VETERINARY MEDICAL SOCIETY. 395 
while before calving, and bleeding, and physicking her, if in high 
condition. 
Mr. King referred again to the swelling of the animal, and the 
necessity of speedy relief being afforded. He preferred puncturing 
through the external integuments to the use of a tube. He.some¬ 
times enlarged the w ound, and puddled the contents of the paunch 
about with a spoon. The orifice was sometimes made so large that 
the vapour rose from it as from a steam-engine. 
A gentleman, a visiter, stated that the disease had often come 
under his notice. He always bled: from a strong cow he took 
eight quarts. He then purged. He saved three out of five. 
Mr. Goodwin lamented that in this as w r ell as many other 
serious diseases of cattle, the students at the Veterinary College 
had not the slightest portion of information. The society and the 
public were indebted to those gentlemen whose practice enabled 
them to communicate valuable knowledge respecting these too 
neglected subjects. He knew not what the French writers said 
about it; but he could not agree w T ith Mr. Youatt as to its being 
an inflammatory disease. It was a diminution of nervous energy 
from some unknown cause, and connected w 7 ith the hove. It was 
partial debility consequent on parturition. 
Mr. Youatt replied that the French writers said nothing about 
it: which induced him to imagine that it was a disease either rare 
or unknown in France. As to the inflammatory character of its 
early stage, the symptoms spoke for themselves; and nothing 
could be so characteristic of strong febrile affection as this sudden 
prostration of strength. 
Mr. King again pressed his question, why did not the disease 
affect young cows in their first or second calving, when they 
would seem to be most disposed for inflammation. 
Mr. Lythe replied, that it did affect young cows in their first 
parturition, although perhaps not so frequently as others. 
The discussion then turned on the power of sympathy; and 
Mr. King related some curious cases of it in the slinking of cow r s; 
and Mr. Goodwin gave an interesting account of the power of 
sympathy in the horse. 
Mr. Youatt ranked this disease among those which were occa¬ 
sionally epidemic. 
Mr. King had had more cases than one under his management 
at the same time, but not on the same farm. It w r as not a disease 
of frequent occurrence, and rarely affecting the same cow twice, 
though he had known an instance of it. Farmers, however, w r ere 
in the habit of selling their cow r s if they once had dropped : the 
London daily men slaughtered them immediately. He could not 
connect it with decreased secretion of milk : the milk veins were 
generally full. 
