81 
“ DYER’S VESICANT.” 
Letter from Professor Walley, Principal of the Edinburgh 
Veterinary College. 
Edinbukgh; 
January 15 th, 1879. 
Gentlemen, —I suppose few of my professional brethren 
who have read the communications which have recently 
appeared in the Veterinarian , from the pen of Mr. Dyer, 
have finished their perusal without a feeling of regret and, 
to some extent, degradation taking possession of their minds; 
at least, such has been the case with myself. That there 
are men in our profession who for the sake of gain will 
condescend to the lowest practices, and who reck not of the 
agony and suffering inflicted on the brute creation so long 
as they can accomplish their selfish purposes is undeniable ; 
but the wisdom of exposing the gaping and festering wounds 
under which our noble profession groans to the gaze of 
interested and unscrupulous critics is questionable. 
There are other and more constitutional methods of bring¬ 
ing the mal-conduct of its members before the profession 
than these. 
Into the question of the value of firing as a remedial 
agent I do not intend to enter further than to express the 
opinion based on a long aquaintance with its effects—that 
no remedy which the veterinary surgeon possesses is so 
powerful for the relief of suffering, when properly and 
judiciously employed, as the actual cautery. In the sister 
profession this truth is beginning to be fully recognised, as 
proved by the fact of a very extended use of the cautery by 
many surgeons within the last two or three years. That any 
question as to the use of chloroform—where horses are cast 
either when firing or any other severe operation is to be 
performed,—should have arisen in the present day has more 
than astonished me. 
I should not, directly, have taken any notice of this 
matter had not a copy of the Irish Sportsman been for¬ 
warded to me a few days ago containing the enclosed adver¬ 
tisement in reference to—“ Dyer’s Vesicant ”—“ Firing 
done away with”—which you can publish with this letter 
or not, and as to the signification of which I leave my 
professional brethren to form their own opinion. 
I am, &c. 
To the Editors of the ‘ Veterinarian * 
