380 
ACCIDENTS TO HUNTERS. 
then fell down again. He became alarmed, and for the first 
time sought my assistance. I found the animal lying down 
in a state of comparative quietude, breathing natural, with a 
good pulse beating about 48 in the minute, and giving no 
evidence of anything serious being the matter with her, 
except the total loss of power in the hind extremities. It 
being evident that the back was the seat of injury, I ordered 
warm fomentations to the loins, gave a dose of laxative medi¬ 
cine, and made the animal as comfortable as possible. The 
mare fed well during the day on bran mash, &c., and appeared 
going on favorably at night, with the exception of a slight 
increase of the pulse. About three o’clock on the following 
morning, I was called up by the attendant, who said the mare 
was taken worse. I found her in a very restless and excited 
state, sweating profusely, pulse 120, breathing 40 in the 
minute. She continued in this state for about three hours, 
and then died. 
Upon making a post-mortem examination , I found a fracture 
of the upper arch of the body of the fourth lumbar vertebra, 
the spinous and lateral processes of the same bone being 
broken in several places ; also fracture of the spinous process 
of the third lumbar vertebra. The fractured portion of the 
body of the fourth lumbar vertebra was pressing upon the 
medulla spinalis, and its membranes, which were intensely 
inflamed, although not lacerated. 
On January 19 th, I860, a black horse, seven years old, the 
property of the Rev. Mr. Cator, when hunting with the 
North Warwickshire hounds, received a suddenly injury to 
the back while galloping across a field. He immediately dis¬ 
mounted, and sent his servant with him to our stables. The 
servant had considerable difficulty in leading him a distance 
of three miles, in consequence of the animal reeling about, 
and being in danger of falling. Upon putting the horse in 
the stable, he almost immediately laid down, and in a short 
time, with a little difficulty, got up again; but in about half 
an hour he laid down again, and from this time appeared to 
have lost all power in his hind extremities. Entertaining 
but little hopes of his recovery, the owner requested that he 
might be destroyed, rather than prolong the animal’s suffer¬ 
ings. He was therefore shot on the following day, and a 
post-mortem examination made, when I found a considerable 
bruise over the lumbar region, and, dissecting down, found 
that a separation had been produced between the sacrum 
and the last lumbar vertebra, the spinous process of which 
was broken. 
It is somewhat singular that these two animals should 
