BURSATIE. 
609 
soft, containing no fluid, formed deeply in the substance of 
the skin, at times disappearing by absorption; at others ul¬ 
cerating, accompanied by loss of substance, more or less 
extensive. Included under this head are elephantiasis, keloid, 
framboesia, cancer, epithelioma, rodent ulcer, and, I think, 
with propriety, we may also include bursatie. 
The preceding remarks I have laid as a foundation, and will 
now continue the subject by saying that the disease is not so 
common as is generally considered. By this I refer to horses 
in the better station of life; but, on the other hand, the 
disease is as common as possible and of a most virulent type 
among the horses in the lower station of life, particularly 
those used in the native hackney carriages, which consist 
chiefly of ponies. Simple sores and ulcers are of very common 
occurrence on the legs of horses, and should a sore, either 
from its shape or position, give some trouble in healing, it is 
often pronounced to be bursatie. This dread of bursatie is 
not so much to be wondered at, when we see that the affec¬ 
tion possesses many of the characters of malignancy. 
The clinical history of bursatie varies as occurring in 
different subjects. A case may present itself with solitary or 
multiple tubercules which at first are subcutaneous, and the 
skin covering them to all appearances healthy; but after a 
time a loss of hair takes place on the central part of the 
deposition (tubercles), which appears to have become irritable, 
and interfered with as to nutrition, and in consequence con¬ 
gested, swollen, and softened. At length the part ulcerates, 
which ultimately results in the formation of a large sore. 
The surface of the ulcer so formed presents a variable 
appearance ; it may be clean and pinkish, or of a brown 
or brick-red colour, exuding a discharge; or it may become 
scabbed. The loss of substance, as a rule, increases super¬ 
ficially ; very rarely deeply. One part of the sore may be 
healing whilst the other portion is in an ulcerative state. 
When this is the case the healing is usually attempted at the 
upper part of the sore, for the ulceration generally com¬ 
mences at the upper portion of the tumour first, and extends 
more rapidly in a downward direction over that part of the 
tumour which is constantly wetted with the acrimonious 
ichor exuded by the sore. The edges may be irregular, 
undermined, and everted, or inverted with more or less in¬ 
filtration of the textures beyond the circumferent margin of 
the sore. After a time more or less papillation takes place, 
which by increasing forms luxuriant growths, quite hard, 
and presenting a fungous cauliflower-like excrescence. The 
healing is accompanied by distinct and most prominent 
