CONSULTATIONS. 
171 
horse was more comfortable. The physic did not begin to operate 
until the third morning, when, as his leg appeared better, I ordered 
him to be Avalked out twice, for half an hour each time, after which 
the physic seemed to be doing as well as could be wished; but 
the patient appeared sick, and took no food, only drinking occa¬ 
sionally a little warm water. I gave him half a pailful of gruel in 
the evening, and left him in that state, his pulse weak, and about 
54. It never exceeded 60; but he was breathing rather heavily. 
To my astonishment my servant told me this morning that he was 
dead. 
I had him opened. My untutored eye could detect nothing wrong 
or unnatural, except that the blood was excessively black, and the 
heart a little swollen, and filled with black congealed blood. 
Can you, from this imperfect account of the case, form any opi¬ 
nion as to the cause of his death 1 Was there any thing wrong in 
the treatment 1 As I am anxious to know your opinion, I should 
feel obliged by your writing to me at your earliest convenience. 
A friend of mine will call on you, and present you with the accus¬ 
tomed honorarium, and many thanks. 
I have the honour to be, &c. 
P.S.—The surgeon from whom I got the physic, told me that 
it was composed of six drachms of aloes, and about twenty drops 
of croton oil with soap. The wound, which appeared to have been 
caused by a nail, was in a healthy healing state. Was the black 
colour of his blood at all connected with the fatal termination of the 
case ] He was in the highest condition at the time that the acci¬ 
dent happened. 
Answer. 
From the strength of the dose, and the history of the case, I am 
of opinion that the horse must have died from superpurgation. 
The croton oil contained in the physic would produce its pros¬ 
trating, if not poisonous, effects more readily from the circumstance 
of the pain in the leg having, in all probability, produced a consider¬ 
able degree of constitutional irritation, and probably actual inflam¬ 
mation of the lungs. The heaviness of breathing evidently indi¬ 
cated an affection of the lungs ; and I have no doubt that, if they 
had been cut into, they would have been found in a diseased state, 
probably indicating an approach to the tuberculous state, which in 
some instances comes on with great ra])idity, under such circum¬ 
stances. W. Dick. 
