RABIES IN THE ASS. 
589 
and then would come a violent exacerbation of the symptoms ; the 
heaving of the flanks would increase, and the fiery brightness of 
the eye, and the attempt to do mischief. His walk would be 
quickened — he would snap at many an imaginary object ; the 
faeces which he passed not at any other time, would be ejected from 
him with violence; and then, his tail quivering, and his eyes dis- 
torted, and uttering fearful cries, a kind of tetanic rigidity would 
steal over him. This would yield, and he would fall : a violent 
struggle would commence, but which subsided in a few minutes ; 
and he would rise to resume his wonted walk, and his watching 
for opportunity to do mischief. 
The Ferocity of the Animal . — There is an account on record of 
a gentleman, his wife, and brother, walking near Huddersfield, 
when they were attacked by an ass, which seized and tore the 
lady’s dress. The animal was instantly knocked down with a 
stone by the gentleman, and the blows were repeated, aided by 
the brother, until the ass appeared dying. They then dragged 
him down a steep bank, and left him. They had not proceeded far, 
however, when the ass was once more on his legs, and in pursuit 
of the party, who, to save themselves, climbed over a low wall. 
They had scarcely effected this when he came up with them, 
and endeavoured also to clear the wall ; but he was again fortu- 
nately arrested by another blow on the forehead with a stone, and 
he fell to rise no more. It was afterwards ascertained that he 
had been bitten by a rabid dog. 
Rabies in the Mule . — I have had opportunity to witness only 
the later stages of this complaint in the mule ; but in the third 
volume of that useful work, “ Instructions et Observations sur 
les Maladies des Animaux Domestiques,” by Messrs. Chabert, 
Flandrin, and Huzard, I find a detailed account of the symptoms 
of rabies in this animal, a translation of which I will read to 
you. “ On the 2d of February, 1780, a rabid dog bit a mule 
five years old, travelling on the road from Lodeve to Mil- 
haud, and belonging to the Consul of Porlages. The dog was 
immediately destroyed by the muleteers. The wounds were 
inflicted on the chest, and both thighs and hind legs. On the 
23d of March, 49 days afterwards, the mule was observed to be 
very much out of spirits, and to refuse its food. Its master 
seeing it in that state, ordered two of his people to assist in giving 
him a drink composed of wine and thenaca — the latter being a 
strange compound of cummin seed, and laurel-berries, and the 
leaves of the water germander, and the Virginian snake-root, 
and cloves, and opium, and honey, and which was administered 
by the peasants of that country for almost every disease to which 
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