524 
ON THE DRACONCULE OF LAMBS. 
looking lambs which appeared to have but a day or two to live, 
and administered to them in the morning, before they were 
driven to pasture, a spoonful of this mixture. I awaited the re¬ 
sult with impatience. Towards the evening of the same day, the 
shepherd told me that these lambs, which had scarcely eaten any 
thing on the precedingday, and had with difficulty kept up with 
the flock, had not only eaten with great avidity, but were re¬ 
turned quite filled out. 
Inspection of them confirmed what he advanced. These ani¬ 
mals, before totally emaciated, were so full that I feared I had 
given them too much; but as they were well on the next day, 
I gave them another dose, and another on the following day. 
Encouraged by this success, I administered my remedy to all 
the diseased lambs (which were about a hundred and twenty), 
and a few days afterwards I gave it to four hundred more, of 
which the flock was composed,for they were all far from being in 
a healthy state. 
On all the lambs the effect of the medicine was to produce a 
very great appetite the first day, and the most emaciated w'ere 
entirely re-established in a few days. At the end of two months 
all my remaining lambs were in good health; and during that 
time only four of them died, and those not absolutely from the 
disease itself, but probably from its consequences, because it had 
made fatal ravages on some of the vital parts. Thus, in future, 
I shall not hesitate to give my flock spirit of turpentine whenever 
they appear dull or do not eat well. 
Since that time I have seen the sheep in a neighbouring farm 
attacked by the same disease, and in a deplorable state. The 
owner told me that he was resolved to slaughter all those that 
were sick before the usual time for fattening them, because he 
had no hope of curing them, and there was a great scarcity of 
fodder. I recommended him to try my remedy, which he did 
the next day, and it produced the same effects which it had 
with me. 
My opinion of this disease now is, that the presence of the 
draconcules in the intestines of lambs, like that of ascarides in 
children, should be regarded as an usual and natural circum¬ 
stance ; but that their multiplication, the cause of which is not 
sufficiently known, ought to be regarded (sit veuia verbo ) as the 
disease of the infancy of sheep ; that the cough and diarrhoea 
should not be considered as separate and occasional maladies, but 
as accompanying this; that loss of appetite, emaciation, and fre¬ 
quently death, are the inevitable consequences, and that spirit of 
turpentine ij^lthe specific remedy. 
Howevei^pvident the success of this medicine may have been 
with me, iffis not certain that it will be always aud everywhere 
