VETERINARY OBSTETRICS. 
443 
professional readers , as to delude the ignorant, by attempting to 
prove that no special danger accompanies difficult parturition 
in the mare . 
But as the subject is not only interesting, but very impor¬ 
tant, and is worth more consideration than it has as yet 
received, I trust to see many of the older members of our 
profession come forward and give us the results of their long 
experience in such cases. 
Although my paper was written partly to defend a pro¬ 
fessional brother from what I considered a most unwarrant¬ 
able attack—as Mr. Galley’s paper in your November number 
certainly appears to me to be—I am glad to bear my testimony 
to the statement in your leader on 44 Veterinary Obstetrics/’ 
viz., “that there are many who are experts in the treatment 
of such cases, and whose knowledge is founded on the 
scientific and practical information they obtained during their 
pupilage.” I know of no subject more fully explained, or 
more forcibly expressed, during my attendance at College 
than that of 44 parturition,” by Professor Simonds. On re¬ 
ference to my note-book, now before me—and which 1 have 
frequently referred to before with advantage—I see I have 
not less than six folio pages of notes taken down from those 
very valuable lectures, as well as a rough sketch of several 
very useful instruments recommended by the professor; as 
also Skillet’s work on 4 Parturition,’ which contains many plain 
but valuable practical suggestions in these cases. It was prin¬ 
cipally in consequence of these lectures which compelled 
me to state that I could not subscribe to the statement of 
your 44 Bolton Correspondent,” that, as a profession, we are 
44 worst up : ’ on obstetric surgery. 
I believe the three reasons given by Mr. Lawson are the 
principal causes why we fail to give relief as often as we 
otherwise should do. 
There is, however, to my mind, one other cause, even more 
important than any he has advanced, as affecting our equine 
patients, and one over which we have little or no control, 
viz., the violence of the throes and the great excitability of 
most mares in difficult parturition. 
Another consideration of importance to the surgeon in 
his prognosis of the case is the fact, that the most excitable 
temperaments are nearly always the most violent, and their 
expulsion pains the most difficult to overcome. The chances 
of success in difficult cases of parturition in the mare, as 
compared with similar cases, as seen in our docile patient 
44 Crummie,” is as twenty to one in favour of the cow. We 
