DR. BUSTEED ON STRINGIIALT. 
291 
The doctor desires me to inform your readers the name of 
the English veterinary physiologist or anatomist who makes 
mention of the sulci in the astragalus being covered with 
cartilage, or who—with the exception of Mr. Gamgee— 
even mentions their existence. 
As I trust the doctor includes himself among your readers, 
I may, in addressing him in particular, excuse myself for 
thrusting this information upon them—if it can be worthily 
designated information—in asserting that no English veteri¬ 
nary surgeon ever made such a mistake as to describe the 
fosettes in the astragalus covered with cartilage. Without 
being in possession of such a formidable library as that of 
Dr. Busteed, or even pretending to possess more than some 
dozen and a half English and French veterinary authors, I 
am certain that this will be found correct. 
With regard to their existence ever being mentioned, I 
may only say, that had Dr. Busteed been tolerably con¬ 
versant with the contents of the volumes of the Veteri¬ 
narian since the commencement of that periodical—all of 
which he says he possesses—he could not have failed to re¬ 
member a controversy that took place some years ago between 
Professor Dick, of Edinburgh, and Mr. Spooner, of South¬ 
ampton, in which the latter gentleman maintained that 
these sulci were the result of disease, and give rise to occult 
hock lameness : certainly a much more pardonable mistake 
than that of Dr. Busteed. I need not refer your attentive 
readers to this controversy, but in it the doctor will find that 
these excavations or depressions are described by the re¬ 
spected professor as natural and healthy contrivances for 
aiding in the movements of that important articulation, and 
not a cause of morbid symptoms or impeded action—in 
short, that their presence and dimensions are indicative of 
really good and sound joints. 
So in this instance I miss the honour to which Dr. Busteed 
aspires—though not unwittingly—and I trust he will do me the 
credit of believing that I shall never make any pretensions to 
the title of “ discoverer 99 until I have at least done others the 
justice of making myself acquainted with their labours. 
Such, I believe, is the preliminary and proper course to 
pursue before attempting to lay claim to that honour. 
Perhaps other English veterinary authors besides Professor 
Dick mention these sulci. Certainly in all the modern 
French works they are described, and if there was any need 
to refer specially to one of these, I would name the f Nouveau 
Dictionnaire 5 of MM. Boully and Reynal, article “Articu¬ 
lations/' pp. 76, 77, and 82, as likely to satisfy the doctor, 
