ON THE DISEASES OF THE HEART. 
125 
Treatment.—^leedingf even in an early stage, seemed here 
also to be injurious, and increased the debility. Physic was 
given, mild and nutritious food, gruel, cordials; deep incisions 
were made into the tumours, and the cautery applied stimulating 
frictions were used, but all were of little avail. 
Summary of the Nature and Treatment. —I have narrated 
these cases at considerable length, in order to give you some 
idea of the nature of this disease, and because, with the excep¬ 
tion of a short but very excellent account of the malignant epi¬ 
demic in the last edition of Mr. Blaine’s Veterinary Outlines, 
you will not find any satisfactory history of it in the writings of 
our English veterinarians. It is evidently a disease of the mu¬ 
cous membranes, both the respiratory and digestive. It is ac¬ 
companied by early and great debility,—loss of all vital power, 
—vitiation of every secretion,—effusions and tumours every 
where, and it runs its course with fearful rapidity. If you 
saw it at its very onset, you would bleed ; but if a few hours only 
had elapsed, you would find, with MM. Brugnoneand Gilbert, 
that venesection would only hasten the catastrophe. You would 
administer stimulants mingled with opium,—the spirit of nitrous 
ether in doses of three or four ounces, with an ounce or more 
of laudanum. The quantity of opium would be regulated by 
the spasms and the diarrhoea. These medicines would be re¬ 
peated in a few hours, combined, perhaps, with ginger and gentian. 
If these failed, I know not what you could do. Deep incisions 
into the tumours, or blisters over them, would be proper measures; 
but perhaps your principal attention would be directed to the 
arresting of the contagion. The infected would be immediately 
removed from the healthy. All offensive matter would be care¬ 
fully cleared away, and no small portion of chloride of lime would 
be used in washing the animal, and particularly his ulcers; it 
might with great propriety be administered internally, while the 
stable and every thing that belonged to the patient would under¬ 
go a careful ablution with the same powerful disinfectant. 
ON THE DISEASES OF THE HEART. 
By Mr. Pritchard, V.S., Wolverhampton. 
No. III. 
Hydrops Fericardii. 
The subject of this case was a large heavy carriage-horse, 
seventeen hands high, six years old, employed in slow draught 
by Messrs. Shipton and Co., canal carriers, of this town. On 
