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REMARKS ON DRENCHES, AND THEIR OCCASIONAL 
DANGER— OBSERVATIONS ON SETONS— THE RESULT 
OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE HYDRIODATE OF 
POTASH— AND REMARKS ON SEVERE FIRING. 
By the late Mr. E. Price, V. S., of Cork. 
[In The Veterinarian of the last year an interesting account 
of the epizootic among horses was given by Mr. Price. He 
died soon after the completion of it. The present Essays were 
written a very short period prior to his death. We lay them 
before our readers precisely as he wrote them. The observations 
relating to his illness, its possible result, and his undiminished 
zeal, have peculiar interest. Perhaps we could have wished 
the last subject treated on to have been of a rather different 
nature. — Y.] 
That drenches are to a certain extent dangerous, and in some 
cases absolutely so, must be allowed on all hands ; and I think 
it would be the truth, and nothing but the truth, if this were 
candidly confessed by the surgeon, and impressed on the mind 
of the owners of horses. 
1 have known several horses destroyed by them, and am free 
to admit that I settled a couple myself. One was during my 
apprenticeship ; the other was a mare of my own. She coughed 
violently on getting the drench, but not until after the head had 
been let down. In a short time a shivering came on — her coat 
stared — her breathing was laboured, and continued so for several 
days. To cut the matter short, she died in consequence of it ; a 
portion of the drink had entered the trachea, and caused a degree 
of inflammation which destroyed her. 
A day prior to this she was right-well. Then, why did I 
drench her ? The fact is, I wanted to fatten her for sale, and was 
giving her a good comfortable strong drink. You may suppose 
that I ever afterward gave balls to my own horses, and to the 
horses of my employers, where I could manage to do it. 
For the benefit of the profession every one should be ready to 
tell his brethren the result of his practice, without any humbug 
about the matter. This mare lived long enough after the mischief 
was done to deceive those that were about her, unless they were 
practitioners ; and many a horse, difficult to drench, dies, not from 
the original disease, but from the inflammation set up by a por- 
tion of the medicine “ going the wrong way/’ I am far from 
