OPERATION OF ALOES ON THE HORSE. 187 
course of that day, although they were not collected, I con- 
sider that about half a bushel of these seeds were brought 
away w T ith the otherwise watery evacuations. The clysters 
had been discontinued the evening before, and the horse 
regained his tone as from an ordinary purge. 
Case 2 occurred in Florence in the summer of 1830. A 
little, native, horse, the property of Mr. Pitti, now the director 
of the Granducal stables, was suffering acutely from spas- 
modic colic. I was called to him in the forenoon, when he 
was rolling about in a profuse perspiration, and presenting the 
most discouraging symptoms. At once six drachms of the best 
Cape aloes were given in ball, and used clysters of warm water 
and oil. I watched my patient ; and the owner being present, 
was constantly asking my opinion as to the issue — whether 
I had administered diuretics? whether I should bleed? &c. I 
had then, for some time, had considerable success in the 
treatment I was pursuing, but the case was one most acute, 
obstinate, and for three hours gave no positive proof of 
amendment, hence no grounds for a favorable prognosis. 
1 patiently watched and assisted my patient, inspiring as 
much confidence in the owner as I could prudently without 
compromising myself. No faeces were voided with the injec- 
tions, except one or two small, compact balls, thickly coated 
by a dense white mucus. Besides the aloes, I administered 
nothing but tepid water, which was poured into his clammy 
mouth as he lay, in the intervals between the paroxysms of pain. 
Dry friction *was used with linen cloths, and in about three 
hours I began to see some improvement ; the spasms were less 
severe, of shorter duration, and the intervals of quiet longer ; 
the pulse more full, the abdominal muscles were more re- 
laxed, and the periodical sweatings ceased, and some 
dung was expelled with each enema. In the fourth hour 
from the commencement I could see marked and progressive 
improvement. Not so the bystanders, who, whenever the 
horse lay relaxed and flat on his side for a long time together, 
thought he was dying. I was then able to assure them that 
all was going on well, and at length, after lying quiet for 
about twenty minutes, he showed an inclination to rise, in 
which he was assisted, and after stretching and shaking his 
body, he staled copiously. The horse was hand-rubbed, 
made dry and comfortable, and no untoward symptoms 
cuticle ; they are probably never digested, but pass on with the ingesta, 
and may always be seen in the dung of horses fed on the carrubbi. The 
above is the only case I have seen of spasm, the result of accumulation 
of the carrubbi seeds. 
