I 
THE COLLEGE VETERINARY PHARMACOPEIA. 507 
There is some mystery here too deep for my obtuse faculties. 1 
have had one diuretic ball, although not a very good one, and one 
that contained a drug that is becoming more and more a favourite 
with me, and that finds a place in every fever ball of mine—nitre. 
1 thought that I should have nothing more to do, if I retained 
this ball, than to apportion its size to that of the horse and the 
nature of the complaint, when I wished to produce a diuretic 
effect in fever. I look a little lower down, and I see nitre staring 
me in the face again as a febrifuge, and I well know a good one. 
Perhaps while I have been finding grievous fault with the chemis¬ 
try of others, I may be a mere tyro myself. There may be some 
inj urious decomposition effected by the union of the nitre and the 
resin of which I am ignorant. I am, indeed, ignorant of it; and 
until I am better taught, I shall beg leave to strike out this 
“fever ball (diuretic ),”—a strange description, by the bye—and 
give, when a diuretic seems to be indicated in febrile cases, a 
little resin and nitre, but made into a mass with turpentine or 
treacle, and not with soap * or rather, I should continue the use of 
the fever ball, which will, generally speaking, render the diuretic 
unnecessary. 
Fever Ball. 
Nitrate of potash.. one ounce 
Camphor and emetic tartar....each two drachms 
Make into a ball with treacle. 
Two of the ingredients are excellent for the purpose designed. 
The nitre and the tartarized antimony are old favourites with me; 
and if, instead of the camphor of very equivocal efficacy, I may 
be permitted to give white hellebore or digitalis, I cannot have 
more likely agents to accomplish my purpose. Then, however, 
I a little demur to the quantity. An ounce of nitre, to be repeated 
twice or thrice in the day, is an over dose; I have seen nausea to 
excess, and even inflammation of the intestinal canal, produced 
by it. Let me alter the ounce to three drachms, and substitute 
hellebore or digitalis, in doses from half a scruple to a scruple of 
the former, or one drachm to two of the latter, and I will “ ap¬ 
plaud” this formula “ to the very echo that shall applaud again.” 
There is one singular circumstance, however, about this fever 
ball. The formula stands in the pharmacopoeia, but I do not re¬ 
collect seeing a single ball of this description given during the 
whole time that I was at the college. Indeed, 1 will almost ven¬ 
ture to say, that there was not one given. If the case should be 
altered now, and this very useful compound adopted in the col¬ 
lege practice as well as pharmacopoeia, I am heartily glad. It 
may, however, be only the occasional formula of the sale fevex 
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