21 
As a haemostatic the virtues of cold require no commendation 
from me. In the treatment of fevers I believe if we could use the 
cold water bath as easily as they do in human practice, we would find 
it a valuable agent in reducing the temperature. Many of the symp¬ 
toms and therefore the dangers of fevers depend on the elevation of 
the temperature. A high temperature affects the organs in two ways; 
it first depresses or entirely abolishes their function, and in the second 
place it produces fatty or parenchymatous degeneration of all the tis¬ 
sues. This degeneration takes place especially in the liver, kidneys, 
heart, blood-vessels and voluntary muscles. To successfully combat 
these effects of high temperature, we must evidently lower or prevent 
the undue development of body heat. If we could use these baths 
early in fevers we might prevent the oncoming of these degenerative 
changes. By readily lowering the temperature we would reduce the 
frequency of the pulse, strengthen the heart’s action, and so avert the 
danger of failure of the heart and hypostatic congestion. At the same 
time it would improve digestion and assimilation, and thereby promote 
the general nutrition of the body. Cold applied to the back and loins is 
said to be of service in Spinal Meningitis, but I have never seen it 
used. Ice applied to the head in diseases of the brain is no doubt 
often of great service; I doubt very much whether young practitioners 
at least, fully appreciate the therapeutical effects of that remedy always 
at hand—cold water. They are too apt to want to use something with 
which the groom is unacquainted; they seem to fear that their qualifi¬ 
cations will be questioned if they recommend anything so simple as 
cold water. No doubt this will be the case sometimes, vet it should 
not deter us from making use of so cheap and efficient a remedy; 
there is hardly a local inflammation in which it cannot be used to good 
advantage. 
In many cases of slight lameness coming on without any known 
cause—where there is a slight elevation of temperature without any 
other pathological condition to be detected, the use of cold water for 
a few hours, or at most a few days time will effect a cure just as read¬ 
ily and permanently as blistering or the use of liniments; that it is 
more difficult to use in many cases in veterinary practice, than it is in 
the practice of human medicine, I admit, yet there are very many 
cases in which it could be used to advantage where it is now neglected 
for the use of something more easily applied but less efficient. 
Although I am not a Hydropath, still I believe the future will find 
water—both warm and cold, occupying a higher position upon the list 
of veterinary remedial agents than it occupies to-day. 
