182 
W. L. WILLIAMS. 
branes. Such a plan involves much time, labor, and patience, 
as the cow’s os is so firm that it can not be rapidly nor easily 
dilated, but the uterine walls having been so over distended 
lose their power and fail to accomplish the purpose sought, 
while the flaccidity and fluidity tend to rapid and intense 
infection, with death of the foetus and absorption of toxic sub¬ 
stances. 
Siphoning out the fluid after rupturing the membranes 
would doubtless aid in relieving the uterus and possibly aid it 
in contracting upon the foetus. After the foetus is properly se¬ 
cured by cords it would seem that the recumbent posture would 
be best for delivery, facilitating the exit of fluids and also the 
foetus from the paralyzed uterus. 
ASCITES IN A PREGNANT EWE. 
( 858 .) An aged Shropshire ewe at full term of pregnancy had 
for some weeks shown a progressive distention of the abdomen 
and for a few days prior to presentation at the clinic had 
shown inappetence, debility, and difficulty in progression, owing 
largely to the immoderate distension of the abdomen. Hydrops 
amnii was at first diagnosed and an effort made to relieve the 
difficulty by rupturing the supposedly affected membrane 
I 
through the os uteri, but the effort proving fruitless the pa¬ 
tient was destroyed, and the autopsy showed that the fluid 
had been intra-peritoneal. The peritoneal fluid was pale, 
slightly turbid, and contained numerous shred-like masses of 
dirty grayish lymph flocctiles. 
The intestines, mesentery, omentum, lungs, and liver were 
thickly infested with the degenerate capsules of the CEsopha^os- 
to7fia ColiL7nbia7iimi. It would appear that the unusual number 
of these caseated nodules in the liver were the probable cause 
of the ascites, as a result of their interference with the hepatic 
functions. 
The differential diagnosis between ascites and hydrops 
amnii in the pregnant ewe offers peculiar difficulties. The 
heavy abdominal tunic excludes abdominal taxis, the rectum is 
too small for safe exploration per anum, and the vagina fails to 
