202 
GEORGE FLEMING. 
termined upon, it is advisable to make more or less deep incisions 
in the indurated portions, and apply the caustic agent to these, so 
as to reach the deeper-seated fungus nodules. Excision of a 
portion of the tongue may even be advantageously resorted to, if 
the animal is to be fed on soft food, with the intention of its being 
consigned to the butcher. 
When the actinomykomata are situated in the mouth or 
pharynx, they may be removed by the* knife, ecraseur, or even 
the lingers alone, the gag being employed to protect the hand and 
render the operation easier. Meyer, a veterinary surgeon at 
Neuhaus, in Germany, has, in the course of twelve years’ practice, 
operated in more than 300 cases of pharyngeal tumors, or so- 
called lymphomata. He only employed his hand, passing it 
into the pharynx, seizing the growth, and removing it by twisting, 
tearing and scraping with the linger nail. I am informed that 
Mr. Wyer, M.R.C.V.S., of Domington, Lincolnshire (where 
such tumors are frequent), has also been very successful in this 
operation. He had the animal thrown down, inserted a mouth 
dilator between the jaws, which were maintained as wide apart as 
possible; then, with a short-bladed knife he made a vertical in¬ 
cision through the soft palate, to allow more room for the- intro¬ 
duction of his hand into the pharynx, in order to tear away the 
tumors. The haemorrhage was never serious, and the only 
danger was the tumefaction which ensued in a few instances. 
In some cases, either before or after the operation, tracheotomy 
may be necessary to ensure success. 
The Sanitary Importance of A ctinomykosw. 
The sanitary importance of this disease is so far evident. It 
is proved that the microphyte which induces it, or which con¬ 
stitutes it, can be successfully transplanted from a diseased to a 
healthy animal, and produce all the serious and characteristic lesion 
which mark the natural malady. If artificial, or rather experi¬ 
mental, transmission can be easily and successfully accomplished, 
there can scarcely be any reason to deny the possibility of acci¬ 
dental transmission; and though at present there is no direct 
evidence of this having taken place, either in man or beast, yet 
