editorial. 
871 
EUROPEAN CHRONICLES. 
The “ Horse Sickness ” of South Africa is a disease 
w ich seems so far unknown in Europe, but causes much trouble 
among horses in South Africa, and has proved such a precious 
assistant to the Boers at the beginning of the war in the Trans¬ 
vaal It has been the subject of much study, not only from 
gentlemen now at the seat of war, but also from European vet¬ 
erinarians, and among the first Prof. Nocard. At a recent 
meeting of the Societe Centrale he contributed a communica¬ 
tion, from which we make the following extracts: “ Horse sick¬ 
ness has not only an interest of actuality, but also a great one 
rom the scientific point of view. Raging during summer, it 
attacks almost all horses recently imported, and kills most of 
them ; those that recover are called ‘salted,’ and have a great 
value, being immunized against another attack. 
' Itseems t0 be a special disease of solipeds, but while it is 
always fatal to horses, donkeys almost always resist it, and in 
mules more than half recover. Other species seem refractory to 
it, although sheep, goats and bovines have been inoculated with 
it. The first symptoms appear eight or nine days after infection 
by progressive hyperthermia, with nightly remissions; this 
symptom often escapes attention. When the horse is recog¬ 
nized as ailing, death is already near ; it is sometimes so rapid 
that there is scarcely time to see that he is sick ; during several 
hours there are serious disturbances in the respiration, anxiety 
deep prostration ; then a foaming, whitish or rosy discharge, and 
sudden death. This is the dunpaardziete of the Boers. In 
another form, less rapid, the dikkopziete , death is preceded'by a 
more or less large oedema of the head and neck, the other troubles 
appearing later. 
“ At the Post-mortem there is serosity in the pericardium, in 
the cellular tissue of the lungs, under the pleura, in that of the 
head and neck in the slow form. 
“ The disease is easily inoculated, and although it is almost 
always fatal to all imported horses, it is very easy to protect 
them from it. All that is necessary is to bring them indoors in 
