322 
THE EDINBURGH VETERINARY COLLEGE 
was quick, and very irregular in the arteries : the heart’s action 
was also irregular and intermittent, and, on applying the ear to the 
left axillary space, a peculiar loud rushing sound was heard, in all 
probability arising from valvular disease. After a few days’ rest, 
and a dose of laxative medicine, he seemed so well that the owner 
sent him to work, when he suddenly dropped down and died. No 
notice of his death was sent here, until one of the men happening 
to come with another case ten days afterwards, said that the one 
just described had terminated fatally: no post-mortem examination 
could therefore be made. 
The circumstances attending the case of distention of the sto- 
mach and intestines from food and gas are as follow :• — On the 
22d April, a well-bred bay gelding, belonging to a gentleman in 
Queen-street, was heard by the policeman about 4 A. M., making a 
great noise in the stable. The groom was called : he found the 
animal suffering great pain — lying down, rolling, and rising again — 
striking his belly with his feet, and tossing himself about with great 
violence — frequently sitting upon his haunches — the pulse was 
quick, and the abdomen swollen. He was bled — had laxative and 
sedative medicine — the belly was well bathed with hot water, and 
clysters were plentifully thrown up. In two hours, as little miti- 
gation of the symptoms was to be seen, more laxative medicine in 
solution was given, and a stimulating embrocation applied to the 
abdomen. Clysters, although still continued, did not promote the 
passage of the faeces. In about other three hours, additional 
sedative medicine with oil was given — fomentations of very hot 
water were applied to the whole surface of the abdomen — and 
tobacco smoke injection was copiously used. He was frequently 
back-raked, and when the hand was introduced as far as possible 
to do this, there was some difficulty found in passing the arm 
freely its whole length, and the obstruction offered seemed to arise 
from a displacement of some portion of intestine. Pressure was 
made against this by the hand and arm, which were, as far as 
possible, moved about in various directions : tobacco smoke injec- 
tions were still persevered in. Evacuations of gas per anum 
occasionally followed, which seemed to give relief During the 
remaining part of the forenoon and the afternoon, the pain gradually 
subsided, and at length the horse lay for some hours quite still, with 
the eyes closed as if sleeping. This case is mentioned, not as 
being particularly rare, but because one peculiar symptom, that of 
sitting upon the haunches, was so prominently seen. This symp- 
tom indicates several pathological conditions of an analogous 
character, in connexion with the digestive abdominal viscera, 
which conditions commonly consist in some mechanical obstruc- 
tion, such as hernia, in every form ; obstruction from dust-balls 
and calculi ; overloaded stomach and intestines, with constipation 
