knee bandage 
upon bandage saturated in some preparation which, as it becomes 
dry, will harden, and to a certain degree confine the limb extended. 
Such a procedure is attended with the obvious inconvenience and 
disadvantage of not permitting that attention to be paid to the 
wound, the granulation of which it is so important to encourage, 
and on the healing of which all hopes of cure depend : on the other 
hand, the retention of hard dressings in the vicinity of the seat of 
injury has the effect of .delaying the healing process. By a 
properly constructed cradle, however, reaching from the elbow to 
the ground upon which its lower end rests, the limb may be 
rendered perfectly inflexible, and yet the wound left so as to be 
at all times in the most favourable condition for the application of 
dressings without in any way disturbing its position. Attention 
