108 REVIEW— MR. PERCIVALL’S HIPPOPATHOLOGV. 
is asked of the few — those who can appreciate the work produced, 
and who are aware of the talent, the labour, and the indefatigable 
research which alone could have produced it — the answer is, Yes ; 
but if it be asked of the many, the common-place every-day prac- 
titioner — the shallow pretender to superior skill — or the mere 
empiric, who blunders on with this only result, that every blunder 
he commits there is one the less to be committed, the answer will 
be, No. Some of them may indeed, in private, avail themselves 
of the information opened to them ; but, asked for an opinion in 
public, hear their report — the author is a mere theorist — a man 
well enough fitted, indeed, to write a book, but a nonentity in prac- 
tice — and, what is still worse, he is a decided plagiarist; and has 
not only copied all he could from others, but has positively writ- 
ten nothing that they were not before perfectly aware of: add 
to this, professional jealousies, personal animosities, and party 
squabbles, — and well may he exclaim, “ Would that mine ene- 
my would write a book !” 
During the middle age of veterinary medicine, by which I 
mean the time extending from the establishment of the Royal 
Veterinary College to within the last three or four years, but 
two authors appeared to whom we at all look up to as authori- 
ties, — Blaine and White : I am, of course, now speaking only of 
the authors of general works, for several most valuable mono- 
graphs were produced, and some clever articles, inserted in the 
various encyclopaedias of the day. Blaine’s work is that of a 
man of talent, containing a mass of valuable information, well 
arranged and carefully put together. White’s is that of a man 
of genius— careless, irregular, and idle — who scatters about facts 
and opinions, of the most valuable and important description, 
with about as reckless and careless a hand as a child might pearls 
and diamonds — but pearls and diamonds they are nevertheless. 
Of the works of the last few years, we take shame for knowing 
but little ; we have seen but few, and paid less attention to any : 
and it was only the appearance of such a work as “ Percivall on 
the Diseases of the Horse” that could arouse us from the care- 
lessness and apathy with which we have been listlessly looking 
on. 
