64 
ROSCOE BELL. 
sound. There are many pathological lesions and structural 
changes found upon the legs of horses which will not inter¬ 
fere with their action, and it is just here that judgment, rea¬ 
son and experience will stand us in well. It would be unjust 
to condemn horses for defects which we know will not inter- 
' fere with their usefulness, or their perfect performance of the 
work exacted of them. 
First we will examine the front legs, and in doing so we 
will not be hasty. We will observe his general mode of stand¬ 
ing ; whether his legs are on a plumb-line, in advance of it, or 
behind it; if too wide apart; or the elbows abducted. At the 
scapulo-humeral articulation we would look for traces of se- 
tons or blisters, giving us the history of a past lameness ; and 
while examining here the hand drawn over the spinatus fossa 
and shoulder joint would discover small tumors from collar- 
pressure. Possibly we have an atrophy of the muscles of this 
section, or malformations in the scapular region. The arm 
will very seldom be found the seat of disease ; but at the point 
of the elbow we find cysts or neoplasms, which are unsightly 
if not unsound. 
Arriving now at the forearm and knee joint, we scrutinize 
more closely to reinforce the opinion formed while viewing 
him from the side, and are careful to note if there is a ten¬ 
dency to weak knees, if not absolutely “ sprung/’ and while 
manipulating this region we may find on the inside of the car¬ 
pal joint an osseous or fibrous thickening, reminding us that 
at. some time the animal has inflicted speedy cuts or blows, 
and storing this point away we are careful to note his manner 
of traveling to see if he has overcome that interference. 
Around the front of the knee the hand may feel a cicatrix 
from broken knee, telling us how, at some time, he had fallen 
upon them, but not necessarily denoting that he is a stumbler. 
We will find here, too, enlarged bursea, constituting a carpal 
thoroughpin. We have now descended to the digital region, 
and along the metacarpals we find splents, which are un¬ 
soundnesses in some cases, calling into functional activity the 
examiner’s judgment and knowledge. At the back of this re¬ 
gion we find the important tendons which bear the whole 
