318 
REPLIES, BY MR. C. DICKINS. 
» 
farmers think produce it; but I should consider blain rather ail 
efFeet than a disease. 
Inflammatory fever not very frequent; the general causes 
I have found to be either over-driving, or from having been put 
into luxurious pasture. Treatment, bleeding and Epsom salts; 
sometimes using the digitalis. 
Dropping after calving .—In this disease I have pursued the 
following treatment with great success: venesection, if the ani¬ 
mal is in a state to bear it; then one drachm of calomel in thick 
gruel; and after the inflammatory action is over, I administer 
myrrh in ounce doses, which I prefer to all other tonics in this 
disease, considering it has a peculiar action on the uterus, giving 
a tone to the organ, and at the same time, by its antiseptic 
quality, prevents the putrefactive process from going on. There 
is another fatality that often proves a subject of great loss and 
vexation to the grazier, but which, although well deserving our 
attention, I believe has never been taken up by the professional 
man; viz. that of abortion a short time previous to the ap¬ 
pointed time of calving. What is the cause? Does it arise 
from some vegetable matter acting too strongly on the uterus? 
it being a fact that some fields will generally produce it: if 
this be the case, w T e require the assistance of our botanical 
brethren to find out what the plant is, and by that means get 
rid of the cause. Secondly, it is well known that if one cow 
slips, and is turned amongst others, let the situation be where it 
will, there are generally others follow, as if it was owing to 
some contagious effluvia issuing from the parts after abortion. 
The best preventive I have found to be bleeding. 
Diarrhoea .—This disease has been very prevalent in this 
neighbourhood this spring, and I have been tolerably successful 
in the treatment of it. I at first administered the various 
astringents, as creta, kino, opium, considering it to be a 
disease of the exhalent vessels or mucous coat of the intestines; 
but, much to my disappointment, I found little or no good 
effect from them, which led me to consider the liver as the 
organ primarily affected, secreting an unhealthy bile, and 
thereby producing a disordered action through the whole in¬ 
testinal canal, as an effort of nature to throw something off* 
offensive to the system. I therefore administered one drachm 
each of calomel and opium in some good thick gruel, which I 
consider of the greatest importance, acting as a sheath to the 
intestines, already under a state of excitement. I repeat this 
according to the size of the animal, and the violence of the 
disease; but I have rarely had to continue the dose more than 
