DISEASE OF OSSEOUS TISSUE IN THE HORSE. 499 
to watch the progress of the disease. To this request 
Mr. Champion made no objection; and the brown horse was 
forthwith forwarded to us by rail. It was not our intention 
to carry out any particular mode of treatment, as from the in¬ 
vestigation we had made of the bones of the last horse that died, 
and having likewise deliberately thought over the nature of the 
affection, we were of opinion that the disease was incurable. 
This horse was admitted into the College Infirmary about 
the middle of December, and was kept until the 28th of the 
same month, when it was thought advisable to have him 
destroyed. I wrote to the owner, informing him of the 
course we were about to take, and at the same time I 
asked him to send the chestnut horse to the College for the 
same purpose. To which I received the following reply. 
Calcot, Reading ; December, 1859. 
Dear Sir, —You can do just what you think expedient with the brown 
horse. I think there can be no doubt of the incurable nature of this strange 
disease, both in him and the chestnut horse, which I will send to the Great 
Western Railway Station at Paddington on Wednesday morning. 
I trust you will be able to throw some light on the cause of this most unfor¬ 
tunate malady. The chestnut horse is now worse than when you saw him; 
the head has increased in size the last few weeks, and the disease has been 
longer developed in him, without becoming fatal, than in any of the other 
horses. 
The two horses are not related either through their sires or dams. 
I remain, dear Sir, yours truly, 
W. W. Champion. 
G. Varnell, Esq. 
The horse was accordingly sent, and both the horses were 
destroyed on the same day. When the brown horse first reached 
the College, he was freer from defective action than I expected 
to find him; nevertheless, the motion of his limbs was very 
imperfect, particularly the off hind one, and it was evident he 
could not progress without great pain. He manifested a de¬ 
sire to eat, but in consequence of the diseased state of the 
maxillary bones he could only take sloppy food. The symp¬ 
toms rapidly increased in intensity, until the bones of his face 
became so much enlarged that he could scarcely move his 
tongue; the joints of the affected limbs also became much 
larger, the heat and tenderness increased, and when he laid 
down he could not rise again without help. The pulse, 
however, was but little increased, and his desire for food con¬ 
tinued to the last. 
The chestnut horse, on his arrival at Paddington station, 
was unable to walk from the horse-box, in which he was 
brought, to the van we had sent to bring him to the College. 
On his attempting to do so, his fore legs gave way at the 
