66 DEATH OF HORSES FROM OATS AFFECTED WITH FUNGI. 
to in my last, by tomorrow’s post. I have also directed that some of 
the oats be sent, and they will leave here, per Great Northern Railway, to¬ 
morrow. 
I am, sir, &c., 
(Signed) John Mitchell. 
Two bushels of the oats duly arrived, and also a detailed 
account of the cases to the following effect— 
July 22.—This afternoonMr. Dray,M.R.C.V.S., of this town, was requested 
to attend a gray pony, at the stables of Mr. Wm. Ingham, tanner, Armley, 
near Leeds. On his arrival, he found the pony down and unable to rise, 
and evidently 4i in articulo mortis in fact, the auimal died soon afterwards. 
The only symptoms observed by those who saw the pony previous to Mr. 
Dray, were a staggering gait, and laboured respiration. Mr. Dray from 
noticing a very blanched condition of the mucous membranes, concluded that 
death was probably caused from internal haemorrhage, and he made no post¬ 
mortem examination. 
July 24.—On the groom visiting the stable, at three o’clock this morn¬ 
ing, he was surprised to find a valuable thorough-bred hunter (which 
to all appearance-was in perfect health on the previous night), down, and 
unable to rise. Mr. Drav was immediately sent for, and attended forth¬ 
with. He observed the following symptoms :-*-The horse still down. Pulse, 
58, and full; mucous membranes slightly injected, and breathing laborious. 
The muscles also of the loins and hinder extremities were partially para¬ 
lyzed, and the tongue was hanging from the mouth. The groom accom¬ 
panied Mr. Dray to his residence, for some medicine, but on his return to 
the stable, as the horse was evidently dying, the medicine was administered. 
He died at eight o’clock, a.m. 
At two p.m., this same day, a brown mare, which the groom had ridden 
when going for Mr. Dray, and which was ridden by that gentleman to 
Armley, and remarked upon by him as being fresh and eager for going, 
was found down in her dox. Mr. Ingham immediately started for Mr. 
Dray, but as he was from home, Mr. Cuthbert, and myself, were desired to 
attend. We arrived at three p.m., and found the mare standing; pulse 55, 
and full; conjunctival and Schneiderian membranes slightly injected: respi¬ 
ration laboured, and extremities warm. In fact, there was nothing to lead 
us to suppose that she was in danger. Some oleaginous-purgative medicine, 
which had been intended for the thorough-bred horse had already been given, 
and some further medicine was ordered by us. We then left her to make a 
post-mortem examination of the horse, the abdomen of which had al¬ 
ready been opened, and the intestines removed. The external appearances 
presented were quite in accordance with perfect health; but on cutting 
open the stomach, the villous portion of the mucous membrane was found 
to be highly inflamed, and easily removeable from its attachment to the 
muscular coat. On opening the small intestines, the lining membrane was 
found still further inflamed, and in some places seemingly to be entirely gone. 
The liver and lungs were much congested. The stomach and intestines of 
the gray pony, which were in the course of being buried, were next exhumed, 
and presented exactly similar appearances. 
Our attention was now directed to the food, and which we found to con¬ 
sist principally of oats, that had been in stock for some weeks, and upon 
which the animals had been regularly fed up to this date. Some bean- 
meal and bran also, both of which had been purchased on the day before the 
pony died, had been used for the first time on the evening previous. 
The oats, which were foreign ones, consisted originally of twelve quarters 
