REPORTS OF CASES. 
117 
iately followed by symptoms of choking. In an effort to relieve 
the choke the owner attempted to force the patient to swallow 
water by means of drenching with a bottle. 
The obstruction being firm all attempts at deglutition were 
necessarily ineffective and the liquid with chance pieces of solids 
must return to the pharynx to be expelled through the nose or 
mouth or be inhaled into the lungs. When presented, the ani¬ 
mal seemed much distressed, the general expression was one of 
anxiety, the respiration was hurried and shallow, the pulse weak 
and rapid. An effort was made to pass an ordinary leather pro¬ 
bang, while the animal was standing (secured in stocks), but it 
met with firm obstruction at the anterior part of the thorax, 
which with the resistance of the animal rendered the operation 
impracticable and unsafe. 
She was then placed upon the operating table with intent to 
anaesthetize, but when placed in lateral decubitis, water was seen 
to run from the nostrils, and surmising that the oesophagus was 
filled with liquid anaesthesia was discarded for fear of inhalation 
of regurgitated oesophageal contents. 
Opening the mouth widely with the incisor-tooth speculum, 
the probang was again passed down to the obstruction and by 
gentle pressure the obstacle gave way and finally was pushed 
into the stomach. The animal was returned to the stall and 
muzzled. There was a marked absence of the improvement 
which should be noted after relief from choking, the ex¬ 
pression was still haggard, the respiration shallow, rapid and 
painful. 
Jan. 6. Condition unchanged. Refused water in the morn¬ 
ing, drank about two liters in the evening. 
Jan. 7. Condition worse ; drank a little water ; breath very 
foetid ; pulse imperceptible ; respiration rapid and shallow ; 
temperature, 103.7 0 F. Inhalation pneumonia feared ; but an 
examination of the chest revealed no marked abnormal sounds. 
Sp. seth. nit. administered per anum. 
Jan. 8. Foetor of breath greatly increased ; dark red nasal 
discharge ; patient drank eight liters water ; no appetite for food. 
Tracheotomy was performed, and the trachea and bronchi 
flushed with normal salt solution, to which hydrogen peroxide 
was added. The patient died early in the evening. 
Jan. 9. Autopsy revealed : 1. A laceration in the oesopha¬ 
geal mucosa in the anterior mediastinal region, beginning 
approximately at the point of obstruction and extending toward 
the stomach a distance of 20 cm. The oesophageal tube was 
