124 
A CASE OF PUERPERAL FEVER. 
about 75 in a minute. They had bled her previous to my arrival; 
but notwithstanding that, 1 considered the abstraction of more 
blood necessary, and consequently bled till the heart’s first falter. 
I then placed a fresh warm sheep-skin over the loins, ordered 
the udder to be well drawn, and the cow well bedded down. 
Prior to my leaving, the servant came into the house, and informed 
us that the cow was standing, and that she had rubbed out the 
pin from her neck. I immediately repaired to the cow-house, 
and fastened her neck again. The heaving at the flanks had 
considerably subsided, and the cow once more lay down. The me¬ 
dicine had not operated; therefore I requested that a servant might 
be sent with me for some more, and promised that I would attend 
in the morning. I sent the following powders, one of them to 
be given every five or six hours, in warm gruel, until the bowels 
were opened :—Magnes. sulphat. Ibss., sem. caruietpulv. zingib. 
aa. 5 ij, croton farinae 5 ss. 
Wth .—On my arrival, I found her considerably worse. I 
inquired if they had given the medicine, and was answered in 
the negative; but they had given her, according to the recipe of 
some old farmer who was kind enough to interfere, the following 
drink, which was what he always gave to his own cows in 
such cases: viz. ol. ricini a pint, and Castile soap and nitre of 
each three ounces. I wished that he and his prescription had 
been fifty miles distant at the time, for the nitre had reproduced 
the inflammation in a tenfold degree. The cow was stretched 
at full length, sweating and heaving tremendously at the flanks ; 
a flood of tears trickling over her cheeks, the sight of both eyes was 
nearly gone, and the secretion of milk almost suspended. I told 
the owner that death was near at hand; and so it turned out: 
she died about J p.m. 
Post-mortem Appearances five Hours after Death ,—The vessels 
of the brain were slightly injected ; the heart very pale ; the lungs 
turgid with blood, and the right lobe was nearly black. The 
contents of the maniplus were nearly dry, and very hard ; the 
omentum inflamed ; the small intestines inflamed in stripes ; the 
liver pale; the kidneys considerably bleached, with patches of a 
bright crimson colour in various parts ; the bladder partially full, 
and highly inflamed, as well as the ureters; and the uterus in¬ 
flamed in patches. The spinal cord I was prevented from ex¬ 
amining, on account of business which demanded my attention 
in another quarter. Should you deem this case, Mr. Editor, 
worthy a page in The Veterinarian,! should feel obliged by 
your inserting it, as well as by your opinion of the farmer’s dose; 
and if you attribute the inflammation in the ureters and bladder, 
as well as the inflamed and bleached appearance of the kidneys, 
to the extravagant quantity of nitre and soap administered. 
