94 DISEASE AMONG THE EAST-LOTHIAN FOXHOUNDS. 
inevitable death of the hound that was sent to the New Vete¬ 
rinary College for examination.^’ Though the post-mortem 
condition shows v/hat ultimately was the cause of death, we 
are not thereby made acquainted with the first cause, viz., 
which gave rise to the cholera.” The viscera of the hound 
examined were sent to Dr. S. Macadam, who tested analyti¬ 
cally for various poisons, but failed to discover any.” Mr. 
Gamgee continues, For the satisfaction of the honorable 
baronet, the master of the hounds, and the members of the 
hunt, it were most desirable to clear up the mystery, yet we 
have reached no farther than conjecture leads toand he 
concludes his paper in these words, I am disposed to think 
that no poison, beyondprohahly some unobserved condition of the 
food, existed [the italics are not Mr. Gamgee’s]; then as to the 
non-hunted hounds escaping, this might also be accounted 
for, on the basis of conjecture, by the worked hounds on a warm 
day being more susceptible to derangements from any substance 
eaten, if in anyway imperfect'^ italics are not Mr. Gamgee’s]. 
Drinking cold water,” Mr. Gamgee adds, one can hardly 
look on as a cause, since all hounds plunge into water to 
quench their thirst, and we have no knowledge of a similar 
occurrence at any former time taking place* ^ The last assertion 
is Mr. Gamgeds oivn. 
The preceding are the chief outlines in the meagre and 
imperfect account which Mr. Gamgee drew up; and he con¬ 
tents himself with having described the case, so that should 
anything hereafter be learned or suggested, the whole may 
be reconsidered.” His account is remarkable that it con¬ 
tains suggestive passages, which I have placed in italics, that 
the most ordinary inquirer would have turned to good account, 
but which have passed through his mind as water in a sieve. 
The account is at the same time singularly incorrect regarding 
a very important point, when he assumes and asserts as a 
fact, that wd have no knowledge of a similar occurrence at any 
former time having taken placef seeing he could have been 
informed that the very reverse was the case, if he had made 
the necessary inquiry n the proper quarter. He also dis¬ 
misses, without comment or reflection, placing the circum¬ 
stance among the surrounding difficulties mystifying the case 
to him, that more than one-third of the pack which remained 
in the kennel and were not hunted on the Saturday, and 
‘^had been fed off the same food, and out of the same troughs 
with the hunted dogs, were unaffected,” while all the latter 
were seized within twenty hours after feeding. It does not 
therefore seem surprising that Mr. Gamgee’s professional 
visit should have proved unsatisfactory, and that, further 
