PARASITIC DISEASE IN HORSES. 
203 
In the specimens forwarded to me, and mentioned in the pre¬ 
ceding letter, there were a great many parasites, while on the 
surface of the mucous membrane of the intestines indica¬ 
tions were present of a still larger number having existed, 
and which, I have no doubt, had escaped by the removal of 
the ingesta when the bowel was laid open. 
The indications just alluded to, consisted of numerous 
small reddish-brown spots, having an appearance as if fine 
bran had been strewed over the surface of the membrane. 
These spots, upon closer examination, appeared to have been 
produced by the entozoa having been attached to the mem¬ 
brane for the purpose of obtaining nourishment at the 
expense of the animal organism; at least, I cannot in any 
other way account for their presence. They were evidently 
minute blood spots. 
The abscesses mentioned by Mr. Littler—of which there 
were several in the portions of intestine I received—were situ¬ 
ated in the submucous tissue. They varied in size from a 
hazel nut to that of a walnut. Each contained some pus 
of a soft and cheese-like consistence, and in some of them 
one or two strongyles were found, but in others I was not 
able to detect any worms, either of this or any other variety. 
In the immediate vicinity of these abscesses I noticed, how¬ 
ever, several strongyles imbedded in the submucous areolar 
tissue, as though they had wandered from their original 
abode. With reference to the portion of the wall of the 
abdomen, many strongyles were found beneath its peritoneal 
lining. They varied very much in size. Some were large, 
and others quite small; and on examining the free surface of 
the membrane, I noticed several small pin holes, as though 
these creatures had bored their way through it, which is, 
I suppose, very probable. 
The mesenteric artery also contained a large quantity of 
strongyles. This, however, is by no means a rare occurrence ; 
indeed, it is a circumstance so frequently met with in the dis¬ 
secting room of the College, especially in emaciated animals, 
that very little notice is frequently taken of it. Nevertheless, 
it is a fact which I feel has not been so fully appreciated by 
the pathologist as it should be in his endeavours to account 
for certain phenomena in connection with entozoa and the 
effects they are capable of producing. 
Mr. Littler thinks that when parasites exist in the interior 
of an animal in large quantities, there are symptoms which 
strongly indicate their presence. This, no doubt, is quite true 
with some varieties, and some practitioners may infer that 
