142 PUS IN THE GUTTURAL POUCHES OF A HORSE. 
that his struggles would be most violent, I determined to cast him 
on the side opposite to that in which was the swelling. 
The animal being properly secured, I made my first incision along 
the posterior border of the parotid gland, which I separated from its 
adhesions. I then assured myself of the respective positions of the 
styloid apophysis, the occipital bone, and the posterior extremity 
of the great branch of the hyoid bone. That being done, I was 
enabled to cut through the stylo-hyoidean muscle, and to penetrate 
into the guttural pouch, whence immediately issued a considerable 
quantity of purulent matter, grumous, and of a whitish yellow 
colour. At this moment, and not having at hand a proper sound, 
I introduced one of the extremities of a small rod, and directed it 
so as to form a kind of hernia of the pouch between the branches 
of the jugular vein. 1 cut into it, and introduced a seton of twisted 
tow through the cavity. The horse being got up, the purulent 
matter escaped abundantly through the inferior opening. A quar- 
ter of an hour after the operation the breathing, which had been 
difficult and hissing, became full and easy. 
Six hours after the operation, I revisited my patient. The pulse 
and the breathing were almost natural, and there ran from the in- 
ferior opening into the pouch only a small quantity of puriform 
matter, with a very slight unpleasant odour. The region of the 
parotid gland scarcely presented any enlargement ; but towards 
the middle of the channel, and in front of the larynx, there was a 
point, salient, and painful when pressed upon, somewhat distended, 
and beneath which I thought that I could recognize the existence 
of a fluid. The animal ate easily and greedily the small quantity 
of solid aliment that was presented to him, and swallowed at once, 
and apparently without pain, three or four quarts of gruel. 
This salient and tender point was a new abscess produced by 
the aliment, a portion of which had been got rid of. I opened it. 
A jet of purulent matter escaped, bringing with it various frag- 
ments of barley, the odour of which was like that which was di^ 
charged through the mouth. 
I prescribed simple emollient injections into the guttural pouch, 
and others slightly acidulated into the mouth and the wound be- 
tween the jaws. The exterior wounds were dressed with diges- 
tive ointment, and about six pounds of hay, with a sufficient quan- 
tity of gruel, slightly nitrated, were allowed to the patient. 
On the morning of the 8th I again visited my patient. He had 
already assumed his usual spirits, and neither the pulse nor the 
breathing offered anything abnormal. The discharge from the 
mouth, and the foetid character of it, were materially diminished. 
From the inferior portion of the pouch nothing escaped but a small 
quantity of purulent fluid of a good character. The seton which 
