250 
WARRANTY OF ANIMALS. 
ranty ; said he knew nothing about her lungs being diseased; 
he never said when she stood to calve; &c., &c., &c. The 
seller also held that the cow ought to have been put into 
livery, and ought not to have been slaughtered. 
A great number of witnesses were examined on both 
sides, and the evidence, as might be expected, was extremely- 
conflicting ! 
The Sheriff of Banffshire, in giving his decision, stated 
the chief points to be considered were these—namely, that 
the defender was aware that the pursuer wanted a healthy 
cow, a cow near her calving, and, of course, a cow to give 
milk. He, knowing this, offers his cow, and the pursuer, on 
his word, purchases her. The defender denies any know¬ 
ledge of the cow being diseased, and his denial is credited; 
but is the defender at all qualified to judge as to the healthi¬ 
ness of the cow? No! The sheriff does not expect him to 
be so; but the pursuer calls in a properly qualified veteri¬ 
nary surgeon, and his opinion is that the cow has been 
diseased for months, and the post-mortem examination con¬ 
firms his opinion. Then there is the default of six months 
as to the time of the cow’s calving, which is quite a serious 
matter in the case. The defender denies the propriety of 
pursuer’s slaughtering the cow, but the sheriff finds that a 
veterinary surgeon ordered her to be slaughtered. Finally, 
considering the whole circumstances and proof, the sheriff 
gives decree for full amount claimed and the expenses. 
I have merely given the outlines of these somewhat re¬ 
markable cases, and I leave it to the readers of the Veteri¬ 
narian to say whether they are not unique in their way! 
The chief point to be observed, in my opinion, is the 
entire want of any sort of warranty. In the case of the 
horse especially is this noticeably the circumstance promi¬ 
nently to be kept in mind. Hitherto, as I have already 
said, a written warranty has been a sine qua non in entering 
litigation on such subjects. Are written warranties to be 
dispensed with in future ? I should rather expect—not! 
ON “ INFLUENZA IN AMERICA.’* 
By M. P. Greene, M.R.C.Y.S., St. John’s, N.B., Canada. 
A malignant form of influenza, considered to be a new 
disease on this side of the Atlantic, broke out first in Toronto, 
Canada, on October 1st, 1872. It extended to other Cana- 
