38 
ON BLACK- WATER. 
place, and sometimes without it. In the following cases there was 
not the least staking, but, in my mind, the appearance of the sto- 
machs was perfectly natural. As there was no constipation, and 
the stomachs were full, to what must we attribute the disease? 
Are we to say that there was something injurious in what had 
been in the intestines a few days before, and that absorption had 
taken place, and vitiated the blood and bile, and so produced 
death? At any rate, there must have been torpidity in the 
action of the stomachs, and most probably through the nervous 
system. 
Case I. — On Thursday, September 22, 1836, I examined a 
cow that died the night before. About a fortnight previously she 
was found to be affected with black- water, and thought to be staked. 
She had a drink administered to her by a person in this town, and 
was afterwards attended on by a farrier, who gave her several 
drinks, and, in a week afterwards, she got well so far as the water 
was concerned, though but little dung came through her during 
that period, and what was evacuated indicated staking. For the 
last week, but especially for the last few days, her faeces were as 
thin as water, but in very small quantities. She ate hay and 
grass very well ; but latterly her appetite failed, she got weaker, 
and her respiration was hurried. She was a little heavy in her 
appearance, but did not seem in any pain, or at all uneasy, except 
that she grunted occasionally. She voided plenty of urine. 
Examination . — The paunch was full of half-masticated food, 
hay, grass, and water. The third stomach was full, but the food 
was soft, and the stomach was sound. The fourth was empty and 
sound. The whole of the other bowels were inflamed on their 
mucous coats, and streaked lengthways on their rugae, just like a 
riband : the streaks on them were of a black colour. The cortical 
portions of the kidneys were softer and more tender than in their 
natural state, and spotted with brown and black. In this case the 
intestines would appear to be the seat of disease, or, at any rate, 
the immediate cause of her death. 
Case II. — Aug. 27 th, 1838. Mr. Cotgreave, of this town, 
wished me to go and see a cow of his that he was informed was 
dying in a field, from the effect of black- water. She had been ill 
since the 22d, and, during that time, he had given her two of 
Hassall’s “ cure all” drinks, composed of 2 lbs of salts, 1 quart of 
linseed oil, 1 pint of port wine, and plenty of gruel. 
Symptoms . — When I first saw her, she seemed in a dying state, 
but I was informed that she had suddenly got much worse from 
having been drenched just before with a pound of salts. She was 
lying down, and we could not get her up by any manual force, or 
by enticing her with the calf, but by means of the dog we did do so. 
