FRACTURE OF THE J50NE OF THE FORE-ARM. 341 
carpian extremity, was larger than the interior one. It was of 
one entire piece through the whole of its length, and we might 
have considered the external part of the bone as perfect, if it had 
not been for its size. 
This species of fracture presented a fair chance of cure j and, 
the proprietor liking the horse, which he had lately bought, 
desired me to undertake the case. 
It is well known that the slings which are ordinarily em¬ 
ployed inconveniently compress the abdomen, and the result of 
this compression is difficulty of breathing, while in the male 
horse the discharge of urine is often difficult. In order to 
remedy these inconveniences, Verrier had contrived an appara¬ 
tus to support the hinder part of the horse, and to which he had 
given the name of breeches (calottes). This apparatus, very 
complicated, bulky and heavy, although useful in the hospital of 
a school where a professor may superintend the application of it, 
cannot find a place in the luggage of a military veterinarian, on 
account of its price, and the little room that is allotted to him. 
On different occasions that have presented themselves in the 
course of my practice, when I have been compelled to suspend 
^ a horse, I have endeavoured to supply the place of the aj^pa- 
ratus of Verrier by contrivances that produce the same result, 
and the means of which are at hand every where. 
I went to work in the following manner. I placed a sack, or a 
strong cloth doubled, under the chest, of a convenient length, 
and twenty inches wide; and a cord fixed to each extremity 
is fastened to the bars or horizontal rafters above. In order 
to support the hind part, F take two sacks used for oats; I 
put a little long straw into them ; then I fold them length-ways 
in the form of rollers, and attach a cord to each extremity ; I pass 
the sacks between the thighs, and I raise the extremities of 
each, the one towards the haunch, and the other towards the 
thigh : the cords are fixed to horizontal bars above, and I sepa- 
late the cords, or make them approach each other, as I need. 
In some cases it is necessary, on account of the tallness of the 
horse, to give a little more height to the bars, or, on account of 
his size, to bring the cords closer to each other. It was by 
means of a machine of this kind that the horse whose case I am 
now describing was suspended. 
As 1 have said, this kind of fracture is reduced with tolerable 
ease. Tlie bones being retained in their place by an assistant, 
I applied large pledgets, covered with pitch plaister, around the 
limb, particularly wdiere there were any hollows, in order to 
render tlie limb everywhere of nearly the same size. 1 then 
])lHced comj)iesses, and made the first turn with a bandage 
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