308 
DIVISION OF THE FLEXOR TENDONS. 
flesh, that he had purchased a horse to kill for the hounds, and 
that he was a good horse in every respect, except that he had a 
crooked near fore leg; and having heard from one of his neigh¬ 
bours, that he had seen a horse in a similar state operated upon, 
after which the animal was restored to a state of usefulness, he 
expressed a very anxious wish that I should examine him, to 
see if he was a fit subject for the operation. The horse was led 
out; when I found the flexor tendons much contracted, and the 
anterior part of the foot worn very thin, from his having gone a 
considerable time entirely on the toe; but although the frog had 
not touched the ground for years, I do not recollect ever seeing 
a wider foot at the heels. The horse was thrown ; and I then pro¬ 
ceeded to operate, by making an incision, about two inches in 
length, at the posterior part of the flexor tendons, a little below 
the insertion of the supporting ligament of the perforans tendon, or 
about one inch below the general seat of sprains; and, after 
clearing away the cellular membrane, taking care not to injure the 
important bloodvessels or nerves, I grasped the two tendons 
firmly with the finger and thumb, and at one cut with the probe- 
pointed bistoury, got them very easily divided; and,as no consider¬ 
able adhesions had formed, I returned the leg back to its original 
position without difficulty, applied a little lint to the wound, and 
bound all up with a linen bandage. When the horse was allowed 
to get up, which he did with the greatest ease, he had about 
a mile and a half to walk after the operation, which he did in 
a very superior manner to what he had done for some time. 
The parts were occasionally dressed with a little lint dipped 
in liriamentum terebinth.; and in the course of six weeks it healed 
kindly. He was put to cart-work on the road, such as leading 
stones out of a quarry, &c., at which he continued for twelve 
months. The owner about the end of that time sold him to the 
Union Canal Company ; and I understand from Mr. Brice, of 
Rutho, who sold him, that he worked in the service of the Com¬ 
pany for four or five years, during which time the leg that was 
operated on kept quite right. 
The second case, which I will describe, did not turn out so for¬ 
tunately, as the leg had been three or four times blistered, 
and very likely when in an inflamed state: besides, the bones 
were diseased; organized lymph was deposited round the sheaths 
of the tendons, and considerable adhesions had formed, so much so, 
that the bone and flexor tendons appeared one consolidated mass, 
and I was not able to distinguish f.he suspensory ligament from the 
tendons. The bone was right over on the pastern joint, and the 
foot looking me in the face. However, having been so very for¬ 
tunate with the former case, I did not despair in an operation. 
