122 
REPORTS OF CASES. 
tire so easily. For three or four days prior to my visit it had 
worked hard, the same as the other mules, owing to a shortage 
caused by the death of one of its fellows a few days before. I 
always remember the advice of Josh Billings in regard to how 
to approach the genus asinus, and more especially the coal shaft 
variety ; so sometimes I don’t give them a real scientific exam¬ 
ination. Acting upon the supposition that the few hard days’ 
work had exhausted him (there being no special symptoms to 
the contrary), I gave him a full dose of fluid extract of nux 
vomica, and left. All the afternoon he improved, and seemed 
to be getting all right again ; so I heard nothing more until 
next morning, when they called me to come and see him again. 
I arrived just in time to see him kick for the last time. (This 
phrase has far more meaning when applied to a shaft mule.) 
For some time the mules had been fed on shredded corn 
fodder, baled, instead of hay. The moisture in the pit soon 
caused it to heat and consequently mould, rendering it unfit for 
food. When asked to what I attributed the peculiar death, I 
replied that from the mule’s history there was some internal 
lesion of long standing that could not be detected from the out¬ 
side. Also, that the mouldy corn fodder was in part to blame. 
The post-mortem revealed pleural adhesions on the right 
side, and the left kidney was completely destroyed, functionally, 
it being simply a mass of broken down, pulpy, kidney tissue. 
The mule that had died a few days previous to this one was 
all right when fed at night, and dead in the morning. I had 
no opportunity of holding a post-mortem on it. 
An immediate change of feed was ordered, and there has 
been no more sick mules. 
DERMOID CYSTS. 
By C. J. Muevey, D. V. S., Mooers, N. Y. 
The case I describe was brought to my office some months 
ago, and as I have never heard of or seen any such described 
or reported have intended giving an account of it, but it has 
passed until now, and I trust it may be of interest. 
There was a small enlargement of irregular shape, but “ V ” 
shaped as near as could be described, situated on the left side 
of the neck a few inches anterior to that occupied by the collar. 
On examination it was movable, just beneath the skin, and 
seemed like those growths or accumulations often found similar 
to this, but the absence of any cicatrix, the statement of the 
owner that it had not increased in size since he owned her 
