ON PAYMENT FOlt ATTENDANCE. 
385 
of care is required, even in the really scientific man, to know to 
what extent he ought to carry this part of his practice. I should 
insist the more strongly on this, even with my professional 
brethren, if I were not well aware of the fact, that this has of late 
years demanded and received a much greater share of attention 
from them than it formerly did, and that thousands of horses in 
inflammatory diseases of the tracheal and bronchial membranes, 
and also of the lungs and pleura, are how saved that were for- 
merly lost during the rage for the laxative and debilitating sys- 
tem. 
There is also in many cases of the mal-administration of physic 
a degree of unfairness to the veterinary surgeon which I could 
never reconcile to my idea of right and wrong, in the course pur- 
sued by those who have brought the evil upon themselves by the 
non-employment of the professional man. The physic, in the 
first place, is most commonly procured from the druggist ; but 
did you ever hear of any one who, when he found the danger im- 
mediate and pressing, allowed the responsibility to rest, where it 
ought to have rested, with the maker and administrator of the 
medicine ? No ! the veterinary surgeon is then applied to ; and, 
if we save the animal under these circumstances — as all in long- 
continued and extensive practice have done many times — it is 
considered a matter simply in the ordinary course of business, and 
in scores of instances the same party is resorted to for the next 
dose required. If we fail, the onus is thrown upon us ; and hun- 
dreds often are acquainted with the simple fact, that the animal 
died while under our care that are never made acquainted with 
the truth that he had been poisoned previously to our attendance. 
I sincerely hope that all professional readers of The Veterina- 
rian will join me in endeavouring to restore these almost lost 
though valuable portions of our practice and means of subsistence. 
I recollect, in one of the numbers of The Veterinarian 
some time since, that an application was made to you respecting 
the right of veterinary surgeons to be paid for attendances, and 
you requested that some of the older members of the profession 
would favour you with their views on the subject. I feel sur- 
prised that no one has yet done so. I have never since that 
application until now been in correspondence with The V eteri- 
narian or I would have done it. 
I take it for granted, that the applicant meant attendances in 
the immediate neighbourhood of his residence. I never heard of 
any one disputing the right of a man being paid for what are 
commonly called journies, that is, where the distance is some- 
thing considerable. I have always charged for town attendance, 
VOL. XV. 3 F 
