]88 
MR. YOUATT’s veterinary LECTURES. 
column; but the morbid appearances, so far as they reached, 
seemed to involve the whole of the chord. Others have given 
different accounts. 
The Morbid Appearaiice of the Locomotive Columns. —M. 
Gelle, professor at the Veterinary School at Toulouse, gives a 
very interesting description of the expected different appearance 
of the different columns of the spinal marrow in a tetanic horse. 
It is recorded in the Recueil de Medecine Veterinaire, vol. vi, 
p. 246: Having exposed the whole length of the nervous sys¬ 
tem, the cerebro-spinal fluid appeared diminished in quantity, 
and of a red colour. The inferior column of the spinal chord, 
particularly on the left side, was softened, and its white sub¬ 
stance was pointed and mingled with blood. The gray substance 
was redder; the little points of blood were more numerous; and 
at intervals there were patches of blood. All the spinal marrow 
was to a certain degree softened, but less at the cervical than at 
the lumbar and sacral region, where it scarcely had any consist¬ 
ence, and was broken and torn by the slightest touch. The 
roots of the nerves which proceeded from the infeiior columns 
were of a yellowish red colour; they were easily broken and se¬ 
parated from the spinal chord, while the superior ganglionic roots 
did not appear to be in the slightest degree altered. This morbid 
state of the locomotive nerves was most of all marked at the 
lumbar and sacral regions. 
Appearance of the Spinal Chord, continued. —In the number 
for March 1830, of the same periodical, M. Gelle gives an ac¬ 
count of the post-mortem appearances in the spinal chord of 
another horse that died tetanic. The dura and pia mater were 
injected—the arachnoid membrane was healthy—the consistence 
of the spinal marrow was diminished—the softening was most 
evident in the gray substance, but it was equal on both the 
superior and inferior surfaces. The roots of the nerves were not 
softened on either surface; they possessed the character of health, 
except that the roots from the inferior surface were of a yellow 
nankeen tint, curiously contrasted with the roots from the supe¬ 
rior surface.” 
Contrary Opinions. —On the other hand, M. Vatel, another 
professor of the French school, says that, having had the oppor¬ 
tunity of examining ten horses which died tetanic, he observed 
lesions worthy of notice in the cerebro-spinal system of two of 
them only. 
lleflections. —Cases of tetanus do not occur to us every day in 
town practice, and the three last which I had terminated suc¬ 
cessfully; but in two others, after my attention had been directed 
to these different functions of the superior and inferior columns. 
