SUPPOSED DEATH OF COWS PROM SPRAY OF BULLETS. 289 
This note was accompanied by a small parcel containing 
portions of the lead, &c., taken from the cow's stomach. 
Upon receipt of this, Captain Wratislaw called upon me, 
showed me the letter and parcel, and asked my opinion as to 
whether the lead was the cause of the death of the animal. 
I found the parcel to consist of numerous pieces of metallic 
lead, covered with a film of oxide, doubled into various 
shapes, a portion of a percussion cap, and a piece of iron, 
probably the remnant of a particular class of bullet. These 
were the facts upon which an opinion was asked, and the 
importance of the reply is of more importance than at first 
sight appears, inasmuch as legal proceedings for the recovery 
of the loss (although such is not at all likely to be the 
result in this case) would very much depend upon the 
opinion given by the veterinary surgeon. The question then 
arises, was the death of this animal caused by, or in any 
way attributable to, the lead found in the stomach ? With 
a view of making the matter as clear as possible, I went 
and inspected the pasture in the vicinity of the rifle butts, 
and found fragments of lead of different sizes, and what i3 
termed the spray from the bullets after striking the iron 
target, spread about in considerable quantities amongst the 
herbage for a distance of upwards of a hundred yards on 
either side of the target. In this field ten cows had been 
kept from the spring of the year until last November; since 
that time three had died, presenting symptoms similar to the 
one described. It is unfortunate that no professional exami¬ 
nation was made of the animal either before or after death; 
but from inquiries I ascertained that the animal in question 
was five years old, and had given birth to a dead calf about a 
month previous to her death. The person that opened the cow 
said,in addition to what is described in Mr.MullinsTetter,that 
the paunch (rumen) externally presented a peculiar indented 
and puckered-up appearance, quite different from any he 
had before seen ; and on cutting into it to discover the cause, 
he found in the lower end of the paunch the pieces of lead, 
(See., above described; he also noticed portions of lead at the 
bottom of the holes constituting the honeycomb stomach 
(reticulum). Such is the history of the case, and after 
careful consideration of the matter, I am inclined to attribute 
the death of the animal to the injurious effects of the lead. 
That the animal did not present the usual*, symptoms of 
acute lead poisoning, such as colic, paralysis, obstinate con¬ 
stipation of the bowels, &c., will be at once observed; but it 
must be borne in mind that the lead found in the stomach 
of the animal, although when in its metallic state is devoid 
