26 
VETERINARY JURISPRUDENCE. 
you upon this very important subject. It is a crying evil ; it 
demands every attention. And if we can devise no means to pre- 
vent such disgraceful scenes being enacted, let us at least raise our 
voices of censure against the evidence of ignorant and totally unfit 
and unqualified men (calling themselves “ veterinary surgeons”) 
being taken in cases of veterinary jurisprudence. It is bad for 
men to be robbed of their pounds, shillings, and pence, in actions at 
law; but it is far worse for them to be deprived of their liberty, 
and incarcerated in a common gaol by such evidence. In proof of 
what I assert, I will give you the heads of a case that occurred in 
a court of justice (!) in Devonshire during the past year. 
A farmer’s servant was at work with his master’s horses at 
plough. In the evidence it was stated, that on a sudden one of 
them (which a short time previous had been under some kind of 
medical treatment) stopped in its work, and trembled; and on its 
being urged forward, fell, and in a few minutes expired. The 
owner, on being apprised of the accident, sent for two men to exa- 
mine the animal. One was styled a “ veterinary surgeon,” the 
other a saddler. They made what was called “ a post-mortem 
examination,” and said they found the vein of the neck had cracked , 
as through the pressure of some blunt instrument, and that gangrene 
water was to be seen under the skin. The farrier had no doubt 
this was the cause of death, and that the driver had inflicted the 
blows. He examined no farther. No account was given as to the 
appearances presented by the organs necessary to life. The animal 
may have died from apoplexy, from rupture of some important 
bloodvessel, or from any one of many other causes which are 
known to produce sudden death. The extravasation of blood or 
serum about the jugular vein, I should be of opinion, was the 
effect of bleeding during the animal’s previous illness. 
For the defence, the man’s fellow-servant swore he was also at 
work in the same field, and saw no blow struck, or other ill-treat- 
ment inflicted, upon the mare at or about the time of her death. 
Yet, in the face of this, and upon the absurd evidence of the farrier, 
the magistrates committed the man to the gaol at Exeter for three 
months for “ killing” her*. Is this the justice that Englishmen 
boast of administering and receiving ! 
The case was commented upon by a correspondent, signing him- 
self “ Judex,” in the next week’s Western Times. The writer 
condemned the magistrates for placing undue faith in the science of 
farriery: mark, the SCIENCE of farriery! He, as a non-profes- 
sional man, did not inquire whether Reed was a qualified veteri- 
* The case was heard at Woodbury Petty Sessions. The so-called vete- 
rinary surgeon’s name was Reed ; and amongst whose other qualifications he 
could neither read nor write. 
