i^^^^^^^ s MMM ^ & •» ? ; & I 5 ! y- -Jn ISJ »«'9»<9«4»«» K<:*^ 7x U-^^ X y^TH^ ^S?^//"^ Z*^ Mmmu I YOUATT'S HISTORY, TREATMENT, AND DISEASES OF THE HORSE: EMBRACING AX ACCOUNT OF HIS INTRODUCTION AND USE IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES; GENERAL MANAGEMENT UNDER ALL PECULIAR CIRCUMSTANCES; AN ABSTRACT OF THE BEST VETERINARY PRACTICE; USEFUL MEDICINAL AND OTHER RECIPES; ARTICLES OF FOOD, ETC. % ^YtfltBt m\ Srauiht, and a ^o^mm ^m\t,t PHILADELPHIA: J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY. 1888. CONTENTS. InTROI CCTION, 1 CHAPTER I. GENERAL HISTORY OF THE HORSE, 2 Earliest records of him : appears to have been first domesticated in Egypt, and thence propagated toother countries: the horse not cultivated in Arabia until tlie eevenlh century. CHAPTER II. DIFFERENT FOREIGN BREEDS OF HORSES, 5 The wild horses of South America, method of catching and breaking them by the Ganchos: the wild horses of Tartary: the Barb: the Dongola: the Arabian, hia varieties, beautiful form, fleetness, docility, affection of the Arab towards him, anecdotes of: the East Indian, his varieties: the Chinese: Persian, beauty and value of: the Toorkoman : Tartar and Calmuc: Turkish: German: Swedish, Fin- land, and Norwegian: Iceland: Flemish and Dutch: French: Spanish: Italian: American. CHAPTER III. HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH HORSE, 22 Horse of the early Britons: crossed by the Romans: improved by Athelstan and Hnvveli the Good: not used for the plough until the tenth century: improved by William I. and Henry II. : neglected by the Crusaders: materially improved by John, who imported many Flanders horses: by Edward II., who purchased thirty Lom- bardy horses: by Edward III., who introduced the Spanish horse, and had several running horses: more rapidly improved, however, when cumbrous armour was laid asile: the improvements arrested by the tyrannical and illiberal policy of Henry VIFI., and under Elizabeth horses were diminished in number and in value: under James I. the progress of improvement was hastened: Turkish and Barbary horses were introduced, and the first Arabian horse: races were now established: Chailes I. was fond of horses: even Cromwell encouraged the improvement of the breed: al the restoration a new impulse was given under Anne, Arabians were again intro duced : and about the middle of the eighteenth century the English horse had arrived at its highest state of perfection. CHAPTER IV. DIFFERENT BREEDS OF ENGLISH HORSES 29 The roadster or hackney: description of him: the horse of all work, the farmer's hnive : the coachihorse, derived from the Cleveland bays: principle of draught: power of the horse: the pace killing: the heavy draught-horse: the old Sufl^blk: the Clydesdale: the heavy black horse, too heavy: the dray-horse: the cavalry- horse: the race-horse, question of his real origin, actually superior to the Arabian, the Darley, Flying Childers, Eclipse, the Godolphin Arabian, the emulation of the race-hnrse, consequence of short races: the hunter, descriptioi of his proper breed and form, anecdotes of his love of the sport, usage of him, mLinagement of, when riistressed, summering of : the Galloway : the Welsh pony: the New -Forester: tb4? Exmoorpony: :he Dartmoor: the Highland: the Shetland : the Irish horaf» COXTENTS. CHAPTER V. ZOOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION OF THE HORSE, .... . 61 CHAPTER VI. EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF THE HORSE 63 The head : frontal bones: frontal sinuses, used for the discovery of glanders : Ihe parietal: temporal: arched form of the skull: designed strength of the base of lie arch: occipital, attachment of the strong ligaments of the neck to it: the sphenoid andiEthmoid: the brain: medullary and cineritious portions: the nerves* spinal co?d: spinal nerves, consisting of fibres of sensation and motion, and others devoted to respiration: the sympathetic or organic nerve, at the base of the skull, devoteil to nutrition and circulation. The ear, beauty of, indicative of temper, folly of crop- ping or singeing; the internal ear: beautiful mechanism of, the drum, the little bones, the expansion of the nerve. The eye : the lids, substitution for eye-brows, eye-lashes, tears, situation of the lachrymalgland : the haw, beautiful mechanism of It, barbarous practice of destroying it : the conjunctiva: cornea, importance of its perfect transparency, directions for examining it: the sclerotica: choroid coat, its black colour, the beautiful colour and use of the lucid carpet within the eye: the aqueous humour: iris: the wall-eyed horse: the j)upil, importance likewise of care- fully e.xamining it: the lens: vitreous humour: retina: theory of vision: shying: muscles of the eye : the one peculiar to quadrupeds to retract it from danger. CHAI>TER VIL DISEASES OF THE BRAIN AND EYE 100 Fracture of the skull: pressure on the brain: megrims: apoplexy: stomach- staggers, arising usually from mismanagement: mad staggers: locked jaw or teta- nus: epilepsy or fits: palsy: rabies or madness : neurotomy, method of performing the operation, diseases of the foot for which beneficial. Diseases of the eye: wounds: warts: enlargement of the haw : inflammation of the eye : opacities of the cornea : cataract : gutta serena, or glass eye. CHAPTER VIII. NOSE AND MOUTH, AND THEIR DISEASES, '.11 Anatomy of the nose: Roman nose: cartilage of the nose: turbinated bores: wideness of the nostril, advantage of: importance of observing the colour of the membrane of the nose: discharge from the nose. Glanders, symptoms of, how dis- tinguished from strangles or cold: primarily a disease of the membrane of the nose: connected with farcy: tiiey are different forms of the same disease; causes of conta- gion : hot and foul stables: debilitating disease: highly contagious: preventior. : treatment. Farcy, a disease of the absorbents: farcy buds: syrnjjtoms: trcament. The lips, the organs of touch: lips, how formed: bearing lein, necessity for: bones of the mouth: the palate, method of bleeding from: lampas: the lower jaw, curi- ous mechanism of the joint of, contrived to grind the food. Teeth, their growth and changes from birth, as indicative of the age: wolves' teeth: diseases of the teeth Description of the tongue: vesicles under the tongue: the salivary glands: the par- otid: the submaxillary' and sublingual: strangles: canker in the mouth : woun.^s in the mouth : description of the pharyn.x. CONTENTS. CHAPTER IX. Page. THE NECK, . . 1B2 Description of the neck: the po.l-evil : proper form of the neck: the yplenius muscle: neck should be muscular at the bottom: the complexus major . ewe-necked, the muscles of the neck generally: arteries and veins of the neck . inflammation of the vein after bleeding: the wind-pipe: the larynx: roaring: the oesophagus or gullet. CHAPTER X. THE CHEST— CONTENTS— DISEASES, 163 The proper form of the chest : form of as much importance as capacity : deptli of chest, importance of: ribbed home. Anatomy of the spine : the bones of the spine connected by highly elastic substance : consequent case in riding : contrivances for strength: broken-backed: comparison between the long and short-backed horse: saddle-backed: weak-backed. The loins: should be broad and muscular. The withers: advantage of high withers. The muscles of the back. Fistulous withers: warbles: sitfasts: saddle-galLs. The ribs. The breast: muscles of the breast: being all abroad. Cliest-founder : dropsical swellings between the fore-legs. Inside of the chest, diaphrngm: the pleura: the mediastinum. The heart and its action : inflammation of the heart. The arteries. The pulse : its standard numbei : when quick, hard, small, weak, or oppressed : necessity of attending to the pulse. The capillaries. Inflammation, an increased flow of blood to and through the part: local and general: treatment of: cold or warm applications. Fever, or general increased arterial action: pure fever: symptomatic fever: treatment. The veins: bog and blood spavin. Bleeding: directions for : the fleam and lancet: bleeding places. The lungs: description of: change of blood in passing through them: capacious che.st, advantage of. Infl.ammation of the lungs: symptoms: causes: treatment: conse- quences. Pleurisy. Catarrh, or common cold. Bronchitis. Catarrhal fever. The malignant epidemic. Chronic cough. Thick-wind: broken-wind: the piper. wheezer: whistler: highblower: grunter. CHAPTER XI. STOMACH AND INTESTINES— THEIR DISEASES, 197 The diaphragm. The stomach : stomach staggers : inflammation : poison : hots. The intestines: the mesentery, duodenum, jejunum, ileum, copcum, colon, rectum* spasmodic colic: calculi: intussusception: entanglement: inflammation of the bowels: over-purging: washy horses: worms: physicking: the best purgatives* rupture. The liver: inflammation of the liver: jaundice. The spleen. The j'an creas. The omentum. The kidneys: diuretic medicines, use and abuse of : inflam niation of the kidney; profuse staling. The bladder: inflammation of the:ladder' stone in the bladder. CHAPTER XII. PRINCIPLES OF BREEDING, 219 Form, constitution, disease inherited : causes of deterioration of half-bred horses: the mare of as much importance in breeding as the horse : shape of mare and horse : breeding in and in: age at which the mare is capable of breeding: time of heat: time of going with foal: management of mare with foal: when she has foaled, weaning foal: treatment of foal: importance of good feeding: process of breaking in begun from the period of weaning: actual breaking in : diflerent steps of: iieces- si'.y of implicit obedience, yet not enforced by cruelty: breaking in for the road oi chase: bitting the ( olt: saddling: castration. w CONTENTS. CHAPTER XIII. THE FORE-LEGS AND THEIR DISEASES 227 The shoulder: sprain of the shoulder: slanting direction of the shouhJer, import- ance of: how applicable to horses of heavy draught: muscle of the oulside oi the shoulder: trapesius ; levator humeri: serralus : sterno-maxillaris: spinati : !*<;• torals: the lower bone of the shoulder: the arm: the elbow: principle of the leve applied to it : the extensor muscles : the flexors : disalvaiitage at which they act : the perforated muscle: the perforating: the arm should be long: the knee: broken knees: the leg: splent; speedy-cut: tied in below the knee: sprain of the back sinews : necessity of attention to any thickening on them : windgalls: the pasterns the suspensory ligaments: obliquity of the pasterns: rupture of the suspensory liga- ment: the fetlock : grogginess: cutting: bones of the pasterns: sprain of the coffin- joint : ring-bone : position of the legs. CHAPTER XIV. THE HINDER-LIMBS AND THEIR DISEASES, 256 The haunch : being ragged-hipped: width of haunch: the thigh : muscles of the inside of tiie tnigh : the sartorius : gracilis: muscles of the outside of the thigh: the glutei: great trochanter of the thigh, im.portance of : sprain of the round bone: the etirte : the extensor pedis muscle: the peronseus : the flexor pedis: thorough-pin: the hock: enlargement of the hock: curb: bog-spavin: bone-spavin: other lame- ness of the hock: the point of the hock: capped hock: mallenders and sallenders: cow-hocks : stringhalt: swelled legs; grease, cause and treatment of : washing the heels: danger of cutting the hair from the heels. CHAPTER XV. ANATOMY OF THE FOOT, 280 The crust or wall of the foot : the inner heel should not be too much cut away: the coronary ligament: the coronary ring : the frog-band : the crust: colour of the bars: folly of destroying them: the frogs: the sole: the cofhn-bone: the sensible sole: the sen.sible frog: the navicular bone : the cartilages of the foot. CHAPTER XVI. DISEASES OF THE FOOT 289 Inflammation of the foot, or acute founder: pumiced feet: chronic founder : con- traction: the navicular joint-disease: sand-crack: tread or over-reach ; false-quarter: quittor: prick, or wound in the foot: corns: thrush: canker: ossification of the cartilages: weakness of the foot. CHAPTER XVII. ON SHOEING 311 The concave-seated shoe: preparation of the foot: putting on of the shoe: cal. kins: clips: the hind-shoe: the hunting-shoe: the bar-shoe: tips: the expanding, shoe : felt or leather soles. CHAPTER XVI II. OPERATIONS 320 The trevis: the side-line: the hobbles: the twitch: the barnacles- bleeding D.'atering: tiring: setons: docking: nicking. CONTENTS. CHAPTER XIX Pag* VICES AND BAD HABITS 330 Re?tiveness : Jumper the horse-breaker: King Pippin, anecdote of: Sullivan the [rish whisperer: backing or gibbing: biting: getting the check of the bit into the mouth: kicking: unsteadiness while being mounted: rearing: running away: vicious to clean : vicious to shoe: swallowing without grinding: crib-biting: wind- sucking: cutttng: not lying down: overreach: pawing: quidding: rolling: shying: slipping the collar: tripping: weaving. CHAPTER XX. THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF THE HORSE 345 Air: litter: light: grooming: exercise: food: manger-feeding: oats: barley: grains: wheat: beans :»peas: grass: hay: tares: rye-grass: clover: lucern : saint- /oin: Swedish turnip: carrots: potatoes: furze: nutritive matter in the different articles of food : the times of feeding should be equally divided : water : manage- ment of the feet CHAPTER XXI. SOUNDNESS, 361 The grand principle of : supposed causes of unsoundness : broken knees: capped hecks: contraction: corns: cough: roaring: wheezing: whistling: high-blowing: grunting: broken wind: crib-biting: curb : cutting: enlarged glands: enlarged hock: the eyes: lameness: neurotomy: ossification of the lateral cartilages: pumiced foot: quidding: quittor : ring-bone: sandcrack s spavin: blood spavin: splent: stringhalt: thickening of the back sinews: thoroughpin: thrush: windgalls. Form of warrantry: the horse must be unsound or vicious at the time of sale: no price will imply a warranty: a warranty after the sale invalid: to complete the purchase there must be a transfer, a memorandum, or partial payment: notice of unsoundness not legally required, yet advisable: prudent to refrain from all medical treatment: where no warranty, an action may be brought on the ground of fraud : exchanges considered on the same ground as simple saks: the allowance of trial: laws of the principal Repositories. CHAPTER XXII. THE SKIN, 369 Hide bound: the hair: pores of the skin: moulting: clipping: colour of the horse; surfeit: mange: warts. CHAPTER XXIII. MEDICINES USED IN VETERINARY PRACTICE, 381 Aloes: alteratives: alum: hartshorn: sal-ammoniac : anodynes: black antimo- ny: emetic tartar: antimonial powder : butyr of antimony : antispasmodics : arsenic : astringents: balls: blisters: bole-Armenian: Burgundy pitch : calamine: calomel; camphor: cantharides : carraways: castor oil: catechu: caustics: chalk: camo- mile: charcoal: charger: clysters: verdegris: blue vitriol: cordials: corrosive sub- limate: cream of tartar: croton: diaphoretics: digestives: digitalis: diuretics: drinks: elder : Kpsom-salts : fomentations: gentian: ginger: Goulard's extract : hel- lebore: hemlock: infusions: iodine: gi'een vitriol: oil of juniper: lard: sugar of lead: white lead: chloride of lime: liniments: linseed: lotions: mashes: mercurial ointment: iElhiop's mineral: mint: myrrh: nitre: spirit of nitrous aether: oil ol olives: opium: palm oil : pitch : physic': poultices: powders : raking: resin : rowels . salt: sedatives: lunar caustic: chloride of soda: soap : starch : stoppings: sulphur. tar; tinctures; tobacco; tonics; turpentine; vinegar: wax; white vitriol; zinc. ,j,i CONTENTS. Page ON DRAUGHT 403 The power of the horse, liow calculated : difference of opinion as to wheels : draught regarded as to act of drawing, and the resistance to the power employed: the moving power. Animal power is the application of the strength of an animal; and mechanical power is power employed through the intervention of machinery: horse power and that of the steam-engine compared, as to interest of first cost, decrease of value, hazard of loss or accidents, value of food, or coals and water, renewals and rej)airs, harness, shoeing, farriery, stabling and expense of attendance: the power of draught, or eflect produced by each : the obstacles to be overcome in che use of machinery. The manner in which the animal adapts himself to his load: errors with regard to this in some ancient sculptures: real action of the horse in walking, trotting and galloping. The resistance to draught should be rigid, and void of elasticity, but should not be constant and unremitting: ahorse pulls better when close to his work : the disadvantage of long teams. The effect of draught depends on the speed, the power of the animal, and the time'employed : calculation and comparison of these: the hours of labour should not e.xceed six hours: the rapid reduction of the power of the horse when his speed is increased. A flat piece of road more destructive to the horse, than one with alternate rises and falls. Best direction of the traces: should be nearly horizontal, but varying with the kind of horse and nature of the work and road: inclining the traces downward, the same as throwing a part of the load on the shafts. Ancient mode of harnessing : the collar in the time of Homer: explanation of the power of the South American lasso. The advantage of transporting goods by water consists in the smallness of power required: this rapidly increasing with the speed: calculation of the draught of a canal boat. The advantages and disadvantages of sledges and rollers: manner in which the rock forming the pedestal of the statue of Peter the great was moved on rollers: the best construction of the roller. Description of the ancient war-chariots: the mechanical advantage of the wheel increase.! in proportion to its height: the resistance depends on the friction at the axle : comparative advantages of different materials as used for axles: axles working in iron boxes: calculation of the force of draught required for a four-wheeled cart on different roals; comparison between nar- row and broad wheels: description of dishing the wheels, and advantage of: com- parison between conical and cylindrical wheels: injury received by the roads by different wheels: the cylindrical wheel a little dished, and the edges rounded off, is the best: ruts form a great resistance to draught : the hind wheels should exactly follow the track of the fore ones: descrij)tion of Jones' jiatent wlieels: the expense and weight must limit the height of the wheels: the fore-wheels usually too small: the comparative advantage of two and four-wheeled carriages: two-wheeled carts with two horses disadvantageous. Springs should never be applied to give any lon- gitudinal elasticity to the carriage : disadvantage of C springs on this account : advan- tage of springs: Mr, D. Giddy's theory of wheels and springs: springs particularly advantageous when much velocity is required : loading high, although dangerous, makes the carriage run light : the safety coaches, by having the load low, very disadvantageous. Hardness the great desideratum in roads: great rounding of the road useless and injurious: a rise of six or eight inches in a road twenty feet wide, quite sufficient : hardness of surface, how best secured: constant repairs and atten- tion, on the whole, most economical. Grea'. advantage of railways : the power of the horse increased tenfold on a railway LIBRARY OF USEFUL KNOWLEDGE, THE FARMER'S SERIES INTRODUCTION. TiiE Farmer's Series will consist of Treatise supon subjects most inter- esting to persons employed in the various branches of agriculture, and to those, generally, who reside in the country. It naturally begins with con- sidering the Animals which constitute the most valuable part of the farmer's property; — their origin; — their different breeds; — their structure; — the most economical, and profitable, and humane method of treating them ; — and the art of rendering their services more extensive and permanent, and their health and comfort more secure. It is hoped that these volumes will contribute to the amusement, the improvement, and the profit of the farmer and the cottager ; and better the condition both of himself and of the animals intrusted to his care. They may afford him a pleasant companion at his winter's fire-side, — a useful counsellor when employed in the labours of his station, — and a help to raise his mind to a serious, but delightful contemplation of the objects which Providence has spread around us for our admiration and our use. Under this first great division will be considered those animals which aid the power of man — the horse, ox, ass, mule, dog — those which supply food and clothing — horned cattle, sheep, swine, goats, poultry, rabbits, bees — those which are hurtful — the fox, weazel, rat, mole, insects. In treating the subject of domestic animals, their history, various kinds, struc- vUre and habits, feeding and treatment when young, management when worked, and diseases, will be sucessively considered. The General Principles of Agriculture will form the other great division of this series ; and under this head will be treated whatever relates to the nature of soils and manures — the rotation of crops — farm-buildings and machinery — sheep-farming and dairy- farming, so far as these may not have Deen considered under the head of sheep and cattle — potatoes and spade husbandry — wood and timber. There is a class of subjects which, though not exclusively interesting to country people, belong more to them than to others; brewing, baking, washing and bleaching, land-measuring, road-making, bridge- building, quarrying, lime-burning, &c. These will be discussed in treatises occa- sionally introduced in the progress of this series. At the head of those animals which have been domesticated by, or ren. dered useful to, man, — whether we regard his noble form, his great saga- .;ity, or the manner in which he is connected with our profit and 3ur plea- sure, — stands the Horse. THE HORSE. f CHAPTER I. GENERAL HISTORY OF THE HORSE. Hackney, Into this and the various breeds of horses, we shall enter at some length, and although the more practical division of the 'I'reatise will be thereby necessaiily postponed until the next monthly part, we shall not, even at present, forget the name of the Library to which it belongs, but endeavour to blend the useful with the entertaining. The native country of the horse cannot with certainty be traced. He has been found, varying materially in size, in form, and in utility, in all the temperate, in most of the sultry, and in many of the northern regions of the Old World. In the Sacred Volume, which, beside its higher claims to stand at the head of the Farmer's Library, contains the oldest authentic record of past transactions, we are told that, so early as 1650 years before the birth of Christ, the horse had been domesticated by the Egyptians. When Joseph carried his father's remains from Egypt to Canaan, " there went up with him both chariots and horsemen."* One hundred and fifty years after- wards, the horse constituted tl)e principal strength of the Egyptian army. Pharaoh pursued the Israelites with " six hundred chosen" chariots, and with all the chariots of Egy])t."f If we could believe the accounts of the uninspired historians, Sjsostria (the monarch probably whom Joseph served) had twenty-seven thousand chariots of war ; and Semiramis, the founder of Babylon, had one hundred tliousand chariots, and a million of horsemen ; but this was probably a great exaggeration. Fifty years after the expulsion of the Israelites from Egypt, and 1450 years before the birth of Christ, the horse was so far naturaHzed in G»-eece ♦ Gen. i. \ Exod. xvi. 7. ITS HISTORY. S ihbl iKe Olympic games were instituted, including chariot and horse races VV e have, therefore, sufficient evidence that the horse was, at a very early period, subjected to the dominion of man, and, unfortunately, for the worst of purposes, — the business of war. From the records of the Old Testament, we are likewise enabled to ascertain the precise period of time, when in Egypt and Canaan, and the neighbouring countries, this animal began to be domesticated. 1920 years before the birth of Christ, when Abraham, having left Haran, in obedience to the divine command, was driven into Egypt by the famine which raged in Canaan,* Pharaoh offered him sheep and oxen, and asses and camels. Horses would doubtless have been added, had they then existed, or had they been subdued in Egypt. When, fifty years afterwards, Abraham journeyed to Mount Moriah, to ot^'er up his only son, he rode upon an ass, which, with all his wealth and powei, he would scarcely have done, had the horse been known. f Thirty years later, when Jacob returned to Isaac with Rachel and Leah, an account:}: is given of the number of oxen, sheep, camels, goats, and asses, which he sent to appease the anger of Esau, but not one horse is mentioned. It is not until twenty-four years after this, when the famine devastated Canaan, § and Jacob sent into Egypt to buy corn, that horses are first heard of. " Waggons," probably carriages drawn by horses, were sent by Joseph into Canaan to bring his father to Egypt, it would seem, how. ever, that horses had been but lately introduced, and were not numerous, or not used as beasts of burden ; for the whole of the corn, which was to be conveyed some hundred miles, and was to afford subsistence for Jacob's large household, was carried on asses. It appears, then, that about 1740 years before Christ, horses were first used in Egypt; but they soon afterwards became so numerous as to form a considerable portion of the Egyptian army : and when the Israelites returned into Canaan, the horse had been introduced and naturalized there ; for the Canaanites " went out to fight against Israel with horses and chari- ots very many." |1 The sacred volume, therefore, clears up a point upon which no other record throws any light — namely, the period when the horse first became the servant of man, at least in one part of the world, and that the most ad- vanced in civilization, and before Greece was peopled. A long time must have elapsed before man was able to ascertain the value and peculiar use of the animals that surrounded him. He would begin with the more subordi- nate — those which were most easily caught, and most readily subdued ; and the benefits which he derived from their labours would induce him to attempt the conquest of superior quadrupeds. In accordance with this the writings of Moses shew us that, after the ox, the sheep, and the goat, man subdued the ass, and then the camel, and, last of all, the horse became his servant: and no sooner was he subdued, and his strength and docility aisid sagacity appreciated, than the others were comparitively disregarded, except in Palestine, where the use of the horse Avas forbidden by divine autliority, and on extensive and barren deserts, where he could not live. IF From Egypt the use of the horse was propagated to other and distant lands ; and, probably, the horse himself was first transmitted from Egypt ♦ don. xii. 16. t Gen. xxii. 3. ; Gen. xxxii 14. § Gen. xiv. 19. 11 Jofhua xi. 4. ^ VVlien Sir Gore Ouscly travelled throu2"li Persia, anJ the different countries cf the Ga3i, he examined, among- other relics of antiquity, the sculptures on the ruins of Perae 4 THE HORSE. to several nountnes. The Greeks affinn, that Neptune struck the earth with his trident, and a horse appeared. The truth is, that the Tliessalians, the first and most expert of the Grecian horseman, and likewise the inha- bitants of Argos and of Athens, were colonists from Egypt. The Bible likewise decides another point, that Arabia, by whose breed of horses those of other countries have been so much improved, was not the native place of the horse. Six hundred years after the time just refer- red to, Arabia had no horses. Solomon imported spices, gold, and silver, from Arabia;* but all the horses for his own cavalry and chariots, and those with which he supplied the Phoenician monarchs, he procured frona Egypt, t In the seventh century after Christ, when Mahomet attacked the Koreish near Mecca, he had but two horses in his whole army ; and at the close of his murderous campaign, although he drove off twenty-four thousand camels, and forty thousand sheep, and carried away twenty-four thousand ounces of silver, not one horse appears in the list of plunder. There is a curious record of the commerce of different countries at the close of the second century. Among the articles exported from Egypt to Arabia, and particularly as presents to reigning monarchs, were horses. In the fourth century two hundred Cappadocian horses were sent by the Roman emperor, as the most acceptable present he could offer a powerful prince of Arabia. So late as the seventh century, the Arabs had few horses, and those of attle value. These circumstances sufficiently prove that, however superior may be the present breed, it is comparitively lately that the horse was natuaralized in Arabia. The horses of Arabia itself, and of the south-eastern parts of Europe, are clearly derived from Egypt ; but whether they were there bred, or imported from the south-western regions of Asia, or, as is more probable, brought from the interior, or northern coasts of Africa, cannot with car- tainty be determined. polis, and he draws from them a curious and interesting conclusion as to the manner in which the horse was gradually subdued. "There are no figures," says he, "mounted on horseback, although some travellers have mentioned horsemen among those sculptures. One would think that the simple act of mounting on a horse's back would naturally have preceded the use of wheel-carriages and their complicated harness; yet no horsemen are found at Persepf)lis ; and we know Homer's horses are represented in chariots from which the warriors sometimes descended to combat on foot, but the poet has not described them as fighting on horseback. The absence of mounted figures might authorize an opinion that those sculptures had been executed before the time of Cyrus, whose precepts and example first inspired the Persians with a love of equestrian exercijss, of which, before his time they were wholly ignorant." — vol. ii. p. 276. ♦ 2Chron. ix. 14. t 2 Ch on. i. 17. t The historian gives us the price of the horse and the chariot 3t that time. A horse brought from Egypt, including, probably, the expense of the journey, cost one hundred and fifty shekels of silver, which, at two shillings, three pence, and one half farthing each, amounts to about seventeen pounds two shillings. A ch iriot cost six hundred ■hekels, or sixty-eight pounds, eight shillings ; a most enormous sum at that early period, but little to him who expended more than thirty-five millions of pounds, in gold alone to ornament the Temple which he had built. ITS HISTORY— BREEDS. CHAPTER II. THE DIFFERENT FOREIGN BREED OF HORSES THE WILD HORSE. Troops of wild horses are found in the plains of Great Tartary, and also hi several parts of South America. In neither, however, can we recognise an original race. The horses of the Ukraine, and those of South America, are equally the descendants of those who had escaped from the slavery of man. The Tartar horses are fleet and strong, but comparatively of an ordinary breed. Those of South America retain, almost unimpaired, the size and form of the European ancestors. In no part of America, or of the more newly-discovered islands of the Pacific, was the horse known, until he was introduced by Europeans ; and the origin of the horses of Tartary has been clearly traced to those who were employed in the siege of Azoph, in 1657, but which were turned loose for want of forage. All travellers, who have crossed the plains extending from the shores of La Plata to Patagonia, have spoken of numerous droves of wild horses. Some affirm that they have seen ten thousand in one troop. They appear to be under the command of a leader, the strongest and boldest of the herd, and whom they implicitly obey. A secret instinct teaches them that their safety consists in their union, and in a principle of subordination. The lion, the tiger, and the leopard,* are their principal enemies. At some signal, intel- igible to them all, they either close into a dense mass, and trample their enemy to death ; or, placing the mares and foals in the centre, they form themselves into a circle and welcome him with their heels. In the attack, their leader is the first to face tlie danger, and, when prudence demands a retreat, they follow his rapid flight. In the thinly inhabited parts of South America it is dangerous to fall in with any of these troops. The wild horses approach as near as they dare : they call to the loaded horse with the greatest eagerness, and, if the rider be not on the alert, and have not considerable strength of arm, and sharpness of spur, his beast will divest himself of his burden, take to his heels, and be gone for ever. Captain Head gives the following account of a meeting with a troop of wild horses, where the country is more thickly inhabited. Some poor cap. lured animals are supposed to be forced along hy their riders at their ver\ utmost speed : — " As they are thus golloping ilong, urged by the spur, it is interesting to see the groups of wild horses one passes. The mares, which are never ridden in South America, seem not to understand what makes the poor horse carry his head so low, and look so weary .■]■ The little innocent colts come running to meet him, and then start away fright- ened : while the old horses, whose white )narks on the flanks and bt, with an aperture suffieien' for the great toe, to project through."-— Andrews's Journey in South America, vol. i. p. 26. I Head's Journey across the Pampas, p. 258. J Basil Hall's Journey to Peru and MexicO; vol. i. p. 151. The Jesuit Dobrizhoffer, in his History of the Abipones, a nation of Paraguay, and speaking of the tamed horse, 'vol. ii. p. 113,) says, that " stirrups are not in general use. The men leap on theii 8 THE HORSE. Tlicse animals possess much of tlie form of the Spanish horse, frtjwH wliich they sprung ; tliey are tamed, as has been seen, with far less difficulty than could be thought possible; and, although theirs is the obedience of fear, and enforced at first by the whip and spur, there are no horses who so soon and so perfectly exert their sagacity and their power in the service of man. Tiiey are possessed of no extraordinary speed, but they are capable of enduring immense fatigue. They are frequently ridden 60 or 70 miles without drawing bit, and have been urged on by the cruel spur of the Gaucho, more than a hundred miles, and at the rate of twelve miles in the hour. Like the Arab horses, they know no intermediate pace between the walk and tile gallop. Although at the end of a day so hard, their sides are horribly mangled, and they completely exhausted, there is this consalotion for them, — they are immediately turned loose on the plains, and it will be their own fault if they are speedily caught again. The mare is occa- sionally killed for food, and especially on occasions of unusual festivity. General San Martin, during the war for independence, gave a feast to the Indian allies attached to his army ; and mares' flesh, and the blood mixed with gin, formed the whole of the entertainment. On such dry and sultry plains the supply of water is often scanty and then a species of madness seizes on the horses, and their genei'ous and docile qualities are no longer recognized. They rush violently into every pond and lake, savagely mangling and trampling upon one another ; and the carcases of many thousands of them, destroyed by their fellows have occasionally been seen in and around a considerable pool. This is one of the means by which the too rapid increase of this quadruped is, by the ordinance of Nature, there prevented. The wild horses of Tartary, although easily domesticated, materially differ m character from those on the plains of South America. They will not suffer a stranger to join them. If a domesticated horse comes in their way, unprotected by his master, they attack him with their teeth and their heels, and speedily destroy him. They readily submit, however, to the do- minion of man, and become perfectly docile and faithful. Among the Tartars, the flesh of the horse is a frequent article of food ; and although they do not, like the Indians of the Pampas, eat it raw, theii mode of cookery would not be very inviting to the European epicure. They cut the muscular parts into slices, and place them under their saddles, and after they have galloped thirty or forty miles, the meat becomes tender ^,nd sodden, and fit for their table ; and, at all their feasts, the first and fast and most favourite dish, is a horses head. When water was not at hand, the Scythians used to draw blood from their horses, and drink it ; and the dukes of Muscovy, for nearly two hundred and sixty years, presented Tartar embassadors with the milk of mares. If any of this milk fell upon the mane of the horse, the duke, by custom, was bound to lick it off. Troops of wild horses are occasionally met with in the central parts of Africa, in the island of St. Domingo, on the deserts of Arabia, and in a few other parts of the world ; but no where do they equal the domesti- cated horse in form, strength, or even speed. (vol. ii. p. 113,) says, that " stirrups are not in g-eneral use. The men leap on ttiei* horse on the riL(ht side. In the right hand they grasp the bridle, and in the left a very long- spear, leaning on which, they jump with the impulse of both feet, and then fall right upon the horse's back." THE BARB The Godolphin Jlmbian. Ii lias already been stated, that the earliest records we have of l,h^. horse trace him to Egypt, whence he gradually found his way to Ara. bia and Persia, and the provinces which were colonized from Egypt; and thence to the other parts of the Old World. But Egypt is not now a breeding country, and it does not appear to possess those requi- sites which could ever have constituted it one. Without, however, enter- ing into the question whether the horse was primarily the inhabitant of some particular region, wnenuc other parts were gradually supplied, or whether it was common to many countries, but ditTering in each ; we have stated it to be probable that the horses of Egypt, the earliest on record, were derived from the neighbouring and interior districts of Africa. Therefore, in giving' a very summary account of the most celebrated and useful breeds of different countries, it is natural to begin with those of Africa. At the head of these is the Barb, from Barbary, and particularly from. Morocco and Fez, and the interior of Tripoli ; and remarkable for his fine and graceful action. It is rather lower than the Arabian, seldom exceed- ing foui'teen hands and an inch. The shoulders are flat, the chest round,, the joints inclined to be long, and the Jiead particularly beautiful. The Barb is decidedly superior to the Arab in form, but has not his spirit, or speed, or countenance. The Barb has chiefly contributed to the excellence of the Spanish horse;, ond. when the improvement of the breed of horses began to be systemati- i.ally pursued in Great Britain, the Barb was very early introduced. The (Jodolphin Arabian, as he is called, of whom we have presented our readers with a cut, and who was the origin of some of our best racing *)lood, was a Barb; and others of our most celebrated turf-horses trace iheir descent from African mares. More in the centre of Africa, in the kingdom of Bournou, is a breed, which Mr. Tully, in his almost romantic history of Tripoli, reckons superior even to those of Arabia or Barbary ; it possesses the best qualities of both B in THE HORSE. those biecfls, being as serviceable as that of Arabia, and as beautiful as tliat of Barbary. In the more southern and western districts of Africa, and particularly in the neighbourhood of the Guinea Coast, the breed of horses is very in- ferior. They are small, weak, unsafe, and untractable. But neither liorses, nor any other produce of value, can be looked for in those unliappy countries, so long as they are desolated by the infernal slave- trade inflicted upon them by the most civilized, but truly unchi'istian, nations of Europe. THE DONGOLA HORSE. The kingdom of Dongola, and the neighbouring districts lying between Egypt and Abyssinia, contain a horse not at all like any other oriental. The "Dongola horses stand full sixteen hands high, but the length of the body, from the shoulders to the quartar, is considerably less. Their form, therefore, is opposite to that of the Arabian, or English thorough-bred, which are longer by some inches than they are high. The neck is long and slender, the crest fine, and the withers sharp and high, giving a beautiful forehead ; but the breast is to narrow, the quarters and flanks too flat, and the back carped. They constitute excellant war-horses, from their speed durability, and size. Several of them have lately been imported into Eu- rope, but they are liitle valued. Possibly, with three-part-bred mares, they might improve our cavalry horses." Bosman, whose descriptions prove him to be no bad horseman, thus speaks of them, but in somewhat to flattering a manner. " The Dongola horses are the most perfect in the world, being beautiful, symmetrical in their parts, nervous and elastic in their movements, and docile and afft>ctionate in their manners. One of these horses was sold in 1816, at Grand Cairo, for a sum equivalent to 1000/." Mr. Bruce tells us, that the best African horses are said to be descended from one of the five on which Mahomet and his four immediate succes- sors fled from Mecca to Medina, on the night of the Hegira. He thus accounts for very singular and opposite customs among the Arabs and Africans. "No Arab ever mounts a stallion : on the contrary, in Africa they never ride mares. The reason is plain. — The Arabs are constantly at war with their neighbours, and always endeavour to take their enemies by surprise in the grey of the evening, or the dawn of day. A stallion no sooner smells the stale of the mai-e in the enemy's quarters, than he begins to neigh, and that would give the alarm to the party intended to be surprised. No such thing can ever happen when they ride mares only. On the con- trary, the Funge trust only to superior force. They are in an open, plaii country — must be discovered at many miles distance — and all such sur- Drises and stratagems are useless to them." THE ARABIAN. Gomg further eastward we arrive at Arabia, whose hones deservedly occupy the very highest rank. THE ARABIAN. 1 1 Tlit M'elUs.y Jlralnun. A ffe'rt- wild horses are yet seen on some of the deserts of Arabia. They are hunted by the Bedouins for their flesh, which is considered a delicacy, if the animal be young ; and also to increase their stock of inferior horses, which they often palm on the merchant as descended from the sacred Dreed. They are said to be even swifter than the domesticated horse, and are usually taken by traps hidden in the sand. Mr Bruce, however, doubts whether any wild horses are now found in Arabia Deserta.* Although in the seventh century the Arabs had no horses of value, yet the Cappadocian and other horses which they had derived from their neighbours, were preserved with so much care, and pronagated so uniformly and strictly from the finest of the breed, that in the thir- teenth century the Arabian horse began to assume a just ana unrivalled celebrity. There are said to be three breeds or varieties of the Arabian horses : the Atteclii, or inferior breed, on which they set 'Utle value, and which are found wild on some parts of the deserts ; thi. KadiscJd, literally horses of an unknown race, answering to our half-bred horses — a mixed breed ; and the Kochlani, horses whose genealogy, according to the Arab account, is known for two thousand years. Many of them have written and attested pedigrees extending more than four hundred years, and, with true Eastern exaggeration, traced by oral tradition from the stud of Solomon. A more careful account is kept of these genealogies than belongs to the most ancient family of tiie proudest Arab chief, and very singular pre- cautions are taken to prevent the possibility of fraud, so far as the written pedigree extends. The Kochlani are principally reared by the Bedouin Arabs, in the remoter deserts. A stallion may be procured without much difficulty, although at a great price. A mare is rarely to be obtained, except by fraud and excessive bribery. The Arabs have found out that which the Knglish breeder should never forget, that the female is more concerned *han the male in the excellence and value of the produce ; and the geneal- ogies of their horses are always reckoned from the mothers. The Arabian horse would not be acknowledged by every judge to pos * Bruce's Travels, vol. vi. p. 430 i>2 ■ THE HORSE. Kcss a [erfcct form: his head, 'lowevcr, is inimitaU.c. The broadne* and s(iuarf-ness of the forehead, the shortness and fineness of the muzzle, the prominence and brilliancy of the eye, the smallness of the ears, anc the beautiful course of the veins, will always characterise the head of the Arabian norse. His body may be considered as too light, and his chest as too narrow but beiiind the arms the barrel generally swells out and leaves sufficien room for the play of the lungs. In the formation of the shoulder, next to that of the head, the Arab is superior to any other breed. The withers are high, and the shoulder-hlade inclined backward, and so nicely adjusted, that in descending a hill the point or edge of the ham never rutiles the skin. He may not be thought sufficiently high; he seldom stands more than fourteen hands two inches. The fineness of his legs, and the oblique position of his pasterns, may be supposed, to lessen his apparent strength ; but the leg, although small, is flat and wiry;- anatomists know that the bone has no common density, and the starting muscles of the fore-arm and the thigh indicate that he is fully capable of accomplishing many of the feats which are recorded of him. The Barb alone excels him in noble and spirited action ; and if there be defects about him, he is perfect for that for which he was designed. He presents the true combination of speed and bottom — strength enough to carry more than a light weight, and courage that would cause him to die rather than to give up. We may not, perhaps, believe all that is told us of the Araoian. It has been remarked, that there are on the deserts which this horse traverses no mile-stones to mark the distance, or watches to calculate the time ; and the Bedouin is naturally given to exaggeration, and, most of nil, when relating the prowess of the animal, which he loves as dearly as his chil- dren : yet it cannot be denied that, at the introduction of the Arabian into the European stables, there was no other horse comparable to him. The Arab horse is as celebrated for his docility and good temper as lor his speed and courage. In that delightful book, 'Bishop Heber's Nar- rative of a Journey through the Upper Provinces of India,' the following interesting character is given of him. " My morning rides are very pleasant. My horse is a nice, quiet, good-tempered little Arab, who is so fearless, that he goes without starting close to an elephant, and so gentle and docile that he eats bread out of my hand, and lias almost as much attachment and coaxing ways as a dog. This seems the general character of the Arab tiorses, to judge from what I have seen in this country. It is not the fiery dashing animal I had supposed, but with more rationality about him, and more apparent confidence in his rider, than the majority of English horses." The kindness with which he is treated from a foal, gives him an aflection foi his master, a wisl) to please, a pride in exerting e»ery energy in obedience to his commands, and, consequently, an apparent sagacity which is seldom seen in other breeds. The mare and her foal inhabit the same tent with the Bedouin and his children. The neck of the mare is often the pillow of the rider, and more frequently, of the children, who are rolling about upon her and the foal : yet no accident ever occurs, and the animal ac- duires that friendship and love for man which occasional ill-treatment will n^* cause him for a moment to forget. When the Arab falls from his mare, and is unable to rise, she will immediately stand still, and neigh until assistance arnves. If he lies lown to sleep^ as fatigues sometimes compels him, in iie midst of the THE ARABIAN. 13 desert, she stands watchful over him, and neighs and rouses him if either man or beast ap|)roaches. An old Arab had a valuable mare that had carried hnn for fifteen years in many a hard-fought battle, and many a rapid weary march ; at length, eighty years old, and unable longer to ride lier, he gave her, and a scimitar tliat had been his father's, to his eldesj son, and told him to appreciate tiieir value, and never lie down to rest until he had rubbed tiiem both as bright as a looking-glass. In the first skir. mish in which the young man was engaged he was killed, and the mare fell into the hands of the enemy. When the news reached the old man, lie exclaimed that " life was no longer worth preserving, for he had lost both his son and his mare, and he grieved for one as much as the other;" and lie immediately sickened and died.* Man, however, is an inconsistent being. The Arab who thus lives with and loves his horses, regarding them as his most valuable treasure, some- times treats them with a cruelty scarcely to be believed, and not at all to be justified. The severest treatment which the English race-horse endures is gentleness compared with the trial of the young Arabian. Probably the filly has never before been mounted; she is led out; her owner springs on her back, and goads her over the sand and rocks of the desert at full speed for fifty or sixty miles without one moments respite. She is then forced, steaming and panting, into water deep enough for her to swim. If, immediately after this, she will eat as if nothing had occurred, her character is established, and she is acknowledged to be a genuine descen- dant of the Kochlani. breed. The Arab is not conscious of the cruelty which he thus inflicts. It is an invariable custom, and custom will induce us to inflict many a pang on those wiiom, after all, we love. ARABIAN ANECDOTES. The following anecdote of the attachment of an Arab to his mare has v)ften been told, but it comes home to the bosom of every one possessed of common feelings. " The whole stock of an Arab of the desert consisted of a mare. The French consul olTered to purchase her in order to send her to his sovereign, Louis XIV. The Arab v/ould have rejected the pro- posal at once with indignation and scorn ; but he was miserably poor. He had no means of supplying his most urgent wants, or procuring the barest necessaries of life. Still he hesitated ; — he had scarcely a rag to cover iiim — and his wife and children were starving. The sum ottered was great — it would provide him and his family with food for life. At length, and reluctantly, he consented. He brought the mare to the dwelling of the consul — he dismounted, — he stood leaning upon her ; — he looked now at the gold, and then at his favourite ; he sighed — he wept. ' To whom is it,' said he, 'I am going to yield thee up? To Europeans, who will tie thee close, — who will beat thee, — who will render thee miserable. Re- turn with me, my beauty, my jewel, and rejoice the hearts of my children.' As he pronounced the last words, he sprung upon her back, and was out of sight in a moment." The next anecdote is scarcely less touching, and not so well known, Ibrahim, a poor but worthy Arab, unable to pay a sum of money which he owed, was compelled to allow a merchant of Rama to become partner A^ith him in a valuable mare. When the time came, he could not redeem Ills pledge to this man, and the mare was sold. Her pedigree could be traced on the side of sire and dam for full five hundred years. The price • Sniilh on Breeding, p. 80. 14 THE HORSE, was three hundred pounds; an enormous sum in that country. Ibrahim went feeqjently to Rama to inquire after the mare: he would embrace her, — wipe her eyes with his handiverchief, — rub her witli his shirt sleeves, — and give her a thousand benedictions during whole hours that ho remained talking to her. ' My eyes !' would he say to her, ' my soul ! my heart! must I be so unfortunate as to have thee sold to so many mas- ers and not keep thee myself? I am poor, my antelope ! I brought thee up in my dwelling as my ciiild. I did never beat nor chide thee ; I caressed thee in tiie proudest manner. God preserve thee, my beloved ! thou art beautiful, thou art sweet, thou art lovely! God defend thee from en- vious eyes !'' Sir John Malcolm gives two anecdotes to the same purpose, but of a more amusing nature. " When the envoy, returning from his former mission, was encamped near Bagdad, an Arab rode a bright bay mare of extraordinary shape and beauty before his tent, until he attracted his attention. On being asked if he would sell her ; — ' What will you give me ?' was the reply : ' That depends upon her age ; 1 suppose she is past five V — Guess again,' said he. 'Four?' 'Look at her mouth,' said the Arab with a smile. On examination she was found to be rising three. This, from her size and symmetry, greatly enhanced her value. The envoy said, 'I will give you fifty tomans' (a coin nearly of the value of a pound sterling.) 'A little more if you please,' said the fellow apparently entertained. 'Eighty. A hundred.' He shook his head and smiled. The offer at last came tc two hundred tomans. 'Well,' said the Arab, 'you need not tempt me further ; — it is of no use. — You are a rich elchee (nobleman.) You have fine horses, camels, and mules, and, I am told, vou have loads of silver and gold. Now,' added he, 'you want my mare, but you shall not have her for all you have got."* "An Arab sheick or chief, who lived within fifty miles of Bussorah, had a favourite breed of horses. He lost one of his best mares, and could not for a long while discover whether she was stolen or had strayed. Some time after, a young man of a diffe-rent tribe, who had long wisiied to marry his daughter, but had always been rejected by the sheick, obtained the lady's consent and eloped with her. The sheick and his followers pursued, but the lover and his mistress, mounted on one horse, made a wonderful march, and escaped. The old chief swore that the fellow was either mounted upon the devil, or the favourite mare he had lost. After his return, he found the latter was the case ; that the lover was the thief of his mare as well as his daughter ; and that he had stole the one to carry off the other. The chief was quite gratified to think he had not been beaten by a mare of another breed ; and was easily reconciled to the young man, in order that he might recover the mare, which appeared an object about which he was more solicitous than about his daughter." f One of our own countrymen, the enterprising traveller, Major Denham, affords us a pleasing instance of the attachment with which the docility and sagacity of the horse may inspire the owner. — He thus relates the death of his favourite Arabian, in one of the most desert spots of Central Africa. His feelings needed no apology. We naturally honour the man m whom true sensibility and undaunted courage, exerted for useful pur- poses, were thus united. " There are a few situations in a man's life in which losses of iIah • Malcolm's Sketches of Persia, vol. i. p. 41. t Ibia. p. 45. THE ARABIAN— THE EAST INDIAN. Ift nature arc fe.t most keenly ; and this was one of them. It was not griet but it was something very nearly approaching to it ; and though I feii ashamed of the degree of derangement I sutfered from it, yet it was several days before I could get over the loss. Let it, however, be remembered that the poor animal had been my support and comfort, — nay, I may say, companion, through many a dreary day and night ; — had endured both hunger and thirst in my service ; and was so docile, that he would stand still for hours in the desert while I slept between his legs, his body atibrdi.iir me the only shelter that could be obtained from the powerful influence of a noon-day sun : — he was yet the fleetest of the fleet, and ever foremost in the chaso." Our horses would fare badly on the scanty nourishment afforded the Arabian. The mare usually has but one or two meals in twenty-four hours. During the day she is tied to the door of the tent, ready for the Bedouin to spring, at a moment's warning, into the saddle ; or she is turned out be- fore the tent ready saddled, the bridle merely taken off, and so trained that she gallops up immediately at her master's call. At night she receives a little vvater ; and with her scanty provender of five or six pounds of barley or beans, and sometimes a little straw, she lies down content, in the midst of her masters family. She can, however, endure great fatigue ; she will travel fifty miles without stopping ; she has been pushed, on emergency, one hundred and twenty miles, and, occasionally neither she nor her rider has tasted food for three whole days. To tht Arabian, principally, England is indebted for her improved and now unrivalled breed of horses for the turf, the field, and the road, as will be shown when we presently treat of the English horse. THE EAST INDIAN HORSE. We will now travel further eastward, and look at the breeds of horses in our Indian possessions. First, we have the Toorky, originally from a Toor. koman and a Persian, beautiful in his form, graceful in his action, and do- cile in his temper. It is said that, when skilfully managed, the grandeur and stateliness of his carriage are equal to what the warmest imagination can conceive of the horse : his spirit rising as his exertions are required, he exhibits to his beholders an appearance of fury in the performance of his task, yet preserving to his rider the utmost playfulness and gentleness. Next comes the Iranee, well limbed, and his joints closely knit, and par. ticularly powerful in the quarters, but with scarcely sufficient spirit, and his ears large and loose. The patient and docile Cozakee is deep in the girth, powerful in the fore- arm, but with large head, and sadly cat-hantimed ; hardy, and calculated for long journeys and severe service. The Mojhimss have spirit, beauty, speed, and perseverance. The Tazsee is slight, hollow-backed, and, for that reason perhaps, although deficient in strength, and leaving as it were his hind legs behind him, and likewise irritable in temper, yet he is sought after on account of the pecu- liar easiness of his pace. A sale of horses near the Company's stud, at Hissar, is thus described by an excellent judge. "Not less than one thousand horses were shewn. They were all above fourteen hands and a half in height, high-crested, and shewy-lookina horses. The great defect seemed a want of bone below 16 THE HORSE. the kri'ie, which is indeed general to all the native horses throughout India ; and also so great a tendency to fulness in the hocks, that, in England, il would be thought half of them had blood spavins." THE CHINESE HORSE. This breed is small, weak, ill-formed, without spirit, and altogether un- ripservinji of notice. THE PERSIAN HORSE Returning westward we find the Persian next m estimation, and deser- vedly so, to the Arabian. The head is almost equally beautiful, the crup- per superior ; he is equal in speed, but far inferior in endurance. The whole frame is more developed than in the Arabian. The Persian horses were celebrated for many a century before the Ara- bians were known, or even existed. They constituted, in ancient times the best cavalry of the East. The native Persian was so highly prized that Alexander considered one of them the noblest gift he could bestow, and when the kings of Parthia would propitiate their divinities by the most costly sacrifice, a Persian horse was otfered on the altar. An enterlaining traveller (Sir R. Ker Porter) bears testimony that they have not now de- generated. He gives the following account of this breed. " Tlie Persian liorses never exceed fourteen or fourteen and a half hands high, yet certainly, in the whole are taller than the Arabs. Those of the desert and country about Hillah run very small, but are full of bone and of good speed. General custom feeds and waters them only at sun-rise and sun-set, when they are cleaned. Their usual provender is barley and chopped straw, which, if the animals are piqueted, is put into a nose-bag and hung from their heads; but if stabled, it is thrown into a small lozenge-shaped hole left in the thickness of the mud-wall for that purpose, but much higher up than the line of our mangers, and there the animal eats at his leisure. Hay is a kind of food not known here. The bedding of the horse consists of his dung. After being exposed to the drying in- fluence of the sun during the day, it becomes pulverized, and, in that state IS nightly spread under him.* Little of it touches his body, that being covered by his clothing, a large nummud from the ears to the tail, and bound firmly round his body by a very long surcingle. But this apparel is only for cold weather; in the warmer season the night-clothes are of a lighter substance, and during the heat of the day, the animal is kept en- tirely under shade. "At night he is tied in the court yard. Tlie horses' heads are attached to the place of security, by double ropes from their halters, and the heels of their hinder legs are confined by cords of twisted hair, fastened to iron rings, and pegs driven into the earth. The same custom prevailed in the time of Xenophon, and for the same reason, to secure them from being able to attack and maim each other, the whole stud generally consisting of stallions. Their keepers, however, always sleep on their rugs amongst ♦ It is the usual flooring of the stable and the tent. The united influence f f the sun «nd air deprive it of all unpleasant odour, and when from use it becomes a second tim< oileiisive, i is agaio exposed to the sun, and all unpleasant smell once more tal^en away. THE PERSIAN— TOORKOM AN. 17 tiiern to prevent accident; and sometimes, notwithstanding all .his care, they manage to break loose, and then the combat ensues. A genera) neighing, screaming, kicking, and snorting, soon rouses the grooms, and the scene for awhile is terrible. Indeed no one can conceive the sudden uproar of such a moment who has not been in Eastern countries to hear it. and then all who have, must bear me witness tliat the noise is tremendous They seize, bite, and kic-k each other with the most determined fury, and frequently cannot be separated before their heads and haunches stream with blood. Even in skirmishes with the natives, their horses take part in the fray, tearing each other with their teeth, while their masters are in similar close quarters on their backs." His description of a Persian race does not altogether remind us of Newmarket or Doncaster. " My curiosity was fully on the spur to see the racers, which 1 could not doubt must have been chosen from the best in the nation to exhibit the perfec- tion of its breed before the sovereign. The rival horses were divided into three sets, in order to lengthed the amusement. They had been in training for several weeks, going over the ground very often during that time ; and when I did see them, I found so much pains had been taken to sweat and redjje their weight, that their bones were nearly cutting the skin. The distance marked for the race was a stretch of four-and-twenty miles, and, that his majesty might not have to wait when he had reached the field, the horses had set forward long before, by three divisions, from the starting point, (a short interval of time passing between each set,) so that they might begin to come in, a few minutes after the king had taken his seat. The different divisions arrived in regular order at the goal, but all so fatigued and exhausted, that their former boasted fleetness hardly exceeded a moderate canter when they passed before the royal eyes." In Circassia almost every family of distinction, whether of princes or nobles, boasts of possessing a peculiar race of horses, which, when young, are burned on ihe buttock with a particular mark. On this occasion, they act with the most scrupulous adherence to custom, so that a person who should attempt to burn a character expressing noble descent, on a filly of a common race, would, for such forgery, forfeit his life. The most cele- brated race of Circassian horses has received the name of Shalokh, and is in the exclusive possession of the Tau Sultan family. This race is valu- able for its strength and swiftness, more than its peculiar beauty. Its dis- tiuffuishinji mark is a full horse-shoe without an arrow. THE TOORKOMAN HORSE. Turkistan is that part of South Tartary, north-east of the Caspian sea, and has been celebrated from very early times, for producing a pure and valuable breed of horses. Tliey are called Toorkomans. They are said to be preferable even to the pure Persians, for service. They are large, standing from fifteen to sixteen hands high ; swift, and inexhaustible under fatigue. Some of them have travelled nine hundred miles in eleven successive days. They, however, are somewhat too small in the barrel- too long on the legs — occasionally ewe-necked, and always have a head out ol proportion large : yet, such are the good qualities of the horse, that one. of tiie pure blood is worth two or three hundred pounds, even in that •country. Captain Prase r, who is evidently a good judge of the horse, (in his |g THE HORSE Journev to Kliorasan) thus relates the impression which they made on mm. "They are deficient in compactness. Their bodies are long in proportion to their bulk. They are not well ribbed up. They are long on the legs, — deficient in muscle — falling off below the knee ; — narrow chested — long necked, — head large, uncouth, and seldom well put on. Such was the impression 1 received from the first sight of them, and it was not for some time that tlieir suoerior valuable qualities were apparent to me." THE TARTAR AND CALMUCK HORSE. The horses of the other parts of Tartary, comprehending the imm^'nse plains of Central Asia, and a considerable part of European Russia, are little removed from a wild state : they are small and badly made ; but capable of supporting the longest and most rapid journey, on the scantiest fare. The foals, from the earliest period, are exposed to the inclemency of the weather, have little to eat, and follow their dams in the longest excursions, and therefore, soon acquire a very great power of sustaining fatigue. They must be hardy for another reason. The Tartars live much on the flesh of horses, and, consequently, those animals that are unable to support the labour of their frequent rapid emigrations are soon destroyed, and only the more vigorous preserved. The horses, which range at large over the plains, are divided into herds at the head of which are placed two stallions, who carefully prevent then from intermingling with each other, and it is rarely that a foal is lost. On the approach of a strange herd, the stallions drive their own into a close body, place themselves in front, and, if necessary, attack and drive ofi'the others. As the stallion-foals grow up, they are driven away from the herds, and are seen straggling about at a distance, until they are strong enough to form herds of wild mares for themselves. These horses, or those of a similar breed and habiis, were beaten by not the first-rate English blood-horses, in a race which fairly put to the test both their speed and stoutness. On the 4th of August, 1825, a race of the cruel distance of more than forty-seven miles was run between two Cossack and two thorough-bred English horses — Sharper and Mina. The most celebrated Cossack horses from the Don, the Black Sea, and the Ural, were sent; and, after numerous trials, the best were selected. On starting, the Cossacks took the lead at a moderate pace, the English fol- lowing at about three or four lengths, but before they had gone half a mile, the stirrup-leather of Sharper broke, and he ran away with his rider, followed by Mina, and they went more than a mile, and up a steep hill, before they could be held in. Half the distance was run in an hour and four minutes. Both the English horses were then fresh, and one of the Cossacks. On their return, Mina fell lame, and was taken away. The Cossack horse, likewise began to flag, when the accompan)nng Russians began to drag him on by the bridle, throwing away the saddle, and putting a mere child on his back. Sharper, likewise, evidently shewed the effects of the pace at which he had gone when running away, and was much distressed. The Cossacks then hud recourse to foul play, and actually carried on their horse ; some dragging him on by a rope, and the bridle at his head ; and others puliing him on by the tail, and riding alongside of his quarters to support him and relieving each other at this fatiguing work. Sharper did the whole dis. 'ance in two hours and fort}-eight minutes, and the Cossack horse v\ as THE TURKISH— GERMAN. \f\ warped :n, eight minutes after him. At starting, the English horses car- ried full three stone more than the Cossacks; and during the latter halfo* the race, a mere child had ridden the Cossack. THE TURKISH HORSE. The Turkish horses are descended principally from the Arab, crossed by the Persian and certain other bloods. The body, however, is even longer than tiie Arabian's, and the crupper more elevated. They have contribu- ted materially to the improvement of the English breed. The Byerley and the Helmsley Turk are names familiar to every one conversant with horses, and connected with our best blood. The learned and benevolent Busbequius, who was amb.issador at Con- stantinople in the seventetnth century, gives the following account of the Turkish horses. Our gro^ims, and their masters too, may learn a lesson of wisdom and humanity fiom his words. " There is no creature so gentle as a Turkish horse, nor more respectful to his master, or the groom that dresses him. The reason is, because they treat their horses with great lenity. I myself saw, when I was in Pontus, passing through a part of Bithinia called Axilos, towards Cappadocia, how indulgent the countrymen were to young colts, and how kindly they used them soon after they were foaled. They would stroke them, bring them into their houses, and almost to their tables, and use them even like chil- dren. They hung something like a jewel about their necks, and a garter, which was full of amulets against poison, which they are most afi'aid of. The grooms that dress them are as indulgent as their masters; they fre- quently sleek them down with their hands, and never use a cudgel to bang their sides, but in cases of neces'sity. This makes their horses great lovers of mankind, and they are so far from kicking, wincing, or growing untractable by this gentle usage, that you will hardly find a masterless horse amongst them. " But alas ! our Christian grooms' horses go on at another rate. They never think them rightly curried till they thunder at them with their voices, and let their clubs or horse-whips, as it were, dwell on their sides. This makes some horses even tremble when their keepers come into their stable ; so that they hate and fear them too. But the Turks love to have their horses so gentle, that at the word of command they may fall on their knees, and in this position receive their riders. " They will take up a staff' or club upon the road with their teeth, which their rider has let fall, and hold it up to him again ; and when they a "e perfect in this lesson, then, for credit, they have rings of silver hung on their nostrils as a badge of honour and good discipline. I saw so-^e horses when their master was fallen from the saddle stand stock still wiiliout wagging a foot till he got up again. Another time I saw a groom standing at a distance in the midst of a whole ring of horses, and, at the word of command, they would either go round or stand still. Once I saw some horses when their master was at dinner with me in an upper room prick up their ears to hear his voice, and when they did so they Deighed for joy." THE GERMAN HORSE. Tne German horses are generally large, heavy, and slow. The Flun- garian may be an exception, being lighter, speedier, and giving greater 20 THE HORSE proof of Eastnrn blood.* Every part of the continent, however, follouing ihe »;xaniple of England, has been diligently engaged in the improvement of iis breed, and the German and Prussian horses are now better propor- tionecl, and have considerable endurance, but are still deficient in speed. The Prussian, German, and the greater part of the French cavalry are procured from Holstein. They are of a dark, glossy, bay-colour, with small heads, large nostrils, and full dark eyes, the fire and clearness of wliich seem to denote the inward spirit of the animal. They are beautiful active and strong. THE SWEDISH, FINLAND, AND NORWEGIAN HORSE Of tlie Swedish horses, Clarke, in his " Scandinavia," says, that they are small but beautiful, and remarkable for their speed and spirit. Those of Finland he describes as yet smaller, not more than twelve hands high, beautifully formed, and very fleet. The peasants take them from the forests when they are wanted for travellers. Although apparently wild, they are under perfect control, and they trot along with ease at the rate of twelve mile an hour. The following story is told of one of the Norwegian horses. His master had been dining at a neighbouring town, and, when it was time to return, had exceeded so much, that he could not keep a firm seat in his saddle. The horse regulated himself, as well as he could, according to the un- settled motion of his rider, but, happening to make a fiilse step, the peasant was thrown, and hung with one foot entangled in the stirrup. The horse immediately stopped, and twisting his body in various directions, en- deavoured to extricate his master but in vain. The man was severely hurt, and almost helpless ; but the shock had brought him to his senses. The horse looked at him as he lay on the ground, and, stooping, laid hold of the brim of his hat, and raised his head a little ; but the hat coming off", he fell again. The animal then laid hold of the collar of his coat, and raised him by it so far from the ground, that he was enabled to draw his foot out of the stirrup. After resting awhile he regained the saddle, and reached his home. Grateful to iiis preserver, the man did, what every good feeling bid him, — he cherished the animal until it died of old age. Many an English farmer owes a considerable debt of gratitude to his intelligent and faithful servant, who has taken care of him when he was unable to take care of himself, and, possibly, has preserved his life. Let liiin repay the debt by kinder usage. THE ICELAND HORSE. There are numerous troops of horses in this cold and inhospitable conn- try, descended, according to Mr. Anderson, from the Norwegian horse, but, according to Mr. Horrebow, being of Scottish origin. They are very small, strong, and swift. There are thousands of them in the mountains which never enter a stable, but instinct or habit has taught them to scrape away the snow, or break the ice, in search of their scanty food. A few are usually kept in the stable, but when the peasant wants more he catches ♦ M. de Biiffon strang-ely afBrins that the Hussars and Hungarians slit 'he noslrils of their hurses with a view to increase their wind, and to prevent their neighing ; and that Hungarian, Croatian, and Polish horses continue to old ag-e to have the mark in all their foreteeth. FLEMISH— FRENCH— SPANISH, &c. 2\ AS many as he needs, and shoes tlicm himself, and that sometimes witli a sheep's horn.* THE FLEMISH AND DUTCH HORSE. The Flemish and Dutch horses are large, and strongly and beautifully formed. We are indebted to them for some of the best blood of ou* draught-horses, and we still have frequent recourse to tliem for keeping up and impi'oving the breed. They will be more particularly described when the cart-horse is spoken of. THE FRENCH HORSE. France contains, like England, numerous breeds of horses, and consid- erable attention has lately been paid to their improvement ; but they are far inferior to ours in beauty, fleetness, and strength. The provinces of Auvergne and Poitou produce good ponies and galloways ; but the best F. inch horses are bred in Limousin and Normandy. From the former district come excellent saddle-horses and hunters; and from the latter a stronger species for the road, tlie cavalry, or the carriage. The Norman horses are now much crossed by our hunters, and occasionally by tlie thorough-bred ; and the English roadster and light-draught horse has not suffered by a mixture with the Norman. THE SPANISH HORSE. Spain was early celebrated for her breed of horses. The Andalusian charger and the Spanish jennet are familiar to all readers of romance. The subjugation of so great a portion of the peninsula to the Moorish sway, by introducing so much of the Barbary blood, mainly contributed to the undisputed excellence of the Spanish horse. One breed, long in the limbs, and graceful in all its motions, was the favourite war-horse of the knights ; while another race, carrying the esquire, although inferior in elegance, possessed far more strength and endurance. The Spanish horse of the present day is not much unlike the Yorkshire half-bred ; perhaps with flatter legs and better feet, but far inferior figure. THE ITALIAN HORSE. The Italian horses were once in hign repute, particularly the Neapoli tans ; but like every thing else in those mismanaged countries, they have sadly degenerated. One circumstance has mainly contributed to this faV.ins off in reputation and value, viz. that the breed has been kept up by occasional intermixture, not of Eastern, but of European blood. A few cf the Neapolitan horses, from their superior size and stateliness, are well adapted for the carriage. THE AMERICAN HORSE. In the extensive territory and varied climate of the United States, several breeds of horses are found. The Canadian is found principally in Canada, and the Northern States. Me is supposed to be of French d- scent, and many of the celebrated Ameri. can trotters are of this breed. We will speak of some of them when we describe the paces of the horse. ♦ Kerguelen'a Voyag-e to the North. 22 THE HORSE. The Conestoga horse is found in Pennsylvania, and the middle States — If.ng 111 the leg and light in the carcase — sometimes rising seventeen hands : UJicd principally for the cairiage ; but when not too high, and witi suffi- cient substance, useful for hunting and the saddle. The Ejiglish horse, with a good deal of blood, prevails in Virginia and Kentucky ; and is found, to a greater or less degree, in all the States. The Americans have, at different times, imported some of the best Englisii blood. It has been most diligently and purely preserved in the Southern States. The celebrated Shark, the best horse of his day, and equalled by {ew at any time, was the sire of the best Virginian horses; and Tally-ho, a son of Highflyer, peopled the Jerseys. In the back-settlements, and in the south-western States, is a horse re- sembling the wild horse of the Pampas, already described, and evidently of the same oricrin. CHAPTER III. HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH HORSE. The earliest record of the horse in Great Britain is contained in the his- tory given by Julius Ca'sar of his invasion of our island. The British army was accompanied by numerous war-chariots, drawn by horses. Short scythes were fastened to the ends of the axlctrees, sweeping down every thing before them, and carrying terror and devastation into the ranks of their enemies. The conqueror gives a most animated description of the dexterity with which the horses were managed. What kind of horse the Britons then possessed, it would be useless to inquire ; but from the cumbrous structure of the car, and the fury with \s Inch it was driven, and from the badness or nonexistence of the roads, they must have been both active and powerful in an extraordinary degree. Caesar deemed them so valuable, that he carried many of them to Rome ; and the British horses were, for a considerable period afterwards, in great request in various parts of the Roman empire. Horses must at that time have been exceedingly numerous in Britain, for we are told that when the British king, Cassibellaunus, dismissed the main body of his army, he retained four thousand of his war-chariots for the purpose of harassing the Romans, when they attempted to forage. The British horse now received its first cross; but whether the breed was thereby improved cannot be ascertained. The Romans having estab- lished themselves in Britain, found it necessary to send over a numerous body of cavalry to maintain a chain of posts and check the frequent insur- rections of the natives. The Roman horses would breed with those of the country, and, to a greater or less extent, change their character ; and from this lime, the English horse would consist of a compound of the native and those from Gaul, Italy, Spain, and every province from which tlie Roman cavalry was supplied. Many centuries afterwards passed by, and we have no record of the character or value, improvement or deterioration, of the animal. It would appear probable, however, that Athelstan, the natural son of Alfred the Great, and the second in succession to him, paid seme atten- lion to the improvement of the horse ; for having subdued all4he rebellious portions of the Heptarchy, he was congratulated on his success by som( of THE ENGLISH. 2S the continen al princes, and received from Hugh Capet of France, wiio solicited his sister in marriage, various presents, doubtless of a nature that would be thought most acceptable to him; and among them several German running horses. Hence our breed received another cross, and probably an improvement. Athelstan seems to have seriously devoted himself to this important object, for lie soon afterwards decreed (a. d. 930) that no horses should be sent abroad for sale, or on any account, except as royal presents. This proves his anxiety to preserve the breed, and likewise renders it probable that that breed was beginning to be esteemed by our neighbours. In a document bearing date A. d. 1000 we have an interesting account of the relative value of the horse. If a horse was destroyed, or negligently lost, the compensation to be demanded was thirty shillings ; a mare or colt, twenty shillings ; a mule or young ass, twelve shillings; an ox, thirty pence ; a cow, twenty-four pence ; a pig, eightpence ; and, it strangely follows, a man, one pound.* In the laws of Howell the Good, Prince of Wales, and passed a little before this time, there are some curious particulars respecting the value and sale of horses. The value of a foal not fourteen days old is fixed at fourpence; at one year and a day it is estimated at forty-eight pence; and at three years sixty pence. It was then to be tamed with the bridle, and brought up either as a pa/frey or a serving horse ; when its value became one hundred and twenty pence ; and that of a wild or unbroken mare sixty pence. Even in those early days, the frauds of dealers were too notorious, and the following singular regulations were established. The buyer was allowed time to ascertain whether the horse were free from three diseases. He had three nights to prove him for the staggers; three months to prove ihe soundness of his lungs ; and one year to ascertain whether he was infected with glanders. For every blemish discovered after the purchase, one-third of the money was to be returned, except it should be a blemish of the ears or tail. The practice of letting horses for hire was then known, and then, as now, the services of the poor hack were too brutally exacted. The be- nevolent Howell disdains not to legislate for the protection of this abused and valuable servant. " Whoever shall borrow ahorse, and rub the hair Bo as to gall the back, shall pay fourpence ; if the skin is forced into the flesh, eightpence ; if the flesli be forced to the bone, sixteen pence." One circumstance deserves to be remarked, that in none of the earliest historical records of the Anglo-Saxons or the Welsh, is there any allu- sion to the use of the horse for the plough. Until a comparitively re- cent period, oxen alone were used in England, as in other countries, for this purpose ; but about this time (the latter part of the tenth century) some innovation on this point was creeping in, and, therefore, a Welsh law forbids the farmer to plough with horses, mares, or cows, but with oxen alone. On one of the pieces of tapestry woven at Bayonne in the time of William the Conqueror, (a. d. 1086) there is the figure of a man driving a horse attached to a harrow. This is the earliest notice we have of the use of the horse in field-labour. With William the Conqueror came a marked improvement in the • According' to the Ang-lo-Saxon computation, forty-eig-ht shilling-s made a pound. ecu-«I in silver to about tlirec pounds of our present money, in value to fiifteen or sixteen pcandi. and five pcn'ic made one sliilling. 24 THE HORSE. British horse. To his superiority in cavalry this prince was chiefly indebted for the victory of Hastings. The favourite charger of William was a Spaniard. His followers, both the barons and the common soldiers, carne principally from a country in which agriculture had made more rapid progress than in England. A very considerable portion of the kingdom was divided among these men ; and it cannot be doubted that, however unjust was the usurpation of the Norman, England benefited in its husbandry, and particularly in its horses, by the dhange of mas- ters. Some of the barons, and particularly Roger de Boulogne, earl of Shrewsbury, introduced the Spanish horse, on their newly ac- quired estates. The historians of these times, however, principally monks, knowing nothing about horses, give us very little information on the subject. In the reign of Henry I. (a. d. 1121) the first Arabian hcse, or, at least, the first on record, was introduced. Alexander I. king of Scotland, presented to the church of St. Andrew's, and Arabian horse, with costly furniture, Turkish armour, many valuable trinkets, and a considerable estate. Forty years afterwards, in the reign of Henry II., Smithfield was cele- brated as a horse-market. Fitz-Stephen who lived at that time, gives the following animated account of the manner in which the hackneys and charging steeds were tried there, by racing against one another. " When a race is to be run by this sort of horses, and perhaps by others, which also in their kind are strong and fleet, a shout is immediately raised, and the common horses are ordei'ed to withdraw out of the way. Three jockeys, or sometimes only two, as the match is made, prepare themselves for the contest. The horses on their part are not without emulation ; they tremble and are impatient, and are continually in motion. At last, the signal once given, they start, devour the course, and hurry along with unremitting swiftness. The jockeys inspired with the thoughts of applause, and the hope of victory, clap spurs to their w illing horses, brandish their whips, and cheer them with their cries." This description reminds us of the more lengthened races of the present day, and proves the blood of the English horse, even before the Eastern breed was tried. Close on this followed the Crusades. The champions of the Cross cer- tainly had it in their power to enrich their native country with some of the choicest specimens of Eastern horses, but they were completely under the influence of superstition and fanaticism, and common sense and use- fulness were forgotten. An old metrical romance, however, records the excellence of two horses belonging to Richard Coeur de Lion, which he purchased at Cyprus, and were therefore, probably of Eastern origin. Yn this worlcle thoy hadde no pere Dromedary nor destrerc, Stede, Rabyte, ne Camnielc, Goeth none so swifto, without fayle : For a thousand pownd of golde, Ne should the one be solde. The war-steed was defended by mail or plate, much on the plan of the harness of the knight himself. His head was ornamented with a crest The head, chest, and flanks, were wholly or partially protected ; and some- times, he was clad in complete steel, with the arms of his master engraved or embossed on his bardings. The bridle of the horse was always as splen- THE ENGLISH. 25 i\(\ as the circumstances of the knight allowed, and thus a horse was often called Brijrliadore, from hrigUa d'oro, a bridle of gold. Bells were a ver^ favourite addition to the equipment of the horse. The old Troubadour, Arnold of Marson, says, that " nothing is so proper to inspire confidence in a knigiit, and terror in an enemy." The price of horses at this period was singularly uncertain. In 1185, fifteen breeding mares sold for two pounds twelve shillings and sixpence. They were purchased by the monarch, and distributed among his tenants, and, in order to get something by the bargain, he charged them the great sum of four shillings each. Twanty years afterwards, ten capital horses brought no less than twenty pounds each ; and, twelve years later, a pair of horses were imported from Lombardy, for which the extravagant price of thirty-eight pounds thirteen shillings and fourpence was given. The usual price of good handsome horses was ten pounds, and the hire of a car or cart, with two horses, was tenpence a-day. To King John, hateful as he was in all other respects, we are yet much indebted for the attention which he paid to agriculture generally, and particularly to improving the breed of horses. He imported one hundred chosen stallions of the Flanders kind, and thus mainly contributed to prepare our noble species of draught-horses, as unrivalled as the horses of the tarf. John accumulated a very numerous and valuable stud. He was eager to possess himself of every horse of more than usual power ; and, at all times, gladly received from the tenants of the crown, horses of a superior quality, instead of money, for the renewal of grants, or the payment of forfeitures belonging to the crown. It was his pride to render his cavalry, and the horses for the tournament and for pleasure, as perfect as possible. It could not be expected that so haughty a tyrant would concern himself much with the inferior kinds ; yet while the superior was becoming rapidly more valuable, the others would, in an indirect manner, partake the improvement. One hundred years afterwards, Edward II. purchased thirty Lombardy war-horses, and twelve heavy draught-horses. Lombardy, Italy, and Spain were the countries whence the greater part of Europe was then' supplied with the most valuable cavalry or parade horse. Horses foi agricultural purposes were chiefly procured from Flanders. Edward III. devoted one thousand marks to the purchase of fifty Spanish, horses ; and of such importance did he conceive this addition to the English, or rather mingled blood, then existing, that formal application was made to the kings of France and Spain to grant safe conduct to the troop. When they had safely arrived at the royal stud, it was computed' that they had cost the monarch no less than thirteen pounds six shillings and eightpence per horse, equal in value to one hundred and sixty pounds- of our present money. This monarch had many running-horses. The precise meaning of the term is not, however, clear. It might be light and speedy horses in oppo- sition to the war-horse, or those that were literally used for the purpose of racing. The average price of these running-horses was twenty marks, or three pounds six shillings and eightpence. Edward was devoted to the sports of the turf or the field, or he began to see the propriety of crossing' our stately and heavy breed with those of a lighter structure and greater ypeed. There was, however, one impediment to this, which was not for a very- C 26 THE HORSE. long period n: moved The soldier was cased in heav}' armour. The knigiit with all his accoutrements, often rode more than twenty-five stone. No Utile bulk and strength were required in the animal destined to carry this back-breaking weight. When the musket was substituted for the cross-bow and battie-axe, and this iron defence, cumbrous to the wearei and destructive to the horse, was useless, and laid aside, the improvement of the British horse in reality commenced. While Edward was thus eager to avail himself of foreign blood, with the too frequent selfishness of the sportsman, he would let no neighbour share in the advantage. The exportation of horses was forbidden under very heavy penalties. One case in which he relaxed from his severity is mentioned, when he permitted a German merchant to re-export some Flanders horses which he had brought on speculation ; but he was strictly forbidden to send them to Scoland. Nay, so jealous were these sister- KUigdoms of each other's prosperity, that so late as the time of Elizabeth, It was felony to export horses from England to Scotland. The English horse was advancing, although slowly, to an equality with, or even superiority over those of neighbouring countries. His value began to be more generally and highly estimated, and his price rapidly increased — so much so, that breeders and the dealers, then, as now, skilful in imposing on the inexperienced, obtained from many of our young gran- dees enormous prices for them. This evil magnified to such an extent, that Richard II (1386) interfered to regulate and determine the price. The proclamation wliich he issued is interesting not only as proving the increased value of the horse, but shewing what were, four hundred and fifty years ago, and what are, still, the chief breeding disti'icts. It was ordered to be published in the counties of Lincoln and Cambridge, and the East and North Ridings of Yorkshire ; and the price of the horse was restricted to that which had been determined by former sovereigns. A more enlightened policy has at length banished all such absurd interfer- ences with agriculture and commerce. We can now collect but little of the history of the horse until the reign of Henry VII., at the close of the fifteenth century. He continued to pro- hibit the exportation of stallions, but allowed that of mares when more than two years old, and under the value of six shillings and eightpence. This regulation w^as, however, easily evaded, for if a mare could be found worth more than six shillings and eightpence, she might be freely exported on the payment of that sum. Henry VIII., a tyrannical and cruel prince, but fond of show and splen- dour, was very anxious to produce a valuable breed of horses ; and the means which he adopted were both perfectly in unison with his arbitrary disposition, and very little calculated to elfect his object. He affixed a cer- tain standard, below which no horse should be kept. The lowest height for the stallion was fifteen hands, and for the mare thirteen hands; and even before they had arrived at their full growth, no stallion above two years old, and under fourteen hands and a half, were permitted to run on any forest, moor, or common, where there were mares. At " Michaelmas- tide" the neighbouring magistrates were ordered to "drive" all forests and commons, and not only destroy such stallions, but all " unlikely tits,'" whether mares or geldings, or foals, which they might deem not calculated to produce a valuable breed. He likewise ordained, that in every deer- park a certain number of mares, in proportion to its size, and each at least thirteen hands high should be kept, and that all his prelates and iiobles, THE ENGLISH 27 ard "all those whose wives wore velvet bonnets," should keep stallions for the saddle at least fifteen hands high. These ordinances perished with the tyrant by whom they were promulgated. The reign of Henry VIII. , produced the earliest English treatise ott agriculture, aM the management of horses and cattle. It was written by Sir A. Fitzherbert, Judge of the Common Pleas, and contains much useful information. It is entitled, " Roke of Husbandry ;" and, being now ex- ceedingly rare, an extract from it may not be unacceptable. It would seem that tiie mare had been but lately employed in husbandry, for he says, "A husbande may not be without horses and mares, and specially if he goe with a horse-ploughe he must have both, his horses to draive ; his mares to brynge colts to upiiolde his stocke, and yet at many times they may draive well if they be well handled." The learned judge shared the common fate of those who have to do with the horse. " Thou grasyer, that mayst fortune to be of myne opinion or condytion to love horses, and young coltes and foles to go among thy cattle, take hede that thou be not beguiled as I have been a hundred tymes and more. And first thou shalt knowe that a good horse has 54 properties, that is to say, 2 of a man, *2 of a badger, 4 of a lion, 9 of an oxe, 9 of a hare, 9 of a foxe, 9 of an asse, and 10 of a woman."* The tyrannical edicts of Henry VIII. had the effect which common sense would have anticipated, — the breed of horses was not materially im- proved, and their numbers were sadly diminished. When the bigot, Philip of Spain, tlireatened England, in the reign of Elizabeth, with his Invin- cible Armada, that princess could muster in her whole kingdom only three thousand cavalry to oppose him; and Blundeville, wlio wrote at this time a very pleasant and excellent book on the art of riding, speaks contemp- tuously of the qualities of these horses. The secret of improving the breed had not been then discovered ; it had been attempted by arbitrary power ; and it had extended only to those crosses from which little good could have been expected : or, rather, it had more reference to the actual situation of the country, and the heavy carriages, and tiie bad roads, and the tedious travelling which then prevailed, than to the wonderful change in these which a few centuries were destined to effect. Blundeville describes the majority of our horses as consisting of strong, sturdy beasts, fit only for slow draught, and the few of a lighter structure being weak and without bottom. There were, however, some exceptions ; for he relates a case of one of these lighter horses travelling eighty miles in a day — a task which in later times has been too often and cruelly ex- acted from our half-bred nags. An account has been given of the racing trial of the horses in Smithfield market. Regular races were now established in various parts of England. Meetings of this kind were first held at Chester and Stamford ; but there was no acknowledged system as now ; and no breed of racing horses. Flunters and hackneys mingled together, and no description of horse was excluded. * Later writers have pirated from Sir A., but have not improved upon him. The fol- lowing' description of the horse is well known. "A good horse should have three quali- ties of a woman, — a broad breast, round hips, and a long mane; — three of a lion, — coun- tenance, courage, and fire; three of a bullock, — the eye, the nostril, and joints, — three of a sheep, — the nose, gentleness, and patience; — three of a mule, — strength, constancy, and foot; — three of a clcer, —head, legs, and short hair; — three of a wolf; — throat; neck, and hearing; — three of a fox, — ear, tail, and trot; — three of a serpent, — memory, sigh'- and turning; — and three of a hare or cat, — running-, walking, and suppleness." 28 THE HORSE. The ,-e was at first no course marked out for the race, but the contest gen- e rally consisted in the running of train-scent across the country, and sr me- times the m:)st diflcult and dangerous part of the country was selected for the exhibition. Occasionally our present steeple chase was adopted with all its dangers, and more than its present barbarity ; for persons were appointed cruelly to flog along the jaded and exhausted horses. It should, however, be acknowledged that the races of that period were not disgraced by the system of gambling and fraud which seems to have become almost inseparable from the amusements of the turf. The prize was usually a wooden bell adorned with flowers. This was afterwards exchanged for a silver bell, and " given to him who should run the best and farthest on horseback on Shrove Tuesday." Hence the common phrase of " bearing away the bell." Horse-racing became gradually more cultivated; but it was not until the last year of the reign of James I., that rules were promulgated and generally subscribed to for their regulation. That prince was fond of field sports. He had encouraged, if he did not establish, horse-racing in Scot- land, and he brought with him to England his predilection for it; but his races were more often matches against time, or trials of speed and bottom, for absurdly and cruelly long distances. His favourite courses were at Croydon and on Enfield Chase. Although the Turkish and Barbary horses had been freely used to pro duce with the English mare the breed which was best suited to this exer- cise, little improvement had been etlected. James, with great judgment, determined to try the Arab breed. Probably, he had not forgotten the story of the Arabian, wiiich had been presented to one of his Scottish churches, five centuries before. He purchased, from a merchant named Markham, a celebrated Arabian horse, for which he gave the extravagant sum of five hundred pounds. Kings, however, like their subjects, are often thwarted and governed by their servants, and the Duke of Newcastle took a dislike to tliis foreign animal. He wrote a book, and a very good one, on horse- manship, and described this .\rabian as a little bony horse, of ordinary shape, setting him down as good for nothing, because, after being regularly trained, he could not race. The opinion of the Duke, probably altogether erroneous, had, for nearly a century, great weight; and the Arabian horse lost its reputation among the English turf- breeders. A South- Eastern horse was afterwards brought into England, and pur- chased by James, of Mr. Place, who was afterwards stud-master, or groom to Oliver Cromwell. This beautiful animal was called the White Turk, and his name and that of his keeper will long be remembered. Sliortly afterwards appeared the llt'lmsley Turk, introduced by Villiers, the first duke of Buckingham He was followed by Fairfax's Morocco Barb. These horses speedily effected a considerable change in the character of our breed, so that Lord Harleigh, one of the old school, complained that the great horse was fast disappearing, and that horses were now bred light and fine for the sake of speed only. Charles I. ardently pursued this favourite object of English gentlemen, and, a little before his rupture with the parliament, established races in Hyde Park, and at Newmarket. The civil wars somewhat suspended thg improvement of the breed ; yet the advantage which was derived by both parties from a light and active cavalry, sufficiently proved the importance of the change which had been effected; and Cromwell perceiving, with his wonted sagacity, how much these pursuits were connected with the prosperity of the country, had his stud of race-horses. THE ROAD AND FARMER'S 2JP At tho Restoration a new impulse was given to the cultivation of ^he norse by the inclination of the court to patronize gaiety and dissipation The races at Newmarket were restored, and as an additional spur to emulation, royal plates were now given at ieach of the principal courses Charles II. sent his master of the horse to the Levant, to purchase brooa mares and stallions. These were principally Barbs and Turks. From that period to the middle of the last century, the system of im- provement was zealously pursued : every variety of Eastern blood was occasionally engrafted on ours, and the superiority of the engrafted, above the very best of the original stock, began to be evident. Man is rarely satisfied with any degree of perfection in the object on which he has set his heart. The sportsman has now beauty of form, and speed and stoutness, scarcely an approach to which had been observed in the original breed. Still some imagined that this speed and stoutness might possibly be increased ; and Mr. Darley, in the latter part of the reign of Queen Anne, had recourse to the discarded and despised Arabian. He had much prejudice to contend with, and it was sometime before the Darley Arabian attracted notice. At length the value of his produce began to be recognised, and to him we are greatly indebted for a breed of horses of unequalled beauty, speed, and strength. This last improvement now furnishes all that can be desired : nor is this true only of the thorough-bred or turf-horse ; it is, to a very material de- gree, the case with every description of horse. By a judicious admixture and proportion of blood, we have rendered our hunters, our hackneys, our coach, nay even our cart horses, much stronger, more active, and more en-luring, than they were before the introduction of the race-horse. CHAPTER IV. THE DIFFERENT BREEDS OF ENGLISH HORSES. The reader is now prepared for the history and distinguishing character of the various breeds of English horses. If we were composing a treatise on the horse adapted for general readers, we should commence with the racer or thorough-bred horse, which, if it be not considered as the parent of every other breed, yet enters into, and adds, or often gives the only value to it. Remembering, however, the title of our work, we will begin with those whi^h are occasionally or chiefly employed for agricultural purposes. Firs, stands the Roadster, or Hackney, whether used by the farmer to ride ov«;r his grounds, or for the longer journeys of business or pleasure. The roadster varies much in different districts, and according to the whim or caprice of the rider. We have (p. 2) presented our readers with a portrait of the old English hackney, now, fortunately, little known, yet 'Jie origin of our best saddle-horses, whether for the road or the field. The modern horseman will find some fault with him. We give him as he was, »«?■■! .shall proceed to describe a much superior animal. THE HORSE. THE ROAD HORSE. The Road Horse ! more difficult to meet with in perfection than even tho ' 'jnter or the courser. There are many reasons for this. The price of t\e hackney, or the horse of all-work, is so low, that he who has a good one will not part with him ; and it is by mere accident that he can be obtained. There are also several faults that can be overlooked in the hunter, bul which the road-horse must not have. The hunter may start, may be awk- ward in his walk, or even his trot ; he may have thrushes or corns ; but if lie can go a good slapping pace, and has wind and bottom, we can put up with him, or prize him : but the hackney, if he be worth having, must have good fore-legs, and good hinder ones too ; he must be sound on hi« feet; even-tempered; no starter ; quiet in whatever situation he may be placed ; not heavy in hand ; and never disposed to say his prayers. If there be one thing more than any other, in which the possessor, and, in his own estimation at least, the tolerable judge of the horse, is in error, it is the action of the road-horse : " Let him lift his legs well," it is said, "and he will never come down." In proportion, however, as he lifts his legs well, will be the force with which he puts them down again ; the jar and concussion to the rider ; and the battering and wear and tear of the feet. A horse with too great " knee action" will not always be speedy ; he will rarely be pleasant to ride, and he will not, in the long run, be safer than others. The careless daisy-cutter, however pleasant on the turf, should indeed be avoided, unless the neck of the rider be previously insured ; yet it is a rule, not often understood, and sometimes disputed, but which experience will fully confirm, — that the safety of the horse depends a great deal more on the manner in which he puts his feet down, than on that in which he lifts them up : — more on the foot being placed at once flat on the ground, or perhaps the heel coming first in contact with it, than on the highest and most splendid action. When the toe first touches the ground, it may be easily supposed thai the horse will occasionally topple over. An unexpected obstacle will throw the centre of gravity forward, and down he will come. If the to*- dig into the ground before the foot is firmly placed, a little thnig will caus* a trip and a fall. THE ROAD 3 J Let the farmer who has a stumbler look at ine shoes of his horse. In wliat part is the wear and tear ? — The toe of the shoe will become round, or even be altogether gone, when the heel is scarcely touched. For pleasant riding, and for safety also, a hackney should not carry liu legs too high. His going a little too near to the ground is not always to be considered as an insuperable objection. The question is, does he dig his toe into the ground ? Mount him and put him to the test. Take up his feet and examine them. If tlie shoe, after having been on a week, or a fortnight, is not unnecessarily worn at the toe, and you feel him put his foot flat on the ground, do not scruple to buy him, nay, esteem him a "choice-gifted hackney," although he may not have the lofty action which some have erroneously thought so necessary. Every horse, however, is liable to fall, and hence comes the golden rule of riding "■never trust to your Jiorse,'^ — always feel his mouth lightly. He does wrong who constantly pulls might and main; he will soon spoil his horse's mouth, and render his own work always necessary. He does worse who carelessly throws the reins on the neck of the horse. Alwvy» feel the inoitth lightly ; you will thus be able to give the animal assistance imniediat.ely, before he is too niucli otl* his centre, and when a little check will save him. By this constant gentle feeling you will likewise induce him to carry his head well, than which k\v things are more conducive to the beautiful, safe, and easy going of the horse. The road-horse may, and should, like the hunter, possess different degrees of blood, according to the nature of the country, and the work re- quired of him. When approaching to thorough-bred, he may be a splendid animal, but he will be scarcely fitted tor his duty. His legs will be too slender ; his feet too small ; his stride too long ; and he will rarely be able to trot. Three parts, or half, and for the horse of all-work, even less than that, will make a good and useful animal. The hackney should be a hunter in miniature, with these exceptions. Elis height should rarely exceed fifteen hands and an inch. He will be sufficiently strong and more pleasant for general work below that standard. He should be of a more compact form than the hunter, and have more bulk according to his height ; for he has not merely to stand an occasional although severe burst, but a great deal of every-day work. It is of essential conse(juence that the bones beneath the knee should be deep and flat, and the tendon not tied in. The pastern should be short, and although oblique or slanting, yet far less so than that of the race-horse, and considerably less than tliat of the hunter. There should be obliquity enough to give pleasant action, but not enough to render the horse incapable of the wear and tear of constant, and sometimes hard work. The foot is a matter of the greatest consequence in a hackney. It should be of a size corresponding with the bulk of the animal, neitiier too hollow, nor too flat; open at the heels; and free from corns and thrushes. The fore legs should be perfectly straight. There needs not a moment's consideration to satisfy us that a horse with his knees bent will, from a slight cause and especially if he be overweighted, come down. The back should be straight and short, yet sufficiently long to leave comfortable room for the saddle between the shoulders and the huck with- out, pressing on either. Some persons prefer a hollow-backed horse. It is generally an easy one to go. It will canter well with a lady ; but it will not cany a heavy weight, nor stand much hard work. 38 THE HORSE. Tlie road-Iiorse should be high iti llie forehan ' ; round in the barrel ; and deep in llie chest : the saddle will not then press too far forward., but the girths will remain wilhoul crupper, firmly fixed in their proper place. A iiackney is far more valuable for the pleasantness of his paces, and his safety, good temper, and endurance, tiian for iiis sj)eed. \Ve rarely want to go more than eight or ten miles in an hour; and, on a journey, not more than six or seven. The fast horses, and especially tiie fast trotters, are not often easy in their paces, and although tiiey may pcform very extraordinary feats, are disabled and worthless when tiie slower horse is in his prime. Most of our readers probably are horsemen. Their memories will supply ilieni with many an instance of intelligence and fidelity in the horse, and particularly in the hackney — the every. day companion of man. A friend of ours rode thirty miles from home on a young horse wiiicii lie had bred, and which had never before been in that part of tiie country. The road was difficult to find, but by dint of inquiry he at length reached the place he sought. Two years passed over, and he had again occasion to take the same journey. No one rode this horse but himself, and he was perfectly assured that the animal had not since been in tliat direction. Three or four miles before he reached his journey's end he was benighted. He had to traverse moor and com- mon, and he could scarcely see his horse's head. The rain began to pelt. "Well," thought he, "here I am, far from any house, and know not, nor can I see an inch of my road. I have heard much of the memory of the horse, — it is my only hope now, — so there," throwing the reins on his horse's neck, "go on." In haF an hour he was safe at his friend's gate. The following anecdote, given on the authority of Professor Kruger of Halle, proves both the sagacity and fidelity of the horse. — A friend of his, riding home through a wood in a dark night, struck his head against the branch of a tree, and fell from his horse stunned. The steed immediately returned to the house which they had lately left, and which was now closed, and the family in bed, and pawed at the door until some one rose and opened it. He turned about, and the man wondering at the affair, followed him : the faithful and intelligent animal led him to the place where his master lay senseless on the ground. Cunningham, in his valuable account of New South Wales, vol. i. p. 298, says, "A friend of mine in the habit of riding a good deal, found that whenever he approached a gully, his sagacious horse invariably opposed his wishes to cross at the particular spot he had been accus- tomed to, always endeavouring to lead off to another part of the gully, where no passage was known to exist by his rider. Resolving to see whither the cunning rogue would go, he gave him the rein, and soon found himself carried over the gully by a route he had never before followed. Still, however, thinking that the former way w-as the nearest, he was curious enough to have both measured, when he found the horse's judgment correct; that way being the nearest by several hundred 'yards." Of the paces of the hackney, and of horses generally, and the principle of the walk, me trot, the canter, and the gallop, we shall be better able to speak, when tne structure of the horse, varying in diflerent breeds, has been explainea. THE FARMER'S 33 The points of shape most essential to be attended to in the clioice of a lackney, arc — the shoulders and tiie fore legs and feet: because a hoiae wiiose slioulders are properly formed and placed is not liable to fall down; and because !iis soundness depends chiefly upon his legs and feet. The shoulders siiould not be too upright, but should slope backwards from the shoulder point to the withers. It is desirable, if the horse is intended to carry a man of mucli weight, that tiie shoulders sliould be rather thick than tiiin ; but it is essential that they should not be too large at the points. A horse whose shoulders are good, stands, wiien in a natural position, with his fore legs in a line perpendicular to the ground ; it is therefore very desirable that the purchaser should see him in the stable, and before he has been moved, for he will then find him in his natural position, in which it may be difficult to place him after he has been once disturbed. Another mode of ascertaining whether the shoulders are properly placed is, by allowing the horse to walk past you, and to observe whether he places his fore foot more forward than the shoulder point when he puts it on the ground. A horse whose shoulders are properly formed will always do so; one whose shoulders are upright, cannot. The fore quarters of a horse intended to be used as a hackney constitute an essential point : his carcase should be round, and his ribs deep. A horse's fore leg, of the proper form, should be flat, and as large under the knee as it is just above the fetlock. The pastern should be so joined to the leg at the fetlock, that the horse should neither turn his feet out or in; but it is less objec- tionable that a horse should turn his feet a little outwards, provided it is not so much as to make him hit his fetlocks, than that he should turn them inward. THE FARMER'S HORSE. The Farmer's Horse is an animal of all -work ; to be ridden occasion- hlly to market or for pleasure, but to be principally employed for draught. lie should be higher than the road-horse : about fifteen hands and two inches may be taken as the best standard. A horse with a shoulder thicker, lower, and less slanting than would be chosen in a hackney, will better suit the collar; and collar-work will be chiefly required of him. A stout compact horse should be selected, yet not a heavy cloddy one. Some blood will be desirable, but the half-bred horse will generally best suit the farmer's purpose. He should have weight enough to throw into the collar, and sufficient activity to get over the ground. Farmers are now beginning to be aware of the superiority of the mod- erate-sized, strong, active horse over the bulkier, but slower animal of for- mer days. It is not only in harvest, and when a frosty morning must be seized to cart manure, that this is perceived, but, in the every-day work of the farm, the saving of time, and the saving of provender too, will be very considerable in the course of a year. It has often been said, that a horse used much for draught is neitfier pleasant nor safe for the saddle. The little farmer does not want a showy, complete hackney. He will be content if he is tolerably well carried ; and (if he has taken a little care in the choice of his horse ; has selected one with sound feet, shoulders not too thick, and legs not too much under him ; and, if he keeps him in good condition, and does not scandalously ov'='"weight him,) the five days carting or harrow-work, will not, to an\ material degree, unfit him for the saddle : especially if the lider bear in •34 THE HOllSE. mind what we have termed the golden rule of horsemanship, always a lillh to fed the mouth of the animal he is upon. A farmer and more particularly a small farmer, will prefer a mare to a gelding, both for riding and driving. She will not cost him so much at first; and he will get a great deal more work out of her. There can be no doubt that, taking bulk for bulk, a mare is stronger and more lasting than a gelding; and, in addition to this, the farmer has her to breed from. This and the profit which is attached to it is well known in the breeding counties ; but why the breeding of horses for sale should be almost exclusively confined to a {e\v northern districts it is not easy to explain. Wherever there are good horses, with convenience for rearing the colts, the farmer may start as a breeder with a good chance of succes. If he has a few useful cart-mares, and crosses thein- with a well-knit, half-bred horse, he will certainly have colts useful for every purpose of agriculture, and some of them suffiiciently light for the van, post-chaise, or coach. If he has a superior mare, one of the old Cleveland breed, and puts her to a bony, three-fourths-bred horse, or, if he can find one stout and compact enough, a seven-eighths, or a thorough-bred one, he will have a fair chance to rear a colt that will amply repay him as a hunter or carriage-horse. The mare need not be idle while she is breeding. She may be worked moderately almost to the period of her foaling, and with benefit rather than otherwise : nor is there occasion that much of her time should be lost even while she is suckling. If she is put to horse in June, the foaling time will fall, and the loss of labour will occur, in the most leisure time of the year. There are two rocks on which the farmer often strikes : he pays little attention to the kind of mare, and less to the proper nourishment of the foal. It may be laid down as a maxim in breeding, however general may be the predjudice against it, that the value of the foal depends a great deal more on the dam than on the sire. The Arabs are convinced of this, for no price will buy from them a likely mare of the highest blood ; and they trace back the pedigree of their horses, not through the sire, but the dam. The Greek sporting-men held the same opinion, long before the Arab horse was known. " What chance of winning have I ?" inquired a youth whose horse was about to start on the Olympic course " Ask the dam of your horse" was the reply, founded on experience.* Thr> farmer, however, too frequently thinks that any mare will do to breed from ; and, if he can find a great prancing stallion, with a high- sounding name, and loaded with fat, he reckons on having a valuable colt : and should he fail, he attributes the fault to the horse, and not to his own want of judgment. Far more depends on the mare than is dreamt of in his philosophy. If he has an undersized, or a blemished, or unsound mare, let him continue to use her on his farm : she probably did not cost him much and she will beat any gelding ; but let him not think of breeding fronr * Bishop Hall, who wrote in the time of Elizabeth, intimates that such was the opinioi of horsemen at that period. He asks, in one of his satires (Lib. iv.) -dost thou prize Thy brute beasts' worth by their dams' qualities? Say'st thou this colt shall prove a swift-pac'd steed Only because a Jennet did him breed ? Or say'st thou tiiis same horse shall win the pr yards) in seven minutes and thirty seconds. In 1772 a mile WM run oy Firetail, in one minute and four seconds. In October, 1741, at the Curragh meeting in Ireland, Mr. Wilde engagea to ride one hundred and twenty-seven miles in nine hours. He performed it in six hours and twenty-one minutes. He employed ten horses, and, allowing for mounting and dismounting, and a moment for refreshment, he rode for six hours at the rate of twenty miles an hour. Mr. Thornhill, in 1745, exceeded this, for he rode from Stilton to Lon- don and back, and again to Stilton, being two hundred and thirteen miles, in eleven hours and thirty-four minutes, which is, after allowing the least l)0ssible time for changing horses, twenty miles an hour for eleven hours, and on the turnpike road and uneven ground. Mr. Shaftoe, in 1762, with ten horses, and five of them ridden twice, accomplished fifty miles and a quarter, in one hour and forty-nine minutes. In 1763, Mr. Shaftoe won a more extraordinary match. He was to procure a person to ride one hundred miles a day, on any one horse each day, for twenty-nine days together, and to have any number of horses not exceeding twenty-nine. He accomplished it on fourteen horses; and on one day he rode one hundred and sixty miles, on account of the tiring of his first horse. Mr. Hull's Quibbler, however, afforded the most extraordinary instance, on record of the stoutness as well as speed of the race-horse. In Decem- ber, 1786, he ran twenty-three miles round the flat at Newmarket, in fifty- seven minutes and ten seconds. ECLIPSE. Eclipse was got by Marsk, a grandson of Bartlett's Childers.* * The pedigree of Eclipse affords a singular illustration of the d 'scent of our ihorougb- bred horses from pure Eastern blood. ( Darley Arabian, f Bartlett's ChUders . . j g^^^^ ^eeds \ Careless j Shank- \ Barb Mare Squirt \ ( Snake . . . . ( Lister Turk, I Dam of < Daughter ( tto,.«>,«„ S DArceyWhiteTiirll •- • ' ^ Hautboy. P'^^t^oy Uoyal Mare. Caroline and Shock . Daughter of ' Hautboy I Hautboy. (Hutton's Be Hutton's Black Legs ^ ( Coneyskins. ] Lister Turk. ( Daughter of < Hutton's Bay Turk. , Daughter of I Daughter of < Hautboy ( Clumsy. } Hautboy. Fox Cub ^ ' , ( Daughter of I Leeds Arabian. ( Coneyskins . \ Lister Turk. Daughter of { 5 ( Daughter of ] Hutton's Grey Barb. iGodolphin Arabian. ( Bald Galloway. , Daughter of } C Snake. I Lister Turk. ' Old Wilkes, by Hautboy. ( Old Montague j Daughter of Hautboy The pediaree of Eclipse will likewise afford us another curious illustration of the un- certainty which attends thorough-bred horses. Marsk was sold at the sale of the Duke of Cumberland's stud for a mere trifle, and was suffered to run almost wild on the New Daughter of ■ H.egUI'18. . < RACE HORSE. 47 Of the beauty, yet peculiarity of his form, much has been said. The very great size, obliquity, and lowness of his shoulders were the objects of general remark — with the shortness of his fore-quarters, his ample and finely proportioned quarters, and the swelling muscles of his fore-arm and thigh. Of his speerl, no correct estimate can be formed, for he never me* v\ ith an opponent sufficiently fleet to put it to the test. He was bred by the Duke of Cumberland, and sold at his death to Mr. Wikhnan a sheep salesman, for seventy-five guineas. Colonel O'Kelly purchased a siiare of him from Wildman. In the spring of the following year, when the reputation of this wonderful animal was at its height, O'Kelly wished to become sole owner of him, and bought the remaining share for one thousand pounds. Eclipse was what was termed a thick-winded horse, and puffed and roared so as to be heard at a considerable distance. For this or some other cause, he was not brought on the turf until he was five years old. O'Kelly, aware of his horse's powers, had backed him freely on his first race, in May, 1769. This excited curiosity, or, perhaps, roused sus- picion, and some persons attempted to watch one of his trials. Mr. John Lawrence says, that " they were a little too late ; but they found an old woman who gave theni all the information they wanted. On inquiring whether she had seen a race, she replied that she could not tell whether it was a race or not, but that she had just seen a horse with white legs running away at a monstrous rate, and another liorse a great way behind., tiying to run after him ; but she was sure he never would catch the white- legged horse if he ran to the world's end." The first heat was easily won, when O'Kelly, observing that the rider had been pulling at Eclipse during the whole of the race, offered a wager that he placed the horses in the next heat. This seemed a thing so highly improbable, that he immediately had bets to a large amount. Being called on to declare, he replied, " Eclipse first, and the rest no where V The event jus-tified his prediction : all the others were distanced by Eclipse with the greatest ease ; or, in the language of the turf, they had no place. In the spring of the following year, he beat Mr. Wentworth's Bucephalus. Forest. He was afterwards purchased by the Earl of Abing-don, for one thousand g-uineas, and before his death covered for one hundred guineas. Squirt, when the property of Sir Harry Harpur, was ordered to be shot, and while he was actually leading to the dog- kennel, he was spared at the intercession of one of Sir Harry's grooms; and neither Bartlett's Childer's, nor Snake, was ever trained. On tiie side of the dam, Spilet?a never started but once, and was beaten: and the Godolphin Arabian was purchased from a water-cart in Paris. — Smilh's Breeding /or the Turf, p. 5. '48 THE HORSE. who hfll lever Lefore been conquered. Two days afterwards he distanced Mr. Sirode's Pensioner, a very good horse ; and, in the August of the same year, he won the great subscription at York. No horse daring to enter against him, he closed his short career of seventeen months, by walking over the Newmarket course for the king's plate, on October 18th, 1770. He was never beaten, nor ever paid forfeit, and won for his owner more than twenty-five thousand pounds. Eclipse was afterwards employed as a stallion, and produced the extraordinary number of three hundred and thirty-four winners, and these netted to their owners more than a hundred and sixty thousand pounds, exclusive of plates and cups. This fine animal died in 1789, at the age of twenty-five years.* More than twenty years after the Darley Arabian, and when the value of the Arabian blood was fully established. Lord Godolphin possessed a beautiful, but singularly shaped horse, which he called an Arabian, but which was really a Barb. His crest, lofty and arched almost to a fault, will distinguish him from every other horse. It will likewise be seen from our j)late (vide p. 9,) that he had a sinking behind his shoulders, almost as peculiar, and a corresponding elevation of the spine towards the loins. His muzzle was uncommonly fine, his head beautifully set on, his shoulders capacious, and his quarters well spread out. He was picked up in France, where he was actually employed in drawirg a cart; and when he was afterwards presented to Lord Godolphin, "le was in that nobleman's stud a considerable lime before his value was discovered. It was not until the birth of Lath, one of the first horses of that period, that his excellence began to be appreciated. He was then styled an Arabian, and became, in even a greater degree than the Darley, the founder of the modern thorough-bred horses. He died in 1753, at the age of twenty-nine. An intimate friendship subsisted between him and a cat, which either sat on his back when he was in the stable, or nestled as closely to him as she could. At his death, the cat refused her food, and pined away, and soon died. — Mr. Holcroft gives a similar relation of the attachment between a race-horse and a cat, which the courser would take in his mouth and place in his manger and upon his back without hurting her. Chillaby, called from his great ferocity the Mad Arabian, whom one only of the grooms dared to approach, and who savagely tore to pieces the image of a man that was purposely placed in his way, had his peculiar attachment to a Iamb, who used to employ himself for many an hour, in butting away the flies from him. Another foreign horse, whose portrait we have given (vide p. 11,) was the Wellesley Arabian; the very picture of a beautiful wild horse of the desert. His precise country was never determined. He is evidently neither a perfect Barb nor a perfect Arabian, but from some neighbouring province, where both the Barb and Arabian would expand to a more per- fect fulness of form. This horse has been erroneously selected as the pat- tern of a superior Arabian, and therefore we have introduced him ; tew, however, of his produce were trained who can add much to his reputation. It has been imagined that the breed of racing horses has lately very considerably degenerated. This is not the case. Thorough-bred horses * The produce of King- Herod, a descendant of Flying Childers, was even more RUnierous. He got no less than four hundred and ninety-seven winners, who gained foi their proprietors upwards of two hundred thousand pounds. Highflyer was a son '»t King Herod. THE RACER. 40 vore fonnerly fewer in number, and their performances created greater wonder. The breed has now increased twenty-fold, and superiority is not so easily obtained among so many competitors. If one circumstance could, more than any other, produce this degeneracy, it would be our absurd ani' cruel habit of bringing out horses too soon, and the frequent failure of tlK ir legs before they have come to their full power. Childers and Eclipse did not appear until they were five years old ; but many ot our best horses, and those, perhaps, who would have shown equal excel- lence with the most celebrated racers, are foundered and destroyed before that period. Whether the introduction of short races, and so young horses, be ad- vantageous, and whether stoutness and usefulness may not thus be some- what too much sacrificed to speed — whether there may be danger that an animal designed for service may, in process of time, be frittered away almost to a shadow of what he was, in order that at two years old, over the one-mile course, he may astonish the crowd by his fleetness — are questions that more concern the sporting man than the agriculturist; and yet they concern the agriculturist too, for racing is principally valuable as connected with breeding, and as the test of breeding. The horse enters into the spirit of the race as thoroughly as does his rider, and, without whip or spur, will generally exert his energies to the utmost to beat his opponent. It is beautiful to see him advancing to the starting-post, every motion evincing his eagerness. The signal is given, and he springs away — he settles himself in his stride — the jockey becomes a part and portion of him, every motion of the arms and body corre- .sponding with, and assisting the action of the horse. On he goes, eager, yet husbanding his powers. At length, when he arrives at that distance from which the rider knows that he will live ho7ne at the top of his speed, the hint is given, and on he rushes. Then the race in reality begins, and every nerve is strained to head his competitor. Then, too, comes the art of the rider, to keep the horse within his pace, and with admirable give and take, add to the length of every stride. Then, perhaps, the spui, skilfully applied, may be necessary to rouse every dormant energy. A sluggish lurching horse may need more punishment than the humane observer would think justifiable. But the natural ardour of the race-horse, roused at the moment of the grand struggle, by the moderate application of the whip and spur, will bring him through if he can win. Forrester will afford sufficient illustration of the natural emulation of the courser. — He had won many a hardly contested race ; at length, over- weighted and over-matched, the rally had commenced. His opponent, who had been waiting behind, was gaining upon him ; he overtook him, and they continued quite close to within the distance. It was a point that could scarcely be decided. But Forrester's strength was failing. He made one desperate plunge — seized his antagonist by the jaw to hold him back, and could scarcely be forced to quit his hold, In like manner, a horse belonging to Mr. Quin, in 1753, finding his adversary gradually passing •lim, seized him by the leg, and both riders were obliged to dismount, in order to separate the animals. Let us here pause and ask, would the butcherly whipping and cutting which seems so often to form the expected and necessary conclusion of the race — the supposed display of the skill of the rider — the exultation of the thoughtless or unfeeling spectator — would these have carried such horses over one additional inch of ground ? They would have been thrown abroad — they would have shortened their stroke —and perhaps \\ould have become enraged, and suspended everyr exertion. 50 THE HORSE. The liO'se is as susceptible of pleasure and pain as ourselves. He vva» coMimiUed to us for our protection and our use ; he i» a willing, devote(^ servant. Whence did we derive the right to abuse him ? Inteiest speak.s the same language : many a race has been lost by the infliction of wanion cruelty-* THE HUNTER. There are few agriculturists who have not a little liking for the sports of the field, and who do not fancy rich music in the cry of the hounds. To what extent it may be prudent for them to indulge in these sports circum- stances must decide, and they deserve the most serious consideration. Few can, or, if they could, ought to keep a hunter. There are tempta- tions to expense in the field, and to expense after the chase, which it may oe difficult to withstand. The hunter, however, or the hunting horse. * One of the severest plate-races on record, was run at Carlisle, in 1761, and in which there were no fewer than six heats, and two of them were dead heats, each of which was contested by the winner of the plate. In 1763 at Salisbury, and over a four-mile course, there were four heats between two horses, the Duke of Grafton's Havana and Mr. Wildman's Pam. The following- table of the abbreviations used in desig-nating- the diiferent courses at Newmarket, and the length of these courses, may not be unnacceptable. Abbrev. 3Iiles. Purl. Yds. The Beacon course B.C. is 4 1 138 Last three miles of ditto - L.T.M. 3 5 From the Ditch in - - D.I. 2 94 From the turn of the lands in T.L.I. 5 184 Clermont course C.C. 1 5 217 Across the Flat AF. 1 1 447 Two-year old course T.Y.C. 5 136 Yearling course Y.C. 2 147 Round course . . - R.C. 3 6 93 Ditch mile ... D.M. 7 148 Abingdon mile . . . A.M. 7 211 Rowtey mile R.M. 1 1 Two middle miles of B.C. - T.M.M. 1 7 115 A Distance is the length of two hundred and forty yards from the winning post. In the gallery of tlie winning post, and in a little gallery at the distance pest are placed two in*"!! holding crimaon flags. As soon as the the first horse has naqsed the winning poaL tha THE HUNTER. 31 . «. the horse on whieh a farmer, if he be not a professed sportsman, may occasionally with pleasure, and without disgrace, follow the hounds, is in value and beauty next to the racer. He shoulg seldom be under fifteen or more than sixteen hands high ; below tliis standard he cannot always sufficiently measure the object befoie him, and above this, he is apt to be leggy, and awkward at his work. In proportion as the agriculture of the country is improved, the speed of the chase is increased. The scent both of the fox and hare will lie bettei in inclosed and well-cultivated ground, than on open, barren heaths ; and there is more running hreast-high than when the hound is compelled to pick out the scent, carrying his nose almost close to the ground, and con- sequently going more slowly. The character of the hunter is consequently gradually changing. Stoutness is still required, but speed is becoming more necessary, and, therefore, for the fox, and the deer, and even for the hare, blood is an essential quality. In strong, thickly inclosed countries, the half-bred horse may get tolei*- ably well along ; but for general use the hunter should be at least three- quarters bred, perhaps seven-eighths. If he could be obtained with bone enough, and different action, a thorough-bred horse would form the best of all hunters : but the thorough-bred horse, with the usual action of the racer, would not, even at three-quarters speed, always carry himself sufficiently high to be aware of and to clear his fences. The first property of a good hunter is, that he should be light in hand For this purpose his head must be small ; his neck thin ; and especiall} thin beneath ; his crest firm and arched, and his jaws wide. The head will then be well set on. It will form that angle with the neck which gives a light and pleasant mouth. Somewhat of a ewe-neck, however it may lessen the beauty of the race- horse, does not interfere with his speed, because, as is shown where the structure of the horse is considered, more weight may be thrown forward, and consequently the whole bulk of the animal more easily impelled ; at the same time, the head is more readily and perfectly extended, the wind- pipe is brought almost to a straight line from the lungs to the muzzle, and the breathing is freer. Should the courser, in consequence of this form of the neck, bear more heavily on the hand, the race is soon over ; but the hunter may be our companion and our servant through a long day, and it is of essential consequence that he shall not too much annoy and tire us by the weight of his head and neck. The forehand should be loftier than that of the racer. A turf horse may be forgiven if his hind quarters rise an inch or two above his fore ones. His principal power is wanted from behind, and the very lowness of the man drops his flag- ; the other at the distance post drops his at the same moment, and the horse which has not then passed that post is said to be distanced, and cannot start again for tlie same plate or prize. A Feather-weight is the lightest weight that can be put on the back of a horse. A Give and Take Plate is where horses carry weight according to their height. Pour- teen hands are taken as the standard height, and horse must carry nine stone (the horse- man's stone is fourteen pounds.) Seven pounds are taken from the weight for every inch below fourteen hands, and seven pounds added for every inch above fourteen hands. A few pounds additional weight is so serious an evil, that it is said, seven pounds in a mile race are equivalent to a distance. A Post Match is for horses of a certain age, and the parties possess the privilege of 6ring-ing any horse of that age to the post. A Pbodcce Match is that between the produce of certain mares i;i foal at the time of •he r>atch and to be decided when they arrive at a certain age specified. 52 THE HORSE. foroi.and .nay throw more weight in front, and cause the whcJe matnine to be more easily and speedily moved. A lofty forehand, however, is indis- pensahle in the hunter ; the shoulder as extensive as the racer ; — as ob lique and somewhat thicker ; the saddle will then be in its proper place, and will continue so, however long may be the run. The barrel should be rounder, to give greater room for the heart and lungs to play, and send more and purer blood to the larger frame of this horse ; and especially more room to play when the run may continue un- checked for a time that begins to be distressing. A broad chest is an excellence in the hunter. — In the violent and long-continued exertion of the chase, the respiration is exceedingly quickened, and abundantly more blood is hurried through the lungs in a given time than when the animal is at rest. There must be sufficient room for this, or the horse will be blown, and possibly destroyed. The majority of the horses that perish in the field are narrow chested. The arm should be as muscular as that of the courser, or even more so, for both strength and endurance are wanted. The leg should be deeper than that of the race horse (broader as you stand at the side of the horse,) and especially beneath the knee. In proportion to the distance of the tendon from the cannon or shank-bone, and more particularly just below the knee, is the mechanical advantage with which it acts. A racer may be tied beneath the knee, without per- fectly destroying his power, but a hunter with this defect will rarely have stoutness. If any objection be made to our cut of the hunter, it will be that the mare was too fine below the knee. It was the only bad point in an almost perfect form. She was the property of T. Millington, Esq., to whose kindness we are indebted for permission to copy her portrait. She would go over any thing, and was never tired. The leg should be shorter. Higher action is required than in the racer, that the legs may be clearly and safely lifted over many an obstacle, and, particularly, that they may be well doubled up in the leap. The pastern should be shorter, and less slanting, yet retaining consider- able obliquity. The long pastern is useful, by the yielding resistance which its elasticity affords, to break the concussion with which the race- horse from his immense stride and speed must come on the ground : and the oblique direction of the different bones beautifully contributes to effect the same purpose. With this elasticity, however, a considerable degree of weakness is necessarily connected, and the race-horse occasionally breaks down in the middle of his course. The hunter, from his dilTerent action, takes not this length of stride, and therefore wants not all this elastic me- chanism ; he more needs strength to support his own heavier carcase, and the greater weight of his rider, and to undergo the fatigue of a long day. Some obliquity, however, he requires, otherwise the concussion even of his shorter gallop, and more particularly of his frequently tremendous leaps, would inevitably lame him. The foot of the hunter is a most material point. It is of consequence in the racer, yet it is a notorious fact, that many of our best thorough-bred horses have had very indifferent feet. The narrow contracted foot is the curse of much of the racing blood. The work of the racer, however, is all performed on the turf, and his bad feet may scarcely incommode him ; but the foot of the hunter is battered over many a flinty road and ?tony field, and if not particularly good, will soon be disabled and ruined The position of the feet requires some attention in the hunter. They THE HUNTER. 53 sliould, if possible, stand straight. If they turn a little outward there is f)** serious objection ; but if they turn inward, his action cannot be safe, par- ticularly wlien he is fatigued or over-weighted. The body should be short and compact, compared with that of the race- horse, that he may not in his gallop take too extended a stride. This would be a serious disadvantage in a long day and with a heavy rider from the stress on the pasterns ; and more serious when going over clayey poached ground during the winter months. The compact short-stridea horse will almost skim the surface, while the feet of the longer-reached animal will sink deep, and he will wear himself out by efforts to disengage himself. Every horseman knows how much more enduring is a short-bodied horse in climbing hills, although perhaps not quite so much in descending them. This is the secret of suiting the race-horse to his course ; and unfolds the apparent mystery of a decidedly superior horse on a flat and straight course, being often beaten by a little horse with far shorter stride on uneven ground, and with several turnings. The loins should be broad ; — the quarters long ; — the thighs musculai — tlie hocks well bent, and well under the horse. The reader needs not be told how essential temper and courage are. A hot, irritable brute is a perfect nuisance, and the coward that will scarcely face the slightest fence exposes his owner to ridicule. The training of the race-horse has not been touched upon. It contain."^ too much mystery, and too much absurdity for common understandings, 'i'he jfincip/e however of preparing both the race-horse and the hunter for their work is the same, and can have no mystery about it ; viz: by physic and by exercise, to get rid of all superfluous fat and flesh, without too much lowering the animal ; and, particularly to bring him by dint of exercise into good wind, and accustom him to the full trial of his powers without over-straining or injuring liim. Two or three doses of physic as the season approaches, and tiiese not too strong ; plenty of good hard meat ; and a daily gallop of a couple of miles,^ and at a pace not too quick, will be nearly all that can be required. Physic must not be omitted ; but the three words air, exercise, food, contain the grand secret and art of training. Some think that even the simple process now described is not necessary, and that horses that are taken up and worked in the day, and with a feed or two of corn, and turned out at night, with an open stable or shed to run into if they please, are as active, healthy, and enduring, as those who arc most carefully ti'ained, and confined to tiie stable during the hunting season. Many a farmer has boasted, that he can beat the most numerous and the best appointed field, and that his horse never wants wind, and rarely tires. It is true that the farmer may enjoy a good day's sport on the horse that carries him to market, or possibly, occasionally performs more menial drudgery ; but the frothy lather with which such a horse is covered in the early part of the day evinces undeniable inferiority. There is, however, one point on which the untrained horse has the advantage. Accustomed to all weather, he rarely suffers, when, after a sharp burst, there comes a sudden check, and the pampered and shivering stabled horse is exposed with hini for a considerable time to a piercing north-easter. I'he one cares nothing about it ; the other may carry home the seeds of dangerous disease. The hunler may be fairl}' ridden twice, or, if not with any very hard 54 THE HORSE. days, ihrNe times in the week; but, after a thoroiiolily hard day, and evi- dent distress-, three or four days' rest should be allowed. They who are merciful to their horses, allow about thirty days' work in the course of the season ; with gentle exercise on each of the intermediate days, and particularly a sweat on the day before hunting. There is an account, however, of one horse who followed the fox-hounds seventy-five times in one season. This feat has never been exceeded. We recollect to have seen the last Duke of Richmond but one, although an old man, and when he had the gout in his hands so severely that he was obliged to be lifted on horseback, and both arms being passed through the reins, were crossed on his breast, galloping down the steepest part of Bow-hill, in the neighbourhood of Goodwood, almost as abrupt as tlie ridge of an ordinary house, and cheering on the hounds with all the ardour of a youth.* The horse fully shares in the enthusiasm of his rider. It is beautiful to watch the old hunter, who, after many a winters' hard work, is turned into the park to enjoy himself for life. His attitude and his countenance when, perchance, he hears the distant cry of the dogs, are a study. If he can, he will break his fence, and, over hedge, and lane, and brook, follow the chase, and come in first at the death. A horse that had, a short time before, been severely fired on three legs, and was placed in a loose box, with the door, four feet high, closed, and an aperture over it a little more than three feet square, and standing himself nearly sixteen hands, and master of fifteen stone, hearing the cheering of the huntsmen and the cry of the dogs at no great distance, sprung through the aperture without leaving a single mark on the bottom, the top or the sides. Then, if the horse be thus ready to exert himself for our pleasure — and pleasure alone is here the object — it is indefensible and brutal to urge him * Sir John Malcolm (in his sketches of Persia) gives an amusing account of the im- pression which a fox-liunt in the English style made on an Arab : "I was entertained by listening to an Arab peasant, who, with animated gestures, was narrating to a group of his countrymen all he had seen of this noble hunt. ' There came the fox,' said he, pointing with a crooked stick to a clump of date trees, ' there he came at a great rate. 1 hallooed, but nobody heard me, and I tiiought he must get away ; but when he got quite out of sight, up came a large spotted dog, and then another and another. They all had tl)eir noses to the ground, and gave tongue — whow, whow, whow — so loud, I was frightened. Away went these devils, who soon found the poor animal. After them galloped the Foringees (a corruption of Frank, the name given to an European over all Asia,) shouting and trying to make a noise louder than the dogs. No wonder they killed the fox among them.' " The Treasurer, Burleigh, the sage councillor of Q,ueen Elizabeth, could not enter into the pleasures of the chase. Old Andrew Fuller relates a quaint story of him : "When some noblemen had gotten William Cecill Lord Burleigh to ride with them a hunting, and the sport began to be cold, ' What call you this?' said the treasurer. ' Oil ! now the dogs are at fault,' was the repl;' ' Vea,' quoth the treasurer, ' take me again in iuch a fault, and I'll give you leave to punish me.' " In former times it was the fashion for women to hunt almost as often and as keenly as the men. Queen Elizabeth was extremely fond of the chase. Rowland VVhytc, in a letter to Sir Robert Sidney, says : " Her majesty is well, and excellently disposed to luin<- ing; for every second day she is on horseback, and continues the sport long." This custom soon afterwards began to decline, and the jokes and sarcasms of the witty court of Charles II. contributed to discountenance it. It is a curious circumstance, that the first work on hunting that proceeded from ihc press, was from the pen of a female, Juliana Barnes, or Bcrncrs, the sister of Lord Berne's, tnd prioress of the nunnery of Sopewell, about the year l4ol. THE HUNTER. 55 beyond his own natural ardour, so severely as we sometimes do, and even until nature is quite exhausted. We do not often hear of a "hard-day," without being lilvewise informed, that one or more horses either died in the field, or scarcely reached home before they expired. Some have been thoughtless and cruel enough to kill two horses in one day. One of the severest chases on record was by the king's stag-hounds. There was an uninterrupted burst of four hours and twenty minutes. One horse dropped dead in the field ; another died before he could reach the stable ; and seven more within a week afterwards. It is very conceivable, and does sometimes happen, that, entering as fully as his master into the sports of the day, the horse disdains to yield to fatigue, and voluntarily presses on, until nature is exhausted, and he falls and dies ; but much oftener, the poor animal has, intelligibly enough, hinted his distress ; unwilling to give in, yet painfully and fiulteringly holding on. The merciless rider, rather tlian give up one hour's enjoyment, tortures him with whip and spur, until he drops and expires. Although the hunter may be unwilling to relinquish the chase, he who "is merciful to his beast" will soon recognise the symptoms of excessive and dangerous distress. To the drooping pace and staggering gait, and heaving flank, and heavy bearing on hand, will be added a very peculiar noise. The inexperienced person will fancy it to be the beating of the heart; but that has almost ceased to beat, and the lungs are becoming gorged with blood. It is the convulsive motion of the muscles of the belly, called into violent action to assist in the now laborious office of breathing. The man who proceeds a single mile after this ought to suffer the punish- ment he is infiicting.* Let the rider instantly dismount. If he has a lancet, and skill to use it, let him take away five or six quarts of blood ; or if he has no lancet, let him cut the burs with his pocket knife as deeply as he can. The lungs may be thus relieved, and the horse may be able to crawl home. Then, or before, if possible, let some powerful cordial be administered. Cordials are, generally speaking, the disgrace and bane of the stable ; but here, and almost here alone, they are truly valuable. They may rouse the exhausted powers of nature ; they may prevent what the medical man would call the reaction of inflammation ; although they are the veriest poison when in- flammation has commenced. A favourite hunter fell afte-r a long burst, and lay stretched out, convulsed, and apparently dying. His master procured a bottle of good sherry from the house of a neighbouring friend, and poured it down the animal's ♦ We should almost rejoice if the abused quadruped, cruelly urg-ed beyond his powers, were to inflict on his rider the punishment whicli a Spanish ruffian received, when mercilessly torturing, in a similar way, a poor Indian slave, who was carrying- him on his back over the mountains. It is thus related by Captain Cochrane, (C(jloinhia ii. 357.) — " Shortly after passing this stream, we arrived at an abrupt precipice, which went perpendicularly down about fifteen hundred feet, to a mountain torrent below. There Lieutenant Ortegas narrated to me the following anecdote of the cruelty and punishment of a Spanish officer : — This inhuman wretch, having fastened on an immense pair of mule spurs, was incessantly darting the rowels into the bare flesh of the tortured sillero, who in vain remonstrated with his persecutor, and assured him he could not quicken his pace. The officer only plied his spurs thj more, in proportion to the murmurs i)f the sillero. At last tlie man, roused to tlie highest pitch of infuriated excitement and resentment, from the relentless attacks of the officer, on reaching this place, jerked him from his chair into the immense depth of the torrent below, where he was killed, f.ul iiis b^dy could not be recovered. Tlie sillero dashed off ai full speed, escaped into ihe uiountain, and was never after heard of " 5G THE HORSE. throat. The horse immediately began to revive ; soon after, got up ; vvalked home, and gradually i-ecovered. The sportsman may not always be able to get this, but he may obtain a cordial-ball from the neai-est farrier* or he may beg a little ginger from some good house-wife, and mix it with warm ale, or he may give the ale alone, or strength- ened with a little rum or gin. When he gets home, or if he stops at the first stable he finds, let the horse be put into the coolest place, and then well clothed and diligently rubbed about the legs and belly. The practice of putting the animal, thus distressed, into " a comfortable warm stable," and excluding every breath of air, has destroyed many valuable horses. We are now describing the very earliest treatment to be adopted, and before it may be possible to call in an experienced practitioner. This stimulating plan would be fatal twelve hours afterwards. It will, however, be the wisest course, to commit the animal, the first moment it is practica- ble, to the care of the veterinary surgeon, if such there be in the neigh- bourhood, ia whom confidence can be placed. The labours and the pleasures of the hunting season being passed, the farmer makes little or no difference in the management of his untrained horse ; but the wealthier sportsman is somewhat at a loss what to do with his. It used to be thought, that when the animal who had so long con- tributed, sometimes voluntarily, and sometimes with a little compulsion, to the enjoyment of his owner, he ought, for a few months, to be permitted to seek his own amusement, in his own way ; and he was turned out for a summer's run at grass. Fashion, which governs every thing, and now and then most cruelly and absurdly, has exercised her tyranny over this poor quadruped. His field, where he could wander and gambol as he liked, is changed to a loose box; and the liberty in which he so evidently exulted, to an hour's walking exercise daily. He is allowed vetches, or grass occasionally, but from his box he stirs not, except for his dull morn- ing's round, until he is taken into training for the next winter's business. In this, however, as in most other things, there is a medium. There are few horses who have not materially suffered in their legs and feet, before the close of the hunting season. There is nothing so refreshing tc their feet as the damp coolness of the grass into which they are turned in May ; and nothing so calculated to remove every enlargement and sprain, as the gentle e.xercise which the animal voluntarily takes while his legs are exposed to the cooling process of evaporation, which is taking place from the herbage he treads. The experience of ages has shown, that it is superior to all the embrocations and bandages of the most skilful veterinarian. It is the renovating process of nature, where the art of man fails. The spring grass is the best, physic that can possibly be administered to the horse. To a degree, which no artificial aperient or diuretic can attain, it carries off" every humour which may be lurking about the animal ; it fines down the roundness of the legs; and, except there be some bony enlargement, restores them almost to their original form and strengtii. When, however, the summer has thoroughly set in, the grass ceases to be succulent, aperient, or medicinal ; the ground is no longer cool and moist, at least during the day ; and a host of tormentors, in the shape of files. are from sun-rise to sun-set persecuting the poor animal. Running and stamping to rid himself of his plagues, his feet are battered by the hard ground, and he newly, and perhaps more severely, injures his legs. Kept GALLOWAYS AND PONIES. S' n a constant state of irritation and fever, he rapidly loses his condition, and sometimes comes up in August little better than a skeleton. Let tiie horse be turned out as soon as possible after the hunting season IS over. Lcl liim have the whole of May, and the greater part, or possibh the whole of June ; but when the grass fails, and the ground gets hard, and the flies torment, let him be taken up. All the benefits of turning out, and that wiiicli a loose box and artificial physic can never give, will have been obtained, without the inconvenience and injury which attend an injudiciously protracted run at grass, and which, arguing against the use of a thing from the abuse of it, have been improperly urged against turning out at all. The Steeple Hunt is a relic of ancient foolhardiness and cruelty. It was the form under which the horse-race, at its first establishment, was fVequently decided. It is a race across the country, of two, or four, or even a greater number of rniles; and it is generally contrived that there shall be some deep lane, or wide brook, and many a stiff and da4 THE HORSE. K The Fi 'e Sacral Vertebrae, or bones of the haunch. V Caudal Vertisbra;, or bones of the tail, g-cncrally about fifteen. G Scapula, or shoulder-blacie. H Sternum or fore-part of the chest. I Costtc or ribs, seven or eig-lit articulating- with the sternum, and called the true rib$ and ten or eleven united together by cartilage, called the false ribs. J Humerus, or bone of the arm. K Radius, or bone of the fore-arm. L Ulna or elbow. The point of the elbow is called the Olecranon M Carpus or knee, consisting of seven bones. N Metacarpal bones. The larger metacarpal or cannon or shank in front, and tlie smaller metacarpal or splent bone behind. g Fore Pastern and Foot, consisting of the Os Suffraginis, or the upper and larger pastern bone, with the sessamoid bones behind, articulating with the cannon and greater pastern ; the Os Coronse, or lesser pastern; the Os Pedis or collin bone; and the Os Naviculare, or navicular, or shuttle-bone, not seen, and articulating with the smaller pastern and coffin bones. h Corresponding bones of the iiind-feet. O Haunch, consisting of three portions — the Ilium, the Ischium, and the Pubis. P Femur or thigh. Q, Stifle joint with the Patella. R Tibia or proper leg bone — behind is a small bone called the fihula. S Tarsus or hock, composed of six bones. The prominent part is the Os Calcia point of ihe hock. T Metatarsals of the hind leg. Beautiful as is the horse, and identified so much with our pleasure and our profit, he has been the object of ahnost universal regard ; and there are few persons who do not pretend to be somewhat competent judges of liis form, qualities, and worth. From the nobleman with his nuuicrous and valuable stud, to the meanest helper in the stable, and not excluding even the mechanic who scarcely crosses, or sits behind a horse once in a twelvemonth, there is scarcely a man who would not be offended if he were thought altogether ignorant of horse-flesh. There is no subject on which he is so positive, there is no subject on which, generally .speaking, he is so deficient, and there are few horses, on some points of which these pretended and self-sufficient judges would not give a totally opposite opinion. The truth is, that this supposed knowledge is rarely founded on principle — or is the result of the slightest acquaintance with the actual structure of this animal, or that form and connexion of parts on which strength, or fleetness, or stoutness, must necessarily depend. If we were construct- ing or e.xamining a machine composed of levers and pullies, and by which we purposed to raise a great weight, or to set in motion certain bodies with a given velocity, we should fail in our object, or expose our igno- rance of the matter, if we were not aware what kind of lever or connex- ion of levers was necessary, and in what situation the ropes should be piaced, ana m what direction the force should be applied, and by what means we could obtain mechanical advantage, and by what peculiar con- struction it would inevitably be lost. Now the structure of the horse, like that of the human being,* consists of numerous levers in the shape of bones, with ropes attached to them l»i * See Treatise on " Ani lal Mechanic*." EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. 65 xho. forii, of muscles and tendons; and these levers are JifTerently con- nected, and act in different directions; and he will be the best judge of horses who, while he has loved, and lived among them, is somewhat acquainted with the circumstances in which mechanical power is gained or lost.. In speaking then of the structure of this animal, and the points which guide the opinion of real judges of him, we shall, as briefly and as simply as we are able, explain those fundamental principles on which his useful- ness and beauty must depend. We require one kind of horse for slow and heavy draught, and another for lighter and quicker work : one as a pleasant and safe roadster ; another with more speed and equal continu- ance as a hunter; and another still is wanted for the race-course. What is the peculiarity of structure — what are the particular points that will fit each for his proper business, and, to a certain degree, unfit him for every thing else ? The farmer will require a horse of all work, that can carry him to market and take him round his farm, on which he can occasionally ride for pleasure, and which he must sometimes degrade to the dung-cart or the harrow. What combination of powers will enable the animal to discharge most of these duties well, and all of them to a certain extent profitably ? Much time spent among horses, an acquired love of them, and a little, sometimes, possibly, too dearly-bought experience, may give the agriculturist some insight into these matters. We will try whether we cannot assist him in this affair ; whether we cannot explain to him the reason why certain points must be good, and why a horse without them must, of necessity, be good for nothing. Perhaps some useful rules may thus be more deeply impressed upon his memory, or some common, but dangerous prejudices may be discarded, and a considerable degree of error, disappointment, and expense avoided. It is first of all necessary to give a sketch of the Anatomy of the Horse, in which we shall endeavour to elucidate those numerous and beautiful instances of wise and benevolent design, exhibited in the structurp of this valuable animal, and which will render our study of him more interesting ; while many a hint of practical utility will be gained. If we treat of this at a considerable length, let it be remembered, that ihe horse is our noblest servant, and that, in describing the structure and economy of his frame, we are, in a great measure, describing that of other domestic quadrupeds, and shall hereafter have to speak only of points of difTerence required by the different services and uses for which they were destined. And further, let it be remembered that it is only by being well acquainted with the structure and anatomy of the horse that we can appre- ciate his shape and uses, or understand the different diseases to which he IS liable. We trust the reader who may fancy us rather prolix on this head will, before the work is finished, feel the full value of what we purpose to explain. It is from want of knowledge of the anatomy of the horse, that much of the mass of ignorance and prejudice which exists, as to the diseases, &c., to which the horse is subject, is to be referred ; and we deem it one of the most important objects of this treatise to reform this icnorance, and remove these prejudices. It will be proper here, once for all, to caution the reader, who has hitherto been unaccustomed to reading books of science, against being deterred by the sight of a few of what are termed hard names. The fact is, that science must have, to a certain extent, a new language to express minutely and accurately ihe particular parts or things to be described; and this is the 66 THE HORSE, case with every art. A carpenter could not, without this, describe with precision and clearness the different tools in use, nor could he describe the different operations to be performed, without inventing a particular language adapted to his purpose, and whereby he is enabled to express in one word what would otherwise only be accomplished by a long sentence. It is the same with anatomy, except that the names and signs have principally been adopted from the Latin and Greek, inasmuch as those languages are usually known to scientific men in all countries. This new language becomes one common to all men pursuing the same science. We shall as we go on e.x plain the meaning of all the words so adopted, and a very little attention will enable the reader to master them, and it will require little tliouglit So be convinced of the advantage, in respect of clearness and certainty derived from their use. DESCRirTION OF THE HEAD. We begin with the head, containing the brain, and the most important organs of sense. The head may be divided into two parts, the skull and the face. The bones which compose the skull or cranium, and which contain and protect the brain, are nine in number: two frontal, a a — two parietal, c c — two temporal, d d — the occipital, g — the ethmoid and the sphenoid. The two lalter lie principally at the base of the skull, and are not seen in this cut, but will be found delineated in figs, k and /, page 68. These nine bones are separate in the foal at an early period of its existence ; but soon after the birth they are firmly united together by what anatomists call sutures, and so firm is the union, that a fracture will occur in any other part more readily than over a suture. a a The frontal bones, or bones of the forehead. 6 6 Tlie* supra-orbital foramina, or holes above the orbit, tlirough which pass out the nerves and blood-vessels supplying- the forehead. The small hole beneath (of which in many horses there are several) receives ves- sels wliich dip into and supply the bone. c c The parietal bones, or walls of the skull. d d The temporal bones, or bones of the temples. e e The zyg^omatic, or yoke-shaped arch, ^yThe temporal fossa, or pit above the eye. g The occipital bone, or bone of the hinder part of the head. h h The orbits, containing and defending the eye. i i The lachrymal bones, or tear-bones. j j The nasal bones, or bones of the nose. k k Tlie molar, or cheek bones. I I The superior maxillary, or that portion of the upper jaw containing the molar teeth or grinders. ni;n. The infra-orbital foramen, a hole below the orbit, through which pass branches of nerves and blood- vessels to supply the lower p art of the face. n n The inferior maxillary, the lower part of the upper jaw- bone, a separate bone in quadrupeds, containing the incisor or cutting teeth, and the upper tushes at the point of union between the superior and inferior maxillaries. o The upper incisor or cutting teeth. p The openings into the nose, with the bones forming the roof of the palate. EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. P7 There is an evident intention in this division o(* the head into so many bones. When the fetus — the unborn foal — first begins to have life, that which afterwards becomes bone, is a mere jelly- like substance ; this is gradually changed into a harder material — cartilage ; and, before the birth of the animal, much of the cartilage is taken away by vessels called absorbents, and bone de- posited in its stead. In flat bones, like those of the head, this deposite takes place in the centre, and rays or radiations of bone extend thence in every direction. Then, by having so many bones, there are so many centres of radiation ; and, con- sequently, the formation of bone is carried on so much the more rapidly, and perfected at the time when the necessities of the animal require it. At the period of birth, however, this process is not completed, but the edges of the bones remain somewhat soft and pliant, and therefore, in par- turition, they yield a little, and overlap each other, and thus, by rendering the birth more easy, they save the mother much pain, and contribute to the safety of the foal. Without a change in the form of the head, from a compression and yielding of the bone of which it is composed, the animal could not be born. The first of these bones, or the first pair of them, occupying the broad expanse of the forehead, are called the frontal hones, a a. They are united together by a most curious and intricate dove-tailing, to defend from injury the brain, which lies beneath the upper part of them. Lower down, and where the cavity of the nose is to be defended, their union is sufficient, but far less complicated. The mechanism is here, as in every part of the frame, and every part of the universe, wisely adjusted to the necessities and wants of the animal. Few things more clearly indicate the breed or blood of the horse than the form of the frontal bones. Who has not remarked the broad angular forehead of the blood-horse, giving him that beautiful expression of intelli- gence and fire, and the face gradually tapering from the forehead to the muzzle ; and then compared it with the large face of the cart or dray-horse, and the forehead scarcely wider than the face. At /, between the frontal bones, is the pit or cavity above the eye, and by the depth of which we form some idea of the age of the horse. There is placed at the back of the eye a considerable quantity of fatty substance, on which the eye may revolve easily and without friction. In aged horses, and in diseases attended with general loss of condition, much "of this fat disappears ; the eye becomes sunken, and the pit above the eye deepens. It is said that some of the lower class of horse-dealers puncture the skin, and, with a tobacco-pipe or small tube, blow into the orifice, until the de- pression is almost filled up. This operation is vulgarly called jnijing the glims, and. with the aid of a bishopped tooth, will give a false appearance of youth that will remain during many hours, and may deceive the unwary, though the puffing may easily be detected by pressing on the part. These bones, however, are not solid, but a considerable portion of them is composed of two plates receding from each other, and leaving numerous anc. large vacuities or cells. These vacuities are called the frontal sinuses. .18 THE HORSE. They commiic icate witii the cavities of the nose, and likewise with those of the splienoid, ethmoid, and upper jaw bones, and like the windings of a French horn, increase the clearness and loudness of the neighing. They are sufficiently evident at h in the following cut. SECTION OF THE HEAD. rX_^' ^10 \<^c- M!!:^^^- PRINCIPAL BONES, LIGAMENTS, ETC. w Nasal bone, or bone of the nose. it Frontal bone. The cavities or cells beneath are called the frontal sinuses. f Crest or ridge of the parietal bones. d Tentorium, or bony separation between the cerebrum and cerebellum. e Occipital bone. f Lig-ament of the neck, or pack-was, by which the head is chiefly supported. Atlas, sustaining or carrying, or first bone of the neck. h Dentata, tooth-like, or second bone of the neck. i Cuneiform, or u edge-shaped process, or base of the occipital bone. Between it and the other porti >n of the occipital bone, e, lies the great foramen or aperture through which tlie pro! jni,ation of the brain — the spinal marrow — issues from the skull. k Sphenoid, wedge-like, bone, with its cavities. I Ethmoid, sieve-like bone, with its cells. TO Cerebrum, or brain, witli the appearance of its cortical ana medullary si ostance. n Cerebellum, or little brain, with its beautiful aborescent appearance. A portion of the central medullary, marrow-like, substance of the brain, and the pro- longation of it under the name of the crus cerebri, leg of the brain, and from which , many of the nerves take their origin. p Medulla oblongata, — the prolongation of the brain after the medullary substance oi the cerebrum and cerebellum have united, and forming the commencement of tha spinal marrow. The columnar appearance of this portion of the brain is lepre- eented, and the origins of the respiratory nerves. EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. QQ J Sp"nal marrow, extending- through a canal in the centre of the bonea of the neck back, and loins, to the extremities of the tail, and from which t.ie nerves of feeling and of motion, tliat supply every part of the frame, except the head, arise. r Septum nariuin, or cartilaginous division between the nostrils. J The same cut off at the lower part, to show the spongy, turbinated, turban-shaped, bones filling the cavity of the nostril. .' Palate. u Mular teeth, or grinders. V Inferior maxillary bone, containing the incisor teeth or nippers. The canine tooth, or tush, is concealed by the tongue. le Posterior maxillary, or lower jaw with its incisors. .V Lips. y Tongue. z A portion of the os hyoides, or bone of the tongue, like a Greek u, d. 1 Thyroid, helmet-shaped, cartilage, inclosing and shielding tiie neighouring parts. 2 Epiglottis, or covering of the glottis, or aperture of the wind-pipe. 3 Arytenoid, fun7iel-shaped, cartilages, having between them the aperture leading intu the trachea or wind-pipe. 4 One of tlie chorda; vocales, cords or ligaments concerned in the formation of the voice 5 Sacculus laryngis, sac or ventricle of the larynx, throat, to modulate the voice. 6 Trachea or wind-pipe, with its diflerent rings. 7 Soft palate at tlic back of the mouth, so constructed as almost to prevent the possi bility of vomiting. 8 Opening from the back part of the mouth into the nostril. 9 Cartilage covering the entrance into the Eustachian tube, or communication between the mouth and internal part of the ear. 10 Oesophagus, or gullet. 11 Cricoid, ring-like, cartilage, below and behind the thyroid. 12 Muscle of the neck, covered by the membrane of the back part of the mouth. REMARKS ON THE BONES OF THE HEAD, ETC. In the sheep and occasionally in the ox, rarely in the horse, the larvaj oi maggots produced by certain species of flies, crawl up the nose, lodge themselves in these sinuses, and produce intolerable pain. Veterinary surgeons have availed themselves of these sinuses, to detect the existence of glanders, that disease so infectious and so fatal. They may suspect that a horse respecting which they are consulted isglandered. It is of great consequence to be sure about it. The safety of ti)e whole team may depend upon this. It may be a puzzling case. There may be no ulceration of the nose within sight. The glands under the jaw may not be close to, and seemingly sticking to the bone, which is a common symptom, yet for a considerable time there may have been a discharge Irom the nostril, and the horse is out of condition. On ihe other hand, some slight ulceration may be detected in the nostril, but the horse eats well, works well, and is in good plight. From the closest examination of the animal, no horseman, and no veterinary surgeon can give a decided opinion. If, however, the horse be glandered, there will probably be considerable ulceration in the upper part of the cavity of the nose, and a collection of matter there. To detect this, the veterinary surgeon soineiimes makes an opening into these sinuses. He may do this with perfect safety. On tluit part of the frontal bone, which lies between the eye and the pit above it, and above the inner corner of the eye, there is, on either side, a small depression or hole (see fig. b b, cut, p. 66), which may be easily felt in the living 70 THE HORSE. horse. It is what anatcimists call a foramen — the supra-orUlal foramen. 1 1 gives passage to the blood-vessels and nerves of the forehead. Suppose a line to be drawn across the forehead, from one of these depressions to the other; on that line, and about half an inch from the centre of it, either on the one side or the other, the frontal sinuses will be found an inch in deptli (compare fig. h, pp. 66 and 68). There a perfo- ration may be easily and safely made. A little way above, the brain would be endangered, and a livJe below this line, the cavity of the nose would be pierced. Some warm water may then be thrown into this bole, with a common squirt, and it will run out at the nose. If there be matter in the frontal sinuses, or any part of the cavity of the nose, it will appear mi.xed with the water, and the owner may be assured that the horse is glandered ; but if the water flow uncoloured, or simply mi.xed with blood or mucus, the horse may be considered as free from this disease. The thick creamy consistence of pus, its sinking in water, and its capability of being perfectly, although not readily mixed with water, will distinguish it sufficiently from the natural running of the nose, which is ropy, lighter than water, and when mixed with it still preserves a kind of slringiness. And this is one of the surest modes of distinguishing between the matter and the natural running of the nose. The inner plate of the frontal bone forms a considerable proportion of the roof the cavity which contains the brain {m in the last cut). The bones immediately above the frontal, and extending from the frontal to the poll, are called the pariela7s, (c c, pp. 66 and 68,) from the Latin word paries, a wall. They are two, united together by a suture when the animal is young, but that suture soon becomes obliterated. They have the occipital, g, p. 66, above, the frontals, a a, below, and the temporals, d d, on either side. They are of a closer and harder texture than the frontals, because they are more exposed to injury, and more concerned in defending the brain. A very small portion only of the parietaJs is naked, and that is composed of bone even harder than the other part, and with an additional layer of bone rising in the form of a crest or ridge externally. Every other part of these bones is covered by a thick mass of muscle, the temporal, muscle, which is principally concerned in chewing the food, but which likewise by its yielding resistance speedily and effectually breaks the force of the most violent stroke. A blow on the calf of the leg is comparatively disregarded, while one, half as heavy, received on the shin, gives excessive pain. A wool-pack hung over the wall of a fortress, when the enemy is battering to effect a breach, renders the heaviest artillery almost harmless. So the yielding resistance of the temporal muscle affords a sure defence to the brain, however sudden or violent may be the blow which falls on the parietal. These benevolent provisions will not be disregarded by the reflecting mind. On the side of the head, and under the parietals, are placed [d d, p. 60) the temporal bones, one on each side. These again are divided into two parts, or consist of two distinct bones ; the petrous portion, so called from its great or stmiy hardness, and containing the wonderful mechanism of the ear, and the squamous portion, from the appearance of its union with the parietal, overlapping it like a great scale. From the latter there projects a portion of bone, e, which unites with the frontal, and forms a strong arch distinctly to be felt at the side of the head immediately above the eye. This arch is designed to protect the upper part of the lower jaw, the motion of which may very plainly be seen beneath it when the horse is eating. It is very strong, and it ought to be, lest the EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. 71 motion should by accident be impeded, and the horse should starve. If only one species of violence were considered to which this arch is too frequently exposed, it would require to possess no common strength ; we mean, the brutal manner in which the collar is forced over the head. Al the base of the arch is an important cavity, not visible in our cut, I'eceiving into it, and forming a joint with tiie head of the lower jaw : we shall have to speak of it presently. Having reached the base of the temporal bone, we find it united to the parietal, not by a simple suture, as the lower part of the frontals, or the bones of the nose (see fig. a and j, p. 66), nor by a dove-tailed suture, as the upper part of the frontals (see the same cut), but it is spread over the parietal in the form of a large scale, and hence, as before observed, called the squamous portion of the temporal bone. In fact, there are two plates of bone instead of one. Was there design in this ? Yes, evidently so. In the first place, to increase the strength of the base of the zygomatic arch. This extensive union between the temporal and parietal bones answers to the buttress or mass of masonry attached to the base of every arch to counteract its lateral pressure. The concussion likewise which might be communicated by a blow to the top of the arch, is thus spread over a large surface, and consequently weakened, and rendered compara- tively harmless ; and that surface is composed of the union of two bones of dissimilar construction. The hard sl07}y structure of the parietal is very different from the tougher material of the temporal ; and thus, as a finger acts on a sounding glass, the vibration communicated to the temporal is at once stopped, and the brain receives no injury. But there is yet more admirable design. Where is this squamous por- tion of the temporal bone situated ? On the side of the head. And what is the figure of the cranium or skull, and principally that part of it which contains the cerebrum or brain ? It is an elliptical or oval arch (see fig. VI, n, 0, p. 68). If pressure be made on the crown of that arch — if a blow be received on the suture between the parietals, sutficient to cause the elastic materials of which the skull is composed to yield — the seat of dan- ger and injury is at the side. If a man receive a violent blow on the crown or back part of the head, the fracture, if there be any, is generally about the temple, and the extravasation of blood is oftenest found there. The follow- mg figure will explain this. Let the line ABC represent an elliptical arch, composed of elastic ma- trials. Some force shall be applied at B, sufficient to cause it to yield. We cannot compress it into smaller compass ; but just in proportion as it vields at B, will it spur or bulge out at D, and give way sometimes as represented at E. In a dome, the weight of the materials constantly acting may be considered as representing the force applied at B ; and so great is the lateral pressure, or tendency to bulge out {vide D and E), that it is 72 THE HORSE. necessary either to dove-tail the materials into one another, or to pass strong iron chains round them. For want of sufficient attention to this, " tlie dome of St. Sophia in Constantinople, built in the time of the Emperor Jus- tinian, fell three times during its erection; and the dome of the cathedral of Florence stood unfinished an hundred and twenty years for want of an architect." Nature, in the construction of the horse's head, has taken away the' pressure, or removed the probability of injury, by giving an additional layer of bone, or a mass of muscle, where alone there was danger, and has dove- tailed all the materials, and to make assurance doubly sure, has placed this efTcctual girder at the base, in the overlapping of the squamous portion of the temporal bone. In the ox, where, to give a secure base to the horn, the frontal bone spreads over the whole fore-part of the head, and the crania-l cavity is suffi- ciently secured by the beautiful mechanism between the two plates of that bone, the temporal bone does not overlap the parietal. Nature gives every thing essential to the protection and welfare of the animal, but nothing superfluous. Above the jxirietals, and separated from them by a suture (fig. g, pp. 66 and 68, and fig. c, p. 66), is the occipital bone. Superiorly it covers and protects the smaller portion of the brain, the cerebeilum ; and as it there constitutes the summit or the crest of the head, and is not protected by mus- cles, and particularly exposed to danger, it is interesting to see what thick- ness it assumes. The head of the horse does not, like that of the human being, ride upright on the neck, with all its weight supported by the spinal column, and the only office of the muscles of the neck being to move the head forward or backward, or horizontally on its pivot; but it hangs in a slanting position from the extremity of the neck, and the neck itself pro- jects a considerable distance from the chest, and thus the whole weight of the head and neck are suspended from the chest, and require very great power to support them. In addition to the simple weight of the head and neck, the neck projecting from the chest, and the head hanging fi'om the extremity of the neck, act with enormous mechanical force, and increase more than a hundred-fold the power necessary to support them. It requires a strong man to lift a small table from the ground at arm's length. The farmer's steelyards show that a weight of a kw pounds, at the extremity, will counterbalance or act with a force equal to a hundred weight ne.ar the hook or centre. The head and neck of the horse, and particularly of some horses of a coarse breed, are of no little bulk and weight. We shall hereafter have to show in what breeds, and for what purposes a light or heavy head and neck are advantageous; but it may be safely affirmed, that, projecting so far from the chest, and being consequently at so great a distance from the fulcrum or support, the liglitest head will act or bear upon the joint be- tween the last bone of the neck and the first rib, with a force equal to many thousand pounds. How is this weight to be supported? Is the power of muscle equal to the task ? The muscles of the animal frame can act for a certain time with extraordinary force ; but as the exertion of this power is attended with the consumption of vital energy, the period soon arrives when their action is remitted or altogether suspended. Muscular power is altogether inadequate to the constant support of the head of the horse. A provision, however, is made for the purpose, simple and complete. EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. VS From the back of the occipital bone (fig. f, p. 68), and inimodiately Oelow the crest, proceeds a round cord of considerable bulk, and composed of a ligamentous substance, and which is carried down and securely at- taciied to the spines of the vertebrae, or bones of the back ; and by this lig- ament (the ligamentum colli, ligament of the neck, commonly called the pack-wax) the head is supported. There are, however, some admirable contrivances connected with this ligament. As it proceeds from the head, it is in the form of a round cord. It passes over the atlas, or the lirst bone of the neck, without touching it, and then attaching itself strongly to the second bone, principally supports the head by its union with this bone. The mechanical disadvantage is in- creased, but the head is turned more freely on the first and second bones. The principal stress is on the dentata or second bone, so much so, that, in poll-evil, this ligament may be divided without serious inconvenience to the horse. It then suddenly sinks deeper, and communicates with all the other vertebrre. Each of these commiinications becomes a separate point of support, as they approach nearer to the prop, or the centre of motion, the mechanical disadvantage, or the force with which the weight of the head and neck presses and acts, is materially lessened. The head, then, without any aid from muscular energy, is, while tho animal is in a state of rest, supported by this ligament. There is, however, something yet wanting. The head must not be always elevated. The horse has his food to seek. In a state of nature this food lies principally on the ground, and the head must be lowered to enable the animal to get at it. How is this effected ? This ligament, as \\e call it, because it resembles in appearance the other ligaments of the body, pos- sesses a property which they have not, and which they must not have, or they would be useless. No well-knit joint could exist if it had this pro- perty. The pack-wax is elastic. It will yield to a force impressed upon it, and it will resume its natural dimensions when that force is removed, It sustains perfectly the weight of the head. That portion of tenacity or strength is given to it, which will not yield to the simple weight of the head, but will yield to a very little additional weight. Its resting power ia so admiraljjy adjusted to that which it has to sustain, that when certain muscles, whose action is to depressor lower the head, begin to act, and add tiieir power to the previous weight it had to bear, the ligament stretches, antl when the horse is browsing, it is full two inches longer than when the head is erect. When the animal has satisfied himself, these depressing muscles cease to act, and other muscles, which are designed to assist in raising the head, begin to exert themselves; and, by their aid (but more by the inherent ela (icity of the ligament), the head is more elevated, and remains so with- out the slightest exertion of muscular power. This is one of the many applications of the principle of elasticity which we shall have to observe end admire in the construction of the animal frame. The ligament of the neck is inserted into the centre of the back part of the occipital bone, and immediately below the vertex or crest of that bone, and, therefore, the bone is so thick at this part (see fig. e, p. 68). Many, and large, and powerful muscles, however, are necessary to turn the head in various directions, and to assist in raising it when depressed. The occipital bone, as will be seen in this cut, presents a spine running down the centre, B, and a large roughened surface for the attachment of tl\ese muscles C C. liovver down, and still at the back of the occipital bone, are two roundeo F protuberances, D D, by which the head is connected with the alias, or upper, or first vertebra, or bone of the neck, and these are called the condyloid, cup-shaped, processes of the occipital bone. All the motions of the head are partly, and many of them wholly, performed by this joint. Between them is a large hole, called the foramen magnum, or great aperture, E, through which the continuation of the brain, called the spinal cord or marrow, passes out of the skull. As an additional contrivance to support the great weight of the head, are two other projections of the occipital bone, jjeculiar to animals whose heads are set on in a slanting direction, and into which powerful muscles are inserted ; they are called the ceracoid, beak-like, processes or prolongations, F F, of ihe occipital bone. Runnmg forward, and forming outwardly a part of the base, and inwardly a portion of the floor of the skull, is what, from its wedge-like shape, is called the cuneiform process of the occipital bone (fig. i, p. 68). It is thick, strong and solid ; and placed at the bottom of the skull, not only to be a proper foundation for, and to give additional strength to the arch on each bide, but speedily to break and stop all vibration and concussion. At the base of the skull, and anterior to, or below the occipital, lies the sphenoid, wedge-like bone (fig. k, p. 68). Its body, likewise called the cuneiform or wedge-shaped process, is a continuation of the same process of the occipital, and like it is thick and solid, and for the same important purpose. This bone branches out into four irregular bodies or plates, two of which are called the wings, and two running to the palate, the legs. They could not be represented in the cut, and there is nothing important belonging to them so far as our work is concerned. Internally (fig. A), the sphenoid forms a portion of the cavity of the skull. Of the ethmoid, sieve-like, bone little can be seen outwardly. A small portion is found in the back part of the orbit, and in the cavity of the cra- nium ; but the most important part of it is that which is composed of a great number of thin plates, forming numerous cavities or cells (fig. /, p. 68) lined with the membrane of the nose, and entering into the cavity of the nose. The upper portion is called the cribriform, or sieve-shaped plate, from its being perforated by a multitude of little holes, through which the nerve connected with the smelling passes and spreads over the nose. Altogether, lliese bones form a cavity of an irregular oval shape, but the tentorium penetrating into it, gives it the appearance of being divided into two {d, p. 68). The cavity of the cranium may be said to be arched all round. The builder knows the strength which is connected with the form of the arch. EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. 75 [f properly constructed, it is equal to a solid mass of masonry. The arc)' of the horse's skull has not much weight to support, but it is exposed to many injuries from ihe brutality of those by whom he should be protected, and from accidental causes. The roof of the skull is composed of two plates of bone : the outer, hard and tough, and the different parts dove-tailed together, so as not to be easily fractured ; the inner plate is elastic, and ijy the union of these two sub- stances of different construction, the vibration is partly damped or destroyed. By means of the elasticity of the inner plate, the force or influence whicli might reach it through tiie outer plate, and, notwithstanding its differenco of structure, affect it, is spread over the whole of the roof; and the inner plate is not dove-tailed like the outer, because the dove-tailing would impede the spread of the vibration. The brain of the horse corresponds with the cavity in which it is placed (??j, p. 68). It IS a flattened oval. It is divided into two parts, one much larger than the other, the cerebrum or brain, and the cerebellum or little brain (n. p. 68). In the human being the cerebrum is above the cerebel- lum, in the quadruped below ; and yet in both they retain the same relative situation. The cerebellum is nearer to the foramen or hole, through which ihe brain passes out of tiie skull (/t, p. 68), and to the continuation of the cerebrum passes under the cerebellum (p, p. 68) to arrive at this foramen. In the human head this foramen is at the base of tiie skull, but in the quadruped, in whom the head is placed slanting, it is necessarily elevated. It would occupy too great a portion of our time fully to consider the wonderful and mysterious functions discharged by tiie brain, but some diseases to which the horse is subject, and a very useful operation, the divi- sion of the nerve of tlie leg, for foot lameness, could not be understood with- out a slight account of this important organ. When the brain is cut it presents two distinct substances (m, p. 68), one principally on the outside, grey, or ash-coloured, and therefore called the cortical (bark-like, or rind-like) from its situation, or the cineritious (ash- like), from its colour; and one more in the centre, and its fibres running towards the centre, and white and pulpy, and from its consistence called the medullary (narrow-like) part. This latter portion seems to be collected and condensed towards the centre or base of the brain, and all the nerves derive their origin from it. The medullary portion then is evidently connected with the nervous system ; and the nerves are concerned in the discharge of all the offices of life. They give motion to the limbs ; they supply with energy the heart, the lungs, the stomach, and every part connected with life: and being the medium through which sensation is conveyed, they supply the mind with materials to think and work upon. The cineritious part has a different appearance, and is evidently differently constituted ; and some have supposed it to be the residence of the mind, receiving the impressions which are conveyed to the brain by the nerve of sensation, and directing the operation and action of those which give motion to the limbs. In accordance with this it happens that where supcior intel- ligence is found, the cineritious prevails, and where little beside brutal strength and appetite exist, the medullary portion is enlarged. From the medullary substance proceed certain cords or prolongations, called nerves, by which the animal is enabled to receive impressions from surrounding objects, and to connect himself with them, and to possess many pleasurable or painful sensations. One is spread over the membrane of the nose, and gives the sense of smell ; another expands on the back of the eye, 70 THE HORSE. air] tiio faculty of sight is gained ; and a tliird goes to the internal stmc- lure of the ear, and tlie animal hears. Other nerves proceeding to different parts of the head give the faculty of motion to tliose parts ; and another class bestows the power of feeling. One division of nerves (A, p. 6S) springing from a prolongation of the brain, and yet within the skull, wander to dillcrent parts of the frame, for important purposes connected with respiration or breathing ; and as the act of breathing is essential to life, and were it to cease, the animal would die — these are nerves of mvolunlary motion ; so that, whether he is awake or asleep, conscious of it or not, the lungs heave and life is supported. Lastly, from the spinal cord, q, (a further prolongation of the brain, and running through a cavity in the bones of the neck, back, and loins, and extending to the very tip of the tail,) other nerves are given olf at certain intervals. This cut delineates one pair of them. The spinal cord, a, is combined of six distinct columns or rods, running through its whole length — three on either side. The two columns (the portion of the spinal marrow repre- sented in our cut, is supposed to be placed with its inner or lower surface toward?, us) i)roceed from those tracks of the brain devoted to sensation. From these come out abruptly distinct fibres from the column, and which connect together, and passing through a little ganglion or enlargement, d, (an enlargement of a nervous cord is called a ganglion,) become a nerve of sensation. From the lower or inner side, (a prolongation of tne tracic devoted to motion,) proceed other fibres, which also collect gradually together, and form a nervous cord, c, giving the power of motion. Beyond the ganglion the two unite, and form a perfect spinal nerve, h, possessing the power both of sensation and motion; and the fibres of the two columns proceed ta their destination, enveloped in the same sheath, and apparently one nerve. Each portion, however, continues to be wrapped in its oAvn membrane. They are united, yet distinct; they constitute one nerve, yet neither tli ^ir substance nor their office is confounded. Our cut, closely examined, h, will give some idea of the manner in which these distinct fibres are continued ; — each covered in its own membrane, but all envel- oped ir a connnon covering. All these nerves are organs of sensation and motion alone ; but there are others whose origin seems to be outside of and below the brain. These are the sympalheiic, so called from their union and sympathy with all the others, and identified with life itself They proceed from a small ganglion or enlargement in the upper part of the neck, or from a collection of little ganglions in the belly. Tliey go to the heart, and it beats, and to the stomach, and it digests. They form a net-work round each blood-vessel, tXTERNAL STRUCTURE. 77 and the current flows on. They surround tlie very minutest vessels, and the frame is nourisiied and built up. They are destitute of sensation, and tiiey are perfectly beyond the control of the will. The reader, we trust, will now comprehend this wonderful, yet simple machinery, and be able, by and by, to refer to it tlie explanation of severa* diseases, and particularly of the operation to which we have referred. Two of the senses have their residence in the bones of the cranium, those of hearing and sight. They who know any tiling of the horse pay much attention to the size, setting on, and motion of the ear. Ears rather small than large, placed not too far apart, and erect, and quick in motion, indicate both breeding and spirit ; and if a horse is frequently in the habit of carrying one ear forward, and tlie other backward, and especially if he does so on a journey, he will generally possess both spirit and continuance. The stretcliing of tlie ears in a contrary direction shows that he is attentive to every thing that is taking place around him, and, while he is doing this, he cannot be much fatigued, or likely soon to become so. It has been remarked tliat few horses sleep without pointing one ear forward and the other backward, that they may receive notice of the approach of objects in every direction.* The ear of the horse is one of the most beautiful parts about him, and by few things is the temper more surely indicated than by its motion. The ear is more intelligible even than the eye, and a person accustomed to the horse, and an observer of the horse, can tell by the e.xpressive motion of the ears almost all that he thinks or means. It is a common saying that when a horse lays his ears flat back upon his neck, and keeps them so, he most assuredly is meditating mischief, and the stander-by should beware of his heels or his teeth. In play the ears will be laid back, but not so decidedly, nor so long. A quick change in their position, and more particularly tiie expression of the eye at the time, will distinguish between playi'uliiess and vice. The external ear is formed by a cartilage of an oval or cone-like siiape, flexible, yet firm, and terminating in a point. It has, directed towards tiie side, yet somewhat pointing forward, a large opening, extending from the top to the bottom. The intention of this is to collect the sound, and convey it to the interior part of the ear. The hearing of the horse is remarkably acute. A thousand vibrationa of the air, too slight to make any impression on the human ear, are readily perceived by him. It is well known to every iiunting-man, that the cry of the hounds will be recognised by the horse, and liis ears will be erect, and he will be all spirit and impatience, a considerable time before the rider is conscious of the least sound. Need anything more be said to ex[»nse the absurdity of cropping? Fortunately for this too-often abused animal, crop- ping is not now the fashion. Some thoughtless or unfeeling young men endeavoured, a little while ago, to introduce it, but the voice of reason and humanity prevailed. This cartilage, the conch or snell, is attached to the head by ligaments, and sustained by muscles, on which its action depends. It rests upon anotlier cartilage, round witiiout and irregular within, called the annular, •mg-like, cartilage, and conducting to the interior of the ear; and it is ♦ " When horses or mules inarch in company at night, those in front direct their ears forward; those in the rear direct them backward; and tliose in the centre direct ihem laterally c across; tlie whole troop seeming- thus to be actuated by one feeling', which watches the general safety." — Abnott's Elements of Physics, vol. i. p. 478. 7% THE RORSE. likmise svipported and moved by a third small cartilage, placed ai the tore part el' the base of the conch, and into which several muscles are inserted. The ear is covered by a skin thinner than in most other parts of the body, and altogether destitute of fut, tiiat it may not be too bulky and heavy, and may be more easily moved. Under the skin lining the inside of the car- tilage are more numerous glands, that secrete or throw out a scaly, white, greasy matter, which may be rubbed off with the finger, and which is des lined to supple this part of the ear, and to keep it soft and smooth. Below this are other glands, w hich pour out a peculiar, sticky, bitter fluid, the wax, probably displeasing to insects, and therefore deterring them from crawling down the ear and annoying the animal : or by its stickiness arresting their progress. The internal part of the conch is covered with long hair, which stands across the passage in every direction, Tiiis likewise is to protect the ear from insects, that would with difficulty penetrate through this thick defence. The cold air is likewise prevented from reaching the interior of the ear, and the sound is moderated, not arrested ; penetrating readily, but not violently ; and not striking injuriously on the membrane covering the drum of the ear. Can these purposes be accomplished, when it is the custom of so many carters and grooms to cut the hair out of the ear so closely and indus- triously as they do? The groom who singes it to the roots with a candle must either be very ignorant or very brutal. It can scarcely be accom- plished without singeing the ear as well as the hair. Many a troublesome sore is occasioned by it; and many a horse that was perfectly quiet before, rendered difficult to handle or halter ; and even disposed to be otherwise vicious from a recollection of the pain which he suffered during the absurd and barbarous operation. The sound collected by the outer ear, passes through the lower or annular, ring-shaped cartilage., and through irregularities which, while they break and modify it, carry it on to another canal, partly cartilaginous and partly bony, conducting immediately to the internal mechanism of the ear. Tiiis canal or passage is called the external auditory passage, a ; and at the base of it is placed, stretching across it, and closing it, a thick and elastic mem- brane, called the membrane of the drum, Z/. This membrane is supplied with numerous fibres, from the fifth pair, or sensitive nerve of the head, for it is necessary that it should possess extreme sensibility. The mechanism of the ear is so exquisite that we cannot refrain from entering into a minute description of it, although we feel that we are some- wluit trenching on the comprehensive subject of animal physiology. Sound is produced by certain vibrations or undulations communicated to the air, by the concussions or tremblings of things around, and which NlL.'ations spread through the air, and fall upon the ear. The striking of a glass, and the sound of a large bell, are sufficient illustrations of the manner in which sound is propagated by distinct vibrations or waves of the tiir. These vibrations reach the conch of the ear. From its hollow form and peculiar shape, and the faculty of being directed to every quarter whence the vibrations proceed, they are collected, and condensed, and con- veyed down the outer passage, and fall upon the membrane, h. That membrane, tightly stretched, and elastic, receives the impression made upon it, and vibrates in perfect unison. This membrane covers the entrance into a cavity, called the tympanum or drum of tiie ear, /, from its supposed resemblance to a drum. It is of un irregular shape. The walls or sides are composed of bone, lined with & EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. 7& ielicote membrane, with several apertures or holes, J, /, k, the principal of ivhich we shall describe. STRUCTURE OF THE EAR EXPLANATION OF THE PRINCIPAL PARTS, WITH THEIR ANATOMICAL TERMS. Meatus extemus, or outer passagre. Membrana tympani, or membrane stretched over the entrance to the dri a of tlia ear. Malleus, or hammer, the first of the osslculi (little bones), and resting ufon tha membra.na tympani. Incus, or anvil. Orbiculare, or ro«n-A bone. Slopes, or stirrup bcris, resting' on the membrane which covers the .^» >men ovale, or oval windu--v, and which conducts to the labyrinth of the ear. One of the muscles of the tyiVipanum attached to the stapes. Vestibule or hall, the first portion of the labyrinth of the ear. Semicircular canals. Opening's into the canals. iSjmpanum, or drum of the ear. Cochlea, or shell-like portion of the labyrinth. Meatus auditorius intemus, or internal passage, through which both divisions of the seventh pair of nerves enter the ear. At the end of it is the cribriform sieve- like plate, through which ihc portio mollis, or soft portion of the seventh pair of nerves, and which is the auditory nerve, or nerve of hearing-, enters to spread over the cochlea and vestibule. Eustachian tube, or communication between the tympanum and the mouth, so called from its discoverer. Cord, or nerve of the ear, corda tympani, a branch of the portio dura, hard portion, of the seventh pair of nerves, united to a portion of the fifth pair, running ac'oss thfl tympanum, and ramifying on it and on the membrane. Exit, of the portio dura from the temporal bone, to spread over the face. ^0 THE HORSE. Between the membrane at which we have arrived, b, and a smaller one almost opposite, f. leading to the still interior part of tlie ear, and on which the nerve of hearing is expanded, are four little bones, c, d, e, f, united to these membranes and to each other. Their office is to convey, more perfectly than it could be done through the air of the cavity, the ' ibrations which have reached the membrana tympani. The first of tliese little bones {ossicuU) is called the malleus, c, from its supposed resemblance to a hammer. The longer arm of the hammer is attached to the edge of the membrane, and reaches to its centre, and is so strongly united to it, as to draw it down into a kind of funnel-shape. It is the bracing of the parchment of the soldier's drum; and it must be sufficiently evident, that every vibration given to the membrane must be communicated to the hammer bone. From the hammer, the vibration is communicated to the iiiciis, d, so named from its imagined likeness to a blacksmith's anvil, although it is a great deal more like a molar tooth or grinder, with two fangs, and one of them much lengthened and curved. The hammer, however, is so formed and placed, that the impression or vibration is not merely conveyed, but considerably increased. Between the extremity of the handle of the hammer and its head, resting on the anvil, is a sharp process, received into a hollow in the bony wall of the drum, and which is evidently the fulcrum, or centre of motion, on which the hammer turns ; and this is much nearer the head of the bone than the extremity of the handle. It is then a lever, and it acts upon the principle of the lever. Tlie point of the handle is the place where the vibration is received, or the power applied ; the little process is the fulcrum or prop, or turning point ; and tlie head of the bone is the extremity of the other arm, where the weight is to be hung, or the effect produced. Now, in proportion (as we shall have again and again to demonstrate, when we speak of the construction of the limbs) as the distance of the power from the fulcrum exceeds that of the weight, so will be the mechanical advantage gained, or so will the effiict be increased. Here the extremity of the hammer is twice as far from the centre as the head; and, therefore, the effect will be doubled, and the vibration received by the extremity of the handle, will be conveyed with double intensity to the anvil. The bodies of these bones are elastic ; and the heads of all bones are covered by a substance, cartilage, elastic in the highest degree : therefore, the impression or vibration communicated from the hammer to the anvil, will not be deadened, but rather increased by the collision of these elastic bodies. The anvil d is another lever, and not only would the vibration be com- municated undiminished through its substance, but one of the projecticns or fangs being received into an opening in the wall of the drum, and the distance of the point at which the impression was received, or the power resides, being greater from the centre than that where the impression is to be conveyed or given up to the next bone, or, in other words, where the effect is to be produced, mechanical advantage is here, likewise, gained, and the efft'ct on the next bone, e, may fairly be reckoned at three times the intensity of the original vibration. Tlie round bone, e, a very minute one, is the next in order. It is tlie smallest bone in the body ; and its use seems to be, to form a more complete and moveable joint between the anvil and the stirrup, and to cause the impulse or vibration to be communicated to the stirrup-bone in a perpendicular direction. EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. Si The last of tliese four little bones, is the stapes or stirrup-bone. It closely resembles a stirrup in form, and it is placed on the membrane of the fenestra ovalis, the oval window, or opening into the most interior part of the ear, and the immediate and actual seat of hearing. The stirrup being retained in a perpendicular direction on this n^.embrane,, by the round bone, not only is the full impression which had been communicated to the first membrane conveyed to the other, but it is trebled by the beautiful mechanism of the bones. Sound, we have said, is produced by vibrations conveyed to the ear, and exciting similar vibrations in certain parts of the ear. These vibrations, once excited, do not immediately cease. A glass continues to sound, and the prolonged undulations of the deep-toned bell K'-e familiar to every one. The pulses of sound succeed each other with great /qpidity. In speaking, the words quickly follow each other, and each syllable produces a separate impulse on the external membrane of the ear. Uiiioss, however, one pulsation or vibration had ceased before the next v.as communicated, language would be unintelligible, and a confused and endless noise would prevail. The finger placed on the edge of a glass immediately stops the vibration. The damper applied to the piano-forte effects the same purpose, and gives distinctness of sound and tone. There is in the ear an admirable contrivance to accomplish the same object. Muscles are attached to these little bones, and particularly to the hammer and stirrup, which are in contact with the membranes. One belonging to the stirrup is given in our cut, g. They are placed there, according to seme physiologists, to. tighten or relax the chain of bones, in order to produce greater or less intensity of sound. We would rather say that they were inteniled as dampers, to prevent the otherwise unavoidable confusion of sound. No sooner is an impression conveyed to these bones, or a vibration communicated down them, than the muscles contract, and by that contraction tighten the chain of bones, and by that tightening, destroy, and not increase the vibration. The heads of the bones are pressed one on the other, so that, like the finger on the edge of the glass, the vibration is not only immediately arrested in these bones, but in the membranes above and below to which they are attached. The air in the drum of the ear is not always of the same warmth. In fever, or in consequence of inflammation in a neighbouring part, or during the excitement of exercise, the air in the drum may attain a degree of heat far above the natural standard ; the consequence of which would be Ihat it would expand. All bodies expand with heat ; and this air expand- ing would press on every part of the cavity. The bony walls of the cavity would not yield, but the membrane might be so violently distended, as to be incapable of vibrating. Under the cold fit of fever, the air would collapse, or would diminish in bulk. All bodies contract by the application of cold. Then the external air, endeavouring to enter the partial vacuum, and pressing the membranes inward, might produce precisely the same effect. To prevent all this, and to preserve a proper balance between tiie heat of the air in the tympanum, and that of the other parts of the body, or the atmosphere, there is a passage communicating with the mouth ; and by means of the mouth, with the external air. See p in this cut, and 9 in the cut, page 68, which gives the cartilage that covers the entrance of this passage, the Euslachian tube, into the mouth. The Eustachian lube commences in the drum of the ear, by a mere slit in the bony wall, which, passing through the stony portion of the temporal bone, and part of the sphenoid bojie, becomes cartilaginous, and then expands. 92 THE HORSE. and ends in a large pouch or bag. The cartilage, p. protects the mv'Uth of this bag, and prevents the food from entering it ; and lilvewise enables it occasionally to unclose for purposes connected with the faculty of hearing 'I'he impression, then, has been conveyed by the rnecnanisrn of \iie bones, from the membrane of the drum, h, to the membrane on which ilie stirrup rests, f ; and which closes the fenestra ovalis, or oval window, or opening into the labyrinth of the ear. This mechanism, however, deeply seated as it is in the head, and guarded by the stony hardness of the temporal bone, is liable to injury, and we are next led to admire many provisions for preserving the sense of hearing, even when much mischief has been done to the machine. The membrane may be punctured or ruptured. It is occa- sionally so by accident or violence, and lately purposely done in the human subject, to remedy deafness produced by obstruction of the Eustachian tube. Tlie vibrations of tlie external air would proceed down the passage a, and be communicated, although imperfectly, to the little bones at the bottom, c, d, e, and carried on the oval window, f, and hearing would remain. Supposing that the three first of the little bones were diseased or removed, the vibration of the external air would be communicated to the air in the drum, and by that to the stirrup, f, and the animal would not be entirely deaf: or even if the whole of the little bones were destroyed, yet the membrane of the oval window remaining, some vibration might bo communicated to it, and some sound perceived. Passing the oval window, y, we arrive at the true seat of hearing. A strangely irregular cavity, h, presents itself, filled with an aqueous fluid, while the substance or pulp of the porlio mollis or soft portion of the seventh pair of nerves, the auditory nerve, expands on the membrane which lines the walls of this cavity. Why is this cavity filled with a liquid? First, that the membrane which covers the passage into it, might always be pre- served in a proper state to receive and communicate vibrations. If the labyrinth had contamed a fluid possessed of much expansibility, in the considerable changes of temperature to which the frame. is subject, this membrane might be stretched beyond the power of vibrating, and almost to bursting by tlie increased bulk of that fluid. Air is highly expansible. That is of no consequence in the drum of the ear, I, because, as it expanded, it would rush out of the Eustachian tube ; but in the labyrinth it would be highly injurious, because that is a closed cavity. These interior chambers then are filled with water instead of air, because it is not one-hundredth part so expansible as air. If, however, the labyrinth be completely filled with this aqueous fluid, how can any undulation or vibration take place ? Undulation supposes a change of figure, an enlargement in some direction ; but there can be no enlargement in a bony cavity completely filled. This was not forgotten in the wonderful construction of the ear, and, therefore, at the base of the shell, m, and between the stirrup and the shell, is an opening, covered likewise with membrane, called the round window, or communication between the drum and tiie labyrinth. When any force, then, is impressed on the membrane under the stirrup, this membrane yields to the impression, and sufl^ers the vibration to be propagated through the whole of the labyrinth. When the vibration ceases, and the fluid is at rest, the membrane over this opening returns to its natural situation, and is ready to yield to the next impression. T.'iere is another important reason why these cavities are filled with aqueous fluid. The principal object of the mechanism of the little bones, we have seen to be, perfectly to convey, and even to increase the effect of, the vibration first connnunicated to the membrane of the drum. The vibra- EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. 83 tion reaches the oval window, trebled in intensity. The same objeci is pursued within the labyrinth. A liquid is placed there, because sour.d i» propagated through it with greater rapidity. While sound travels through air at the rate of 1132 feet in a second, it passes through water at the rate of more than 400[) feet in the same time. The impulse communicated to the water by the membrane, is thus more suddenly spread over the whole of the labyrinth. There is, besides, a law regulating the pressure of fluids, by which this impulse must be spread over the whole of the labyrinth, and every portion of the expansion of the nerve will be affected by it, which would not be the case in a fluid so rare and expansible as air. The strongest reason, however, remains to be stated, — the impression or vibration is rendered more intense by travelling through water. That sound which would scarcely be heard in the air, is almost deafening under water. It is a common practice for boys when they bathe, to dive with a stone in each hand, and the rubbing of them together under water produces a rumbling sound of extraordinary loudness. This is contrary to the old opinion ; and even philosophers, of no mean repute, have denied that fishes had ears, because they were placed in a medium through which sound could scarcely be conveyed, and where their ears would be of little use to them. Later and better observers have proved that sound is propagated far more intensely through water than through air; and therefore an aque- ous fluid occupies those chambers of the ear, on the walls of which tho auditory nerve is expanded. The- oval window opens into the labyrinth, which is divided into three compartments. First is the vestibule, h, the hall of entrance, not more than a quarter of an inch wide in the actual subject, but magnified in our cut, for the purpose of illustration. Over the whole of the membrane by which it is lined, there are spread expansions of the soft portion of the seventh pair of nerves. On the upper side are several foramina or holes, k, which conduct to the semi-circular canals, i, containing also water, lined by the same membrane, and that membrane likewise covered, although not so thickly, with nervous pulp. The posterior one is a perfect semi-circular canal, with two openings into the vestibule. The other two run into each other in a part of their course, and have one common opening, and one peculiar to each; so thai these canals open into the vestibule by five apertures. These canals contain a singular mechanism. In the part of the vestibule at the openiiigs of the canals, k, is suspended a little bag, filled with a very clear fluid, and from which branches go into, and occupy the canals, not filling them, but floating in the fluid which they contain ; and on these bags the portion of the nerve belonging to the canal is principally distributed. The membrane composing these bags is exceedingly thin. Thus floating in the fluid of the canals, and richly supplied with nervous matter, the slight- est vibration or motion communicated to ihe fluid by the stirrup on the oval window, will be immediately and powerfully felt. On the other side is, if possible, a more complex mechanism. At 711 ia the cochlea, so termed from its likeness to the convolutions of a sliell. It, however, more resembles a spiral lamina, or narrow and thin plate, partly bony, and partly membranous, running round a column in the centre. It is a spiral stair-case in a round tower. The base of it rests on the internal passage, n. through which both portions of the seventh pair of nerves pass into the ear. Its apex, or top, approaches the Eustachian tube, 0. The 50ft, or auditory portion of the nerve, penetrates tlirough the cribriform or sieve-like termination of the passage, and a fart of it runs up ihs central 8^ THE HORSE. co/iimn or bone, which is hollow and spongy, and, through a thouifind apertures in it. ramifies on the lamina of bone, tvvinmg spirally around the cclumn, and on the membranous fringe wliich floats in the fluid with which the shell is filled, and the whole is covered by a thick expansion of nervous matter. The cribriform plate extends beyond the base of the shell to the vestibule, and those portions of nerve there enter, which spread over the vestibule and the semi-circular canals j but the principal part of it seems to be given (o the cochlea. What is the distinct and peculiar offices of these parts, so curiously and ^eX. so differently constructed, we know not. They are both admirably adapted to render the sense of hearing fully equal to every possible want of the animal. In the horse the cochlea is nmch larger, compared with the canals than it is in the ox or sheep; but for what esj)ecial purpose, we are unable to determine : nor can we account for the large pouch-shaped opening of the Eustachian tube in the horse, (fig. 9, p. 68), nor for the small developements of the mastoid cells in the horse, while they are exceedingly large in the ox. There are many parts of the frame, the pre- cise use or function of which we cannot ascertain ; but, as far as we do understand the mechanism of the various animals which pass under our notice, all is fittest and best ; and the study of the animal frame, with a view to discover the evidences of design, is pleasing and improving. The Eye is a most important organ, and comes next under consideration, as inclosed in the bones of the skull. The eye of the horse should be large, and somewhat (but not too) prominent, and the eyelids fine and tiiin. If the eye be sunk in the head, and apparently little (for there is actually a very trifling difierence in the size of the eye in animals of the same species and bulk, and the seeming difference arises from the larger or smaller opening l)etween the lids), and the lid be thick, and especially if there be any puckering towards the inner corner of the lids, that eye either is diseased, or has been lately subject to inflammation ; and, particularly if one eye is smaller than the other, it has been, at no great distance of time, inflamed. The eye of the horse enables us pretty accurately to guess at his temper. If much of the white be seen, the buyer should pause ere he completes his bargain ; because, although it may, yet very rarely, happen that the cornea or transparent part is unnaturally small, and therefore an unusual portion of the white of the eye is seen, and especially when the horse is looking sideways, or backward, yet experience has shown that this display of white is dangerous. The mischievous horse is slyly on the look out for opportu- nities to do mischief, and the frequent backward direction of the eye, when the white is most perceptible, is only to give surer effect to the blow whicb he is about to aim. We will give a cursory description of the eye, and the uses of its differ- ent parts. The eyes are placed at the-side of the head, yet a little pointing forward, to give the animal a more extended field of vision. He needs this in his wild state to detect the approach of his enemies, and it is useful to him when employed in our service. The eye is supported behind by muscles attached to different parts of the bony orbit, and it is embedded in a vast mass of fat, upon which it may be readily moved, and without friction ; and that fat being absorbed in sickness or old age, the eye is retracted and sinks into the orbit. In front, the eye is supported and covered by the lids, which, closing EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. 85 rapidly, protoct it from many an injury that tlircatens ;— supply it witi? that moisture which is necessary to preserve its transparency ; in tne momentary act of closing, they give a certain and sufficient respite to a del- icate organ, which would otherwise be fatigued and worn out, by the con- stant glare of day ; when the eye labours under inflammation, defend it from the stimulus of light; and, gradually drooping, permit the animal to enjoy that repose which nature requires. Extending round both lids, and, it may be almost said, having neither origin nor insertion, is a muscle called the orbicularis, or circular muscle. Its office is to close the lids in the act of winking or otherwise, but only while the animal is awake. "When he sleeps, this is elTected by another and very ingenious mechanism, for no voluntary muscle will continue in action during sleep. The natural state of the eyelids is tiiatof being closed ; and they are kept open by the energy of the muscles, whose office it is to raise the upper lid. As sleep steals upon the animal, these muscles cease to act, and the lids close by the inherent elasticity of the membrane of which they are composed. Tlie skin of the lid is, like that of the ear, exceedingly fine, to prevent unnecessary weight and pressure on such a part, and to give more easy and extensive motion. The lids close accurately when drawn over the eye, and this is effected by a little strip of cartilage, at the edge of each of them, which may be easily felt with the finger, and which preserves them in a hoop-like form, and adapts them closely to the eye and to each other. The lower cartilage, however, does not, as a moment's observation will show, present towaixls the inner corner of the eye, the whole of its flat surface to the upper, but it evidently slopes inward, and only the outer edge of the under lid touches the upper, and, by this means, a little gutter is formed, by which the superfluous moisture of the eye flows to the inner corner, where there is a canal to convey it away, and therefore it neither accumulates in the eye, nor unpleasantly runs down the cheek. Along the edges of the lids are placed numerous little hollows, which can be plainly distinguished even in the living horse by slightly turning down the lid. These are the openings into numerous small cells, containing a thick and unctuous fluid, by means of which the eyes are more accu- ralely closed, and the edges of the lids defended from the acrimony of the tears. The horse has no eyehrotvs, and the eye/ashes are very peculiarly ar. ranged. The rows of liair are longest and most numerous on the upper lid, and especially towards the outer or temporal corner, because the light comes from above ; and, as the animal stands, and particularly when he is grazing, and from the lateral situation of his eyes, the greater portion of the light, and the attacks of insects, and the rolling down of moisture, would ciiiefly be from the outside or temples. Towards the inner corner of the eye there is little or no eyelash, because there is no probable danger or nuisance in that direction. Only a small quantity of light can enter from below, and therefore the lashes are thin and short ; but as, in the act of grazing, insects may more readily climb up and be troublesome to the eye, towards the inner angle, there the principal or only hair is found on the lower lid. These apparently trifling circumstances will not be overlocked by the careful observer. They who are unacquainted with the absurdities of stable management, or who have not carefully examined the abuses which may exist in their own establishments, can scarcely conceive the foolish and cruel practices of some carters and grooms. We know that when the groom is anxious 86 THE HORSE. that his horse should bo as neat and trim all over as art can n.ake him, tlie very eye-lashes are generally sacrificed. What has the poor animal suf- fered, when, travelling in the noon of day, the full blaze of the sun has fallen upon his eyes ! and how many accidents have probably happened, from his being dazzled by the light, but which have been attributed to other causes. If the horse has no eyebrow, there are several hairs or bristles scattered on the upper eyelid, and there is a projecting fold of the lid which dis- charges nearly the same office. It is more conspicuous in old horses than in young ones. Some horsemen do not like to see it, and associate the idea of it with weakness or disease of the eye. This is perfectly erroneous. It i'^ a provision of nature to accomplish a certain purpose, and has nothing to do either with health or disease. On the lower lid is a useful provision to warn the horse of the near approach of any object that might incommode or injure him, in the form of long projecting hairs or bristles, and which are plenteously embued with nervous influence, so that the slightest touch shall put the animal on his guard. We would request any of our readers, by whom the experiment never has been made, to toucli very slightly the extremity of one of these hairs. They will be surprised to observe the sudden convulsive twitching of the lid, rendering the attack of the inseci| absolutely impossible. Those ignorant grooms, however, who cut away the eye-lashes, do not spare these useful feelers. The eye is exposed to the action of the atmospheric aii', and the process of evaporation, destructive of its transpai'ency, is continually going on. The eye of the horse, or the visible part of the eye, is, likewise, more prominent and larger than in the human being, and the animal is often sub- ject to extreme annoyance from dust and insects, while he has no hands or other guard to defend himself from the torture which they occasion. Wliat is the provision of nature against this ? Under the lid, and a little within the outer corner of the upper lid, is a large irregular body, the lachrymal gland, comparatively larger than in the human being, secreting an aqueous fluid, and which fluid slowly issuing out from the gland, and, more especially, pressed out of it by the act of winking, flows over the eye, supplies it with moisture, and washes off* ail impurities. Human ingenuity could not have selected a situation from which the fluid could be conveyed over the eye «vith more advantage for this purpose. When this fluid is secreted in an undue quantity, and flows over the eye, it is called tears. An increased flow of tears is produced by any thing that irritates the eye, and, therefore, a constant accompaniment and symptom of inflammation. A horse with any degree of weeping, or the flowing of the tears down the cheek, should be regarded with much suspicion. In the human being an unusual secretion of tears is often caused by bodily pain, and emotions of the mind ; and so it is occasionally in the horse. We have seen it repeatedly, under acute pain or brutal usage. John Lawrence, speaking of the cruelty exercised (and we know still too often exercised) by some dealers, in what they call " firing" a horse before he is led out for sale, in order to arouse every spark of mettle, says : " More than fifty years have passed away, and I have before my eyes a poor mare stone blind, exquisitely shaped, and showing all the marks of higli blood, whom I saw unmercifully cut with a whip a quarter of an hour before the sale, to bring her to the use of her stiflened limbs, zckile the tears zvere Irlclding down her cheeks." Having passe(f over the eye, the fluid is conveyed by the little canal of EXTERNAL STRUCTURE. S"/ vrhivu .ve liave spoken, formed by the sloping of the under lid, towards the cornel of the eye ; and there are two little orifices, that conduct it to a small leservoir within, and at the upper part of the lachrymal bone, (fig i, p. d6). A little protuberance of black or pied colour, called the caruncle, placed in the very corner of the eye, and to be seen without opening the lids, IS situated between these orifices, and guides the fluid into them. From this reservoir the tears are conveyed by a long canal, the lachrymal duct, partly bony and partly membranous, to the lower part of the nose. A little within the nostril, and on the division between the nostrils, is seen the lower opening of this canal ; the situation of which our readers should carefully mark, and bear in mind its real use, for not only horsemen, but even some careless veterinary surgeons, have mistaken it for a glanderous ulcer, and have condemned a useful and valuable animal. It is found just before the skin of the muzzle terminates and the more delicate membrane of the nostril commences. The opening of the canal is placed thus low because the membrane of the nose is exceedingly delicate, and would be irritated and made sore by the frequent or constant running down of the tears. This canal is sometimes obstructed in the human being, and the reservoir is distended and bursts ; an ulcer is then formed, very difficult to heal, and only healed by a metal style or pin, penetrating into the duct, being worn for a considerable time. Fortunately the lachrymal duct is rarely obstructed m the horse, for, if it were, and ulceration were to follow, no mechanical contrivance could retain the style or pin in its place. The dog is subject to obstructions of this canal, and the ulcer formed by the bursting of the sac is never healed. There is, however, something yet wanting. We have a provision for supplying the eye with requisite moisture, and for washing from off the transparent part of it insects or dust which may annoy the animal. What becomes of these impurities when thus washed off? Are they carried by the tears to the corner of the eye, and so pass down this duct, and irritate and obstruct it ; or do they accumulate at the inner angle of the eye ? There is a beautiful contrivance for disposing of them as fast as they enter the eye. Concealed within the inner corner of the eye, or only the margin of it, black or pied, visible, is a triangular-shaped cartilage, the haw, with its broad part before. It is concave within, exactly to suit the globe of the eye ; and it is convex without, accurately to adapt itself to the membrane lining the lid; and tlie base of it is reduced to a thin or almost sharp edge. At the will of the animal this is suddenly pro- truded from its hiding-place, passes rapidly over the eye, and shovels up every nuisance mixed with the tears, and then, being speedily drawn back, the dust or insect is wiped off as the cartilage again passes under tiie corner of the eye. How is this managed ? This cartilage has no muscle attached to it, and the limbs, and the different parts of the body, when put in motion by tlie influence of the will, are moved invariably by muscles. The mechanism is simple and effectual. There is a great mass of fat at the back of tiie pye, that the eye may be easily moved ; and this fat is particularly accumulnted about the inner corner of the eye, and beneath, and at the point of this car- tilage. The eye of the horse has likewise very strong muscles attached to :% and one, peculiar to quadrupeds, of extraordinary power, and by whose aid, if the animal has not hands to ward off a danger that threatens, he is at least enabled to draw the eye back almost out of the reach of tliat danger. SS THE HORSE. Dust, or gravel, or insects shall have entered the eye, and annoy the horse. This peculiar muscle suddenly acts. The eye is forcibly drawn back, and presses upon the fatty matter. That may be displaced, but can- not be squeezed into less compass. It is forced violently towards the inner corner of the eye, and it drives before it tlio haw ; and the haw having like- wise some fat about the point of it, and being placed between the eye and an exceedingly smooth and polished bone, and being pressed upon by the eye as it is violently drawn back, shoots out with the rapidity of lightning, and, guided by the eyelids, projects over the eye, and thus carries olf the offending matter. In what way shall we draw the haw back again without muscular action 1 Another principle is called into play, of which we have already spoken, and of which we shall have much to say, elasticity. It is that principle by which a body yields to a certain force impressed upon it, and returns to its former state as soon as that force is removed. It is that by which the liga- ment of the neck (p. 68), while it supports the head, enables the horse to graze, — by which tlie heart expands after closing on and propelling forward llie blood in its ventricles — by which the artery contracts on the blood thai has distended ft, and by which many of the most important functions of life are influenced or governed. This muscle ceases to act. The eye resumes its natural situation in the orbit. There is room for the fatty matter to return to its place, and it immediately returns by the elasticity of the membrane by which it is covered ; and it draws after it this cartilage with which it is connected, and the return is as rapid as the projection. The old farriers strangely misunderstood the nature and design of the haw, and many of the present day do not seem to be much better informed. When from sympathy with other parts of the eye labouring under inflam mation, and becoming itself inflamed, and increased in bulk, and the neigh bouring parts likewise thickened, it was either forced out of its place, or voluntarily protruded to defend the eye fmn the action of light, and could not return, they mistook it for some injurious excrescence or tumour, and proceeded to cut it out. The ^'■haw in the eyes,'' is a disease well known to the majority of grooms, and this sad remedy for it is deemed the on'v cure. It is a barbarous practice, and if they were compelled to walk half a dozen miles in a thick dust, and without being permitted to wipe or to cleanse the eye, they would feel the torture to which they doom this noble animal, when afterwards employed in their service. A little patience having been exercised, and a few cooling applications made to the eye while the inflammation lasted, and, afterwards, some mild astringent ones, and other proper ineans employed, the tumour would have disappeared, the haw would have returned to its place, and the animal would iiave discharged the duties required of him, without inconvenience to himself, instead of the agony to which an unguarded and unprotected eye must frequently expose him. The loss of blood occasioned by the cutting out of the haw may fre- quently relieve the inflammation of the eye ; and the evident amendment which follows, induces these wise men to believe that they have performed an excellent operation ; but the same loss of blood, by scarification of the overloaded vessels of the conjunctiva, would be equally beneficial, and the animal would not be deprived of an instrument of admirable use to him. The eye is of a globular figure, yet not a perfect globe. It is rather composed of parts of two globes. The half of the one, f, smaller and transparent in front, and of the other, p, larger, and the coat of it opaque behind. We shall most conveniently begin with the coats of the eye. EXTERNAL SUBSTANCE. 89 kB. d e f h h i k STRUCTURE OF THE EYE, WITH AN EXPLANATION OF THE PEINCIPAL ANATOMICAL TERMS. A supposed object viewed by the animal, and an inverted imag-e of which, a A is thrown on the retina at the back of the eye. Points where the rays, iiaving- passed the cornea and the lens, converg by the refractive power of the lens. Rays proceedinjr from the extremities of the object to the eye. The cornea, or horny and transparent part of the eye, covered by the conjunctiva, uniting- different parts together. The crystalline (crystal or glassy) lens, behind the pupil, and in front of the vitrooua humour. Muscles of the eye. Optic nerve, or nerve of sight. The sclerotica (hard firm coat) covering the whole of the eye, except the portion occu pied by the cornea, and being- a seeming prolongation of the covering of thi optic nerve. Tlic choroides (receptacle or covering), or choroid coat, covered with a black secro tion or paint. The iris, or rainbow-coloured circular membrane, under the cornea, in front of th« THE EVE. 97 attraction of the glass, in a perpendicular direction, as it approached a, and, obeying both forces, it took a new path, y, between the two forces, and more towards a line, c, drawn perpendicular to the surface of the glass. This new path it continued to pursue, until it had penetrated through the glass; and then, being about to quit the glass, it was once more acted upon by two forces; — this combined impulse in an oblique direction, and the attraction of the lower surface of the glass in a perpendicular one ; — and as before, obeying both, it again traversed a new path, e, between both forces, and in a direction from the perpendicular. The degree and kind of deviation from the original line will depend on the difference in density between the air and the glass, or water, or what- ever substance may be used, and likewise on the surface of the refracting body. Passing through a transparent substance, with a plain and level surface above and below, the rays will be bent out of their first direction, but will continue parallel to each other. Passing through a concave glass (a glass hollowed on one or both sides), the rays will diverge or separate ; and traversing a convex one (rounded on one or both sides), they will converge or approach each other, and tend to a point ; and llie degree of convergence or divergence will depend on the degree of convexity or concavity. Let us apply this to the mechanism of the eye of the horse {vide p. 89). We have spoken of the cornea, f, and the aqueous humour, q, and the crystalline lens, g, and the vicreous humour, /t; but although possessed of different refractive powers, according to their form and density, (and the cornea from its convexity, and the crystalline lens from its density, being the principal agents), they are so fitted to each other, that we may consider them as composing one exceedingly convex lens, and of such power, that the rays entering the pupil, ?«, are brought to a point within the very sub- stance of the lens. The place of distinct vision, hov/ever, will not be at this point, but a little way behind. If the glass of a spectacle, such as those generally worn by old people, be held between a candle and a piece of paper, the rays of light will converge by the convexity of the glass, and be brought to a very small surface or point on the paper; but on that point, there will be no distinct picture of the candle, and the paper must be gradually removed from the light, until a distance be found at which the image of the candle will be seen most vivid and distinct, although inverted. So (see the cut, p. 89) the retina which is spread over the internal coat of the eye is placed at a little distance behind the point where the rays meet and cross. If the eye be too convex, and its converging power too great, the rays will cross too soon, and the image will be formed, brightest and best, before ihey reach the retina, and the vision or sight will be imperfect and obscuie. , If the eye is not sufficiently convex, and consequently does not possess converging power enough, the rays will not cross until they are too near the retina, and the picture would be most luminous and distinct behind the retina; and thus, likewise, the sight would be imperfect and obscure.* * "In considering- vision as achieved by means of an imaire formed at the bottom ol the eye, we can never reflect without wonder on the smallness, yet correcincps of the picvure, the subiilty of the touch, and tlie fineness of the lines. A landscape of live oi six square legrues is broug-ht into a space of lialf an inch in diameter; yet the multitude of objects which it contains are all preserved, are all discriminated in their -..lasmitudes, positions, fig-ures, colours. A stage-coach passing- at its ordinary speed, for se^-eral min- vitea, passes in the eye only over one-twelfth of an inch, yet is tlie chang-e of place in the linage distinctly perceived thruug-houi its whole progress." — Paley's Nal. Theology, p. 32. !)H THE HORSE. We are cf course unable to ascertain when the horse experiences eithel of these kinds of indistinct vision, nor are we able to offer any remedy for them: but noliiing can be more certain than that his sight is frequently very imperfect from one of these causes. There is a shying, often the result of cowardice or playfulness, or want of work ; but at otiier times proving, beyond contradiction, a defect of sight. A horse will manifestly mistake the nature of the object before him ; he will run against that which he should have seen : or he will be terrified by a tree or bird, which should not liavc caused alarm. This defect of sight is more dangerous than blindness. A blind horse will resign himself to the guidance of his rider or driver; but against the nusconception and starting of a shying horse there is no defence. That horses grow shy as they grow old, no one accustomed to them will deny ; and no intelligent person will be slow in attributing it to the right cause — a decay in the organ of vision, — a loss of convexity in the eye, lessening the convergency of the rays, and throwing the perfect image beyond, and not on the retina. There is a striking difference in the convexity of the cornea in the coll and the old horse ; and both of them, probably, may shy from opposite causes ; the one from a cornea too prominent, and the other from one too flat. We do not think that, in the usual examination of the horse previous to purchase, sufficient attention is paid to the con- vexity of the cornea. The remedy for siiying will be considered when we speak of the vices of horses. There is a provision yet wanting. The horse has a very extended field of view, but man)'- persons are not perhaps aware how little of it he can command at a time. There is not one of our readers who can make out a single line of our treatise without changing the direction of the eye. It is curious to follow the motion of the eyes of a rapid reader. To move the iiead and neck in order to adapt the eye to the whole scene before us, would be awkward and fatiguing, and Nature has adopted a simpler and better method. She has given no fewer than seven muscles to the horse, to turn this little but important organ ; and that they might act with sufficient power and quickness, no less than six nerves are directed to the muscles of the eye generally, or to particular muscles ; and the eye rests on a mass of fat, that it may be turned with little exertion of power, and without friction. MUSCLES OF THE EYE. There are four straight muscles, three of which are represented in our cm, rf, e, and f, rising from the back of the orbit, and inserted into the ball of the eye, opposite to each other, and at equal distances from each other. One, d, runs to the upper part of the eye, just behind the transparent and visible portion of it, and its ofTice is clearly to raise the eye. When it «;on MUSCLES OF THE EYE. 9() tracts, the eye must be drawn upward. Another, y, s inserted exactly opposite at tlie bottom of the eye ; and its office is as clearly to dejiress l.ie eye, or enable the animal to look downwards. A third, e, is inserted at tne outer corner, and by means of it the eye is turned outward, and, from tiie situation of the eye of the horse, considerably backward ; and the fourth is inserted at the inner corner, turning the eye inward. They can thus rotate or turn the eye in any direction the animal wishes. If the upper and outer muscles are called into action, the horse looks upward and outward, and more upward than outward in proportion as the upper muscle acts, at the will of the animal, more powerfully than the outer ; and thus, by the action of one of them, or the combined action of any two of them, the eye may he immediately and accurately directed to every point. These muscles, however, have another duty to discharge. They support the eye in its place. In the usual position of the head of the horse, they must be to a certain degree employed for this purpose ; but when he is grazing or feeding, the principal weight of the eye rests upon them ; and then, lest from this slanting and downward position of the head, when the horse is so often and so long employed in feeding, they should be fatigued, another muscle is added, peculiar to quadrupeds, called the retractor {(Ircncer-hack), or the suspensorius [suspensory) muscle, g. It arises from the edge of the foramen or hole through which the optic nerve enters the orbit — surrounds the nerve as it proceeds forward, and then, partially dividing into four parts, is attached to the back part of the eye. Its office is evidently to support the eye generally, or, when it is suddenly called into powerful action, and assisted by the straight muscles, it draws the eye back out of the reach of threatening danger, and in the act of drawing it back causes the haw to protrude in the manner which we have already described, as an additional defence. The power of this muscle is very great. It has been proved, in attempted operations for cataract, to exert a force equal to more than twenty pounds; and it renders an operation on the eye almost impossible. It is an admira- ble substitute for the want of hands, to defend the eye from many things that would injure it; and, being partially separated into four divisions, it is also enabled to assist the straight muscles in turning the eye. These muscles discharge another and a most important office. If we examine near and distant objects through a telescope, we must alter the focus, i. e. we must increase or diminish the length of the lube. We must shorten it a li^le when we examine distant objects, because ihe rays coming to us from them, in a less divergent direction, are sooner brought to a point by the power of the lens ; so the straight and retractor muscles drawing back the eye, and forcing it upon the substance behind, and thus in a slight degree flattening it, bring the lens nearer to the retina, and adapt the eye to the observation of distant objects. Stilly however, being employed in supporting the weight of the eye, these muscles might not be able to turn it so rapidly and so extensively as the wishes or wants of the animal might require ; therefore, two other muscles are given, which are used solely in turning the eye. They are called oblique muscles, because their course is obliquely across the eye. Tlie upper one is most curiously constructed, o, h. It comes from the back part of the orbit, and takes a direction upward and toward the inner side, and there, just under the ridge of the orbit, it passes through a perfect meclian- Jcal pulley, and, turning round, proceeds across the eye, and is inserted rather beyond the middle of thj eye, towards the ou.er side. Thus the globe -)f the eye is evidently directed inward and upward. Something 100 THE HORSE. nioro; however, is accomplished by this singular mechanism. The eye is naturally deep in the "orbit, that it may be more perfectly defended; but it may be necessary, occasionally, to bring tiie eye forward, and enlarge the field of vision. The eye is actually protruded under the influence of fear: not only are the lids opened more widely, but the eye is brought more for- ward. How can this jwssibly be accomplished ? There are no muscles anterior to, or before the eye — there is no place for their insertion. The object is readily etfccted IJy this singular pulley, h, c. By the power of this muscle, the troch/caris, or pulley-muscle, and the straight muscles at the same time not opposing it, or only regulating the direction of the eye, it is really brought somewhat forward. The lower oblique muscle rises just within the lachrymal bone (/, p. 66), and, {)roceeding across the eye, is fixed into the part of the sclerotica, op])osite to the other oblique muscle, and it turns llie eye in an opposite direction, assisting, however, the uj)per oblique, in bringing the eye forward from its socket. CHAPTER VJI. TNJURIES AND DISEASES OF THE SKULL— THE BRAIN— THE EARS— AND THE EYES. We have now arrived at a convenient resting-place in our somewhat dry, but necessary description of the structure of the horse, and we willingly turn to more practical matter. We will consider the injuries and diseases of the parts we have surveyed. In entering, however, on this division of our work, we would premise, that it is impossible for us to give the farmer such an account of the nature and treatment of the diseases of horses as will enable him with safety to practise for himself, e.xccpt in the commonest cases. The causes of most diseases are so obscure, their symptoms so variable, and their connexion with other maladies so complicated and mys- terious, that a life devoted to professional study will alone qualify a man to become a judicious and successful practitioner on the diseases of the horse and other domestic animals. Our object will be to communicate suflicient instruction to the farmer, to enable him to act with promptness and judg- ment when he cannot obtain professional assistance — to qualify him to form a satisfactory opinion of the skill of the veterinary surgeon whom he may employ, and, more especially, to divest himself of those strange and absurd prejudices which, in a variety of cases, not only produce and prolong dls. ease, but bring it to a fatal termination. FRACTURE. We have described the cavity of the skull of the horse as being so defended by the hardness of the parietal bones, and those bones as so covered by a mass of muscle, and protected above by an additional layer of bone, and the occipital bone as so exceedingly thick (see cut, p. 68), that a frac TURE of the bones of the skull is almost impossible. It can only occur from brutal violence, except that, when a horse falls in the act of rearing, the occipital bone is sometimes fractured ; when he falls forward, and the head comes in contact with the ground, the muzzle or jaws will receive the principal or whole force of the blow. When, however, fracture of the skuP docs occur, it is almost invariably fatal. A blow of sufTicient violence to MEGRIMS. 101 Drenk these bones, must likewise irreparably injure the delicate and import- ant organ which they protect. The ridge, or outer and upper part of the orbit of the eye, is occasion- ally fractured. It happens from falling, or much oftener from violent blows. The slightest examination will detect the loosened pieces, but a protessiona\ man alone can here render effectual assistance. All, however, that he can do will be gently to replace tlie parts in their natural situation, and contrive to confine them there by adhesive plasters ; to obviate inflammation by bleed- ing, physic, and low diet, and leave the rest to nature. We proceed then to the diseases of the head, and the first of these is PRESSURE ON THE BRAIN. This may be produced by some fluid thrown out between the membranes, or occupying and distending the ventricles of the brain. In the grown horse this rarely occurs, but it is well known to breeders as an occasional disease of the foal, under the name of " water in the head." The head is either very much enlarged, or strangely deformed, or both ; and the animal dies either in the act of foaling, or a few days after the birth. MEGRIMS. There is another kind of pressure on the brain, resulting from an unu- sual determination or flow of blood to it. This organ requires a large supply of blood to enable it to discharge its important functions. It is sup- posed that ten times more blood flows through the brain than through any other part of the frame of equal bulk. Nature, in tlie horse more than in many other animals, has made some admirable provision to cause this great quantity of blood to flow into the brain without much velocity, and thereby to lessen the risk of suddenly overloading iter rupturing its vessels. The arteries pursue their course to the brain in a strangely winding and circuit- ous manner; and they enter the skull through bony holes which will admit of the enlargement of the vessel only to a very limited extent : yet, from various causes, of which the most common is violent exercise in a hot day, and the horse being fat and full of blood, more than the usual quantity will be sent to the head: — or from some negligence about the harness, as the collar being too small, or the curb-rein too tight, the blood will be prevented from returning fiom the head : and thus the larger vessels of the brain will be too long and injuriously distended, and, what is of more consequence, the small vessels which run through the substance of the brain will be enlarged, and the bulk of the brain will be increased, and it will press upon the origins of the nerves, and produce, almost without warning, loss of power and consciousness. The mildest affection of this kind is known by the name of Megrims. ■ It comparatively rarely happens when the horse is ridden; but should he be driven, and, perhaps, rather quickly, he may perform a part of his journey with his usual cheerfulness and ease, when air at once he will stop, shake his head, be evidently giddy, and half unconscious. In a minute or two this will pass over, and he will go on again as if nothing had happened. Frequently, however, the attack will be of a more serious nature. He will fall without the slightest warning, or suddenly run round once or twice, and then fall. He will either lie in a state of complete insensibility, or struggle with the utmost violence. In five or ten minutes he will begin gradually to come to himself; he will get up, and proceed on his journey, yet somewhat dull, and evidently affected and exhausted by what had hap- pened, although not seriously or permanently ill. This is a verv dan";crous disease — danirerous to the horse, which will \(,2 THE HORSE. occasionally die m the spot, and peculiarly dangerous to those who drivf nim, for tlioie will frequently be no warning or opportunity to escape. It likewise linppens, that whether the vessels have been weakened by this vio- lent distension, and afterwards offer less resistance to the flow of blood, or. whatever be the cause, a horse that has once been attacked l)y megrims is very subject to a return of the complaint. No prudent man will drive a horse that has had a second attack, especially if, in the intermediate time, he has taken proper means to prevent a recurrence of the fit. At the moment of attack, a person who is able to bleed should take three or four quarts of blood from the neck ; or any one can cut the barr of the palate in the manner explained where we describe the palate, and whence a considerable and sufficient quantity of blood may be readily obtained. The driver should pat and soothe the animal, and carefully examine the harness, and pursue his journey as gently as circumstances will permit. When he gets home, a dose of physic* should be administered, if the horse can be spared, and the quantity of dry food lessened, and mashes given, or green meat, or the horse should be turned out at night, or turned out altogether for two or three months. ArOPLEXY. The attack sometimes assumes a still more violent form. The horse falls and dies at once. It then ratiier resembles, or is the same with apoplexy in the human being. To this more serious form of the disease he is subject in the stable, and even at pasture ; but there is generally some warning. He will be seen with the head low, extended almost to the ground, and supported against the manger. He staggers as he stands. If moved, he appears as if he would fall. His sight and hearing are evidently affected. This is not mad-staggers, for no inflammation of the brain is found ; nor stomach-staggers, for there is no distension of the stomach. The horse will continue in this way from one hour to twelve. He then falls ; — grinds his teeth; — his'eyes are open, protruded, and fixed — the pupil is dilated; — there are twitchincs about the frame ; — the muzzle is cold ; — the vein of the neck is evidently swelled; — he is unable to swallow ; — the drmk is returned by the nostril or the mouth, and the dung often voided in\olnntarily ; — the twitchings increase to strong convulsions, and death speedily closes the scene. Jf there be time for medical treatment, the course to be pursued is plain enough. Weed copiously ;•]■ — take at once eight or ten quarts. Bleed from a vein in preference to an artery, for an artery which supplies the brain cannot be got at. Bleed from the jugular or common neck- vein, for that returns the blood from the brain, and a large quantity rapidly drawn from this vein may possibly give relief. Next back-rake, or remove the dung from the lower intestine with the hand, and give a dose of physic : but the case is usually hopeless, and the most decisive and skilful treatment alone can avail. We decidedly object to two methods of cure adopted by some farriers, and farmers too. The first is to blow pepper (and Cayenne pep- per if they can get it) up the nostrils of the horse. The violent sneezing that will be produced, if the animal is not too insensible, must probably, or almost certainly, rupture some of the vessels already over-distended. The other practice is to give spices and bark to rouse the animal. The etlect ♦ By pliysic, whenever the word occurs in this Treatise, we mean ptirg-ative inedicine t Full directions for bleeding- will be g-iven when we describe the various operation* which it may be neceasary to perform on the horsse. STOMACH-STAGGERS. J 03 of these would be to quicken the circulation, and to send yet mo-e blood to that organ which already had a great deal too much. STOMACH-STAGGERS. A disease not much unlike this is known under the name of Staggers. There are two varieties of it — the sleepy or stomach-staggers, and the mad- staggers ; frequently, iiowever, they are only dilFerent stages of the same disease, or varying with the cause that produced them. In Stomach-Stag- gers the horse stands dull, sleepy, staggering ; when roused, he looks vacantly around him ; perhaps seizes a lock of hay, and dozes again with It in his mouth ; at length he drops and dies : or the sleepiness passes olf, and delirium comes on, when he falls, rises again, drops, beats himself about, and dies in convulsions. The cause of tliis is sutiicienlly evident ; and the disease never occurs, except by the fault of those who have the management of the horse. It arises from over-feeding. The horse has been permitted to get at a too great quantity of food, or food of an improper nature. When he has been kept for some hours without eating, and has been worked hard, and has become thoroughly hungry, he falls ravenously upon every kind of food he can get at; swallowing it faster than his small stomach can digest it ; and no water being given to soften it, and to hasten its passage, the stomach becomes crammed, and having been previously exhausted by long lasting, is unable to contract upon its contents. The food soon begins to ferment and to swell, causing great distension ; the brain sympathizes with tliis overloaded organ, and staggers are produced. We can easily imagine this, when we remember the sad headaches occasionally arising from an overfdled or disordered stomach. Sometimes the stomach is ruptured. We have little to say of the treatment of the disease so far as medicine iS concerned, except that as it is almost or quite impossible for the person most accustomed to horses to distinguish between the early stage of sto- mach and mad staggers (distension of the stomach, and inflammation of the brain), we should be most diligent and minute in our inquiry into the history of the horse for the preceding twenty-four hours — whether he could have got at an undue quantity of food, or had been worked hard and kept long fasting. Some say that there is a yellowness of the eye, and twitch- ings about the breast in the early stage of sleepy or stomach-staggers. We have seen a great many cases of stomach-staggers without this yellowish- ness, or these catchings, and we believe that no one can certainly distin- guish between the two, and that we must be guided entirely by the history of the case. Bleed very largely ; — that cannot do harm, and in mad staggers is indis- pensable. Give a good dose of physic — that also cannot do harm, although in stomach-staggers it cannot do much good, for it can scarcely find its way into the over-distended stomach, and it certainly cannot find its way through it. Keeping the horse from ail food will be a very proper proceeding, whichever be the disease. Some good judges have affirmed that a horse was never cured of stomach- staggers. It was formerly a very difficult thing, but the stomach-pump has done wonders in cases of poisoning in the human being, and, by means of a larger and somewhat altered pump, (which every veterinary surgeon, and, we think, every large proprietor of horses, should have on his premises,} .his enormous mass of food n-ay, without difficulty, be washed out. If, however, we can say but lillle of the treatment of stomach-staggers, we have much to say of its prevention. It attacks old horses oflener than J 04 THE HORSE. others, and horses that have been hardly worked, or that have been workea for many hours without food. Let no farmer delude himself with the idea that it is contagious. If his horses have occasionally slight fits of the staggers, or if the disease carries off several of .them, he may be assured that there is something wrong in his management. One horse may get at the corn-bin, and cram himself to bursting; but if several are attacked, it is time for him to look about him. The cause will generally bo found to be, too voracious feeding ; too much food given at once, and perhaps without water, after hard work and long fasting. Nothing is lost by the habitual use of the nose-bag, and a more equal division of the hours of labour and the times of feeding. Some careless and thoughtless people suffer their horses to go from morning to night without being fed, and then they wonder if sometimes the horses hang their heads, and di-oop, and can- not work. No horse should be worked more than' four or five hours without being baited. There is one consequence of this improper treatment, of which persons do not appear to be aware, although they suffer severely from it. A horse that has frequont half-attacks of the staggers very often goes blind. It is not the common blindness from cataract, but a peculiarly glassy appearance of the eye. If the history of these blind horses could be told, it would be found that they had been subject to fits of drooping and dullness, and these produced by absurd management respecting labour and food. Staggers have been known to occur when the animal was at grass ; but this usually happens in poor, hard-worked, half-starved animals, and soon after they have been turned out, eitlior in rich pasture, or in a salt marsh, and in hot weather. There are, however, few diseases of the horse that are not occasionally epidemic, or produced by some infiuence of the atmosphere, of the nature of which we are ignorant ; and stomach-staggers sometimes prevails in par- ticular districts, where there is nothing remarkably wrong in the treatment of the horse. There is at that time something in the atmosphere which weakens the stomach, and disposes it to indigestion, and causes a little error in feeding to be dangerous, or produces considerable disease under the com- mon circumstances of feeding. When this is the case, the proprietors of horses siiould be particularly on their guard, for in most horses which then die, the distended stomach will be observed, and will be the actual cause of death. It is very possible that, at certain seasons, some poisonous plants may prevail, or that the hay may not be so nutritive or digestible, and thus the stomach may be weakened. The farmer will weigh all these things in his mind, and act accordingly. MAD-STAGGERS. Mad-Staggers (inflammation of the brain, brain fever) can, as we have said, be at first with difficulty distinguished from the sleepy, or stomach- staggers; but, after a while, the horse suddenly begins to heave at the flanks; — his nostrils expand; — his eyes unclose; — he has a wild and vacant stare, and delirium comes rapidly on. He dashes himself furiously about ; there is no disposition to do mischief, but his motions are sudden and violent, and accompanied by perfect unconsciousness; and he becomes a terrifying and dangerous animal. This continues either until his forme- stupor returns, or he has, literally worn himself out in frightful struggles. Tiiere are only two diseases with which it can be confounded, and from both of them it is very readilv distinguished, viz: colic and madness. In colic the horse rises and falls, but not with so much violence ; he sometimes TETANUS, OR LOCKED-JAW. J Oft plunges, but he more often rolls himself about ; he looks frequently at iii» flanks v\ it.i an expression of pain, and he is conscious. In madness there may be more or less violence ; there is sometimes a determination to do mischief; and there is always consciousness. Over-exertion when the horse is too fat or full of blood, or especially during hot weather, is a frequent cause of inflammation of the brain ; but what- ever will produce general fever, may be the cause of mad-staggers. The treatment adopted by tlie best practitioners is too often unsuccess- ful. The horse sliould be bled until he faints or drops ; or if he be down, until he is evidently faint and weak. Both the neck-veins should be opened at once, and the fullness of the stream, or the quickness with which it is taken, is almost as important as the quantity. Physic should then be given. The purge that acts most quickly is the best, and that is the croton nut, powdered at the Ihne, and given in a drink, in the dose of a half drachm, and followed by smaller doses of ten grains each, every six hours, with plenty of injections of warm soap and water, until the bowels are well opened. If the croton is not at hand, aloes may be given, but dissolved in hot water — an ounce of aloes at the first dose, and afterwards, a quarter of an ounce every four hours, until purging is produced. This being ef- fected, those medicines should be given which have a tendency to lessen •Jie force of the circulation, and consequently, the determination of blood to the head. The most powerful of these are the foxglove, and the tartar emetic, in doses of a drachm each, three or four times in the day. Helle- bore should not be given on account of the previously too great determina- tion of blood to the brain. The head should be blistered, but rowels and setons give useless pain, for the horse is either cured or dead before they, perceptibly begin to act. TETANUS, OR LOCKED-JAW. • We have described the nerves as proceeding from the brain and spinal' marrow, and conveying the power of feeling and motion to the whole frame. Tliis power may best be conceived by considering it as an influence proceeding from the brain to every part. In a state of health, it is regu- larly and uniformly distributed ; but it is much afl^ected by disease. It may rush on violently and witliout interruption, and we have cramp, and tetanus,. or locked-jaw : or the stream may be rapid, but with considerable suspen- sions, and we have fits ; or it may be quite suspended, and we have palsy. Tetanus is one of the most dreadful and fatal diseases to winch the horse is subject. It is called the Locked-Jaw, because the muscles of the jaw are earliest and most powerfully affected. Tetanus is a constant spasm of all the voluntary muscles, and particularly of the neck, the spine, and the- head. It is generally slow and very treacherous in its attack. The horse for a day or two does not appear to be quite well ; he does not feed as usual ;. f tartly chews his food and drops it; and gulps his water. The owner at ength finds out that the motion of the jaws is considerably limited, and some saliva is drivelling from the mouth. If he tries the mouth, he can open it only a very little way, or the jaws are perfectly and rigidly closed ; p.nd thus the only time in Avhich the disease could have been successfully combated is lost. We have, therefore, given a cut of a horse labouring under this disease, which the reader will do well carefully to examine as we proceed with the symptoms, that he may be enabled to recognise it in it? very earliest stage; at the moment he does recognise it, he will do well to npply for the very best advice he can get. Most of the peculiarities delin- H |0(^ THE HORSR eated in tne cut wili be sufficiently apparent before the jaws are lockf^d, and while medicine can be administered with tolerable ease. The jaws are unnaturally tixed, and then he observes that there is a stiffness of the neck, a difficuliy in bringing the head round, and a promi- nence, and hardness, and unyieldingness of all the muscles of the neck, with an unusual protrusion of the head. It next occurs that the poor ani- mal cannot bend his head. The retractor muscle (fig. g, p. 98) is aflected by spasm, and the eye is drawn into the socket — squinting outward — and the haw protruding over a portion of it. The nostril is expanded, the ear erect, and the countenance anxious ; — the back and loins are stiff, and if he is turned in his stall, the whole body turns at once like an unbending piece of wood. The muscles of the belly are also affected by spasm, and he is tucked up (his belly contracted and drawn up) to a strange degree. The tail is erect, and constantly quivering. The extremities are singularly fixed; — the hind-legs straddling ; — the fore-legs projecting forward and out- ward (as some one has aptly described it) like the legs of a stool. The pulse at first not much affected, but soon becomes quick, and small, and irregular; the breathing more laborious as the disease proceeds, and the countenance wild and haggard, and expressive of extreme agony. The pain which attends the cramp of one limb will enable us to judge of that which must accompany universal spasm. If a person goes near the horse, or touches him in the slightest way, although he may be unable to move, yet the sudden quickening of the pulse M'ill tell wiiat the animal feels and fears. So the disease goes on for nine or ten days, until the animal is exhausted by the expenditure of nervous energy, and the continuance of torture. If, from strength of constitution or medical treatment, he should recover, the first favourable symptom is a slight and short remission of the spasm ; the time of remission gradually lengthening, and the jaws a little relax- ing ; but the progress of cure is exceedingly slow, and tbe horse is left very weak. Tetanus is evidently an affection of the nerves. A small fibre of some nerve has been injured, and the effect of that injury has spread to the origin of the nerve ; the brain has become affected, and universal diseased action speedily follows. Locked-jaw generally arises from a wound, and oftenest a wound of a tendinous or ligamentous part; but depending not TETANUS, OR LOCKED-JAW. \Q^ eitnei- upon the extent of the wound, or the degree of inflammation which may be excited. The time of tiie attack is uncertain, and may be post- poned until the wound is nearly or quite healed. It occasionally foliows nicking, docking, cropping, whether well or ill performed — wliether properly attended to afterwards, or neglected. It has been traced to worms, and particularly to hots ; but we do not think that there is any proof of this. Exposure to cold is a frequent cause; water dropping upiu 'he back through the decayed roof of a stable; or the storm pelting upon the uncovered and shivering animal, while the thoughtless owner has sheltered himself. The rational method of cure would seem to be, first to remove the local cause ; — but this will seldom avail much. The irritation is become general, and the spasmodic action constitutional. The habit is formed, and will continue. It is well, however, to endeavour to discover the local cause. If it be a wound in the foot, let it be touched with the hot iron or the caustic, and kept open with digestive ointment. The new irritation thus produced, may lessen or remove the old one. If it follows nicking, let the incision be made deeper, and stimulated by digestive ointment; — and if it arise from docking, let the operation be repeated higher. In treating the constitu- tional disease, efforts must be made to tranquillize the system, and the most powerful agent is bleeding. We have known twenty pounds of blood taken at once and with manifest advantage. There is not a more powerful means of allaying general irritation. Temporary relaxation of the spasm will at least follow, and that will give the opportunity to do another thing in order to reduce and quiet the disturbed system, and that is, to give physic. Here again, that physic is best which is speediest in operation, and will lie in the smallest compass. The croton has no rival in this respect. The first dose should be half a drachm, and the medicine repeated every six hours, in doses of ten grains, until it operates. The bowels, in all these nervous afTections, are very torpid, and there is little danger of inflan^.mation from an over dose of physic. The operation of the physic may be assisted by frequent injections, each containing a drachm of aloes dissolved in warm water, — or, by means of the pump, to which we referred in page 103, whole pailfuls of warm water, or very thin gruel, may be thrown up. Then, as it is a diseased action of the nerves proceeding from the spinal marrow, the whole of the spine should be blistered — three or four inches wide. The horse should be placed in a warm stable, yet with pure air, and should be clothed with two or three additional rugs, or, what is much better, sheep-skins warm from the animal, with the raw side inward ; and changed as soon as they become dry or putrid. Having bled largely, and physicked and blistered, we seek for other means to lull the irritation, and we have one at hand, small in bulk and potent in energy — opium. Give at once a quarter of an ounce, reduced to powder, and made into a drink with gruel, or in a small ball, (in its crude state it would be too long in dissolving in the stomach) : and give an addi- tional drachm every six hours. If the jaw should be quite fixed, administer it in injections. The bowels must be attended to during the exhibition of the opium, and aloes given in small doses, to keep them in a lax state. Camphor and assafoetida may be given by those who please ; — we are not aware that they will do injury, but opium is the sheet-anchor of the vete- rinary practitioner. Great caution and patience are requisite in administering the drinks, *br the elevating of the head seems to be exceedingly painful to the horse. A. ball mav be divided into small pieces, and with a piece of cane or whale- iO.S THE HORSE. bene convoyed to the back part of the mouth, where it will be disso'veu, and must be swallowed. As soon as possible the strength should be supported by nutritive .ood. The appetite seldom fails in this disease ; and it is painful to see the repeated eager etiorts of tlie poor animal to allay his iiunger. When his jaws are most firmly fixed, he will sometimes be able to suck in the liquid from a moist mash ; — if he has the slightest command over them, he will contrive tc swallow the greater part of the mash : and should there be room to intro- duce the mouth of a small horn, he will thankfully take as much gruel as his attendant will give him. Until the jaws are firmly locked, he may be suffered to have hay, although he should only chew it and drop it from the mouth ; for this action of tlie muscles of tiie jaws may delay or prevent their total closure. Little medicine will be wanted as he gets better; nourishing food, not too liberally administered, will constitute the best tonic; and should the weather be sufficiently warm, few things will do him more good than to turn him put for two or three hours in the middle of the day. It will extend the muscles. of his neck, and bring him to the use of his limbs. Against one mode of treatment we enter our protest, from its cruelty and its inutility — the application of cold. Some turn the animal out uncovered in a frosty niglit. We have no faith in tlie practice of this : but placing the poor iiorse under a pump, and letting the water flow upon his spasmed limbs for hours together, or dashing it violently upon him, while he crouches and groans all the while, is both cruel and useless. FITS, OR EPILEPSY. The stream of nervous influence is sometimes rapid, but the suspen- sions are considerable, and this is the theory of Fits, or Epilepsy. For- tunately the horse is not often afllicted with this disease, altiiough it is not unknown to the breeder. The attack is sudden. The animal stops; — trembles ; — looks vacantly around him, and falls. Occasionally tlie convulsions which follow are slight ; at other times they are terrible. The head and fore part of the horse are most affected, and the contortions are most singular. In a few minutes the convulsions cease ; he gets up ; looks around tiim with a kind of stupid astonishment; shakes his ears; urines; and eats or drinks as if nothing had happened. The only hope of cure consists in discovering the cause of the fits ; and an experienced practitioner must be consulted, if the animal be valuable; generally speaking, however, the cause is so difficult to discover, and the habit of fits is so soon formed, and they will so frequently return, even at a great distance of time, that he who values his own safety, or the lives of his family, will cease to use an epileptic horse. PALSY. The stream of nervous influence is sometimes stopped, and thenc^ results Palsy. The power of the muscle is unimpaired, but the nervous energy is deficient. Palsy in the horse is usually confined to the hinder limbs. When purging has been too suddenly stopped, he becomes paralytic. It is sometimes the consequence of violent inflammation of the bowels. It is produced by falls, blows on the loins, injury *n casting, and turning in a narrow stall. In these latter cases the spine has been evidently injured. Old carriage-horses, and horses of draught of every kind, although not absolutely paralyzed, have often great si iflhess in their gait, and difliculty of turning. Possibly they ran RABIES. 109 turn one way and not the other. They are unwilling to lie down, from experience of the difficulty they would have in rising again. Tiiese are evident injuries of the spine, and a loss of some of the joints of the bins or back, and are without remedy ; and so, often, is palsy. Bleeding, physicking, antimonial medicines, and stimulating embrocations, are the most likely means of cure. RABIES, OR MADNESS. There is another disease of the nervous system, of which we must speak — Rabies, or Madnkss — that incurable malady which results from the bite of a rabid or mad animal. Tlie poison of tlie saliva remains in the wound for an uncertain time, varying from three to eight weeks in the horse, and then begins to produce its dreadful effects on the system. The attack of rabies (or hydrophobia as it is commonly, but very improperly called in the horse and other quadrupeds, for tliey have no dread of water) is usually very sudden. The animal will go to work apparently well : all at once he will stop, tremble, heave, paw, stagger, and fall. Almost im- mediately he will rise ; draw his load a little farther ; again stop, look about him, and once more fall. This cannot be confounded with megrims, because the horse is perfectly sensible. The sooner he is led home the better, for the progress of tlie disease is. most rapid, and if he is not im- mediately destroyed, he sliould be slung, for sometimes a state of the highest excitation speedily ensues. The horse kicks and plunges in the most violent manner; attempts furiously to seize and bite the other horses, or his attendants; "and will level with the ground every thing before him, 'himself sweating, and snorting, and ibaming, aniidst the ruins." In both the ferocious and the harmless variety of the disease, staggering and palsy of the hinder extremities soon follow. We remember to have seen a beauti- ful mare, sitting on her iiaunches, and unable to rise, yet pawing furiously with her fore-feet, and striking at every thing within her reach. The thirst is excessive, and the act of swallowing is usually performed with a forced, gulping effort, and the head is, in a few instances, snatched violently from the pail. The disease rarely extends beyond the third day. After death there is uniformly found inflammation at the back part of the mouth, and at the top of tlie windpipe, and likewise in the stomach, and on the membrane covering the lungs, and where the spinal marrow first comes from the brain. When the disease can be clearly connected with a previous bite, the sooner the animal is destroyed the better, for there is no cure. If the symptoms bear considerable resemblance to rabies, although no bite be suspected, the horse should at least be slung, and the medicine, if any be administered, given in the form of a drink, and with the hand well pro- tected ; because, if it should be scratched in baHing the horse, or the skin should have been previously broken, the saliva of the animal ia capable of communicating the disease. Several farriers have lost their lives from being bitten or scratched in the act of administering medicine to a rabid horse. It is always dangerous to encourage dogs much about the stable, and especially if^ they become fond of the horses, and are in the habit of jump- ing up and licking them. The corners of horses' mouths are often sore from the pressure of the bit ; and when a coach-dog in a gentleman's .stable — and it is likely to happen in every stable, and with every dog — becomes rabid and dies, the horse too frequently follows him at no great distance of time. If a horse should be bitten by a dog under suspicious circumstances, ha Jlo THE HORSE. shoul.l be carefully exo much shorter and fainter; that in the two other pairs will have under- gone an evident change, and all the nippers will be flat. HU THE HCRSE. At two years all this will be more manifest. The accompanying cu d( serves attention, as giving an accurate representation of the nippers io the lower jaw of a two-year-old colt. About this period a fifth grinder will push out, and now, likewise, will connmence another process. The first teeth are adapted to the size and wants of the young animal. They are sufficiently large to occupy and to fill the colt's jaws ; but when the jaws are expanded with the increasing growth of the animal, the teeth are separated too far from each other to be useful, and another and larger set is required. Evident provision is made for these, even before the colt is foaled. In cav- ities in the jaw, beneath the first and tempo- rary teeth, are to be seen the rudiments of a second and permanent set: These gradually increase, and some with greater rapidity than others, and pressing upon the roots or fangs of the first teeth, the consequence of this pressure is, not that the first teeth are forced out, but the portion pressed upon gradually disappears ; it is absorbed, taken up, and carried away, by numerous little vessels, whose office it is to get rid of the worn out or useless part of the system. This absorption continues to proceed as the second teeth grow and press upon their predecessors, until the whole of the fang is gone, and the crown of the tooth, or that part of it which was above the gum, having no longer firm hold, drops out, and the second teeth appear, larger and stronger, and per- manent. In a few instances, however, the second teeth do not rise imme- diately under the temporary or milk teeth, but somewhat by their side ; and then, instead of this gradual process of absorption and disappearance from the point of the root upwards, the root being compressed sideways, dimin- ishes throughout its whole bulk ; the crown of the tooth diminishes with the root ; and the whole is pushed out of its place, to the forepart of the first grinder, and remains for a considerable time under the name of a wolf^s tooth, causing swelling and soreness of the gums, and frequently wounding the cheeks. These would be gradually quite absorbed, but the process might be slow and the annoyance would be great ; and therefore it is proper to get rid of these diminutive teeth, either by punching them out or drawing them as soon as they are perceived. This change of teeth commences in those which earliest appeared, and, therefore, the front, or first grinder gives way at the age of two years, and is succeeded by a larger and permanent tooth. Now, likewise, seriously commences, in too many cases, the roguery of horse-dealers and breeders. A colt rapidly increases in value, as his age and growth increase. A three- year-old colt is worth twenty-five per cent, more than a two-year-old one; and if a dealer has a strong and likely colt, that was dropped early in the year, and whose form and points might deceive the unwary, he is anxious to pass him if he can for a three-year-old. To accomplish this, he must give him a three-year-old mouth; and between two years and a half and three years, the two middle nippers are displaced, and succeeded by two permanent teeth. During the period between the falling out of the central milk nippers and the coming up of the permanent ones, the colt, having a broken moulh. may have some difficulty in grazing. If he should fall away considerabiv in condition, he should be fed with mashes and corn, or cut meat. THE TEETH. 141 This cut will represent a thre^ -year, old mouth. The central teeth are large- than the others, with two grooves in the outer convex surface, and the mark is long, narrow, deep and black ; and not having yet attained their full growth, they are not so high as the others. The mark in the two next nippers is nearly worn out, and it is wearing away in the corner nippers. Is it possible to give this mouth to an early two-year-old ? The ages of all horses are reckoned from May, but some are foaled even so early as Jan- uary, and being actually four months over the two years, if they have been well nursed and fed, and are strong and large, they may, with the inexpe- rienced have an additional year put upon them. The central nippers are punched or drawn out, and the others appearjhree or four months earlier than they otherwise would. In the natural process, they could only rise by long pressing upon, and causing the absorption of the first set. The first set mechanically oppose their rising, and that opposition being removed, it is reasonable to imagine that their progress will be more rapid. Three or four months will be gained, and these three or four months may enable .-he breeder to term him a late colt of a preceding year. To him, how- ever, who is accustomed to horses, (although it is long practice alone v/hich could give this facility of judgment,) the general form of the animal, the little develoj^ment of the forehand, the continuance of the mark on the next jiair of nippers, its more evident existence in the corner ones, some enlargement or irregularity about the gums from violence used in forcing out the teeth, the small growth of the first and fifth grinders, and the non-appearance of the sixth grinder, which, if it is not through the gum at three years old, is swelling under it, and preparing to get through, any or all of these circumstances, carefully attended to, will be a sufficient security against deception. It is so unusual to look at the teeth in the upper jaw of a young horse, that the dealer who wishes to give a false appearance of age, frequently confines his operations to the lower jaw, and, in consequence of this, when the teeth of the lower jaw are thus made to push out, they are still below tlie gum in the upper jaw, although, in the natural process, they are cut a little sooner in the u|)per tlian in the lower jaw. It may, therefore, be good policy always to examine both jaws. A horse then at three years old ought to have the central permanent nippers growing, the other two pairs wasting, six grinders in each jaw, above and below, the first and fifth molars level with the others, and the sixth protruding. The sharp edge of the new incisors, although it could not be well expressed in our cut, will be very evident when compared with the neighbouring teeth. As the permanent nippers grow, and press upon the teeth at their side, those teeth will begin gradually to diminish. Not only will the maik be wearing out, but the crowns of the teeth will be considerably smaller. At three years and a half, or between that and four, the next pair of riippers will be changed, and the mouth at that time cannot be mistaken. Tile central nippers will have attained nearly their full growth ; a vacuity >vill be left where the second stood, or they will begin to peep abcve the film, and the cornei ones will be diminished in breadth, worn down, i i THE HORSE. niu] tne mark becoming small and faint. At this period, likewise, the second pair of grinders will be shed, and previous to this, will be the attem,)t of the dealer to give his three-year-old colt an additional year, but Ihe fraud may be detected by an examination similar to that which we have already described. At four years the central nippers will be fully developed ; the sharp edge somewhat worn off; the mark shorter, wider and fainter: the ne.xt pair will be up, but they will be small, with tlie mark deep, and extending quite across them ; and the corner nippers, larger than the inside ones, yet smaller than they were, flat, and the mark nearly effliced ; the sixth grinder will have risen to a level with the others, and the tushes will begin to appear. Now, more than at any other time, will the dealer be anxious to put an additional year upon the animal, for the difference between a four-year-old colt and a five-year-old horse, in strength, utility and value, is very great ; but the want of wear in the other nippers, the small size of the corner ones, the little growth of the tush, the small- ness of the second grinder, the low forehand, the legginess of the colt, and the thickness and little depth of the mouth, will, to the man of common experience among horses, at once detect the cheat. The tushes (see p. 134) are four in number, two in each jaw, situated between the nippers and the grinders, much nearer to the former than the lat- ter, and nearer in tlie lower jaw than in the upper, but this distance increasing in both jaws witli the age of the animal. In shape it somewhat resembles a cone ; it protrudes about an inch from the gum, and has its extremity sharp-pointed and curved. At the age of which we are now speaking, the tushes are almost peculiar to tlie horse, and castration does not apj)ear to prevent or retard their development. All mares, however, have the begin- nings of them in the chambers of the jaw, and they appear externally in the majority of old mares. Their use is not evident : perhaps in the wild state of the animal they are weapons of offence ; so as that he can more firmly seize, and deeply wound his enemy. The breeder often attempts to hasten the appearance of the tush, and he cuts deeply through the gum to remove the opposition which that wou'd afford. To a little extent he succeeds. He may possibly gain a few weeks, but he cannot gain more ; for the resistance of the gum is not like that of a solid and firmly-fixed tooth, and is much more easily overcome by the regular process of nature. After all, there is much uncertainty as to the appearance of the tush, and it may vary from the fourth year to four years and six months. It belongs, in the upper jaw, both to the inferior and superior maxillary bones (see n, p. 66) ; for, while its fang is deeply im- bedded in the inferior maxillary, the tooth penetrates the process of the superior maxillary at the union of those bones. At four years and a half, or between that and five, the last impoi-tant change takes place in the mouth of the iiorse. The corner nippers are shed, and the permanent ones begin to appear; the central nippers are consideribly worn, and the next pair are beginning to show the marks of usage. The tush has now protruded, and is generally a full half incri iu THE TEETH. 143 /;eight ; externally it nas a rounded prominence, with a groove on either side, and within it is evidently iioUowed. Our readers need not be told that fiom the rising of the corner nipper the animal changes its name ; the colt becomes a horse, and the filly a mare. ^ At five years the horse's mouth is almost perfect. The corner nippers are quite up with the long deep mark irregular on the inside ; and the other nippers bearing evident tokens of in' creasing wearing. The tusli is muc^ grown ; the groves have almost, or quite disappeared ; and the outer sur face is regularly convex : it is still as concave within, and with the edge nearly as sharp as it was six months before; the sixth molar is quite up, and the third molar is wanting. This last circumstance, if the general ap. pearance of the animal, and particularly before, and the wearing of the centre nippers, and the growth and shape of the tushes, be likewise care- fully attended to, will prevent deception, if a late fbur-year-old be attempted to be substituted for a five. The nippers may be brought up a few moniha before their time, and the tushes a few weeks, but the grinder is with diffi- culty displaced. The three last grinders and the tushes are never shed. At six years the mark on the centre nippers is worn out. There will still be a difference of colour in the centre of the tooth. The cement filling the bc'le made by the dipping in of the enamel will present a browner hue than the other part of the tooth, and it will be evidently surrounded by an edge of enamel, and there will even remain a little depression in the centre, and also a depression round this case of enamel ; but the deep hole in the centre of the teeth, with the blackened surface which it presents, and the elevated edge of enamel, will have disappeared. Persons not much accustomed to horses have been sadly puzzled here. They expected to find a plain surface of an uniform colour, and knew not what conclusion to draw when there was both discolouration and irregularity. In the next incisors the mark is shorter, broader, and fainter; and in the corner teeth the edges of the enamel are more regular, and the surface is evidently worn. The tush has attained its full growth, being nearly or quite an inch in length, convex outward, concave within, tending to a point, and the extremity somewhat curved. The third grinder is fairly up, and all the grinders are level. Now, or perhaps at the period of six months before, the horse may be said to have a perfect mouth. All the teeth are produced, fully grown, and have hitherto sustained no material injury. During these important changes of the teeth the animal has suffered less than could be supposed possible. With children, the period of teething is fraught with danger. Hi THE HORSE Dogs are subject to convulsions, and hundreds of them die, from the irrita- tion caused by the cutting or shedding of their teeth ; but the horse appears to feel little inconvenience. The gums and palate are occasionally «oniewhat hot and swollen, but the slightest scarification will remove tiiis. Tiie teetii of tlie horse are more necessary to him than those of the other animals are to them. The child may be fed, and the dog will bolt his victuals, but the food of the horse must be well ground down, or the nutri- ment cannot be extracted from it. At seven years, the mark, in the way in which we have described it, is worn out in tlie four central nippers, and fast wearing away in the ctrner teeth ; and the tusb is beginning to be altered. It is rounded at the point; rounded at the edges; still round with- out ; and beginning to get round inside. At eight years old, the mark is gone from all the bottom nippers ; the tush is rounder in every way ; and the mark is now said to be out of the mouth. There is nothing remaining in the bottom nippers which can after- wards clearly show the age of the horse, or justify the most experienced examiner in giving a positive opinion. Dishonest dealers have been said to resort to a method of prolonging the mark in the lower nippers. It is called bis/ioping, from the name of the scoun- drel who invented it. The horse of eight or nine years old is thrown, and with an engraver's tool a hole is dug in the now almost plain surface of the corner teeth, and in shape and depth resembling the mark in a seven-year- old horse. The whole is then burned with a heated iron, and a permanent black stain is left : the next pair of nippers are sometimes lightly touched. An ignorant man would very easily be imposed on by this trick ; but the irregular appearance of the cavity, tlie diffusion of the black stain around the tushes, the sharpened edges and concave inner surface of which can never be given again, and the marks on the upper nippers, together with the general conformation of the horse, can never deceive the careful examiner. Horsemen, after the horse is eight years old, are accustomed to look to the nippers in the upper jaw, and some conclusion has been drawn from the appearances which they present. It cannot be doubted that the mark remains in them some years after it is obliterated from the nippers in the lower jaw ; because the hard substance, or kind of cement, by which the pit or funnel in the centre of the tooth is occupied, does not reach so high, and there is consequently a greater depth of tooth to be worn away m order to reach it ; and because the upper nippers are not so much exposed to friction and wear as the under. The lower jaw alone is moved, and pressed forcibly upon the food ; the upper jaw is without motion, and has only to resist that pressure. THE TEETH. 145 There are various opinions as to the intervals between the disai/pearance of the marks from the dillerent cutting teeth. Some have averaged it at two years, and others at one. We are inclined to adopt the latter opinion, and then the age would be thus determined: at nine years the mark will be worn from the middle nippers — from the next pair at ten, and from all the upper nippers at eleven. During these periods the tush is likewise undergoing a manifest change: it is blunter, shorter, and rounder. In what degree this takes place in the ditferent periods, long and most favour able opportunities for observation can alone enable the horseman to decide, or rather we believe that the tush alone will not enable us to form a very accurate judgment. The tushes are exposed to but little tear and wear. The friction against them must be slight, proceeding only from the passage of the food by them, and from the motion of the tongue, or from the bit ; and their altera- tion of form, although generally as we have described them, is frequently uncertain. The tush will sometimes be blunt at eight, and remain pointed at eighteen ; and occasionally, according to the direction which they take, or degree in which they rub against each other, the tushes on the ditferent sides will present an apparent variation of one or two years. The upper tush, although the latest in appearing, is soonest worn away. Are there any circumstances to guide our judgment after this ? There are those which will prepare us to guess at the age of the horse, or to approach within a few years of it, until he becomes very old : but there are none which will enable U3 accurately to determine ; and the indications of age must now be taken from the shape of the upper surface of the nippers. At eight, they are all oval, the length of the oval running across from tooth to tooUi ; but as the horse gets older, the teeth diminish in size, and they at first diminish in width, and not in thickness. They become a little apart from each other, and their surfaces are rounded. At nine, the centre nippers are evidently so ; at ten, the others begin to have the oval shor- tened. At eleven, the second pair of nippers are quite rounded, and at thirteen, the corner ones have that appearance. At fourteen, the faces of the central nippers become somewhat triangular. At seventeen, they are all so. At nineteen, the angles begin to wear off, and the central teeth are again oval, but in a reversed direction, viz: from outward, inward ; and at twenty-one, they all wear this form. This is the opinion of some continental veterinary surgeons, and Mr. Percivall first presented them to us in an English dress. We believe the statement is correct to a very considerable extent, but we leave our readers to form their own judgment. It would be folly indeed to expect accuracy at this advanced age of the horse, when we are bound to confess, that the rules we have laid down for determining this matter at an earlier period, although they are recognised *jy horsemen generally, and referred to in courts of justice, will not guide us in every case. Stabled horses have the mark sooner worn out than those that are al grass, and a crib-biter may deceive the best judge by one 01 two years. The age of the horse likewise, being uniformly calculated from the 1st of May, it is sometimes exceedingly difficult, or almost im- possible, about that time to determine whether the animal be a late foal of one year, or an early one of the next. At nine or ten, the bars of the mouth become less prominent, and their regular diminution will designate increasing age. At eleven or twelve, the lower nippers change their original upright direction, and project forward or horizontally ; and they become yellow and covered with tartar. They are yellow, because the teeth n ist grow to answer to the wear and tear of them ; but the enamel J 46 THE HORSE. which covered their surface when they were first produced canr.Jt be repaired, and that which wears this yellow colour in old age is the part which, in youth, was in the socket, and therefore destitute of enamel. The upper nippers become arched, and project over the lower ones, wearing down the outer edge, and gradually making that the lowest, which was at first considerably the highest. The general indications of old age, independent of the teeth, are deep- ening of tlie hollows over the eyes — grey hairf,, and particularly over the eyes, and about the muzzle ; thinness and hanging down of the lips ; sharpness of the withers ; sinking of the back ; lengthening of the quar- ters ; and the disappearance of windgalls, spavins, and tumours of every kind. Of the natural age of the horse we should form a very erroneous esti- mate, from the early period at which he is now worn out and destroyed. Mr. Blaine tells us of a gentleman, who had three horses, which died at the ages of thirty-five, thirty-seven and thirty-nine. Mr. Cully mentions one that received a ball in his neck, at the battle of Preston, in 1715, and which was extracted at his death, in 1758 ; and Mr. Percivall gives an account of a barge horse that died in his sixty-second year. There cannot be a severer satire on the English nation, than that, from the absurd practice of running our race-horses at two and three years old, and working others in various ways, long before their limbs are knit, or their strength come, and cruelly exacting from them services far beyond their powers, their age does not average a sixth part of that of the last- mentioned horse. The scientific author of the " Animal Kingdom" declares, that " it may be safely asserted, that more horses are consumed in England, in every ten years, than in any other country in the world, in ten times that period, except those which perish in war." This point has with the English been too long considered as one of mere profit and loss ; and it has been thought to be cheaper to bring the young horse early into work, and in a short time to exhaust his whole strength, than to maintain him for a long period, and at a considerable expense, almost useless. The matter requires much consideration, and we think much reformation too. DISEASES OF THE TEETH. Of the diseases of the teeth in the horse, we know little. Carious or hollow teeth have occasionally, but not often been seen ; but the edges of the grinders, from the wearing off" of the enamel, or the irregular growth of the teeth, become rough, and wound the inside of the cheek ; it is then necessary to adopt a summary but effectual method of cure, namely, to rasp them smooth. Many bad ulcers have been produced in the mouth, by tne neglect of this. The teeth sometimes grow irregularly in length, and this is particularly the cast with the grinders, from not being in exact opposition to each other, when the mouth is shut. The growth of the teeth still going on, and there being no mechanical opposition to it, pne of the back teeth, or a portion of one of them, shoots up half an inch or more above the ofheis. Sometimes it penetrates the bars above, and causes soreness and ulceration ; at other times, it interferes partially, or altogether, with the grinding motion of the jaws, and the animal pines away without the cause being suspected. Here the saw should be used, and the projecting portio.i n- ducpd to a level with the other teeth. The horse which has once been THE TONGUE. 1,7 subjected 1o this operation should afterwards be frequently examined, and especially if he lose condition ; and, indeed, every horse that gets thin or out of condition, without fever, or any other apparent cause, should have his teeth and mouth carefully examined, and especially if he quids (partly chewing and then dropping) his food, without any indication of sore throat, or if he holds his head somewhat on one side, while he eats, in order to get the food between the outer edges of the teeth. A horse that has once had veiy irregular teeth is materially lessened in value, for, although they may be sawn down as carefully as possible, they will project again at no great distance of time, THE TONGUE The tongue is the organ of taste, and employed in disposing the food for grinding between the teeth, and afterwards collecting it together, and con- veying it to the back part of the mouth in order to be swallowed. It is also the main instrument in drinking, and the canal through wliich the water passes in the act of drinking. The root of it is firmly fixed at the bottom of the mouth, by a variety of muscles; the foie part is loose in the mouth. It is covered by a continuation of the membrane which lines the mouth, and which, doubling beneath, and confii.ing the motions of the tongue, is called iXa frcenum or bi-idle. On the buck of the tongue, this membrane is thickened and roughened, and is covered with numerous conical papiUcB^ or little eminences, on which the fibi'es of a branch of the fifth pair of nerves expand, and on which the sense of taste depends. The various motions of the tongue are accomplished by means of the ninth pair of nerves. The substance of the tongue is com. posed of muscular fibres, with a great deal of iatty matter interoosed between them, and which gives to this organ its peculiar softness. DISEASES OF THE TONGUE. The tongue is sometimes exposed to injury, from carelessness or violence in the act of drenching, or administering a ball, being pressed against, and cut by the edges of the grinders. A little diluted tincture of myrvh, or alum, dissolved in water, or even nature unassisted, will speedily heal the wound. The horse will bite his tongue — most frequently in his sleep. If the injury be trifling, it requires little care; but in some instances, a portion of the tongue will be torn or nearly bitten off', and the assistance of a veterinary practitioner will be needed. Bladders will sometimes appear along the under side of the tongue, which will increase to a considerable size,, and the tongue itself wilt be much enlarged, and the animal will be unable to swallow, and a great quantity of ropy saliva will drivel from the mouth. This disease often exists without the nature of it being suspected. It resembles what is called the hhin in the cow, which is a very serious complaint in that animal, frequently connected with much fever, and terminating in sutfo- cation. If the mouth of the horse be opened, one large bladder, or a suc- cession of bladders, of a purple hue, will be seen to extend along the whole of the under side of the tongue. If they be lanced freely and deeply, from end to end, the swelling will very rapidly abate, and any little {ever thaf remains may be subdued by cooling medicine. The cause of this dis- ease is not clearly knowr It usually proceeds, perhaps, from imligestion. connected with a general tendency to inflammation. (48 THE HORSE. THE SALIVAPxY GLANDS. »ii Older lliat, the food may be properly ground down to prepare it for digestion, it is necessary that it siiould be previously moistened. Tlie food of the stabled horse, however, is dry, and his meal is generally concluded witiiout any fluid being offered to him. Nature has made a provision foi this. It has placed in the neighbourhood of the mouth, various glands, to secrete, and that plentifully, a limpid fluid, somewhat salt to the taste: this fluid is conveyed from the glands into the mouth, by various ducts in the act of chewing, and being mixed with the food, renders it more easily ground, more easily passed afterwards into the stomach, and better fitted for digestion. The principal of these is the parotid gland (see cut, p. 119). It is placed in the hollow which extends from the root of the ear to the angle of the lower jaw. A portion of it, q, is represented as turned up, to show the situation of the blood-vessels underneath. In almost every case of cold, connected with sore throat, the parotid gland is enlarged, and is immediately evident to the feeling and even to the eye. It is composed of a great number of small glands connected together, and a little tube proceeding from each, to carry off the secreted fluid. These tubes unite in one common duct. At the letter u, the parotid duct is seen to pass under the angle of the lower jaw, together with the submaxillary artery, and a branch of the jugular vein, and they come out again at w. At r, the duct is seen separated from the other vessels, climbing up the cheek, and piercing it to discharge its contents into the mouth opposite to the second grinder. The quantity of fluid thus poured into the mouth, from each of the parotid glands, amounts to a pint and a half in an hour, during the action of chewing ; and sometimes, when the duct has been accidentally opened, it has spirted out to the distance of several feet. The parotid gland sympathizes with every inflammatory affection of the upper part of the throat, and therefore it is found swelled, hot, and tender, in almost every catarrh or cold. The cold is to be attacked by the usual means; and a stimulating application, almost amounting to a blister, well rubbed over the gland, will best subdue the inflammation of that body. In bad strangles, and sometimes in violent cold, this gland will swell lo a great size and ulcerate, or an obstruction will arise in some part of the duct, and the accumulating fluid will burst the vessel, and a fistulous ulcer will be formed, very difficult to heal. A veterinary surgeon alone will be competent to the treatment of either case ; and the principle by which he will be guided, will be to heal the abscess in the gland as speedily as he can; or, if the ulcer be in the duct, either to restore the passage through the duct, or to form a new one, or to cut ofT the flow of the saliva by the destruction of the gland. The second source of the saliva is from the submaxillary glands, or the glands under the jaw. One of them is represented at s, p. 119. The sub- maxillary glands occupy the space underneath, and between the sides of the lower jaw, and consist of numerous small glands, each with its proper duct, which unite together, and form on each side a common duct or vessel, that pierces through the muscles at the root of the tongue, and opens in little projections or heads, upon the fr^Eiium or bridle of the tongue, about an inch and a half from the front teeth. When the horse has catarrh or cold, these glands, like the parotid gland, enlarge. This often takes place after strangles, and several distinct kernels are to be felt under the jaw. We have already stated, that they may be distinguished from those STRANGLES. 149 swellings which accompany or indicate glanders, by their being larger, generally not so distinct, more in the centre of the channel or space between the jaws, and never adhering to the jaw-bones. The farriers call them ViVES, and often adopt cruel and absurd methods to disperse them : such as burning them witii a lighted candle or hot iron, or even cutting them out. They will, in the majority of instances, gradually disperse, as the disease which produced them subsides; or they will yield to slightly stimulating embrocations ; or, if they are obstinate in their continuance, they are of no further consequence, than as indicating that the horse has laboured under severe cold or strangles. During catarrh, or inflammation of the mouth, the little projections marking the opening of these ducts, on either side of the bridle of the tongue, are apt to enlarge ; and the mouth under the tongue is a little red, and hot and tender. The farriers call these swellings Barbs or Paps, and as soon as they discover them, mistaking the effect of disease for the cause of it, set to work to cut them close off. The bleeding which follows this operation somewhat abates the local inflammation, and affords temporary relief: but the wounds will not speedily heal ; the saliva continues to flow from the orifice of the duct, and running into the irregularities of the wound, cause it to spread and deepen ; and even when it heals, the mouth of the duct being frequently closed, and the saliva continuing to be secreted by the submaxillary gland, it gradually accumulates in the duct, until that vessel bursts, and abscesses are formed, which eat deeply under the root of the tongue, and long torment the poor animal, and when closed, after a great deal of trouble, are very apt to break out again for months and years afterwards. All that is necessary with regard to these paps or barbs is to abate the inflammation or cold which caused them to swell, and they will very soon and perfectly subside. He who ever talks of cutting them out is not fit to be trusted with a horse. A third source of saliva is from glands under the tongue (the subl'mgunl glands), which open by many little orifices under the tongue, resembling little folds of the skin of the mouth, hanging from the lower surface of the tongue, or found on the bottom of the mouth. These likewise sometimes enlarge during cold or inflammation of the mouth, and then they are called gfg3, and h/adders, and flaps in the mouth. Tiiey have the appearance of small pimples, and the farrier is anxious to burn them off or cut them down. The better way is to let them alone; for in a few days they will generally disappear. Should any ulceration follow them, a little tincture of myrjh, or a solution of alum, will readily heal them. Besides these three principal sources of saliva, there are little glands to be found thickly studded on every part of the mouth, cheeks, and lips, which pour out a considerable quantity of fluid, to assist in moistening and preparing the food. Connected with these glands, and particularly with the submaxillary and parotid glands, and being either an inflammation of them, or of the cellular substance immediately around them, is THE STRANGLES. This is a disease pnncipally incident to young horses ; usually appear, ing between the fourth and fifth year, and oftener in the spring than in any other part of the year. It is always preceded by cough, and can at first be scarcely distinguished from common cough, except that there is 150 THE HORSE. more discliaro-e from the nostril^ of a yellowish colour, mixed with matter, but generally without smell ; and likewise a considerable discharge of ropy fluid from the mouth, and greater swelling than usual under the throat. Thi • swelling increases with uncertain rapidity, accompanied by some fever, and disinclination to eat, partly arising from the fever, but more from the pain the animal feels in the act of chewing. There is considerable thirst; but after a gulp or two, the horse ceases to drink, yet is evidently desirous of more. In the attempt to swallow, and sometimes when not drinking, a convulsive cough comes on, which almost threatens to suffocate the animal, and thence probably the name of the disease. The tumour is about the centre of the channel under the jaw, it soon fills the whole of the space, and is evidently one uniform body, and may thus be distinguished from glanders, or the enlarged glands of catarrh. At length the centre of it becomes more prominent and softer, and it evidently contains a fluid. This rapidly increases, the tumour bursts, and a great quantity of pus is dis- charged. As soon as the tumour has broken, the cough subsides, and the horse speedily mends, although some degree of weakness may hang about him for a considerable time. Of the cause of the disease we can say but little. Few horses, possibly none, escape its attack ; but, that attack having passed over, the animal is free fiom it for the remainder of his life. Catarrh may precede, or may predispose to the attack, and undoubtedly the state of the atmosphere has much to do with it, for both its prev.Tlence and its severity are connected with certain seasons of the year and changes of the weather. There is no preventive for the disease, nor do we believe that there is any thing conta- gious in it. There are strange stories told with regard to this ; but the explanation of the matter is, that when several horses on the same farm or in the same neighbourhood have had strangles at the same time, they have been exposed to the same powerful but unknown exciting cause. The treatment of strangles is very simple. As the essence of the disease consists in the formation and suppuration of the tumour under the jaw, the principal, or almost the sole attention of the practitioner should be directed to the hastening of these processes: therefore, as soon as the tumour of strangles evidently appears, the part should be actively blis- tered. Old practitioners used to recommend poultices; which, from the thickness of the horse's skin, must have very little efl^ect, even if they could be confined on the part ; and from the difficulty and almost impossibilty of this, and their getting cold and hard, they must weaken the energies of nature, and delay the ripening of the tumour. Fomentations are little more effectual. A blister will not only secure the completion of the process, but hasten it by many days, and save the patient much pain and exhaustion ; and it will produce another good effect — it will, previous to the opening of the tumour, abate the internal inflammation and soreness of the throat, and thus lessen the cough and wheezing. As socc.. as the swelling is soft on the top, and evidently contains matter, it should be deeply and freely lanced. It is a bad, although frequent practice, to suffer the tumour to burst naturally, by which a ragged ulcer is formed, very slow to heal, and difficult of treatment. If the incision is deep and large enough, no second collection of matter will be formed ; and that which is already formed may be suffered to run out slowly, all pressure with the fingers being avoided. The part should be kept clean, and a little friar's balsam daily injected into the wound. The remainder of the treatment will depend on the symptoms. If there is much fe\er, and evident affection of the chest, and which should care- WOUNDS IX THE MOUTH. ]5] fully be distinguished iVjm the oppression and choking occasioned by the pressure of the tumour, it will be proper to bleed. In the majority of cases, however, bleeding will not only be unnecessary, but injurious. It will delay the suppuration of the tumour, and increase the subsequent debility. A few cooling medicines — as nitre, emetic tartar, and perhaps digitalis — may be given, as the case requires. The appetite, or rather the ability to eat, will return with the opening of the abscess. Bran-mashes, or fresh-cut grass or tares, should be liberally supplied, which will not only afford sufFi- cienl nourishment to recruit the strength of the animal, but keep the bowels gently open. If the weakness be not great, no further medicine will be wanted, except a dose of mild physic, to prevent the swellings or eruptions vvhicli sometimes succeed to strangles. In cases of debility, a small quantity of tonic medicine — as camomile, and gentian with ginger, in doses of a couple of drachms — may be administered. As strangles seem to be a disease from which few horses escape, and which, although attended with little danger, is sometimes tedious in its progress, and accompanied by much debility, some foreign veterinary sur- geons have endeavoured to produce a milder disorder by inoculating, either with the matter from the tumour or the discharge from the nose ; and it is said that a disease, with all the characters of strangles, but shorter and milder in its course, has supervened. English practitioners have not, we believe, tried the experiment. CANKER AND WOUNDS IN THE MOUTH. The mouth is injured much oftener than the careless owner suspects, by the pressure of a sharp bit. Not only are the bars wounded and deeply ulcerated, but the lower jaw, between the tush and the grinders, is some- times torn even to the bone, and the bone itself affected, and portions of it come away. It may be necessary to have a sharp bit for the headstrong and obstinate beast, yet if that be severely and unjustifiably called into exer- cise, the animal may rear, and endanger himself and his rider ; but there can be no occasion for a thousandth part of the torment which the trappings of the mouth often inflict upon a willing and docile servant, and which either render the mouth hard, and destroy all the pleasure of riding, or cause the horse to become fretful or vicious. Small ulcers are sometimes found in various parts of the mouth, said to be produced by rusty bits, but oftener arising from contusions inflicted by the bit, or from inflammation of the mouth. If the curb-bit is in fault, a snaflle or Pelham-bit should be used ; if there be inflammation of the mouth, a little cooling medicine may be administered ; and to the ulcers themselves, tincture of myrrh, diluted with an equal quantity of water, or an ounce of alum, dissolved in about twenty times the weight of water, may be applied with the greatest advantage. THE PHARYNX Proceeding to the back of the mouth, we find the Pharynx (carrying or conveying the food towards the stomach). It begins at the root of the tongue (see 7, 8, and 9, p. 68) ; is sejjarated from the mouth by the sof) palate (7), which hangs down from the palatine bone at 8, and extends In the epiglottis, or covering to the windpipe. When the food has been sufli- ciently ground between the teeth, and mixed with the saliva, it is gatherei/ together by the tongue, and then bv the actior ol the cheeks and tongue and 152 THE HORSE. Dack part of the mouth, forcpd af^ainst the soft palate, which, giving way, and being raised upwards towards tlie entrance into the nose, prevents the food from going that way. It passes to the pharynx ; and the soft palate, falling down again, prevents its return to the mouth, and prevents likewise, except in extreme cases, the act of vomiting in the horse. Whatever is returned from the stomach of the horse, passes through the nose, as the cut will make evident. The sides of the pharynx are lined with muscles, which now begin power^ fully to contract, and by that contraction the bolus is forced in until it reaches the gullet (10), which is the termination of the pharynx. Before, however, the food reaches the gullet, it has to pass over the entrance into the windpipe (3) ; and should any portion of it enter into that tube, much inconvenience and danger might result : therefore this opening is not only lined by muscles by which it may be closed at the pleasure of the animal, but it is likewise covered by a heart-like elastic cartilage, the epiglottis (2), with its back towards the pharynx and its hollow towards the aperture. The epiglottis yields to the pressure of the bolus passing over it, and lies Hat on the entrance into the v.indpipe, and prevents the possibility of any tiling entering into it ; and no sooner has the food passed over it, than it rises again by its own elasticity, and leaves the upper part of tlie wind- pipe once more open for the purpose of breathing. The voice of animals is produced by the passage of air through this aperture, communicating certain vibrations to folds of tiie membrane covering the part, and these vibrations are afterwards modified in their passage through the cavities of the nose. To understand the diseases of these parts, we must consider the anatomy of the neck generally. CHAPTER IX, ANATOMY AND DISEASES OF THE NECK AND ADJACENT PARTS. The neck of the horse and of every animal belonging to the class main- malia, except one species, is composed of seven bones, called vertebnr, moveable or turning upon each other (see cut, p. 63 V They are connected together by strong ligaments, and form so many distinct joints, in order to give sufficiently extensive motion to this important part of the body. The bone nearest to the skull is called the alJas, (see cut, p. 63, and g, p. 68,) because, in the human being, it supports the head. In the horse, the head is suspended from it : it is a mere ring-shaped bone, with broad projections sideway ; but without the sharp and irregular processes which are found on all the others. The pack-7vax, or ligament by which the head is principally supported, (/, p. 68,) and which is strongly connected with all the other bones, passes over this without touching it, by which means the head is much more easily and extensively moved. The junction of the atlas with the head is the seat of a very serious and troublesome ulcer, termed POLL-EVIL. From the horse rubbing and sometimes striking his poll against the lower edge of the manger, or hanging back in the stall, and bruising the THE POLL-EVIL. 153 part with the iialter; or from the unfrequent and painful stretching of th? iigaments and muscles, by unnecetisary tight reining, and occasionally, we fear, from a violent blow on the poll, carelessly or wantonly inflicted, inflammation comes on, and a swelling appears, hot, tender, and painful. We have just stated, that the ligament of the neck passes over the atlas, or first bone, without being attached to it, and the seat of the inflammation is between the ligament and the bone beneath ; and, being thus deeply situ- ated, it is of course serious in its nature, and consequently very difficult of treatment. The first thing to be attempted is to abate the inflammation by bleeding, physic, and the application of cold lotions to the part. By these meana the tumour will sometimes be dispersed. This system, however, must not \)e pursued too far. If the swelling increases, and the heat and tender- ness likewise increase, matter will form in the tumour; and then our object will be to hasten its formation by warm fomentations, poultices, or stimulating embrocations. As soon as the matter is formed, which may be known by the softness of the tumour, and before it has time to spread around and eat into the neighbouring parts, it should be evacuated : and now comes the whole art of treating the poll-evil ; i]ie opening into the tumour nmsi he so contrived that all tlie matter shall run out, and continue afterwards to run out as it is formed, and not collect at the bottom of the ulcer, irritating and corroding it. This can be effected by a seton alone. The needle should enter at the top of the tumour, penetrate through its bot- tom, and be brought out at the side of tiie neck, a little below the abscess. Without any thing more than this, except frequent fomentation with warm water, to keep the part clean, and to obviate inflammation, poll-evil, in its early stage, will frequently be cured. If the ulcer has deepened and spread, and threatens to eat into the ligaments of the joints of the neck, it may be necessary to stimulate its surface, and perhaps painfully so, in order to bring it to a healthy state, and dispose it to fill up ; and, in extreme cases, even the scalding mixture of the farrier may be called into requisi- tion. This, however, will be ineffectual, except the pus or matter is enabled, by the use of setons, perfectly to run out of the wound ; and the application of these setons will require the skill and anatomical knowledge of^the vete- rinary surgeon. In very desperate cases, the wound may not be fairly exposed to the action of our caustic applications, without the division of the ligament of the neck, by which we have described the head as being almos^l^ entirely supported. This, however, may be done with perfect safety, for although the ligament is carried on to the occipital bone, and some strength is gained by this prolongation of it, the main stress is on the second bone ; and the head will continue to be supported, although the ligament should be divided between the second bone and the head. The divided ligament will soon unite again, and its former usefulness will be restored when the wound is healed. The second bone of the neck is the dentata, having a process like a tooth, by which it forms a joint with the first bone. In the formation of tliat joint, a portion of the spinal marrow, which runs through a canal in the centre of all these bones, is exposed, or covered only by ligament ; and by the division of the marrow at this spot, an animal is instantly and humanely destroyed. The operation is called pithing, from the name (the pith) given' by butchers to the spinal marrow. The other neck, or rack bones, as they are denominated by the farrier,. B. p. 63, are of a strangely irregular shape, yet bearing considerable resem- blance to each other. They consist of a central bone, perforated for tb^ id 154 THE HORSE passage of the spinal marrow, with a ridge on the top for the attachment oi the ligament of the neck, and four irregular plates or processes from the sides for the attachment of muscles ; at the base of one of whicli, on either side, are holes for the passage of large arteries and veins. At the upper end of each, is a round head or ball, at the lower end, a cavity or cup, and the head of one being received into the cup of the other, they are united together, forming so many joints. They are likewise joined together by ligaments from these processes, as well as the proper ligaments of the joints, and so securely, that no dislocation can take place between any of them, except tlie first and second, the consequence of which would be the immediate death of the animal. The last, or seventli bone, has the elevation on the back or top of it con- tinued into a long and sharp prolongation (a spinous process); and is the beginning of that ridge of bones denominated the withers (see cut, p. 63) ; and as it is the base of the column of neck-bones, and there must be great pressure on it from the weight of the head and neck, it is curiously contrived to rest upon and unite with the two first ribs, which also we shall presently describe as being peculiarly and strongly constructed. THE MUSCLES AND PROPER FORM OF THE NECK. The bones which we have just mentioned serve as the frame work to which are attached numerous muscles concerned in all (.he motions of the head and neck. The power of the ligament of the neck is precisely adapted to the weight of the head and neck. They are supported by it, without muscular aid, and without fatigue to the animal ; but to raise the head higher, or to lower it, or to turn it in every direction, a complicated system of muscles was necessary. Those whose office it is to raise the head, are most numerous and powerful, and are placed on the upper and side part of the neck. Our cut, p. 119, gives a few of them. c marks a tendon common to two of the most important of them, the splenitis, or splint-like muscle, and the complexiis major, or larger compli- cated muscle. The splenius constitutes the principal bulk of the neck above, rising from the ligament of the neck all the way down it, and going to the processes of all the bones of the neck, but the first, and flat tendons running from the upper part of it, to the first bone of the neck, and to a pro- cess of the temporal bone of the head. Its action is sufficiently evident, namely, very powerfully to elevate the head and neck. The principal beauty of the neck depends on this muscle. It was most admirably developed in the horse of whose neck the an- ne.xed cut gives an accurate de- lineation. If the curve were quite regu lar from the poll to the withers, we should call it a perfect neck. It is rather a long neck, and we do not like it the less for THE FORM OF THE NECK. I55 that. In the carriage-horse, a neck that is not half concealed by the collar is inJispensable, so lar as appearance goes ; and it is only the horse with a neck of tolerable length, that will bear to be reined up, so as to give this part tliat arched and beautiful appearance which fashion demands. It is no detriment to the riding-liorse, and there are few horses of extraordi- nary speed which have not the neck rather long. Tiie race-horse at the top of his speed not only extends it as far as he can, that the air-passages may be as straight as he can make them, and that he may therefore be able to breathe more freely, but the weight of the head and neck, and the effect increasing with their distance from the trunk, add materially to the rapidity of the animal's motion, by throwing his weight considerably for- ward. It has been said, that a horse with a long neck will bear heavy on the hand. We do not believe that either the length of the neck, or even the bulk of the head, has any influence in causing this. They are both counterbalanced by the power of the ligament of the neck. The setting Oil of the head is most of all connected with heavy bearing on the hand, and a short-necked horse will bear heavily, because, from the thickness of the lower part of the neck, consequent on its shortness, the head cannot be rightly placed. The head and neck, however, should be proportioned to each other. .\ short head on a long neck, or a long head on a short neck, would equally offend the eye. Connected with this sp/enius muscle, and partly produced by it, we would direct the attention of the i*eader to the thickness and muscularity of the neck in this cut, as it springs from the shoulders ; the height at which it comes out from them, forming nearly a line with the withers; and th? manner in which it tapers as it approaches the head, and this muscla diminishing in size. The neck of a well formed hoise, however tine at the top, should be muscular at the bottom, or the horse to which it belongs will generally be weak and worthless. Necks devoid of this muscularity are called loose necks by horsemen, and are always considered a very serious objection to the animal. If the neck be thin and lean at the upper part, and be otherwise well-shaped, the horse will usually carry himself well, and the head will be properly curved for beauty of appearance and ease of riding. When an instance to the contrary occurs, it is generally to be traced to very improper management, or to the space between the jaws being un- naturally small. The splenius muscle, although the main agent in raising the head and neck, maybe too large, or covered with too much cellular substance or fat, and give an appearance of heaviness or even clumsiness to the neck. This peculiarity of form constitutes the distinction between the perfect horse and the mare, and also the gelding, unless castrated at a very late period. Horses with thick, heavy crests are usually slow and sluggish. This tendon, c, belongs also to another muscle, which makes up the principal bulk of the lower part of the neck, and is called the complexus major, or larger complicated muscle. It arises partly as low as the trans- verse processes of the four or five first bones of the back, and from the five lower bones of the neck ; and the fibres from these various sources uniting together, form a very large and powerful muscle, the largest and strongest in the neck. As it approaches the head, it lessens in bulk, and terminates partly with the splenius in this tendon, but is principally inserted into the back part of the occipital bone, by the side of the ligament of the neck. \n our cut, p. 154, almost its whole course can be distinctly traced. Its office is to raise the neck and elevate the head ; and being inserted mto such a part of the occiput, it will more particularly protrude the nose, InG Tilt. HORSE. \\liilo it raises the head. Its action, however, may be too poworful ; ii may be habitually so, and then it may produce dclbrmity. The back of the liead being thus pulled back, and tiie muzzle protruded, the hor.se cannot by possibility carry his head well ; he will become what is tcchni- callv called a star-gazer; heavy in hand, boring upon the bit, and unsafe. To remedy this, recourse is had, and in a majority of cases without avail, to the martingale, against which the horse is continually fighting, and which is often a complete annoyance to the rider. Such a horse is almost useless for harness. Inseparable from this is another sad defect, so far as the beauty :f the horse is concerned; he becomes ewe-necked; he has a neck like a ewe ; not arched above, and straight below, until near to the head, but hollowed above and projecting below ; and the neck rising low out of the chest, even lower sometimes than the points of the shoulders. There can scarcely be any thing more unsightly in a horse. The head of such a horse cari never be got down; and the bearing rein of harness must be to him a source of constant torture. Among the muscles employed in raising the head, are the complexus 7nhiores, smaller, complicated, and the recti, straight, and the oblique mus- cles of the upper part of the neck, and belonging princij)ally to the two first bones of the neck, and portions of which may be seen under the tendon of the splenius c, and between it and the ligament a. Among the nmscles employed in lowering the head, some of which are given in the same cut, is the sler7io-maxiUaris, d, belonging to the breast- bone and the upper-jaw. It can likewise be traced, although not quite dis- tincily, in the cut, page 154. It lies immediately under the skin. It arises from the cartilage pi'ojecting from, or constituting the front of the breast- bone, (H, p. 63), and proceeds up the neck, of no great bulk or strength: for when the weight of the head is so nicely balanced by the power of the ligament, a little addition to that weight will pull it down ; whereas the muscles that raise the head must necessarily have very great strength, for ihey will have all its weight to support. About three-fourths of its length upward, it changes to a flat tendon, which is seen (rf, p. 119) to insinuate itself between the parotid and submaxillary glands, in order to be inserted into the angle of the lower jaw. It is used in bending the head towards the chest. Another muscle, the termination of which Is seen, is the levator humeri, raiser of the shoulder, b. This is a much larger muscle than the last, because it has more duty to perform. It rises from the back of the head and lour first bones of the neck and the ligament of the neck, and is carried down to the shoulder, mixing itself partly with some of the muscles of the shoulder, and finally continued down to and terminating on the humerus (J, p. 63). Its office is double : if we suppose the horse in action, and the head and neck fixed points, the contraction of this muscle will draw forward the shoulder and arm: if the horse be standing, and the shoulder and arm be fixed points, this muscle will depress the head and neck. Little more of a practical nature could be said of the muscles of the neck, although they would be proper and interesting studies for the anato- mist ; and therefore we will only observe that thev are all in pairs. One of them is found on each side of the neck, and the office which we have f\ttributed to them can only be accomplished when both act together ; but Bupposing that one alone of the elevating muscles should act, the head would be raised, but it would at the same time be turned towards that side. BLOOD-VESSELS OF THE NECK. 157 If only one of the depressor muscles were to act, the head would be bent down, but it would likewise be turned towards that side. Then it will b* easily seen that by this simple method of having the muscles in pairs, pro- vision is made for every kind of motion, upwards, downwards, or on either side, for which the animal can possibly have occasion. This is tlie proper place to speak of the mane, that long hair which covers the crest of the neck, and adds so much to tlie beauty of the animal. It sometimes grows to a considerable length. There is a horse in the king's stables, the hair of whose mane is more than a yard in length; and it is said that a horse was once exhibited with a mane three or four yards long. The mane is apt to become entangled, if it be not regularly combed. The teeth of the comb should be large and sufficiently far apart. There never can be occasion to pull the mane, as grooms are too much accustomed to do, tugging it out in little parcels. It will then never lie smooth. A strong comb, with only two or three teeth in it, will keep it sufficiently thin and smooth. THE BLOOD-VESSELS OF THE NECK. Running down the inner part of the neck are the principal blood-vessels going to and returning from the head with the windpipe and gullet. Our cut could not give a view of the arteries which carry the blood from the heart to the head, because they are too deeply seated. The external arteries are the carotid, of which there are two. They ascend the neck on either side, close to the windpipe, until they have reached the middle of the neck, where they somewhat diverge, and lie more deeply ; they are covered by the sterno-maxillaris muscle, which we have just described; and are separated from the jugulars, by a small portion of muscular sub- stance. Having reached tlie larynx, they divide into two branches, the external and the internal ; the first goes to every part of the face and the second to the brain. The vertebral arteries run through canals in the bones of the neck, supplying the neighbouring parts as they climb, and at length enter the skull at the large hole in the occipital bone, and ramify on and supply the brain. We can conceive few cases in which it would be either necessary or jus- tifiable to bleed from an artery. Even in mad-staggers the bleeding is more practicable, safer, and more effiictual, from the jugular vein than from the temporal or any other artery. If an artery be opened in the direction in which it runs, there is sometimes very great difficulty in stopping the bleed- ing; it has even been necessary to tie the vessel in order to accomplish this purpose. If the artery be cut across, its coats are so elastic that the two ends are immediately drawn apart under the flesh on each side, and are thereby closed ; and after the first gush of blood, no more can be obtained. THE VEINS OF THE NECK. The external veins which return the blood from the head to the heart are the jugulars. The horse has but one on either side. The human being and the ox have two. It is the principal vessel by which the blood is conveyed from the head. The jugular is said to ta-ke its rise from the •.ase of the skull ; it then descends, receiving other branches in its way towards the angle of the jaw, and behind the parotid gland ; and emergmg from that as seen at t, p. 1.50, and being united to a large branch from ths 158 THE HORSE. face, 11 dkes its course down the neck. Veterinary surgeons and horse- men li^ve agreed to adopt the jugular, a little way below the union ol these two branches, as the place for bleeding; and a very convenient one it is ; for it is easily got at, and the vessel is large. Of the manner of bleeding, and the states of constitution and disease in which it is proper, we shall speak hereafter, confining ourselves at present to an occasional consequence of bleeding, namely, INFLAMMATION OF THE VEIN. It is usual and proper, after bleeding, to bring the edges of the cut care- fully together, and to hold them in contact by inserting a pin through tlie skin with a little tow twisted round it. In ninety-nine cases out of a bun- dred the wound quickly heals, and gives no trouble; but in a few instances, from using a blunt instrument, or a dirty or rusty one ; or striking too hard, and bruising the vein with a thick part of the fleam ; or pulling the skin too far from the neck, and suffering some blood to insinuate itself ini • the cellular texture ; or neglecting to tie the horse up for a little whil&, and thereby enabling him to rub the bleeding place against the mangei, and tear out the pin ; or from the animal being worked immediately afterward, and the collar pressing the blood against the orifice; or the reins oi the bridle rubbing against it ; or having several blows clumsily given, and a large and ragged wound made ; or from some disposition to inflammation about the horse, for the bleeder is not always in fault, the wound does not heal. The edges of it separate, and are swelled and red ; a discharge of thin bloody fluid proceeds from the cut, followed perhaps in a few days by mat- Jer; the neck swells, and is hot and tender; the vein, particularly abovn the wound is hard and cordy ; the cordiness of the vein increases, morr and more upward ; and little abscesses begin to form about the origina' wound. This is sometimes a very serious case, for the inflammation con- tinues to spread upwards, and destroys the horse. It is easy to imagine why it spreads upward, because the blood has run off below the wound, and nothing remains there to irritate ; but the vein becoming thickened in its coats, and diminished in its capacity, and at length quite closed by the inflammation, the blood descending from the head, and pressing upon the closed part, will coagulate; and that clot of blood will gradually increase, and the obstruction, and the inflammation produced by that obstruction will increase, and that necessarily upward. Human surgeons say that inflammation of a vein spreads lowards the heart. In the horse, and we will venture to say in every animal, it spreads in the direction in which the coagulation is formed, and that in the jugulai must be upward, although from the heart. In the veins of the arm and leg it will likewise spread upward, and then towards the heart, because the coagulation takes place in that direction. The application of the hot iron to the orifice of the wound will sometimes stimulate it and cause its edges to unite. When this fails, and the swelling is large, and abscesses have formed, it is for the veterinary surgeon to decide liow far he will introduce setons into them, or inject a caustic liquid, or dis- sect out the diseased portion of the vein. Should the vein be destroyed, the horse will not be irreparably injured ; and perhaps, at no great distance of time, scarcely injured at all ; for nature is ingenious in making provision to carry on the circulation of blood. All the vessels conveying the blood from the heart to the different parts of the frame, or bringing it back again to the heart, communicate with each othej bv 30 THE VVINDPIPE. 15& many channels, and in such various ways, that it is impossible by the closure or loss of any one of them materially to impede the flow of the vital cur- rent. If the jugular be destroyed, the blood will circulate through other vessels almost as freely as before. THE WINDPIPE. Ii: the fore part of the throat (b, p. 68) is placed a curiously constructeu tube, extending from the back part of the mouth to the lungs, and designea for the conveyance of air to and from these organs. The windpipe of the horse is composed of nearly sixty rings of cartilage, connected together by strong and elasMc liga:r.ents. The rings are broad in front, narrowing behind, and there overlapping each other, so as to be capable of considera- ble extension and contraction ; and across the posterior part run strong muscular fibres, which give to that portion of the tube a power of action, depending not indeed on the will, but on sympathy with other parts cor. cerned in breathing. This singular and beautiful mechanism deserves serious attention. It is necessary for the comfort, and even the existence of the animal, that this air-tube should be free from compression, and always open; and it is attached to the neck, long, and capable of the most varied motion. Would any tube composed of a uniform substance, however elastic, maintain its form and size amidst all these complicated motions ? When the horse is browsing, the windpipe is an inch or more longer than when the neck is arched ; there is, therefore, the ligamentous substance between the circular rings, which will lengthen the tube when required, and immediately con- tract to its former dimensions when the force that caused the elongation is removed. When the head is bent, and the neck is arched, and in various poshions of the neck, a portion of the windpipe is violently pressed upon; Jierefore there are the cartilaginous rings — cartilaginous that they may yield to pressure, and immediately recover their form when the pressure is removed ; and lapping over each other, that the difference of calibre or size in the tube may be as great as the necessities of the animal may occasion- ally require, and muscular at the back, that all these powers of elasticity may be exerted to the fullest extent. The cartilaginous rings, again, are broad and strong in front, where danger may threaten, and softer and more yielding behind, where the bones of the neck afford secure protection. The windpipe is lined by a membrane, likewise curiously contrived. It is smooth and plain in front under the broad cartilaginous rings, and where little change of dimension can take place ; but behind, it is puckered into several folds, running down the windpipe, and not across it, and adapting itself easily to any change in the size of the tube. Then it is easy to imagine that the windpipe of a good horse should be large, to admit the passage of a greater quantity of air; and in horses from which speed is required, as is in the blood-horse, the windpipe is compara- tively larger than in other breeds devoted to slower work. The windpipe should project from the neck. It should be as it weie detached from the neck, for two important reasons; first, that it may easily enter between the channels of the jaw, so that the horse may be reined up without suffering inconvenience ; and next, that being more loosely attached to the neck, it may more readily adapt itself to the changes required, than if it were enveloped by fat or muscle, to a certain degree unyielding: there- fore, in every well-formed neck, and it will be seen in the cut, (p. 154,) it Is indispensable that the windpipe should be prominent and loose on the neck. 160 TIIR HORSE. VVe do not require this in tlie heavy cart-horse, and we do not often find it because lie is not so much exposed to those circumstances which will hurry respiration, and require an enlargement in the size of the principal air-tube. THE LARYNX. At the top of the windpipe is placed the larynx, which has been partially described. It is situated where from the sudden bending or motion of the head it is liable to more frequent and to greater injury than the windpipe; and therefore it is composed of stronger cartilages than that tube. First is the thyroid, or helmet-shaped cartilage, forming the front and side parts of (he larynx, and protecting the other parts of the larynx (see l,p. 68). Its bulk and strength are apparent on the slightest handling. Immediately below the thyroid, and with its broad part behind, is the cricoid, ring-like cartilage (11, p. 68). This is likewise for the purpose of strength in a part so exposed to injury, but not so strong as the thyroid because so much danger cannot threaten from behind. Of the epiglottis, or covering of the entrance into the wind-pipe (2, p. 68), and of the aryte- noid, or funnel-shaped cartilages forming that opening (3, p. 68), we have already spoken. ROARING. The larynx and upper part of the Avindpipe are subject to various dis- eases. The first we shall mention is Roaring ; so called from a peculiar sound uttered by the horse when briskly trotted or galloped, particularly up hill. In moderate exercise it is scarcely or not at all perceived, but when the animal is in brisk exercise it may be heard at the distance of several yards. It may easily be detected by striking the horse suddenly, or even threatening him with a stick, when he will utter a singular grunt or groan. It is usually explained as the consequence of inflammation of the part. A fluid, rapidly changes into a tough viscid substance, is thrown out, and adheres to the sides of the larynx and upper part of the windpipe, materi- ally obstructing the passage, and sometimes running across it in bands. When the horse is blown, or his breathing much hurried, the air whistles through these obstructions. We believe this to be the most general cause of the disease, and a roarer is evidently unsound, for he is incapable of the exertion which may not only be occasionally, but ordinarily required of him. Much light, however, has lately been thrown on other causes of this com- plaint. Many roarers have been examined after death, and no vestige of these bands have been found ; but some have had the shape of the larynx and the upper part of the windpipe materially deformed, crooked and com- pressed; and others have presented no appearance of disease. Then we liave been compelled to look out for other causes of roaring, and some very probable ones have been readily found. The parts may have been subject to inflammation, and some parts of the air-tube may have become thickened and inelastic. In this way the inflammation of strangles may have been communicated to the larynx or windpipe, followed by some alteration of structure. Roaring is no unusual consequence of strangles. A more frequent cause, and previously unsuspected, is tight reining. There can be no doubt that many more carriage-horses become roarers, than those that are used for the saddle alone ; and the explanation of thi.« at once presents itself in the continued and painful pressure on these parts, caused by reining in the carriage-horse, and teaching him to 'lea- himself ROARING. lei well. We have seen the larynx, and that portion of the windpipe imma dialely beneath it, flattened, and bent, and twisted in the strangest way, which could not have been produced by disease, but by mechanical injury alone. The mischief is usually done with young horses. The arched neck and elevated head of the carriage-horse is an unnatural posi- tion, from which the animal most habituated to it is eager to be relieved Horse-breakers, and coachmen, and carters, should be made to understand, that when the horse's head is first confined by the bearing- rein, great gen- tleness, and care, and caution, are necessary. Injury must be done if the throat be violently pressed upon, and especially when it is exposed to addi- tional danger from the impatience of the animal, unused to control, and suf- fering pain. The head of the riding-horse is gradually brought to its proper place by the hands of the teacher, who skilfully increases, or relaxes the pres- sure, and humours and plays with the mouth ; but the poor carriage-horse is confined by a rein that never slackens, and his nose is bent in at the expense of the larynx and windpipe, and the injury is materially increased, if the head be not naturally well set on, or if the neck be thick, or the jaws narrow. The shape of the larynx and windpipe will occasionally be altered, if they be thus squeezed between the jaws, and the bones of the neck ; or the muscles wiiich expand the opening into the windpipe for the purpose of natural breathing, and especially of quick or hurried breathing, will be so compressed, that they will be incapable of full action, and by degrees will lose the power of action, even when not pressed upon, and, in fact, become palsied; and therefore, the opening not being sufficiently enlarged during the rapid breathing of the animal, moving with speed, the air will rush violently through the diminished aperture, and the sound termed roaring will he produced. It IS a common opinion that crib-biting frequently terminates in roaring. There is nothing in crib-biting that can possibly lead to roaring; but there is a n.ethod adopted to cure crib-biting, than which nothing can be more likely to produce it : we mean the straps which are so tightly buckled round the upper part of the neck, and which must compress, and sometimes distort or paralyze the larynx. Th<". habit of coughing a horse, to ascertain the state of his wind, is an occasional cause of roaring. The larynx or trachea is violently and pain- fully squeezed in this operation ; and the violence being often repeated, inflammation and injury may ensue. The treatment of roaring is very unsatisfactory. If we have been correct in our account of the nature and cause of the disease, a cure seems to be perfectly out of the question. If it arise from a distorted larynx, there is no mechanical contrivance that can restore the natural and perfect struct- ure • if from a band or ring of lymph diminishing the size of the passage, we know not by what means that can be removed ; or if the muscles of the larynx be palsied, we know not the stimulus that can rouse them again to action, or the manner in which that stimulus is to be applied. In the early stage of the disease, whether it proceed from violent pressure on the part by improper curbing, or be connected with, or consequent on catarrh or strangles, or the enlargement of some neighbouring part, inflam- mation will be present, and we shall be justified in having recourse to those measures which will abate inflammation. Bleeding will not be improper if roaring is the consequence of previous disease ; it will be indispensable, if it be connected with present disease of the chest. The degree to which the bleeding should be carried will depend on the degree of general or local inflammation. To bleeding should succeed purging, and to this, medicines ihat will lessen the force of tne circulation — as nitre, emetic- tartar, and 162 THE HORSE. digitalis These should be followed by blisters, to remove the inflammation, if possible, from an internal and important part to the skin. The blisters may at lirst be confined to the upper part of the throat, but, if unsuccessful there, they should extend over the whole length of the windpipe. In extreme cases, and where the obstruction seems to threaten suffocation, we may be justified in cutting into the windpipe, and either introducing a tube into "the opening, or cutting out a portion of one of the rings. This operation, however, the agriculturist will scarcely dare to perform, although it is simple enough to him who understands the anatomy of the neck. It is called bronckolomy. By means of it, the animal will be enabled to breathe through an aperture below the seat of inflammation, or the distorted and obstructed part ; and time will be given for the adoption of other modes of relief or cure. Some practitioners have talked of cutting into the wind- pipe, to extract the band or ring of coagulated matter that obstructs the passage ; we can only say, that if they happen to hit upon the precise situa- tion of this ring or band, they will be more fortunate than their folly deserves. Another circumstance should be mentioned, and the breeder should not forget it, that the roarer, whether horse or mare, will often entail this disease on its progeny. This entailment of disease by the parent on offspring is a subject which has not suffiiciently engaged the attention, or entered into l^e calculation, of the agriculturist. THE ESOPHAGUS, OVx GULLET. The gullet extends from the back part of the mouth to the stomach, and conveys the food from the one to the other. At the top of the neck, it is immediately behind the windpipe, but it soon inclines to the left, and runs down the neck close to the windpipe, and on its left ; therefore when we give a ball to a horse, we watch the left side of the neck to see whether it passes down the gullet. Having entered the chest between the first two ribs, the gullet passes along the upper part of it, and then piercing the diaphragm, or midriff", enters the stomach. It is composed of three coats — the outer one of slight loose cellular substance : the middle one mus- cular, and divided into two distinct layers, the outermost layer having the fibres lengthways, by which the gullet may be shortened, and in shortening, widened for the reception of the food ; the fibres of the inner layer running circularly round the tube, so that the portion immediately above a pellet of food, will by contvaction force the food downward, and by successive actions drive it into the stomach. The inner coat, which is a continuation of the membrane of the pharynx, lies in folds or plaits, extend- ing lengthways. The muscular coat being highly elastic, readily gives way to the pressure of the food, and these plaits enable the inner or cuti- cular coat, likewise sufficiently to dilate. The gullet has in a few cases been strictured, or contracted in some part, so that 'The food could only be swallowed in small quantities, and with great difficulty. If the stricture be near the entrance into the stomach, there is no remedy, for the part cannot be got at. If it be higher up, a veterinary surgeon alone can determine how far relief is practicable. Sub- stances have sometimes stuck in the gullet. Bran and chaff* swallowed greedily, or in too large or hard a ball, having remained in some part of the gullet, and caused very alarming symptoms. The tube used for the hove in cattle, will sometimes dislodge this foreign substance: but should this be impracticable, the gullet must be opened, which a scientific practitioner alone is competent to perform. THE CHEST. 163 CHAPTER X. THE CHEST AND ITS CONTENTS— THE HEART AND THE LUNGS d CUT OF THE CHEST. h a The first rib. h Cartilages of the eleven hiiulermost ox false ribs, connected together, uniting- wiih that of the seventh or last true rib. c The breast-bone. d The lop or point of the withers, which are formed by the lengthened spinous or upright processes of the ten or eleven first bones of the back. The bones of the back arc eighteen in number. e The ribs, usually eighteen on each side; the seven first united to the breast-bone by cartilage; the cartilages of the remaining eleven united to each other, as at b. f That portion of the spine where the loins commence, and composed of five bones. g The bones forming the hip or haunch, a*id into the hole at the bottom of which the head of the thigh-bone is received. \ The portion of the spine belonging to the haunch, and consisting of five pieces. The bones of the tail, usually thirteen in number. The form of the chest is of the greatest importance. It contains the heart and the lungs: — the one employed in circulating the blood, and the other in restoring to it the povver of supporting life ; and on the size and the soundness of these organs, the health and the strength of the animal princi- pally depend. The speed and wind of the horse are most intimately con- nected with the size of the lungs. In proportion to the quantity of air which they contain, and the less frequent necessity of renewing that air by the act of breathing, will the animal be at his ease, or distressed, when violent exertion is demanded of him. Therefore, one of the first things which the judge of the horse examines, is the capacity of the chest; and if he finds considerable depth in the girth, and roundness behind the point of the elbow — the horse carrying what is called a good barrel — he is satis- fied as to the capacity of the chest. The form of the chest has as much to do with the value of the horse as its capacity. An ox may have a chest rounded before as well as behind, and then there will be room enough for the heart to circulate, and the lungs to purify sufficient blood to clothe him with all the muscle and fat he was intended to yield : we require from him no speed, and, therefore, his legs will not fail him, should too much weight be thrown on them, nor will he be disposed to stumble and fall. One prin- cipal quality of the horse, however, is his speed ; and if undue weight be thrown before, his legs and feet will be battered, and injured, and worn out by the unavoidable concusMon to which they will be exposed in the trot or the gallop; and likewise the centre or bulk of his weigiit will be too easily thrown beyond the natural situation of his feet, and as a matter of coursp he will be rendered exceedingly unsafe. Therefore, for the light carriage ,(J4 THE HORSE. and llie saddle, although we want capacity of chest, we want it not too much before. A moderate breadth, with depth at the girth, and a swelling out or barrelling beiiind the elbow, will be the most desirable form. Horses with narrow chests may have plenty of spirit, and willingness for work ; but they have not the appetite or the endurance of those whose breast is moderately wide. The heavy cart or dray-horse, whose power of draught is equal to the weight wliieh he can throw into the collar, requires the broad chest, not only that his weight may be thrown more before, but that by the increased capa- city of his chest he may obtain that bulk and size which will enable him to press with the requisite force upon the collar. Depth of chest has another advantage: it not only gives increased capa- city to the cavity within it, but increased room for the insertion of those muscles on and between the ribs, by the action of which the chest is alter- nately expanded and contracted in the act of breathing, and tiie action of which is so necessary when the breathing is quickened by exercise. Again, depth of chest will admit of a great deal more increased expan- sion than will a chest approaching to a circular form. That which is some- what straight may be easily bent into a circle ; but that which is already rounded, can scarcely be made more so : therefore it is that the heavy horse, with all his capaciousness of chest, is easily blown, and incapable of speed, because all this expanse was employed in the accumulation of flesh and fat, and can be very little increased when exertion causes the flow and the change of blood to be considerably more rapid. The flatter chest may be readily expanded, as the circumstances of the animal may require. A well-qualified judge of the horse never likes to see a chest too high from the ground and legs too long. The animal may be free and speedy, but there is not sufficient capacity of chest to render him a good feeder, or to give him much endurance. The next point of consequence, regarding the capacity of the chest, is the length or shortness of the carcase, or the extent of the ribs from the elbow backward. Some horses are what is called ribbed home ; there is but Uttle space (see cuts, pp. 03 and 163) between the last rib and the hip-bone. In others the distance is considerably greater, which is evident by the falling in of the flank. The question here is, what is the service required from the horse? If he have to carry a heavy weight, and much work to do, let him be ribbed home ; let the last rib and the hip-bone be almost close to each other. There is more capacity of chest and of belly ; there is less distance between the points of support; and there is more strength and endurance. A hackney (and we would almost say a hunter) can scarcely be too well ribbed home. If speed, however, be required, there must be room for the full action of the hinder limbs ; and this can only exist when there is sufficient space between the last rib and the hip-bone. The owner of the horse must make up his mind as to what he wants from him, and be satisfied if he obtains that; but let him be assured that he cannot have every thing: this would require those difierences of conformation that cannot possibly exist in the same animal. The thorax, or chest, is formed by the spine, f, above ; the ribs, e, on either side ; and the sternum, or breast-bone, c, beneath. THE SPINE AND BACK. The spine or back-bone consists of a chain of bones from the poll to the extremity of the tail. We have described the bones of the neck, oud wo .viU THE SPIME. 165 now proceed to that portion of the spine which forms the roof of the che^t and belly. It consists of twenty-three bones from the neck to the hauncn ; eighteen, called dorsal velerbra, composing the back; and five lumbar ver. tebrcB, occupying the loins. On this part of the animal the weight or bur- den is laid, and there are two principal things to be considered, easiness of carriage and strength. If the back were composed of unyielding materials, if it resembled a bar of wood or iron, the jar or jolting, in the rapid motion of the animal, could not possibly be endured. To avoid this, as well as to assist in turning, the back is divided into numerous bones; and between each pair of bones, there is interposed a cartilaginous substance, most highly elastic, whicii will yield and give way to every jar, not so much as to occasion insecurity between the bones, or to permit considerable motion between any one pair; yet forming altogether an aggregate mass of elas- ticity, so springy that the rider sits almost undisturbed, however high may be the action, or however rapid the pace. Strength is as important as ease ; therefore these bones are united togeth- er with peculiar firmness. The round head of one is exactly fitted to the cup or cavity of that immediately before it ; and between them is placed the elastic ligamentous substance we have just described, so strong, that in endeavouring to separate the bones of the back, the bones will break sooner than this substance will give way. Beside this there are ligaments run- ning along the broad under surface of these bones; ligaments between each of the transverse processes, or side projections of the bones; and ligaments between tbe spinous processes or upright projections; and a continuation of the strong ligament of the neck, running along the whole course of the back and loins above these, lengthening and contracting, as in the neck, with the motions of the animal, and forming a powerful bond of union between the bones. By these means the hunter will carry a heavy man without fatigue or strain through a long chase; and those shocks and jars are avoided which would be annoying to the rider, and injurious and speedily fatal to the horse. These provisions, however, although adequate to common or even severe exertion, will not protect the animal from the consequences of brutal usage; and, therefore, if the horse be much overweighted, or violently exercised, or too suddenly pulled upon his haunches, these ligaments are strained: inflammation follows; and the ligament becomes changed to bone, and the joints of the back lose their springiness and ease of motion ; or rather in point of fact cease to exist. On account of tlie too hard service required from them, and especially before they have gained their full strength, there are i'ew old horses, that have not some of the bones of tiie back or loins anchylosed, united together by bony matter, and not by ligament. When this exists to any considerable extent the horse is not pleasant to ride ; he turns with difficulty in his stall ; he is unwilling to lie down, or when down to rise again ; and he has a curious straddling action. Such horses are said to be broke?} backed, or chinked in the chine. Fracture of the bones of the back rarely occurs, on account of their being so strongly united by ligaments, and defended by muscular substance. If a fracture of these bones does happen, it is during the violent struggles after the horse has been cast for an operation. The length of the back is an important consideration. A long-backed horse will be easy in his paces, because the increased distance between the fore and hind legs, which are the supports of the spine, will afford greater room for the play of the joints of the back. A long spring has much more play than a short one, and will better obviate concussion. A long-backed iiorsp is likewise formed for speed, for there is room for him to bring hi? 106 THE HORSE. hinder legs moie under him in the act of gallopping, and thus more power fully propel or drive forward the body : but, on the other hand, a long- Dacked horse will be weak in tlie back, and easily overweighted. A long spring may be easily bent and broken. The weight of the rider, likewise, placed further from the extremities, will act with meclianical disadvantage upon them, and be more likely to strain them. A short-backed horse may be a good hackney, and be able to carry the heaviest weight, and possess great endurance; but his paces will not be so easy, nor his speed so great, and he may be apt to overreach himself. The comparative advantage of a long or short carcase depends entirely on the use for which tiie horse is intended. For general purposes the horse with a short carcase is very properly preferred. He will possess health and strength; for horses of tliis make are proverbially hardy. He will have sufficient ease not to fatigue the rider, and speed for every ordinary purpose. Length of back will always be desirable when there is more than usual substance generally, and particularly when the loins are wide, and the muscles of the loins large and swelling. The two requisites, strength and speed, will then probably be united. The back should be depressed a little immediately behind the withers ; and then continue in an almost straight line to the loins. This is the form most consistent with beauty and strength. Some horses have a very con- siderable hollow behind the withers. They are said to be saddle-hacked. It seems as if a depression were purposely made for the saddle. Such horses are evidently easy goers, for this curve inward must necessarily increase the play of the joints of the back ; but in the same proportion they must be weak, and liable to sprain. To the general appearance of the horse, this defect is not in any degree injurious ; for the hollow of the back is uniformly accompanied by a beautifully arched crest. A few horses have the curve outward. They are said to be roach-hacked, from the supposed resemblance to the arched back of a roach. This a very serious defect ; altogether incompatible with beauty, and materially diminishing the usefulness of the animal. It is almost impossible to pre- vent the saddle from being thrown on the shoulders, or the back from being galled, the elasticity of the spine is destroyed ; the rump is badly set on; the hinder legs are too much under the animal ; he is continually over- reaching himself, and his head is carried awkwardly low. THE LOINS. The loins are attentively examined by every good horseman. They can scarcely be too broad and muscular. The strength of the back, and the strength of the hinder extremities, will depend materially on this. The breadth of the loins is regulated by the length of the transverse or side pro- cesses of that part. The bodies of the bones of the loins are likewise larger than those of the back; and a more dove-tailed kind of union subsists between these bones, than between those of the back. Every provision is made for strength here. The union of the back and loins should be care- fully remarked. There is sometimes a depression between tliem : a kind of line is drawn across, which shows imperfection in the construction of the spine, and is regarded as an indication of weakness THE WITHERS. The spinous or upright processes of the dorsal vertehru;, or Ijonos of tlie back, abcM •; the upper part of the shoulder, are as remarkable for thei' THE WITHERS. 16? 'engtii as are the transverse or side processes of the bones of the loins; They are flattened and terminated by rough, blunted extremities. The elevated riilge wliicli tiiey form is called ihe withers. It will be seen in the cuts (pp. 63 and 103), that the spine of the first bone of the back has but little elevation, and is sliarp and upright. The second is longer, and inclined backward ; the third and fourth increase in length, and the fifth is the long- est ; they then gradually sliorten until the twelfth or thirteenth, which becomes level with tiie bones of the loins. High withers have been always, in the mind of the judge of the horse, associated witligood action, and generally with speed. The reason is plain enough ; they afford larger surface for the attachment of the muscles of the back ; and in proportion to the elevation of the withers, these muscles act with greater advantage. The rising of the fore parts of the horse, even in the trot, and more especially in the gallop, depends not merely on the action of the muscles of the legs and shoulders, but on tliose of the loins, inserted into the spinous processes of these bones of the back, and acting with greater power in proportion as these processes, constituting the withers, are lengthened. The arm of the lever to which the power is applied will be lon-ger; and we well know that in proportion to the length of this arm will be the ease with which the weight is raised. Therefore good and high action will depend much on elevated withers. It is not difficult to understand how speed will likewise be promoted by the same conformation. The power of tiie horse is in his hinder quarters. In them lies the main-spring of the frame, and the fore-quarters are only elevated and thrown forward to receive the weight forced on them by the action of the hinder quarters. In proportion, however, as the fore-quarters are elevated, wiil they be thrown farther forward, or, in other words, will the stride of the horse be lengthened : they are elevated and thrown forward in proportion to the elevation of the withers, and therefore in this point of view the form of the withers is very much connected with speed. Yet many racers have the forehand low. The unrivalled Eclipse (see p. 47) was a remarkable instance of this ; but the ample and finely proportioned quarters, and the muscularity of the thigh and fore-arm, rendered the aid to be derived from the withers perfectly unnecessary. The heavy draught- horse does not require elevated withers. His utility depends on the power of depressing his fore-quarters, and throwing their weight fully into the collar; but for common work in the hackney, in the farmer's horse, and in the hunter, well-formed withers will be an essential advantage, as con- tributing to good and safe action, and likewise to speed. MUSCLES OF THE BACK. The most important muscles which belong to this part of the frame can be very imperfectly delineated in any cut ; we have endeavoured, however, to give as complete a view of them, and of all the superficial muscles of the frame, as we could. They are principally those which e.xtend from the con- tinuation of the ligament of the neck, along the whole of the back and loins; and likewise from the last cervical bone; the superjida/is and trans- versalis costarum, or superficial and transverse muscles of the ribs, going from this ligament to the upper part of the ribs, to elevate them, and so assist in the expansion of the chest ; also, the large mass of muscle, the hn- gissimus dorsi, or the longest muscle of the back, from the spinous and transverse processes of the vertebroe to the ribs, and by which all th<' motions of the spine, and back, and loins, of which we have spoken, aro principully produced; by which tiie fore-quarters are raised upon the hi'id, 168 THE HORSE. or the bind upon the fore, according as either of them is made a fixed poini. This is the principal agent in rearing and liicking. CUT OF TilE iMUSCLES OF THE HORSE. The last we shall mention is the spinalis dorsi, the spinal muscle of the back, from the spinous processes of some of the last bones of the back, to those of the fore part; thick and strong about the withers, and broadly attached to them ; and more powerfully attached, and more strongly acting in proportion to the elevation of the withers; and proceeding on to the three lowest bones of the neck, and therefore mainly concerned, as we have described, in elevating the fore-quarters, and producing high and safe action, and contributing to speed. Before we quite leave the roof of the chest, we will speak of some acci- dents or diseases to which it is exposed. The first is of a very serious nature. FISTULOUS WITHERS. When the saddle has been suffered to press long upon the withers, a tumour will be formed, hot and exceedingly tender. It may sometimes be dispersed by the cooling applications recommended in the treatment of poll- evil (p. 153); but if, in despite of these, the swelling should remain sta- tionary, and more especially if it should become larger and more tender, warm fomentations and poultices and stimulating embrocations should be applied diligently to it, as to the tumour of poll-evil, in order to hasten the formation of matter. As soon as the matter can be fairly detected, a seton should be passed from the top to the bottom of the tumour, so that the whole of the matter may run out, and continue to run out as it is afterwards formed. The after treatment must be precisely that which we have recommended for a similar disease in the noil. THE RIBS. 16ft ■ In neglected fistulous withers the ulcer may be larger anc de^er, ano more destructive than in poll-evil. It may burrow beneath the shoulder- blade and the matter may appear at the point of the shoulder or the elb)w ; or the bones of the withers may become carious. WARBLES, SITFASTS, AND SADDLE GALLS On other parts o^ the back, tumours and very troublesome ulcers may be produced by the same cause. The little tumours resulting from the pressure of the saddle are called warbles, and when they ulcerate they fre- quently become sitfasts. The ulcer has a portion of callous skin in the centre of it, resembling leather in its appearance, and so closely adhering as not to be separated without great force or absolute dissection ; and hence the name given to this peculiar ulcer. Warbles are too often but little regarded. They will frequently disappear without medical treatment, but they will, at other times, degenerate into sitfasts. If it be practicable, the horse should have rest, or at all events, the stuffing of the saddle should be so contrived that every degree of pressure be removed from the part : then goulard and vinegar or brine should be frequently applied for tho purpose of dispelling the enlargement. Should this prove ineffective, and the silfast appear, let it by no means be torn out, but apply a mild blister, which will cause it speedily to separate ; and then let the wound be dressed with friar's balsam, or Turner's cerate, or both. For saddle galls there is no better application than strong salt and water, mixed with a fourth-part of the tincture of myrrh. Common sense and common humanity would suggest the necessity of chambering the saddle and tiie collar, and not suffering the animal, with sore places as broad as the hand, to be unnecessarily tortured by the rubbing of the rough and hardened stuffing, THE RIBS. The ribs constitute the sides of the chest. They are usually eighteen on either side, and, in a few instances, nineteen or twenty. They are crooked or twisted in their figure, but so united to the spine by a true joint, the head of each rib being received between the bodies of two of the bones of the back, that they form so many arches, differing in roundness in different horses. The first rib (a) is placed at the base of the column of the neck, and is short and strong, in order to support the weight and pressure of the" head and neck, and to be a fixed point for the other ribs to act upon in' expanding and contracting the chest. The second is longer and straight, to assist in the same office, and to sustain the stress which arises from the- suspension of the trunk beneath the shoulders. The other ribs (e) have the arched form which we have described. The lower extremity of the rib' is attached to or composed of cartilage, a yielding elastic substance, to enable the ribs to be more easily moved by the muscles of respiration, and' to bring them back again to their natural situation and shape when thi? muscles cease to act. These cartilages are received into, and constitute- joints with the sternum or breast-bone, formed almost in the shape of the prow of a ship (c), and with a projection of cartilage at each end. The projection before is evident to the eye in the living horse, and is called the point of the breast. This is occasionally injured by blows, or by the pres- sure of the collar, and first a tumour, and then an ulcer is formed, which is- very apt to become fistulous, and must be treated like poll-evil or fistulous- vithers. M • 70 THE HORSE, The breast-bone is in the colt composed of six bones, whicli in the full grown liorse unite into one. Seven or eight of the ribs, the nuni »er occa- sionally varying, are attached to the sternum by very strong ligaments. These are called tlie true ribs, and they increase in length from the first to the seventh. The remaining ten or eleven are called ^a/se ribs; they become gradually shorter, aud narrower, and rounder; and their direction is more backward, in order to increase the cavity of the thorax and belly, and to strengthen the roof of the belly. Their cartilages are not attachetl to the breast-bone, but to each other, and yet connected with the breast, bone, and sharing in all its motions by means of the cartilage of the last true rib, with which they all unite. In consequence of these shorter libs, with long elastic cartilages, the bulk of the chest and of the belly is mate- rially increased, and the ribs are much more easily moved. Between the ribs, and mainly contributing to their motion, are two layers of muscles, the iniercostals (between the ribs). According as the ribs are brought nearer to, or recede from each other, the cavity of the chest will be increased or diminished. These two layers are curiously contrived. If the fibres ran straight across from rib to rib, tliey would be exceedingly short ; a short muscle could have but little contraction, and a very slight change of form or dimension could be produced. They run diagonally from rib to rib, and thus are more than double the length that they could otherwise have been ; and so the degree of contraction is doubled, and the ribs are moved through a greater space. More perfectly to produce this effect, the muscular fibres of the outer layer run one way, and those of the inner layer a contrary, crossing each other in the fcDrm of an X. When these muscles contract, as they act from the fore ribs upon the hinder ones, although the ribs are brought nearer to each other, they are thrown outward, and the real effect is to expand, and not to contract the cavity of the chest. This is, perhaps, somewhat difficult to imagine, but it is the actual explanation of the matter. The ribs are drawn power- fully forward, and when drawn forward, they must be thrown outward, and the chest is necessarily expanded. MUSCLES OF THE BREAST. Of the proper form of the trunk we have already spoken. There arc some important muscles attached to the breast, and therefore, every horse should have a breast tolerably expanded. In the cut, page 154, and in that at page 168, are seen a very important pair of muscles, the pectomks trans- versi, or pectoral muscles, forming two prominences in the front of the chest, and extending backward between the legs. They come from the fore and upper part of the breast-bone ; go across the inward part of the arm, and reach from the elbow almost down to the knee. They confine the arm to the side in the rapid motion of the horse, and prevent him from being, what horsemen would call, and what is seen in a horse pushed beyond his natural power, " all abroad." Other muscles, pectorales magni et parr?, the great and little pectorals, rather above but behind these, go from tlie breast-bone to the arm, to draw back the point of the slioulder, and bring the shoulder upright. Another and smaller muscle goes from tlie breast-bone to the shoulder, to assist in the same office. A horse, there- fore, thin and narrow in the breast, must be deficient in important muscular power. Between the legs and along the breast-bone is the proper place in v bion 10 insert rowels, in cases of inflamed lungs. THE HEART. JiJ | CHEST-FOUNDER. These muscles are occasionally the seat of a singular and somewhat mysterious disease. The old farriers used to call it anticor and chest- founder. The horse has considerable stiffness in moving, evidently no referable to the feet. There is tenderness about the muscles of the breast and occasionally sivelling, and after a while, the muscles of the ciie.'v waste consideral)ly. We believe it to be nothing more than rheumatism produced by suffering the horse to remain too long tied up, and exposed to the cold, or riding him against a very bleak wind. Sometimes a con- siderable degree of fever accompanies this; but bleeding, physic, a rowel in tile chest, warm embrocations over the parts affected, warm stabling, and warm clothing, with doses of a drachm or two of antimonial powder, will soon subdue the complaint. DROPSY OF THE SKIN OF THE CHEST. Dropsical swellings often appear between the fore-legs, and on the chest. They are etfusions of fluid underneath the skin. They accompany various diseases, particularly when the animal is weakened by them, and sometimes appear when there is no other disease than the debility, which, in the spring and fall of the year, accompanies the changing of the coat. T\\e treatment will vary with the cause of the affection, or the accompanying disease. Small punctures with the lancet will seldom do harm ; friction of the part, if it can be borne, will be serviceable ; mild exercise should be used ; diuretics given, mixed with some cordial, with liberal food, as carrots, malt mashes, and occasionally a very mild dose of physic, and that followed by tonics and cordials, witii diuretics. The vegetable tonics, as gentian and columbo with ginger, will be most effectual. The cavity of the trunk consists of two compartments, divided from each other by the diaphragm or midrijf. The first, into which we have traced the gullet and the windpipe, contains the iieart and the lungs. It is lined by a delicate membrane, called the pleura (the side, or membrane of the side), which likewise extends over and affords a covering to the lungs. A portion of it, dipping down from its attachment to the spine, separates the chest into two parts, each of which contains one of the lobes or divi- sions of the lungs ; and this portion, the mediastinum (standing in the middle), forms a kind of bag enveloping the heart. The use of this membrane is to throw out a fluid to moisten the ditTerent surfaces, and prevent all dangerous friction or rubbing between these important parts ; and, also, to support these organs in their natural situation. THE HEART. The heart is placed between a doubling of the pleura, and is likewise sur- rounded by a membrane or bag of its own, called the pericardium (about the heart). This likewise throws out a fluid, for the purposes above men- tioned. When the pericardium or the heart itself becomes inflamed, this secretion is much increased ; and so much fluid accumulates as to obstruct .he beating of the heart. This disease is called dropsy of the heart. It •s not easily distinguished from inflammation of the lungs ; but this is a natter of little consequence, for the treatment would be nearly the same ii> both. The heart is the engine by which the blood is circulated tiirough the Game It is composed of four cavities two above called auricles, froni their 172 THE HORSE. Kiipposci reseml .lance to a dog's oar, and two ventricles or little bellies, occupyi/ig the substance of the heart. The blood whic.i has circulated through the frame, and nourished it, returns to the heart through the veins. It enters the auricle on tlie right side, where it accumulates as in a reservoir, until there is enough to fill the ventricle below. The auricle then contracts, and throws the blood into the ventricle. Thai contracts in its turn, and drives the blood, not back again into the auricle, for there is as complete a valve as that in the sucker of a pump to prevent this, but through an aperture that leads to tiie lungs. The blood traverses, as we shall presently see, all the little vessels and cells of the lungs, and undergoes an important change there, and is carried to the left auricle ; thence it descends to the left ventricle, and by the powerful closing of the ventricle, is propelled into the arteries. The first artery, the aorta, rises from the left ventricle, and the blood, by the force communicated to it, by the sudden contraction of the ventricle, and assisted by the elastic power of the arteries which keeps them open and free from obstruction, and also by the pressure of the muscular and elastic coats, iendeavouring to return to their former dimensions, pursues its course through every part of the frame. The heart is subject to disease. It powerfully sympathizes with the maladies of every part. An injury of the foot will speedily double \hc quickness of the beatings or pulsations of the heart. It sometimes is in- flamed, without previous affection of any other part. This is not a frequent, but a most dangerous disease, and is characterized by a pulse quick and strong, and a bounding action of the heart that may occasionally be seen at the side, and even heard at the distance of several yards! There is also a peculiar alertness and quickness in every motion of the animal ; and an energy of expression in the countenance exceedingly remarkable. Speedy and copious blood-letting will alone avail to save the horse ; for the heart, over excited and called on to perform this double work, must soon be exhausted. THE ARTERIES. The vessels which carry the blood from the heart are called arteries (keep- ing air, the ancients thought that they contained air). They are composed of three coats ; the outer or elastic is that by which they are enabled to yield to the gush of blood, and enlarge their dimensions as it is forced along them, and by which also they contract again as soon as the gush of blood has passed ; the middle coat is the muscular, by which this contrac- tion is more powerfully performed, and the blood urged on in its course; the inner or membranous coat is the mere lining of the tube. This yielding of the artery to the gush of blood, forced into it by the contraction of the heart, constitutes THE PULSE. The pulse is a very useful assistant to the practitioner of human medicine, and much more so to the veterinary surgeon, whose patients cannot describe either the seat or degree of ailment or pain. The number of pulsations in any artery will give the number of the beatings of the heart, and so express the irritation of that organ, and of the frame generally. In a state of health, the heart beats in the farmer's horse about thirty-six times in a minute. In the smaller, and in the thorough-bred horse, the pulsations are forty or forty-two. This is said to be the standard pulse, the pulse of health. It varies singularly little in horses of the same size and bree-i, and THE PULSE. 173 fvhere it is found there can be little inaterially wrong. The mosi conve- nient place to feel the pulse, is at the lower jaw (p. 119), a little behind the spot where the submaxillary artery and vein, and the parotid duct, come from under the jaw. There the number of pulsations will be easily counted, and the character of the pulse, a matter of fully equal importance, will be clearly ascertained. Many horsemen put the hand to the side. They can certainly count the pulse there, but they can do nothing more. We must be able to press the artery against some hard body, as tl:e jaw. bone, in order to ascertain the manner in which the blood flows through 't, and the quantity that flows. When the pulse reaches flfty or fifty-five, some degree of fever may be apprehended, and proper precautijn should be taken. Seventy or seventy- five will indicate a somewliat dangerous state, and put the owner and the. surgeon not a little on the alert. Few horses long survive a pulse of one hundred, for by this excessive action the energies of nature are speedily worn out. Some things, however, should be taken into account in forming our con- clusion from the frequency of the pulse. Exercise, a warm stable, fear, will wonderfully increase tlie number of pulsations. , When a careless, brutal fellow goes up to a horse, and speaks hastily to him, and handles him roughly, he adds ten beats per minute to the pulse; and will often be misled in the opinion he may form of the state of the ani- mal. A judicious person will approach the patient gently, and pat and soo'Ji him, and even then the circulation, probably, will be a little disturbed ; and he should take the additional precaution of noting the number and quality of the pulse, a second time, before he leaves the animal. If a quick pulse indicate irritation and fever, a slow pulse will likewise characterize diseases of an opposite character. It accompanies the sleepy stage of staggers, and every malady connected with deficiency of nervous energy. The heart may not only be excited to more frequent, but also to more violent action. It may contract more powerfully upon the blood, which will be driven with greater force through the arteries, and the expansion of the vessels will be greater and more sudden. Then we have the hard pulse, the sure indicator of considerable fever, and calling for the immediate and free use of the lancet. Sometimes the pulse may be hard and jerking, and yet small. The stream, though forcible, is not great. The heart is so irritable, that it con- tracts before the ventricle is properly filled. The practitioner knows that this sliows a dangerous state of disease. It is an almost invariable accompani- ment of inflammation of the bowels. A weak pulse, when the arterial stream flows slowly, is caused by the feeble action of the heart. It is the reverse of fever, and expressive of lebility. The oppressed pulse is when the arteries seem to be fully distended with blood ; there is obstruction somewhere, and the action of the heart can ftardly force the stream along, or communicate pulsation to the current. This is the case in sudden inflammation of the lungs. They are overloaded and gorged with blood, which cannot find its way through their minute vessels. This accounts for the well-known fact of a copious bleeding increasing a pulse previously oppressed. A portion being removed from the distended and choked vessels, the remainder is able to flow on. . There are many other varieties of the pulse, which it would be tedious nere to particularize, and we will conclude our remarks on it by observing th If, during the act of bleeding, its state should be carefully observed..; 174 THE HORSE. Many \3.t. iiiary surgeons, and gentlemen too, are apt to order a certain quantity oi blood to be taken away, but do not condescend to superintend the operation. This is unpardonable in the surgeon, and censurable in the owner of the horse. The horse is bled for some particular purpose. There is some state of disease indicated by a peculiar quality of the pulse, whici we are endeavouring to alter. The most experienced practitioner cannot tell what quantity of blood must be abstracted to produce the desired effect. The change of the pulse can alone indicate when the object is accomplished ; therefore the operator should have his finger on the artery during the act of bleeding, and, comparatively regardless of the quantity, continue to tak« blood, until, in inflammation of the lungs, the oppressed pulse becomes fuUei and more distinct, or the strong pulse of considerable fever is evide^itly softer, or the animal exhibits symptoms of faintness. The arteries divide as they proceed through the frame, and branch out into in)mmerable minute tubes, termed capillaries (hair-like tubes), and ihoy even become so small as to elude the sight. The slightest puhcture cannot be inflicted without wounding some of them. In these little tubes, the nourislmient of the body, and tht separation of all the various secretions is performed, and, in consequence of this, the blood is changed ; and when these capillaries unite together, and begin to enlarge, it is found to be no longer arterial, or of a florid /ed colour, but venous, or of a blacker hue. Therefore, the principal termination of the arteries is in veins. The point where the one ends, and the other com- mences, cannot be ascertained ; it is when the red artei-ial blood, havmg discharged its function, is changed to venous or black blood ; but this is a process gradually performed, and therefore the vessel is gradually changing its character. Branches from the ganglial or sympathetic nerves wmd round these ves sels, and endue them with energy to discharge their functions. When the nerves communicate too much energy, and these vesstls consequently act with too much power, injiammation is produced. If this disturbed action be confined to a small space, or a single organ, it is said to be local, as inflam- mation of the eye, or of the lungs ; when this inordinate action spreads from its original seat, and embraces the whole of tht, arterial system, fevei is said to be present, and which usually increases in proportion as the locaJ disturbance increases, and subsides with it. INFLAIklMATION. Local inflammation is characterized by redness*, swelling, heat, and pain The redness proceeds from the increased quantity of blood flowing through the part, occasioned by the increased action of the vessels. The swelling arises from the same cause, and from the deposit of fluid in the neighbour, mg substance. The natural heat of the body is produced by the gradual change which takes place in the blood, in passing from an arterial to a venous state. If more blood be driven through the capillaries of an inflamed part, and in which this change is effected, more heat will necessarily be produced there ; and the pain is easily accounted for by the distension and pressure which must be produced, and the participation of the nerves in the disturbance of the surrounding parts. We have spoken of some of these local inflammations, and shall speak of others when describing the structure of the parts that are occasional!} attacked by them. The treatment will in some degree vary with the part attacked and the degree of the inflammation ; but it will necessarily include the following particulars. INFLAMMATION. i75 If inflammation consist of increased flow of blood lO and ihrougyi the part, tlie ready vvay to abate the inflammation is to lessen the quantity of blood. If we take away the fuel, the fire will go out. All other meaiusare comparatively unimportant compared with bleeding. Blood may be taken from the jugular, and so the general quantity may be lessened; but if u can be taken from the neighbourhood of the part, it will be productive of tenfold benefit. One quart of blood taken from the foot in acute founder by unloading the vessels of the inflamed part, and enabling them to contract, and, in that contraction, to acquire tone and power to resist the future dis- tension, will do more good than five quarts taken from the general circula- tion. An ounce of blood obtained by scarifying the swelled vessels of the inflamed eye, will give as much relief as a copious bleeding from the jugu- 'ar. It is a principle in the animal frame which should never be lost sight of by the veterinary surgeon, or the horseman, that if by bleeding the pro- cess of inflammation can be once checked, if it can be suspended but for a little while, although it may return, it never returns with the same degree of violence, and in many cases it is got rid of at once. Hence the neces- sity of bleeding early and bleeding largely, in inflammation of the lungs, or of the bowels, or of the brain, or of any important organ. Many horses are lost for want of bleeding, or from insufficient bleeding, but we never knew one materially injured by the most copious abstraction of blood in the early stage of acute inflammation. The horse will bear, and with advan- tage, the loss of an almost incredible quantity of blood. Four quarts taken from him will be comparatively little more than one pound taken from tlie human being. We can scarcely conceive a considerable inflammation of any part of the horse, either proceeding from sprains, contusions, or any other cause, in which bleeding, local (if possible) or general, or both, will not be of essential service. Next in importance to bleeding is purging. Something may be removed from the bowels, the retention of which would increase the general irrita- tion and fever; the blood will be materially lessened, for the quantity ot serous or watery fluid which is separated from it by a brisk purge, the action of which in the horse continues probably for more than twenty-foui hours, is enormous; and while the blood is thus determined to the bowels, less even of that which remains will flow through the inflamed part. When the circulation is directed to one set of vessels, it is proportionably dimin- ished in other parts. It was first directed to the inflamed parts, and they were overloaded and injured : it is now directed to the bowels, and the inflamed parts are relieved. While the purging continues, there is also some degree of languor and sickness felt, and the force of the circulation is thereby diminished, and the general excitement lessened. The farmer will, therefore, see the importance of physic in every case of considerable exter. nal inflammation. If the horse is laid by for a few days from injury of the foot, or sprain, or poll-evil, or wound, or almost any cause of inflammation, a physic ball should be given. In cases of internal inflammation, much judgment is required to deter- mine when a purgative may be beneficial or injurious. In inflammation of the lungs or bowels it should never be given. There is so strong a sym- pathy between the various contents of the cavity of the chest, tliat no one of them can be inflamed to any great extent, without all the others being disposed to become inflamed ; and, therefore, a dose of physic in inflamed lungs would be frequently as fatal as a dose of poison. The excitement produced on the bowels by the purgative will soon run on to inflammation! which no medical skill can stop. The means of abating external inflammation are various and seemingly 176 THE HORSE.. contradictory. The heat of the part very naturally and properly led to the application of cold embrocations and lotions. Heat has a strong tendency to equalize itself, or to leave that substance which has a too great quantity of it, or little capacity to retain it, for another which has less of it, or more capacity to retain it. Hence the advantage of cold applications, by wiiich d great deal of unnatural heat is speedily taken away from the inflamed part. The foot labouring under inflammation is put into cold water; or the horse is made to stand in water or wet clay, and various cold apj)lica. tions are used to sprains. The part is wetted with diluted vinegar or goulard, or salt and water. We believe that when benefit is derived from these applications, it is to be attributed to their coldness alone, and tliat water, and when especially cooled below the natural temperature, is quite as good as any thing else. An ounce of nitre, dissolved in a pint of water will lower the temperature of the fluid many degrees; but the lotion mu^i be applied immediately af er the salt has been dissolved ; and it should be applied in such a way that the inflamed part may be fully exposed to the process of evaporation. While the fluid is converted into vapour, by the heat of the skin, a considerable degree of cold is produced. Let the limb or the part have a full benefit of this, by being uncovered. A bandage may be afterwards applied to strengthen the limb, but during the continu- ance of active inflammation it will only confine the heat of the part, or pre- vent the part from benefitting by the salutary influence of the cold pro- duced by the evaporation of the water. Sometimes, however, we resort to warm fomentations, and if benefit be derived from their use, it is to be traced to the warmth of the fluid, and not to any medicinal property in it ; and warm water will do as much good to the horse who has so thick a skin, as a decoction of camomile, or marsh- mallow, or even poppy-heads, or any nostrum that the farrier may recom- mend. Fomentations increase the warmth of the skin, and open the pores of it, and promote perspiration, and so lessen the tension and swelling of the part, assuage pain, and relieve inflammation. Fomentations, to be use- ful, should be long and frequently employed, and at as great a degree of heat as can be used without giving the animal pain. Poultices are nothing but more permanent or longer-continued fomentations. The part is exposed to the influence of warmth and moisture for many hours or days without intermission, and perspiration being so long kept up, the distended vessels will be materially relieved. The advantage derived from a poultice is attributed to the heat and moisture, which, by means of it, can be long applied to the skin, and it should be composed of materials which will best afford this heat and moisture. The bran poultice of the farrier will there- fore be objectionable. It is never perfectly in contact with the skin, and it becomes nearly dry in a few hours, and then it is injurious. Linseed-meal is a much better material for a poultice ; it will remain moist for twenty-four hours. The poultice is easily made by pouring hot water on the meal, a little at a time, and moulding it well with the hand until the cataplasm attains its proper consistence. It is often very difficult to decide when a cold or hot application is to be used, and no general rule can laid be down, except that in cases of superficial inflammation, and in the early stage, cold lotions will be preferable ; but when the inflammation is deeper seated, or fully established, warm foment- ations may be most serviceal)le. Stimulating applications are frequently used in local inflammation. We have shown the action of a blister in hastening the suppuratina of the luinour of straigles. When the inflammation is deeply sef-ed, a stinii* FEVER. 177 laling application to the slvin will cause some irritation and inflainmulion there, and lessen or sometimes remove the original one ; hence the use oi* rowels and blisters in inflammation of the chest. Inflammation to a high degree cannot exist in parts so near to each other. If we excite it in one, we shall abate it in the other; and also by the discharge which we establish from the one, we shall lessen the determination of blood to the other. With one caution, we will dismiss this part of our subject: stimulating and blistering applications should never be applied to a part already inflamed : we shall not put out a fire by heaping more fuel upon it. Hence tlie miscliief which the farrier often does by rubbing his abominable oils on a recent sprain, hot and tender. Many a horse has been ruined by this absurd treatment. When the heat and tenderness have disappeared by the use of cold lotions or fomentations, and the leg or sprained part remains enlarged, or even bony matter threatens to be deposited, we may be justified in exciting inflammation of the skin, by a blister, in order to rouse the deeper seated absorbents to action, and enable them to take up this deposit ; but we would again state it, as a well-established principle, tliat, except to hasten the natural process and etTects of inflammation, a blister, or stimu- lating application, should, in the treatment of the horse, never be applied to a part already inflamed. FEVER. Fever is general increased arterial action, either without any local affec- tion, or in consequence of the sympathy of the system with inflammation in .some particular part. The first is pure fever. Some have denied that it exists in the horse, but they must have been strangely careless observers of the diseases of that animal. The truth of the matter is, that the usual stable management and general treatment of the horse are so al)surd, that various parts of him are rendered so liable to take on inflammation, that pure fever will exist but a very little time without degenerating into inflammation of these parts. The lungs are so weakened by the heated and foul air of the ill-ventilated stable, and by sudden changes from almost insufferable heat to intense cold, and the feet are so injured by hard usage and injudicious shoeing, that, sharing from the beginning in the general vascular excitement which characterizes fever, tliey soon become excited far beyond other portions of the frame ; and that which commenced as fever becomes inflammation of the lungs or feet. Pure fever, however, is sometimes seen, and runs its course as fever. It begins frequently with a cold or shivering fit, although this is not essential to fever. Tiie horse is dull, unwilling to move, with a sta/ing coat, and cold legs and feet. This is succeeded by warmth of the body ; unequal distribution of warmth to the legs; one hot, and tlie other three cold, or some unnaturally warm, and others unusually cold, although not the deathy coldness of inflammation of the lungs ; the pulse quick, soft, and often indis- tinct; breathing somewhat laborious; but no cough, or pawing, or looking at the flanks. The animal will scarcely eat, and is very costive. While tiie state of pure fever lasts, the shivering fit returns at nearly the same hour every day, and is succeeded by the warm one, and that, often, I)y a very sligiit sweating one ; and this goes on for several days until local inflamma- iion appears, or the fever gradually subsides. No horse ever died of pure rever ; if he is not destroyed by inflammation of the lungs or feet or bowels, »ucceeding to the fever, he gradually recovers. VVliat we have said of the treatment of local inflammation will suflRcicntly 178 THE HORSE. Indii a t) t4 wliich we snould recommend in fever. Fever is general increased action of tlie heart and arteries, and theiefore evidently appears the necessity for bleeding, regulating the quantity of blood taken by the degree of fever, and usually continuing to take it (the finger being kept on the artery) until some impression is made upon the system. The bowels should be gently opened ; but the danger of inflammation of the lungs, and the uniformly injurious consequence of purgation in that disease, will pre- vent the administration of an active purgative. One drachm and a half of aloes may be given morning and night, with the proper fever medicine, until tiie bowels are slightly i-elaxed ; after which, nothing more of an aperient quality should be administered. Digitalis, emetic tartar, and nitre, should be given morning and night, in proportions regulated by the circumstances of the case, and these should give way to white hellebore, in doses of half a drachm twice in the day, if symptoms of inflammation of the lungs should appear. The horse should be warmly clothed, but be placed in a cool and well-ventilated stable. ' Symptomatic fever is generally increased arterial action, proceeding from some local cause. No organ of consequence can be long disordered or inflamed without the neighbouring parts being disturbed, and the whole system gradually participating in the disturbance. Inflammation of the feet or of the lungs never existed long as to any material extent, without being accompanied by some degree of fever. The treatment of symptomatic fever should resemble that of simple fever, except that particular attention should be paid to the state of the part ori- ginally diseased. If the inflammation which existed there can be subdued, the general disturbance will usually cease. The arteries terminate occasionally in openings on difl'erent surfaces of the body. On the skin they pour out the perspiration, and on the diOerent cavities of the frame they yield the moisture which prevents friction. In other parts they terminate in glands, in which a fluid essentially ditTerenl from the blood is secreted or separated from it : such are the parotid and salivary glands, the kidneys, the spleen, and the various organs or labora- tories which provide so many and such difl'erent secretions for the multi- farious purposes of lifej but the usual termination of arteries is in veins. THE VEINS. These vessels carry back to the heart the blood which had been con- veyed to the different parts by the arteries. They have but two coats, a muscular and a membranous ; both of them are thin, and comparatively weak. They are more numerous and much larger than the arteries, and consequently the blood, lessened in quantity by the various secretions sepa- rated from it, flows more slowly through them. It is forced on partly by the first impulse communicated to it by the heart; partly, in the extremities and external portions of the frame, by the pressure of the muscles ; and in the cavity of the chest its motion is assisted or principally caused by the sudden opening of the ventricles of the heart, after they have closed upon and driven out their contents, and thereby causing a vacuum which the olood rushes on to fill. There are curious valves in the veins which pre- vent the blood from flowing backward. BOG AND BLOOD-SPAVIN. The veins of the horse, although their coats are thin, compared with those of the arteries are not subject to the enlargements (varicose vems) BLEEDING ) - '» which are so frequent, and often so painful, in thf legs of the human oeirig The legs of the horse may exhibit many of the injurious consequences o> hard work, but the veins will, with one exception, be unaltered in structure Attached to the extremities of most of the tendons, and between the tendonf and other parts, are little bags, containing a mucous substance, to enable the tendons to slide over each other without friction, and to move easily on the neighbouring parts. From violent exercise, these little bags are liable to enlarge, Windgalls and thoroughpins are instances of this. There is one of them on the inside of the hock at the bending : this sometimes becomes considerably increased in size, and the enlargement is called a bog- spavin. A vein passes over this bag, which is pressed between the enlarge- ment and the skin, and the passage of the blood through it is impeded ; the vein is, consequently, distended by the accumulated blood, and the distension reaches from this bag as low down as the next valve. This is called a blood-spavin. Blood-spavin then is the consequence of bog- spavin. It very rarely occurs, and is, in the majority of instances, con- founded with bog-spavin. Blood-spavin does not always cause lameness, except the horse is very hard worked, and then it is doubtful whether the lameness should not be attributed to the enlarged mucous bag, rather than to the distended vein. Both of these diseases, however, render a horse unsound, aad materially lessen his value. Old farriers used to tie the vein, and so cut off altogether the flow of the blood. Some of them, a little more rational, used to dissect out the bag which caused the distension of the vein: but the modern and more prudent way is to endeavour to promote the absorption of the contents of the bag. This may be attempted by pressure long applied. A bandage may be con- trived to take in the whole of the hock, except its point ; and a compress made of folded linen being placed on the bog-spavin, may confine the prin- cipal pressure to that part. It is, however, very difficult to adapt a bandage to a joint which admits of such extensive motion ; therefore, most practition- ers apply two or three successive blisters over the enlargement, when it usually disappears ; but unfortunately it returns again if any extraordinary exertion is required from the horse. Of the wounds of veins, and their consequent inflammation, we have spoken when describing the veins of the neck. The veins are selected in preference to the arteries for the purpose of bleeding, because they are more superficial and larger, and blood can be more easily and certainly procured from them, and the flow of blood be more easily stopped. BLEEDING. This operation is performed with a fleam or a lancet. The first is the common instrument, and the safest, except in skilful hands. The lancet, however, has a more surgical appearance, and will be adopted by the vete- rinary practitioner. A bloodstick, a piece of hard wood, loaded at one end with lead, is used to strike the fleam into the vein. This is sometimes done with too great violence, and the opposite side of the coat of the vein is wounded. Bad cases of inflammation have resulted from this. If the fist be doubled, and the fleam is sharp, and struck with sufficient force w.th tiie lower part of the hand, the bloodstick may be dispensed with. For general bleeding, the jugular vein is selected. The horse is blind, folded on the side on which he is to be bled, or his head turned well away; the hair is smoothed along the course of the vein with the moistened finger : then with the third and little fingers of the left hand, which holds ' 60 THE HORSE. the fieam, pressure is made on the vein sufficient to bring it fairly into view, but not to swell it too much, for then, presenting a rounded surface, ii would be apt to roll or slip under the blow. The point to be selected is about two inclies below the union of the two portions of the jugular at the angle of the jaw (see cut, p. 119). The fleam is to be placed in a direct line with the course of the vein, and over the precise centre of the vein, as close to it as possible, but its point not absolutely touching the vein. , A sharp rap with the bloodstick or the hand on that part of the back of the fleam immediately over the blade, will cut through the vein, and the blood ^vill flow. A fleam with a large blade should always be preferred, for the operation will be materially sliortened, wliich will be a matter of some con- sequence with a restive horse ; and a quantity of blood drawn speedily will have far more effect on the system than double the weight slowly taken ; while the wound will heal just as readily as if made by a smaller instru- ment. There is no occasion to press so hard against the neck with the pail x)r can as some do: a slight pressure, if the incision has been large enough, and straight, and in the middle of the vein, will cause the blood to flow sufficiently fast; or, the finger being introduced into the mouth, between the tushes and the grinders, and gently moved about, will keep the mouth in motion, and hasten the rapidity of the stream by the action and pressure of the neighbouring muscles. When sufficient blood has been taken, the edges of the wound should be brought closely and exactly together, and kept together by a small, sharp pin being passed through them. Round this a little tow, or a few hairs from the mane of the horse, should be wrapped, so as to cover the whole of the incision ; and the head of the horse should be tied up for several hours, to prevent his rubbing the part against the manger. In bringing the edges of the Wound together, and introducing the pin, care should be taken not to draw the skin too much from the neck, as blood will insinuate itself between the skin and the muscles beneath, and cause an unsightly and sometimes troublesome swelling. The blood should be received into a vessel, the dimensions of which are exactly known, so that the operator may be able to calculate at every period of the bleeding the quantity that is subtracted. Care likewise should be taken that the blood flow in a regular stream into the centre of the vessel ; for if it be suffered to trickle down the sides, it will not afterwards undergo those changes by which we partially judge of the extent of inflammation. The pulse, however, and the symptoms of the case collectively, will form a better criterion than any change in the blood. Twenty-four hours after the operation, the edges of the wound will hava united, and the pin should be withdrawn. When the bleeding is to be repealed, if more than three or four hours have elapsed, it will be more prudent to make a fresh incision rather than to open the old wound. Few directions are necessary for the use of the lancet. They who are competent to operate with it, will scarcely require any. If the point be sufficiently sharp, the lancet can scarcely be too 'broad-shouldered ; and an abscess-lancet will generally make a freer incision than that in common use. A spring-lancet has lately been invented, by which any one may bleed from the jugular, or from a smaller vein, safely and certainly. Whatever instru- ment be adopted, too much care cannot be taken to have it perfectly clean and very sharp. It should always be carefully wiped and dried immedj ately after the operation ; otherwise, in a very short time, the edges wiU begin to corrode. For general bleeding, the jugular vein is selected, as the largest super- ficial vein, and the most easily got at. In every affection of I'le heai. THE LUNGS. \ 1 and in cases of fever or extended inflammatory action, it is decidedly tlie best place for bleeding. In local inflammation blood may be takei' from any of the superficial veins. In supposed atiections of the slioulder, or of tlie fore-leg or foot, the p/ate vein, wliich comes from the inside of the arm, and runs upwards directly in front of it towards the jugular may be opened. In atiections of the hinder extremity, blood is some times abstracted from the saplmna, or thigh-vein, wliich runs across the inside of the thigh. In foot cases it may be taick-wind, liroken-wind, and chronic cough are its occasional consequences; and likewise, as the disease has affected so great a portion of the air-passages, a peculiar liability to cold and cough, and, not unfrequently, an unpleasant and troublesome discharge from the nose will remain. Of the latter we have spoken under the title of na^al gket, p. 121 ; the others will presently come under con- sideration. The farmer will not forget the infectious nature of this disease, and will immediately separate the sick animal from his companions. 7^he disease with which catarrhal fever is most likely to be confounded is inflammation of the lungs ; and as the treatment of the two is in some particulars so different, the farmer should be enabled readily to distinguish between them. If a little care be used, this will not be diflicult. The febrile character of the pulse ; the early discharge from the nose ; the want of intense redness in the lining of the nose ; the frequent and painful cough ; the enlargement of the glands, and soreness of the throat ; the rapid loss of strength, the sometimes constant, and at others variable warmth of the legs; the restiveness and pawing, will sufficiently distin- guish catarrhal fever from the oppressed pulse, red nostril, heaving flank, little cough, fixedness of limbs, and coldness of the extremities, which accompany and characterize inflammation of the lungs. THE MALIGNANT EPIDEMIC. This commences with nearly the same symptoms as catarrhal fever; it probably at the beginning is catarrhal fever, but more than usually violent, and sooner exhausting the powers of the frame. Its symptoms are rapid loss of strength, offensive breath, fetid discharge from the nostrils, all the evacuations becoming highly offensive, the pulse rapid, small and weak, and the animal obstinately refusing to eat. It soon runs its course. Gangrene soon succeeds to inflammation, and rapidly spreads from the part first inflamed through the whole of the cellular substance, and over every portion of the frame. When veterinary science was in its infancy, this pest used periodically to appear, and carry 192 THE HORSE. ofi* hundreds of horses; and that breeder is fortunate, who dors not r.oM isonietimes sullcr from its ravages. Tlie treatment of it is very unsatis- factory. The prevention may be a little more in our power, by cndcav- curing to get rid of the previous disease by one bleeding, when, in some seasons, catarrhal fever appears under a form more than usually violent; and by bleeding with extreme caution, or not bleeding at all, when debility begins to appear. A mild purgative may be first administered to carry off a portion of the offensive matter contained in the bowels ; after which, chalk, and ginger, and opium, and gentian, and columbo, with port-wine, may be plentifully given, with green meat, or thick-gruel ; but except the hor.se be valuable, the chance of saving him is so slight, and probably the danger of spreading the pest so great, that prudence will prompt his destruction. Most frequent in occurrence among the consequences of catarrhal fever, and inflammation of the lungs, is CHRONIC COUGH. It would occupy more space than we can devote to this part of our subject, to speak of all the causes of obstinate cough. The irritability of so great a portion of the air-passagqs, occasioned by previous and violent inflam- mation of them, is the most frequent. It is sometimes connected with worms. There is much sympathy between the lungs and the intestines, and the one very readily participates in the irritation produced in the other. That it is caused by glanders, can be easily imagined, because that disease is, in its early stage, seated in or near the principal air-passages, and little time passes before the lungs become affected. It is the necessary attendant of thick-wind and broken-wind, for these proceed from alterations of the structure of the lungs. Notwithstanding the clearness of the cause, the cure is not so evident. If a harsh, hollow cough be accompanied bv a staring coat, and the appearance of worms, a few worm-balls may expel these parasites, and remove the irritation of the intestinal canal. If it proceed from irritability of the air-passages, which will be discovered by the horse coughing after drinking, or when he first goes out of the stable in the morning, or by his occasional throwing out thick mucus irom the nose, medicine may be given, and sometimes with advantage, to diminish irritation generally. Half-doses of the digitalis, emetic tartar, and nitre, given every night, have had a very beneficial effect, especially when made up with tar, which seems to have a powerful influence in allaying these irritations. These balls should be regularly given for a considerable time. They are sufficiently powerful to quiet slight excitement of this kind, but not to nauseate the horse, or iiiterfere in the slightest degree with his food or his wcrk. A blister, extending from the root of one ear to that of the other, f^Aing in the whole of the channel, and reaching six or eight inches down the wind- pipe, has been tried, and not without good effect, on the supposition that the irritation may exist in the fauces or the larynx ; and the blister has sometimes been extended through the whole course of the windpipe, until it enters the chest. Feeding has much influence on this complaint. Too much dry meat, and especially chaff, increases it. It is aggravated when the horse is suffered to eat his litter; and it is often relieved when spring tares are given. Carrots afford decided relief. The seat of the disease, however, is so uncertain, and all our means and 'aiipliancos, so ineflicacious, and the cough itself so little interfering, and THICK-WIXD. 193 Bometimes interfering not at all with the health of the animal, that it is scarcely wortli wliile to persevere in any mode of treatment that is not evidently attended with speedy benefit. The principal consideration to induce us to meddle at all with chronic cough is the knowledge that horses afllicted with it are more liable than others to be aflected by ciianges of temperature, and that inflammation of the lungs, or of the respiratory pas- sages, often assumes in them a very alarming character; to which, perhaps we may add, that a iiorsc witii a chronic cough cannot legally or properly be warranted sound. When chronic cough chiefly occurs after eating, the seat of the disease is evidently in the substance of the lungs. The stomach, distended w.th food, presses upon tiie diaphragm, and the diaphragm upon the lungs; aid the lungs, already labouring under some congestion, are less capable of transmitting the air. In the violent effort to discharge their function, irritation is produced ; and the act of coughing is the consequence of that irritation. This is allied with, or soon runs into. THICK-WIND. Thick-wind consists in short, frequent, and laborious breathing, and especially when the animal is in exercise ; the inspirations and expirations often succeeding each other so rajiidly as evidently to express distress, and occasionally almost to tiireaten suffocation. Some degree of it frequently exists in round-chested and fat horses, that have little or no breeding. The reason of this is sufliciently plain. The circular chest affords sufficient room for the expansion of the lungs when the animal is at rest, and suffi- cient room for the accumulation of a great deal of fat and flesh ; but when the horse is strongly exercised, the circulation of the blood is hurried, and its change from arterial to venous, or from vital to empoisoned blood, is more rapid. The circular chest cannot tlien enlarge to any great degree : yet the blood must be purified in greater quantity, and therefore what cannot be done by increase of surface, must be accomplished by frequency of action. Heavy draught-horses are invariably thick-winded, and so are almost all horses violently exercised on a full stomach. A horse labouring under any inflammatory affection of the lungs is thick- winded, because the pain which he feels in the act of breathing will not permit him to respire deeply, and theref3re he must breathe quickly. A horse unused to exercise is thick-winded, because the lungs will not soon ucconnnodate themselves to a new and laborious action. The principal cause, however, of thick-wind is previous inflammation, and particularly inflammation of the bronchial passages. The throwing out of some fluid, which is capable of coagulation, is the result, or the natural termination of inflammation. This deposit in the substance of the lungs, or in the bronchial tubes, from inflammation of these organs, must close many of the air-cells, and lessen the dimensions of others. Then, if the 3ells, fewer in number and contracted in size, be left for the purposes of breathing, the rapid and laborious action of the lungs must supply the deficiency, and especially when the animal is put in that state in which he requires a rapid change of blood. The examination of thick-winded horses has thrown considerable lighten the nature of the disease. In the majority of instances, some of the small dir-cells have been found filled up with a dense substance of a blue or da'-ker colour. In others, the minute passages leading to the cells have been diminished, and almost obliterated, the linings of these passages being unnaturally thickened, or coveted with hardened mucus, and wher^ 194 THE HORSE. neithc r of these appearances could be observed, the lining >f the cells: has exhibited evident marks of inflammation, so tliat absolute pain prevented the full expansion or contraction of the lungs. Thick-wind is often the forerunner of broken-wind. It is easy to under- stand this: for if so much labour is necessary to contract the air-cells, and to force out the wind, and the lungs work so rapidly and so violently in effecting this, some of the cells, weakened by disease, will probably be runtured. IJf the treatment of thick-wind we have little to say. Attention to diet, and the prevention of the overloading of the stomach, and the avoidance of exercise soon after a meal, may in some degree palliate the disease, and so may constant exercise, carried to the extent of the horse's power, without- too much distressing him. The capability of exertion will thus daily improve, and the breathing of the horse will become freer and deeper. This is the process of training the horse either for the chase or the course; and this constitutes all the difference between a horse that has been well and one that has been badly trained. BROKEX-WIND. This is easily distinguished from thick-wind. In thick-wind the breathing is rapid and laborious, but the inspiration and expiration are equally so, and occupy precisely the same time. In broken-wind the inspiration is per- formed by one effort; the expiration by two, which is plainly to be uis- tinguished by observing the flanks, and which occupies double the time The reason of this may be easily stated. Broken-wind is the rupture or run ning together of some of the air-cells. Wh(;n the lungs are expanded, the air will rush in easily enough, and one effort of the muscles of respiration is sufficient for the purpose ; but when these cells have run into each other, the cavity is so irregular, and contains so many corners and blind pouches, that it is exceedingly diflicult to force it out again, and Uvo efforts are scarcely competent fully to effect it. This disease is also accompanied by a dry and husky cough of a peculiar sound, which cannot easily be described, but it is recognised by every one accustomed to horses. It is the consequence of thick-wind, and of those alterations of structure consequent on inflammation. If a portion of the lung be lost to the animal, and the same quantity of pure blood must be supplied, while there is not the same surface to supply it, it is easy to sup- pose, that, in the violent efforts which such a horse is compelled to make, some of the cells may be broken. Broken wind may, however, occur without much previous disease. Sup- pose a horse to be a gross feeder, and to have filled his stomach with straw and hay, and provender that occupies a great bulk, and contains little nour- ishment, the lungs are squeezed into a less than the natural compass. Let the horse be now suddenly and smartly exercised ; more blood must be purified, and in the violent eflTort to accomplish this, some of the cells give way. Therefore we do not find broken-winded horses on the race-course; for although every exertion of speed is required from them, their food lies in small compass, and the stomach is not distended, and the lungs have room to play, and care is taken that their exertion shall be required when the stomach is nearly empty. Cari-iage and coach-horses are seldom broken-winded, unless they bring the drsease to their work; for they, tu^, live principally on corn, and their work is regular, and care- is taken that they shall not be fed immediately before their woi'k. The majority of horses thus affected come from the stables of those for .vhose use these BROKEN-WIND. J J).*, pages are principally designed. The farmer's horse is the broiien-w.nded horse, because that on wliich he is fed is bulky, and too often selected on account of its cheapness; because there is little regularity in the .nanage- ment of most of the farmers' stables, or the work of his teams ; and because after many an iiour's fasting the horses are often suffered to gorge them- nelves with this bulky food ; and then, with the stomach pressing upon the lungs, and almost impeding ordinary respiration, they are put again to work, and sometimes to that which requires considerable exertion. A profitable lesson may be learned from this statement. The farmer perhaps may contrive to give his horses a little more corn, and a little less hay, and straw, and chaff, without much additional expense; he may con- trive, too, to shorten the period of fasting, and therefore prevent the raven- ous manner in which agricultural horses often feed ; and more regularity may take place between the periods of feeding and of work. We have recommended the nose bag as a preventive of stomach-staggers; we can as earnestly recommend it as a preventive of broken-wind. This "disease depends as much upon the cramped state of the lungs, from the pressure of an overgorged stomach in the ordinary state of the animal, as on the effects of over-exertion. The agriculturist knows that many a horse becomes broken- winded in the straw-yard. There is little nutriment in the provender which he there finds, and to obtain enough for the support of life, he is compelled to keep the stomach constantly full, and pressing upon tlie lungs. Some have come up from grass broken-winded that went out perfectly sound. The explanation of this case is the same. The stomach was habitually gorged with coarse and innutritive herbage, and its pressure on the lungs cramped and confined their action, and produced those violent efforts which burst some of the air-cells, and especially when in their gambols in the straw-yard or the field, or sometimes being wantonly driven about, the lungs were suddenly called upon to perform extraordinary work. There are difficulties attending this explanation of the disease, but it cannot be denied that the dissection of the horses which had broken-wind has almost invariably presented these enlarged air-cells, one of which would occupy the space of a great many of their natural dimensions. The cure of a broken-winded horse no one ever witnessed ; yet nmch may be done in the way of palliation. The food of the animal should consist of much nutriment condensed into a small compass; tb*^ quantity of oats should be increased, and that of hay proportionably dimini'ihed ; the bowels should be gently relaxed by the frequent use of mashes ; the water should be given sparingly ctirough the day, although at night the thirst of the animal should be fully satisfied ; and exercise should never be taken when the stomach is full. It will scarcely be believed how much relief these simple measures will afford to a broken-winded horse, and of how much exertion he may be gradually rendered capable. Some treated on this plan have even been hunted, and have acquitted themselves well in the field. Carrots are very useful to the broken-winded horse, not only as containing much nutriment and considerable moisture, so that less water may be required, but from some property which they possess rendering them beneficial in every chest affection. A broken-winded horse turned out to grass will never improve, on account of the almost constant disten- sions of the stomach; but he may be fed on more succulent substances, as turnips and mangel-wurzel, with evident advantage. They are easy of digestion, and they soon pass out of the stomach. Medical treatment is of little avail, except that organs so violently excited as the lungs of broken- winded horses frequently are, must be subject to vnflammation, and the difficulty of breathing in these horses is sometimes {96 THE HORSE. sadly increased. A little blood may then be subtracted ; and other tneaus taken wliich have been recommended for inflammatory affections of the chest. In cases of frequent or periodical returns of difliculty of breathing, to which these horses are very subject, a course of mild aperients, united with mercury, iiave been given with decided advantage. Two draciims of aloes, and one of calomel, may be given twice in the week. The barbarous practice of some farriers of making holes near the anus, and sometimes in other parts, to let out the broken wind, cannot be too strongly reprobated. Thick-wind and broken-wind exist in various degrees, and many shades of difference. Dealers and horsemen generally have characterized them by names that can boast po elegance, but are considerably expressive of •he state of the animal. Our readers should not be ignorant of them. Soine horses make a shrill noise when in quick action; they are said to be PiPEKS. This is a species oi' Roaring. There is usually a ring of coagu- lated matter round the inside of the windpipe, by which the cavity is materially diminished, and the sound produced in quicic breathing must evidently be shriller. Sometimes the piping is produced by a contraction of the small passages of the lungs. The Wheezer utters a sound not unlike that of an asthmatic person when a little hurried. This is a kind of thick-wind, and is caused by the lodgment of some n^iucous fluid in the small passages of the lungs. It frequently accompanies bronchitis. Wheezing can be heard at all times, even when the horse is at rest in the stable ; roaring is confined to the increased breathing of considerable exertion. The Whistler utters a shriller sound than a wheezei, but only when in exercise, and that of continuance. A sudden motion will not always pro- duce it. It seems to be referable to some contraction in the windpipe or the larynx. The sound is a great nuisance to the rider, and the whistler very speedily becomes distressed. A sharp gallop up hill will speedily detect the whistler. When the obstruction seems to be principally in the nose, the horse loudly puffs and blows, and the nostrils are dilated to the utmost, while the flanks are comparatively quiet. This animal is said to be a High-blower. With all his apparent distress, he often possesses great speed and endurance. The sound is unpleasant, but the lungs may be perfectly sound. Every horse violently exercised on a full stomach, or when overloaded with fat, will grunt very much like a hog. The pressure of the stomach on the lungs, or that of the fat accumulated about the heart, will so much impede the breathing, that the act of forcible expiration will be accompanied by this kind of sound; but there are some horses who will at all times utter this sound, if suddenly touched with the whip or spur. They are called Grunters, and should be avoided. There is some altered structure of the lungs, which prevents them from suddenly accommodating them selves to unexpected demand for exertion. It is the consequence of pre vious disease, and is frequently followed by thick or broken wind, or roarinsr. THE DIAPHRAGM. 197 CHAPTER XI. THE BELLY AND ITS CONTENTS THE DIAPHRAGM. The chest is separated from the abdomen or belly, by the diaphragm oi midritr, which extends obliquely from tho loins to the breast-bone. In it3 natural state it is convex, or projecting forward towards the lungs, and concave or hollow backward towards the stomach and intestines. On the side towards the chest it is covered by the membrane which invests the lungs, and towards the belly by that which covers the intestines. It is attached to the spine, the ribs, and the breast-bone, by tendinous or fleshy expansions, and in the centre it is composed of strong muscular fibres : it is one of the most important muscles of the frame ; and is, as we have de- scribed it, tlie principal agent in breathing. When it acts, its fibres are shortened ; it loses its convexity, and becomes plane ; the chest is thereby enlarged, and the lungs enlarge with the expansion of the cavity in which they are placed ; and air rushes in, and inspiration is performed. When the fibres of the diaphragm cease to act, that muscle returns to its natural form; it becomes again convex; it presses upon the lungs, and helps to force out the air, and expiration is accomplished. It assists likewise in the natural constant motion of the bowels, and lends its powerful aid in the expulsion of the dung and urine, and in the birth of the young animal : it is most concerned in coughing, yawning, sighing, &c. The membrane which covers the diaphragm is very subject to inflammation. Whether the ori- ginal seat of disease be in the lungs or the bowels, the diaphragm soon becomes inflamed and irritable, which accounts for the breathing of the horse being so much afiected under every inflammation of the chest or belly. The diaphragm is likewise occasionally ruptured, principally from violent exertion. It has so much to do in the act of breathing, that it is not to be wondered if, when the respiration is exceedingly hurried, this muscle should give way. The symptoms of ruptured diaphragm are very obscure: there are none on which we can perfectly depend. This, however, is a matter of little consequence, for it is uniformly fatal. If the rupture be small, some portion of the intestine insinuates itself, and becomes entangled, and the passage is incurably obstructed ; and if the aperture be large, so much of the intestine passes through as to press upon the lungs, and render breathing impossible. Three large vessels pass through the diaphragm : the great artery which conveys the blood from the heart to the hinder part of the frame, and which goes through a kind of division of the diaphragm, so that it cannot be pressed upon ; the great vein carrying the blood from the hinder parts and the liver to the heart, and which penetrates the firm tendinous part of the diaphragm so as likewise to be preserved from pressure; and the gullet, which passes through the most fleshy portion of the diaphragm, and is liable to be compressed by the constant action of this muscle, which, however, is a matter of little consequence, fov there is sufficient power in the muscles of the gullet to propel the food through the diaphragm into the stomach. igg THE HORSE. Tlie gullet, as will be more particularly described in what follows, lernii- nates in THE STOMACH. Which is found on the left side of the belly, lying upon the large; intestines, its fore part close to the liver, and its left side in contact with the diaphragm. This situation of the stomach will at once explain the reason why a horse is so much distressed, and sometimes irreparably injured, if worked hard immediately after a full meal. The stomach must be displaced and driven back in the belly by every contraction of the diaphragm or act of inspira- tion ; then in proportion to the fullness of the stomach will be the weigiit to be overcome, and the labour of the diaphragm, and the exhaustion of the animal. If the stomach be much distended, it may be too weighty to be forced sufficiently far back to make room for the quantity of air which the animal in a state of exertion requires. Hence the frequency and labour ©f the breath, and the quickness with which such a horse is blown, or, pos- sibly, destroyed. Hence the folly of giving too full a meal, or too much water, before the horse starts on a journey or for the chase; and hence, likewise, the absurdity and danger of that unpardonable custom of some grooms to gallop the horse after his drink, in order to warm it in his belly, and prevent gripes. The horse was destined to be the servant of man, and to serve him at ah hours, and whether fasting or full : it would seem, therefore, that to lessen the inconvenience or danger of the pressure of the stomach on the diaphragm, a smaller stomach, in proportion to liis size, is given to the horse than to almost any other animal. The bulk of the horse, and the services required of him, "demand much nutriment; and his nutriment is of such a nature that it must occupy a very considerable space, yet his stomach, com- pared with his bulk, is not half so large as that of the human being; and, therefore, although he, like every other animal, feels inconvenience from great exertion immediately after a full meal, he feels not so much as other animals; for his stomach is small, and a great proportion of what he eats rapidly passes through it, and descends to a part of the intestines distant from the diaphragm, and where the existence and pressure of the food cannot cause him any annoyance. The orifice by which the gullet enters the stomach is called the cardiac, h, from its nearness to the heart, or sympathy with it. It is constantly closed by strong muscular fibres, except when food is passing into the stomach. It is the construction of the soft palate, however, as has been already described, and not this closing of this cardiac orifice of the stomach, that chiefly prevents the act of VQiiiiting in the horse. The stomach has four coats. The outermost is the lining of the cavity of the belly, and the common covering of all the intestines; by which tliey are all confined in their respective situations, and from which a fluid is given out, which prevents all friction between them. This is called tlie peritoneum, or that which stretches round. The second is the muscular coat, consisting of two layers of fibres — one running lengthways and the other circularly — and by means of wliich a constant gentle motion is communicated to the stomach, by which the food is more thoroughly mixed together and prepared for digestion, and by the pressure of which also the food, when properly prepared, is puslied on into the intestines. The third, or cuticular, (skin-like coal,) c, covers but a lortion of the inside of the stomach. It is a continuation of the lining of the guile'. THE STOMACH. 199 rhjre are numerous glands on it, which pour out a mucous fluid; and it is, probably, intended to be a reservoir, in which a portion of the food is retained for a while, and softened, and better prepared for the action of the other or true digestive portion of the stomach. The cuticular coat occupies nearly one-half of the inside of the stomach. The fourth coat is the mucous or villous (velvet) coat, e, where the work of digestion properly commences. The mouths of numerous little vessels open upon it, pouring out a peculiar fluid, the gastric (stomach) juice, which mixes with the food already softened, and converts it into a fluid, called chyme. As this is formed, it passes out of the other orifice of the stomacii, the pyloric, (a door to guard,) f, and enters the first small intes- tine ; the harder and undissolved parts being turned back, to undergo further action. CUT OF THE STOMACH. « The esophag-us or g-ullet, extending' to the stomach. b The entrance of the g-ullet into the stomach. The circular layers of the muscles arc very thick and strong, and which, by their contractions, help to render it difBcu)' for the food to be returned or vomited. c The portion of the stomach which is covered by cuticle or insensible skin. ddThe margin which separates the cuticular from the villous portion. ee The mucous or villous (velvet) portion of the stomach, in which the food is princi- pally digested. / The communication between the stomach and the first intestine. g The common orifice through which the bile and the secretion from tne pancreas pasa into the first intestine. The two pins mark the two tubes here united. k A smaller orifice, through which a portion of the secretion of the pancreas enters the intestines. The stomach of the horse being small, this wonderful change which is effected in the food, and the nature of which has never been thoroughly understood, proceeds very rapidly. The horse, in a short time, will cat a great deal more than the stomach will hold, and room can only be made for the reception of the fresh food by that which had been previously received being discharged through the pyloric orifice. Of one disease of the stomach, arising from over-distension, stomach- staggers, we have already spoken. In a few instances, the stomacii ha* 200 ■ THE HORSE. been known .0 be distended with air, but there are no characteristic symp- toms by whicli tliis may be distinguished from distension by food, and the treatment would be the same. Of inniunmation of the stomach in the horse, except from poisonous herbs or drugs, we know little. It very rarely occurs, and then can with difficulty be distinguished from inflammation of the bowels, and in both diseases the assistance of a skilful veterinary surgeon is required Few horses are destroyed by the poisonous plants in our meadows. Natural instinct teaches them to avoid those which would be injurious. More are destroyed by the leaves of the yew than by any other vegetable poison. A sleepiness, from which the animal can scarcely be roused, steals over him, and he dies without any symptom of pain. Ten grains of the fai'ina of the croton-nut should be given as soon as the poisoning is suspected; he should be drenched largely with equal pans of vinegar and thin gruel, and the croton repeated in six hours, if it has not previously operated. The Waler Dropwort, common in ditches and marshy places, is generally refused by horses; but brood-mares, with appetite somewhat vitiated from being in foal, have been destroyed by it. The antidote would be vinegar and gruel, and bleeding, if there be inflammation. The Water Parsley deserves not all the bad reputation it has acquired, although, when eaten in too great quantities, it has produced palsy in the horse, and which has been strangely attributed to a harmless beetle that inhabits the stem. Of the Common Hemlock and the Water Hemlock we know no harm, so far as the horse is concerned. We have repeatedly seen him eat the latter without bad effects, but cows have been poisoned by it. Of the mineral poisons we will mention only two. Arsenic was formerly celebrated as a tonic and a destroyer of worms in the horse ; and doses sufK- cient to kill three or four men used to be daily administered, and generally with impunity; the dose has. however, in some cases, been too strong, and the animal has died. There are better tonics and vermifuges, and the drug will probably soon be discarded from veterinary practice. Corrosive subli- mate is given internally, and often with advantage in farcy. It is used externally to destroy vermin, to cure mange, and dispose deep and fistulous ulcers to heal. The symptoms of an overdose of either are loss of appetite, discharge of saliva from the mouth, pawing, looking eagerly at the flanks, rolling, profuse perspiration, thready pulse, rapid weakness, violent purging and straining, convulsions, and death. The stomach will be found intensely inflamed, with patches of yet greater inflammation. The whole course of the intestine will be inflamed, with particular parts black and gangrenous. The antidote, if it be not too late to administer it, would be, for arsenic, lime-water, or chalk and water, or soap and water, given in great quantities with the stomach-pump; and for corrosive sublimate, the white of eggs, mixed with water, or thick starch, or arrow-root. If the poisoning be mali- cious, arsenic m;iy be most readily detected by mixing a little of the fluid taken from the intestines with a weak solution of blue vitriol, to which a little hartshorn has been added, the mixture will gradually become green ; or, if a little of the more solid contents of the stomach or small intestines be thrown on a red-hot iron, a smell of garlic will be perceived. For corrosive sublimate, there is a simpler test. Place a drop of the sus- pected fluid on a sovereign, let the stem of a small key touch the sovereign, v/hile the handle is brought into contact with the drop, and the gold BOTS. 20 1 will immediately be stained ; or mix a little of the suspected fluid with lime-water, and the corrosive sublimate, if there be any, will be thrown to the bottom, of an orange colour ; or, if hartshorn be used, the precipi- tate will be white. BOTS. In the spnng and early part of the summer, horses are much troubled by a grub or caterpillar, which crawls out of the anus, fastens itself under the tail, and seems to cause a great deal of itching or uneasiness. Grooms are sometimes alarmed at the appearance of tiiese insects. Their history is curious, and will dispel every fear in regard to them. We are indebted to Mr. Bracey Clark for almost all we know of the bot. a The cg-g-s of the gad-fly, adhering- to the hair of the horse. 6 The same, enlarged. c Tlie appearance of the bots on the stomach, firmly adhering- by their hocked mouths. The marks or depressions are seen which are left on the coat of iho- stomach when the bots are detached from their hold. d The bot detached. e The female of the gad-fly, of the horse, prepared to deposit her eg-gs. f The g-ad-fly by which the red bots are produced. g The smaller or red bot. A species of gad-fly, e, (the oestrus equi,) is m the latter part of the- summer exceedingly busy about the horse. They are observed to be dart- ing with great rapidity towards the knees and sides of the animal. The females are depositing their eggs on the hair, and which adhere to it by nn>ans of a glutinous fluid by which they are surrounded, a and b. In a k\v days the eggs are ready to be hatched, and the slightest application of warmth and moisture will liberate the little animals wliich they contain. The horse in licking himself touches the egg, it bursts, and a small worm escapes, which adheres to the tongue, and is conveyed with the food into the stomach ; there it clings, by means of a hook on either side of its mouth, to the cuticular portion of the stomach, c; and its hold is so firm and so obstinate, that it will be broken before it will be detached. Ii remains feeding there on the mucus of the stomach during '.he whole of ♦he winter and to the end of the ensuing spring; when, having attained n O 202 THE HORSE. considerable size, d, and being destined to undergo a certain transformation, it disengages itself from the cuticular coat, is carried into the villous portion of the stomach with the food, passes out of it with the chyme, and is linallv evacuated with the dung. The lan^a or maggot being thus thrown out, seeks shelter in the ground, contracts in size, and becomes a chrysalis or grub; in which state it lies inactive for a few weeks; and then, bursting from its confinement, assumes the form of a fly. The female, becoming impregnated, quickly deposits he> eggs on those parts of the horse which lie is most likely to lick, and so tb'^ species is perpetuated. There are several plain conclusions from this history. The bots cannot, while they inhabit the stomach of the horse, give the animal any pain, tor they are fastened on the cuticular or insensible coat. They cannot stimu- late the stomach, and increase its digestive power, for they are not on the digestive portion of the stomach. They cannot, by their roughness, assist the trituration or rubbing down of the food, for no such office is performed in that part of the stomach : the food is softened, not rubbed down. They cannot be injurious to the horse, for he enjoys the most perfect health when the cuticular part of his stomach is filled with them, and their pres- ence is not even suspected until they appear at the anus. They cannol be removed by medicine, because they are not in that part of the stomach to which medicine is usually conveyed; and if they were, their mouths are too deeply buried in the mucus for any medicine, tl^t can safely be admin- istered, to affect them; and, last of all, in due course of time, they detach themselves, and come away. Therefore, the wise man will leave them to themselves, or content himself with picking them off when they collect under the tail, and annoy the animal. The smaller hot, f and g, is not so frequently found. INTESTINES. The food having been partially digested in the stomach, and converted into chyme, passes through the pyloric orifice into the intestines. The intestines of a full-grown horse are not less than ninety feet in length. The length of the intestines, in different animals, depends on the nature of tiie food. Tlie nutritive matter is with much more difficulty e.xtracted from vegetable than animal substances; therefore tiie alimentary canal is large, long, and complicated in those which, like the horse, are fed ou herbs alone. They are divided into the small and large intestines; the former of which occupy about sixty-six feet, and the latter about twenty- four. The intestines, like the stomach, are composed of three coats. The outer one consists of the peritoneum, that membrane which we have already described as covering the contents of the belly. By means of this coat the bowels are confined in their proper situations; and, this membrane being smooth and moist, all friction and concussion are avoided. Did the bowels float loosely in the belly, they would be subject to constant entanglement and injury amid the rapid and violent motions of the horse. The middle coat, like that of the stomach, is muscular, and composed of two layers of fibres — one running longitudinally and the other circularly; and by means of these muscles, which are continually contracting and relax- ing, from the upper part downward, the food is forced along tiie bowels. The inner coat is the mucous or villous: mucous because it abounds with small glands, which pour out a mucous fluid, to lubricate the passage and defend it from irritatine or acrimonious substances : and villous, from its THE INTESTINE? 203 soft velvet feel. This coat is ciowded witii innumerable little mou hs, which are the commencement of minute vessels, by w'licli the nutritive part of the food U talcen up ; and these vessels, uniting and passing over the mesentery, carry this nutritive matter to a receptacle for it, whence it is conveyed into the circulation, and distributed to every part. Tiie intestines are more particuia'-ly retained in their places by the 7)ie.- sentery, c, (middle of the intestines,) which is a doubling of the peritoneum, including the intestine in its botton., and likewise inclosing between its folds the arteries and veins, and nerves, and the vessels whicii convey the nutriment from the intestines to the circulation. The mesentery has some- what the appearance of an expanded fan, and all these things ramifying between its transparent folds, give it a beautiful appearance. CUT OF TEIE INTESTINES. 9 c Commencement of the small intestines. Tlie ducts wliich convey the bile and the secretion from the pancreas are seen entering' a little below. i Convolutions or winding's of the small intestines. c A portion of the mesentery. d The small intestines terminating' in the coecum. « The ccecum, or blind g'ut, with the bands running along it, puckering' and dividing it into numerous cells. f Beginning' of the colon. g Continuation and expansion of the colon, divided like the ccecum into ccUa. h Termination of the colon in the rectum. t Termination of the rectum at the anus. The first of the small intestines is the duodenum, a, so called because, in the human subject, it is about twelve inches long. In the horse, it is nearly two feet in length. It is the largest in circumference of all the small intestines, and receives the food converted into chyme by the digestive power of the stomach, which in it undergoes another and very important change; a portion of it is converted into chyle. It is mixed with the bile and the secretion from the pancreas, which enter about five inches down the intes- tine. The bile seems to be the principal agent in this change ; no sooner does it mingle with the chyme, than the fluid begins to be separated into two \listinct ingredients, a thick white liquid, termed chyle, and containing the 204 THE HORSE. nutritive pari of the food, and a yellow pulpy substance, which bee mes the excrement. As these matters pass on by the motion of the intestines, the separation becomes more complete; the chyle is gradually taken up by the mouths of these numerous little vessels, which are called the lacteals, and ad length the excrement alone remains. The ne.xt portion of the small intestine is the jejunum, so called be- cause it is generally empty. The passage of the food seems to be very rapid through it. It is smaller in bulk, and paler in colour, than the »luodenum. To this succeeds the ileum ; but there is no point at which it can be said that the jejunum terminates and the ileum begins, except that the latter is said to be about one-fifth longer than the former. The whole of these small intestines will contain about eleven gallons of water. At tlie termination of the ileum, d, commence the large intestines. The first of them is the ccecum (blind), c; it has but one opening into it, and consequently every thing that passes through it, having reached the blind or closed end, must return, in order to escape. It is not a continuation of the ileum, but the ileum pierces the head of it, as it were, at right angles, (d,) and projects some way into it, and has a valve at its extremity; so that what has traversed the ileum, and entered the head of the colon, whence the coecum rises, cannot re. turn into the ileum. Along the outside of the coecum run three strong bands, each of them shorter than that intes- tine, and therefore puckering it up, and forming it into three separate sets of cells, as shown in the accompany- ing side-cut. That portion of the food, then, which has not been taken up by the lacteals or absorbent vessels of the small intestines, passes through this valvular opening of the ileum, and a part of it enters the colon, while the remainder flows into the ccecum. Then, from this being a blind pouch, and from the cellular structure of this pouch, the food must be detained in 11 a very long time; and in order that, during this detention, all the nutriment may be extracted, the coecum and its cells are largely supplied with blood-vessels and absorbents. It is principally the fluid part of the food that seems to enter the coecum. A horse will drink at once a great deal more than his stomach will contain ; or, even if he drinks a less quantity, it remains not in the stomach or small intestines, but passes on to the ccBcum, and there is retained, as in a reservoir, to supply the wants of the system. In nis state of servitude, the horse does not often drink more than twice or thrice in a day; and the food of the stabled horse being chiefly dry, this xoater -stomach is most useful to him. The coecum will hold four gallons. The greater portion of the food, and the more solid part of it, goes on to the colon, ^^. This is an intestine of exceedingly large dimensions; it is capable of containing no less than twelve gallons of liquid or pulpy food. At its union with the ccecum and the ileum, although larger than the latter intestine, /, it is of comparatively small bulk, but it soon swells out to an enormous extent. It has likewise, in the greater part of its fcourse, liiixe bands like the cfX'CLun. uliidi also divide it internally into the COLIC. 205 same Qcm nation of cells. The intention of this is evident, to retard the progress ol me ibod, and to give a more extensive surface on which the vessels oi the lacteuls may open: and therefore, in the colon, all the chyle is rinally separated and taken up. When this is nearly accomplished, the construction ot ine colon is somewhat changed: we find but two bands towards the rectum, and these not puckering the intestine so much, or forming such nunierous or deep cells. The food does not require to he much longer detameil, and the mechanism for detaining it is gradually dis- appearing. The Diuod-vessels and absorbents are likewise rapidly dimin- ishing. The colon, aiso, once more contracts in size, and the chyle having been all absorbed, the remaining mass, being of a harder consistence, is moulded into pellets oi balls in its passage through the shallower cells. At the termination oi me colon, the Rectum (straight gut) commences. It is smaller in circumference and capacity than the colon, and serves as a reservoir for the dung until it is evacuated. It has none of these bands, because, all the nutriment being extracted, the passage of the excrement that remains should be Hastened and not retarded. This descends to the lower part nf the rectum, which somewhat enlarges to receive it; and wlien it has accun^ulated to a certain extent, the animal, by the aid of the diaphragm and the muscles of the belly, presses it out, and it is evacuated, A curious circular muscle, and always in action, called the sphincter (binder together), is placed at the anus, to prevent the constant and unpleasant dropping of the faeces, and to retain them until the animal is disposed voluntary to expel them. DISEASES OF THE INTESTINES These form a very important part of horse surgery, and many erroneous notions are prevalent respecting them. The first disease we will consider is SPASMODIC COLIC. We have said, that the passase of the food through the intestinal canal is effected by the alternate contraction and relaxation of the muscular coat of the intestines. When that action is simply increased through the whole of the canal, the food passes more rapidly, and purging is produced; but the muscles of every part of the frame are liable to irregular and spas- modic action, and the muscular coat of some portion of the intestines may De thus affected. A species of cramp may attack a portion of the intes- lincs. The spasm may be confined to a very small part of the canal. The gut has been found, after death, strangely contracted in various places, contraction not extending above five or six inches in any of them. In the horse, the ileum is the usual seat of this disease. It is of much importance to distinguish between spasmodic colic and inflammation of the bowels, for the symptoms have considerable resemblance, although the mode of treat- ment should be very different. The attack of colic is usually very sudden. There is often not the slightest warning. The horse begins to shift his posture, look round at his flanks, paw violently, strike his belly with his feet, lie down, roll, and that 206 THE HORSE. frequently o(i his back. In a few minutes the pain seems to cea^'e, tha horse shakes himself, and begins to feed; but, on a sudden, tiie spasm returns more violently, every indication of pain is increased, he heaves at the flanks, breaks out into a profuse perspiration, and throws himself more violently about. In the space of an hour or two, either the spasms begin to relax, and the remissions are of longer duration, or the torture is aug- mented at every paroxysm, the intervals of ease are fewer and less marked, and inflammation and death supervene. Of the symptoms by which it may be best distinguished from inflamma- tion of the bowels, we shall speak when we treat of that disease. Among the causes of colic are, the drinking of cold water when the horse is heated. There is not a surer cause of violent spasm than this. Colic will some- times follow the exposure of a horse to the cold air, or a cold wind after violent exercise. Green meat, although, generally speaking, most benefi- cial to the horse, yet given in too large a quantity, or when the horse is hot, will fretiuently produce gripes. In some horses there seem; to be a con- stitutional predisposition to colic. They cannot be hardly worked, or exposed to unusual cold, without a fit of it. In many cases, when these horses have died, stones have been found in some part of the alimentary canal. Fortunately, we are acquainted with several medicines that allay these spasms; and the disease often ceases almost as suddenly as it aj)peared. Turpentine is one of the most powerful remedies, especially if given in union with opium. Three ounces of spirit or oil of turpentine, with an ounce of laudanum, given in a pint of warm ale, will frequently have ar. almost instantaneous effect. The account which we have just given of the ccecum will not be forgotten. Even a small quantity of fluid will seldom be detained in the stomach, but will pass through the ileum to the caecum or water-stomach, and in this passage will come in immediate contact with the spasmed pait. If relief be not obtained in half an hour, it will be prudent to bleed, because the continuance of violent spasm will produce inflammation. Some practitioners bleed at first, and it is far from bad practice ; for, although the majority of cases will yield to turpentine, opium, and aloes, an early bleeding may occasionally prevent the occurrence of inflammation, or at least mitigate it. If it be clearly a case of colic, half of the first dose may be repeated, with a full ounce of Barbadoes aloes, dissolved in warm water. The stimulus produced on the inner surface of the bowels by the purgative .■nay counteract the irritation which caused the spasm. The belly should je well rubbed with a brush or warmed cloth, but not bruised and injured by the broom-handle rubbed over the belly by two great fellows with all .heir strength. The horse should be walked about, or trotted moderately. The motion thus produced in the bowels, and the friction of one intestine over the other, may relax the spasm, but the hasty gallop may speedily cause inflammation to succeed to colic. Clysters of warm water, or con- taining a solution of aloes, will be injected. The patent syringe will here be most useful. When relief has been obtained, the clothing of the horse, saturated with perspiration, should be removed, and fresh, dry clothing substituted. He should be well littered down in a warm stable or box, and have bran mashes for the two or three next days, and drink only lukewarm water. Some persons give gin, and even gin and pepper, in cases of gripes. This, however, is a pi'actice to which we strongly object ; it may be useful, or even sufficient, in ordinary cases of colic, but if there be any inflamma- tion, or tendency to inflammation, it cannot fail to be highly injurious. INFLAMMATION OF THE BOWELS. 207 CALCULI, OR STONE IN THE INTESTINES. We have mentioned these as a cause of colic in horses that are subject to frequent attacks of it. Sftme indigestible substance lodges in the crecun or colon : earthy or half-digested vegetable matter gradually accumulates around this, and a ball weighing many pounds is sometimes formed. This will naturally produce colic, or obstruct the passage of the gut, or, by its pressure, produce inflammation; but as there are few or no symptoms by which the presence of these stones is clearly indicated, and few, or rather no certain means by which they may be removed, we will pass at once tc an occasional consequence of colic. INTUSUSCEPTION OF THE INTESTINES. The spasmodic action of the ileum, long continued, may be succeeded by an inverted action from the coecum towards the stomach, more powerful than the natural action ; and the contracted portion of the intestine is thus forced into a portion above it that retains its natural calibre ; and the irritation caused by this increases the action, until more is forced in, and an obstruc- tion is formed which no power can overcome. Even the natural motion of the bowels will be sufficient to produce intususception, when the contrac- tion of a portion jf the ileum is very great. There are no symptoms to indicate the presence of this, except continued or increasing pain ; or, if there were, all our means of relief would here fail. ENTANGLEMENT OF THE BOWELS. This is another and more singular consequence of colic. Although the ileum is enveloped in the mesentery, and its motion, to a considerable degree, confined, yet under the spasm of colic, and during the violence with which the animal rolls and throws himself about, portions of the ileum become so entangled as to be often twisted into nooses and knots, drawn together with a degree of tightness scarcely credible. Nothing but the e.xtreme and lengthened torture of the animal can lead us to suspect that this has taken place ; and even then, could we ascertain its existence with certainty, there would be no cure. INFLAMMATION OF THE BOWELS. There are two varieties of this malady. The first is inflammation of th« external coats of tiie stomach, accompanied by considerable fever and cos- tivenoss; the second is that of the internal or mucous coat, usually the con- sequence of an over-dose of physic, and accompanied by violent purging. We will here speak of the first of these affections. It has been divided into inflammation of the peritoneal coal, and that of the nmscular ; but the causes, symptoms, and treatment of both are so much alike, that it would be raising unnecessary difficulties to endeavour to distinguish between them. Inflammation of the external coats of the stomach, whether the peritoneal or muscular, or both, is a very frequent and fatal disease. It speedily runs its course, and it is of great consequence that its early symptoms should be known. If the horse has been carefully observed, restlessness and fever will have been seen to precede the attack ; in many cases a direct shivering fit will be observed; the mouth will be hot and the nose red. The horse will soon express the most dreadful pain by pawing, 208 THE HORSE, striking at his belly, looking wildly at his flanks, groaning, and rolling. The pulse will be quickened and small ; the cars and legs cold ; the belly tender, and sometimes hot; the breathing quickened ; the bowels costive; and the horse becoming rapidly and fearfully weak. It may be useful to give a short table of the tlistinguishing symptoms of colic and inflammation of the bowels, because the treatment recommended for the former would often be fatal in the latter. COLIC. INFLAMMATION. Sudden in its attack. Gradual in its approach, with previoua indications of fever. Pulse rarely much quickened in the early Pulse very much quickened, but small, stage of the disease and during the intervals and often scarcely to be felt, of ease, but evidently fuller. Legs and ears of natural temperature. Legs and ears cold. Relief obtained from rubbing the belly. Belly exceedingly tender, and painful to the touch. Relief obtained from motion. Motion evidently increasing the pain. Intervals of rest. Constant pain. Strength scarcely affected. Rapid and great weakness. The causes of this disease are, first of all and most frequently, sudden exposure to cold. If a horse that has been highly fed, carefully groomed, and kept in a warm stable, be heated with exercise, and have been for some hours without food — and in this state of exhaustion be suffered to drink freely of cold water, or be drenched with rain, or have his legs and belly washed with cold water — an attack of inflammation of tiie bowels will often follow. An over-fed horse, subjected to severe and long-continued exertion, if his lungs were previously weak, will probably be attacked by inflammation of them; but if the lungs were sound, the bowels will on the following day be the seat of disease. Stones in the intestines are an occa- sional cause of inflammation, and colic neglected, or wrongly treated, will terminate in it. The treatment of inflammation of the bowels, like that of the lungs, should be prompt and energetic. The first and most powerful means of cure will be bleeding. From six to eight or ten quarts of blood should be taken as soon as possible, and the bleeding repeated to the extent of lour or five quarts more if the pain be not relieved, and the pulse have not become rounder and fuller. The speedy weakness that accompanies this disease should not deter from bleeding largely. It is the weakness that is the con- sequence of violent inflammation of these parts, and if that inflammation be subdued by the loss of blood, the weakness will disappear. The bleeding should be effected on the first appearance of the disease ; for there is no malady that so quickly runs its course. Next to bleeding will follow clysters. Although the bowels are usually confined, we cannot administer a strong purgative;* for the intestines are already in far too irritable a state. The clyster may consist of warm water, or very thin gruel, in which half a pound of Epsom salts, or half an ounce of aloes has been dissolved, and too much fluid can scarcely be thrown up. If the common ox-bladder and pipe be used, it should be frequently replenished: but with Reid's patent pump, already referred to, suflicient may be injected to penetrate beyond the rectum, and reach to the colon and ccecum, and ♦ The human practitioner gives, under this disease, and with advantage, very powerful doses of purgative medicine; and he may be disposed to demur to the cautious mode of proceeding w5 recommend with regard to tlie horse. Although we may not be al)le to give him a satisfactory theoretical reason in defence of our treatment, we can appeal to the experience of every veterinary surgeon, that a strong dose of physic, given in inflam'i Ption of the bowels, would be certain poison. INFLAMMATION OF THE BOWELS, 209 dispose ihem lo evacuate their contents. The horse may likewise be encouraged to drink plentifully of warm water or thin gruel; and draughts, each containing a couple of drachms of dissolved aloes., may be given every six hours, until the bowels are freely opened. Next, it will be prudent to endeavour to excite considerable external inflammation, as near as possible to the seat of internal disease, and there- fore the whole of tiie l^elly should be blistered. In a well-marked case of this inflammation, no time should be lost in applying fomentations, but the blister be at once resorted to. The tincture of Spanish flies, whether made with spirit of wine or turpentine, should be well rubbed in. The legs should be well bandaged, to restore the circulation to them, and thus lessen the flow of blood to the inflamed part, and for the same reason the horse should be warmly clothed, but the air of the stable or box should be cool. No corn or hay should be given during the disease, but bran-mashes, and green-meat if it can be procured. The latter will be the best of all food, and may be given without the slightest apprehension of danger. When the horse begins to recover, he may get a handful of corn two or three times in the day, and, if the weather be warm, may be turned into a paddock for a few hours in the middle of the day. Clysters of gruel should be continued for two or three days after the inflammation is beginning to subside, and good hand-rubbing applied to the legs. The second variety of inflammation of the bowels affects the internal or mucous coat, and is generally the consequence of physic given in too great quantity, or of an improper kind. The purging is more violent, and con- tinues longer than was intended ; the animal shows that he is suflering great pain; he frequently looks round at his flanks; his breathing is laborious, and the pulse is quick and small ; not so small, however, as in inflammation of the peritoneal coat, and, contrary to some of the most frequent and characteristic symptoms of that disease, the mouth is hot, and the legs and ears are warm. Unless the purging is excessive, and the pain and distress great, we should hesitate at administering any astringent medicine at first. We should plentifully administer gruel, or thin starch, or arrow-root, by the mouth and by clyster, removing all hay and corn, and particularly green meat. We should endeavour thus to sheath the irritated surface of the bowels, while we permitted any remains of the medicine to be carried off. If, however, twelve hours should pass, and the purging and the pain remain undiminished, we should continue the gruel, but add to it chalk, catechu, and opium, in doses of an ounce of the first, a quarter of an ounce of the second, and two scruples of the last, repeated every six hours. As soon as the purging begins to subside, the astringent medicine should be lessened in quantity, and gradually dis- continued. Bleeding will rarely be necessary unless the inflammation be very great, and attended by symptoms of general fever. The horse should be warmly clothed, and be placed in a warm stable, and his legs should be hand-rubbed and bandaged. Violent purging, and attended with much inflammation and fever, will sometimes occur from other causes. Green meat will sometimes purge. A horse worked hard upon green meat will scour. The remedy is change of diet or less labour. Young horses will scour, and sometimes without any apparent cause. Astringents should be used with much caution here. It is probably an effort of nature to get rid of something that olFends. A few doses of gruel will assist in effecting this purpose, and the purging will cease w'.thout astringent medicine. ►Some horses that are not wdl-rihhcd home, (having too great space between the last rib and the hip-Lone), are subject to purging if more thau 210 THE HORSE. ur.iuil exertion is required from them. They are recognised by the terin of washy horses. They are often free and fleet, but destitute of continuance. They should have ralher more than the usual allowance of corn with beans, when at work ; and a cordial ball, with one draciim of catechu, and ten grains of opium will often be serviceable either before or after a journey. WORMS. Worms of different kinds inhabit the intestines ; but except when they exist in very great numbers, they are not so hurtful as is generally supposed, allhough the groom or carter may trace to them hidebound, and cough, and loss of appetite, and gripes, and megrims, and a variety of other ailments. Of the origin or mode of propagation of these parasitical animals we will say notliing ; neither writers on medicine, nor even on natural history, have given us any satisfactory account of the matter. The long white worm {lumbriciis teres) much resembling the common earth-worm, and being from six to ten inches long, inhabits the small intestines. It is a formidable-looking animal, and if there are many of them they may consume more than can be spared of the nutritive part of the food or the mucus of the bowels ; and we think that we have seen a tight skin, and rough coat, and tucked up belly, connected with their presence. They have then, however, been voided in large quantities, and when they are not thus voided we should be disposed to trace these appearances to other causes. A dose of physic will sometimes bring away almost incredible quantities of them. Calomel is frequently given as a vermifuge. The seldomer this drug is administered to the horse the better. It is the principal ingredient in some quack medicines for the expulsion of worms in the human subject, and thence, perhaps, it came to be used for the horse, but in him we believe it to be inert as a verm.ifuge, or only useful as quickening the operation of the aloes. When the horse can be spared, a strong dose of physic is an excellent vermit'uge, so far as the long round worm is con. cerned ; but perhaps a better medicine, and not interfering with either the feeding or work of the horse, is two drachms of emetic tartar, with a scruple of ginger made into a ball, with linseed meal and treacle, and given every morning half an hour before the horse is fed. A smaller, darker coloured worm, called the needle worm, or ascoris, inhabits the large intestines. Hundreds of them sometimes descend into the rectum, and immense quantities have been found in the coecum. These are a more serious nuisance than the former, for they cause a very trouble- some irritation about the fundament, which sometimes sadly annoys the horse. Their existence can generally be discovered, by a small portion of mucus, which, hardening, is converted into a powder, and is found about the anus. Physic will sometimes bring away great- numbers of these worms, but when there is much irritation about the tail, and much of this mucus indicating that they have descended into the rectum, an injection of a quart of linseed oil, or of an ounce of aloes, dissolved in warm water will be a more effectual remedy. The tape worm is seldom found in the horse. PHYSICKING. This would seem to be the most convenient place to speak of physicking horses, a mode of treatment necessary under various diseases, but which lias injured the constitution of more horses, and in fact absolutely destroyed more of them, than any other thing that can be mentioned. When a horse PHYSICKING. 21 \ comes from grass to hard meat, or from the cool open air to a heated stable, a dose of physic or even two doses may be useful to prevent the tesidency 10 inflammation which must be the necessary consequence of so sudden and great a change. To a horse that is becoming too fai, or has surfeit or grease, or mange, or that is out of condition from inactivity of the digestive organs, a dose of physic is often most serviceable ; but we do enter our protest against the periodical physicking of all horses in the spring ana the autumn, and more particularly against that severe system which is thought to be necessary to train them for work, and the absurd method of treating the horse when under the operation of physic. A horse should be carefully prepared for the action of physic. Two or three bran-mashes given on that or the preceding day are far from sufii- cient, when a horse is about to be physicked, whether to promote his con- dition, or in obedience to custom. Mashes should be given until the dung becomes softened ; a less quantity of physic will then suffice, and it will more quickly pass through the intestines, and be more equally diffused over them. Five drachms of aloes, given when the dung has thus been softened, will act much more effectually, and much more safely than seven drachms, when the lower intestines are obstructed by hardened foeces. On the day on which the physic is given, the horse should have walking exercise, or may be gently trotted for a quarter of an hour twice in the day ; but after the physic begins to work, he should not be moved from his stall. Exercise then would produce gripes, irritation, and possibly dangerous inflammation. Tjie common and absurd practice is to give the horse tnost exercise after the physic has begun to operate. A little hay may be put into the rack ; as much mash may be given as the horse will eat, and as much water, with the coldness of it taken off, as he will drink. If, however, he obstinately refuses to drink warm water, it is better that he should have it cold, than to continue without taking any fluid, but he should not be suffered to take more than a quart at a time, with an interval of at least an hour between each portion. When the purging has ceased, or ike physic is set, a mash should be given once or twice every day until the next dose is taken, between which and the setting of the first there should be an interval of a week. The horse should recover from the languor and debility occasioned by the first dose, before he is harassed by a second. Eight or ten tolerably copious motions, will be perfectly sufficient to answer every good purpose, although the groom or the carter may not be satisfied unless double the quantity are procured. The consequence of too strong purgation will be, that a lowness and weakness will hang about the horse for many days or weeks, and inflammation will often ensue from the over-irritation of the intestinal canal. Long continued custom has made Aloes the almost invariable purgative of the horse, and very properly so; for there is no other at once so sure and safe. The Barbadoes aloes, although sometimes very dear, should alone be used. The dose, with a horse properly prepared, will vary from five to seven drachms. The preposterous doses of nine, ten, or even twelve drachms, are, happily for the horse, generally abandoned. Custom has assigned the form of a ball to physic, but good sense will in due time introduce the solution of aloes, as acting more speedily, effectually, and safely. The only other purgative on which dependence can be placed is the CR0Tf)X. The farina or meal of the nut is used ; but from its acrimony it should be given in the form of ball, with linseed meal. The dose variea from a scruple 'o half a drachm. It acts more speedily than the aloes, 212 THE HORSE. witliout tlio nausea which they produce ; but it causes more watery stools, and consequently more debility. Linseed Oil is an uncertain but safe purgative, in doses from a pound to a pound and a lialf. Olive Oil is more uncertain, but safe ; and Castor Oil, that mild aperient in the human being, is both uncertain and unsafe. Ei'SOM Salts are inefficacious, except in immense doses of a pound and a half, and then not always safe. The horse, and particularly the perfect horse, is occasionally subject to HERNIA OR RUPTURE A portion of the intestine protrudes out of the cavity of the belly, either tlirough some natural or artificial opening. In some cases it may be returned, but from the impossibility of applying a truss or bandage, it soon returns again. At other times the opening is so narrow, that the gut, gradually distended by fjEces, or thickened by inflammation, cannot be returned, and strangulated hernia is then said to e.xist. The seat of hernia is either in the scrotum of *he perfect horse, or the groin of the gelding. The causes are violent struggling when under operations, over-exertion, kicks, or accidents. The assistance of a veterinary surgeon is here indispensable. THE LIVER. Between the stomach and the diaphragm, its right lobe or division in contact with the diaphragm, the duodenum, and the right kidney, and the middle and left divisions with the stomach, is the liver. It is an irregularly shaped, reddish-brown substance of considerable bulk, and performs a very singular and important office. We have already stated (p. 176) that the blood which has been conveyed to the different parts of the body by the arteries, is carried back to the heart by the veins; but that which is returned from the stomach and intestines, and spleen, and pancreas, and mesentery, instead of flowing directly to the heart, passes first through the liver. It enters by two large vessels, which spread by means of innumerable minute branches through every part of the liver. As the blood traverses this organ, a fluid is separated from it, called the bile. This is probably a kind of excrement, the continuance of which in the blood would be injurious; but while this is thrown off', another important purpose is answered ; the process of digestion is promoted, and particularly by the bile changing the nutritive part of me food from chyme into ch^le, and separating it from that which, containing little or no nutriment, is voided as excrement. The bile, thus formed, is in most animals received into a reservoir, the gall-bladder, whence it is conveyed into the duodenum [g, p. 202) at the times, and in the quantities, which the purposes of digestion require; but the horse has no gall-bladder, and, consequently, the bile flows into the intestine as fast as it is separated from the blood. The reason of this is plain ; a small stomach was given to the horse, that the food might quickly pass out of it, and the diaphragm and the lungs might not be injuriously pressed upon, when we require his utmost speed ; and that we might use him with little danger compared with that wiiich would attach to other animals, even when his stomach is distended with food. Then the stomach, so small, and so speedily emptied, must be oftener re[)lenished ; 'he horse must be oftener eating, and food must be oftener piissiiig out of his stomach ; and, consequently, there is no necessity for thi« JAUNDICE. 213 reservoir. The ox occupies a long time in filling his paunch, and it is onl^. Juring rumination that the food passes into the true stomach to be digested. The meal of the dog is speedily swallowed. They need a gall-bladder \o contain the bile, which continues to be secreted when it cannot be used ; but to the horse, so frequently eating, it would be useless. INFLAMMATION OF THE LIVER Is a disease of rare occurrence in the horse. He is not exposed to the causes which produce that complaint in other animals. Although his food is sometimes highly nutritive, the work which is exacted from him prevents it from unduly stimulating this important organ ; and when inflammation of the liver does occur, it is with so much difficulty distinguished from thai of the bowels, that if yellowness of the eyes and skin are not present, even the professional man is liable to be deceived. Bleeding from, or rupture of the liver, is another disease of old horses, and especially of those that have been highly fed. It is generally fatal, but of unfrequent occurrence ; it is recognised by the frequent and feeble pulse, the pawing and sighing of the animal, the coldness of the extremities, whiteness of the eye and mouth, fullness of the belly, and speedy debility. A veterinary surgeon is alone competent to give assist. ance here. JAUNDICE, Commonly called the yellows, is a more tractable disease, and a little more frequent. It is the introduction of bile into the general circulation, and which is usually caused by some obstruction in the ducts or tubes which convey the bi!e from the liver to the intestines. The horse, however, has but one duct, through which the bile usually flows as quickly as it is formed, and there is no gall-bladder in which it can become thickened, and even hardened into masses so hard as to be very appropriately called gall- stones. Jaundice does, however, occasionally appear either from an increased flow or altered quality of the bile, or obstruction even in this simple tube. The yellowness of the eyes and mouth, and of the skin where it is not covered with hair, mark it sufficiently plainly. The dung is small and hard ; the urine highly coloured ; the horse languid, and the appetite impaired. It is first necessary to inquire whether this affection of the liver be not the consequence of the sympathy of this organ with some other part; for, to a very considerable degree, it frequently accompanies inflammation of the bowels and the lungs. These diseases being subdued, jaundice will disappear. If there be no other disease to any great extent, we must endeavour to restore the natural passage of the bile by purgatives, not con- sisting of large doses, lest there should be some undetected inflammation of the lungs or bowels, in either of which a strong purgative would be dangerous ; but given in small quantities, repeated at short intervals, and until the bowels are freely opened. Two drachms of aloes, and one of calomel, given twice every day, will be as much as can at all times be administered with safety. Bleeding should always be resorted to, regulated according to the apparent degree of inflammation, and the occasional stupor of the animal. Plenty of water, slightly warmed, or thin gruel, should bo given; the horse should be warmlv clothed, and the stai)le well ventilated, but not cold. Carrots or green meat will be very beneficial. Should the purging, when once excited, prove violent, we should be in no haste to stop it, unless inflammation is beginning to be connected with it, or the horse is very weak The medicine recommended under diarrha;a may then be 2)4 THE HORSE exhilfilcd A few slight tonics should be given when the horse is recover- ing from an attack of strangles. Two drachms each of gentian and camomile, with one of ginger, will form a useful ball. THE SPLEEN. This organ, known commonly by the name of the melt, is a long, bluish- brown substance, broad and thick at one end, and tapering at the other, lying along the left side of the stomach, and between it and the short ribs. It is of a spongy nature, divided into numerous little cells, not unlike a honey- comb, and over which thousands of minute vessels thickly spread. The particular use ol" this body has never been clearly ascertained ; for in some cruel experiments it has been removed without apparent injury to diges- tion or any other function. It is, however, useful, at least occasionally, or it would not have been given. It is perhaps a reservoir or receptacle for any fluid that may be conveyed into the stomach more than is sufficient for the purposes of digestion. The spleen is sometimes very extraordinarily enlarged, and has been ruptured ; but we are not aware of any symptoms by which this can be discovered. THE PANCREAS. In the domestic animals which are used for food this organ is called tht- sweetbread. It lies between the stomach and left kidney. It much resembles in structure the salivary glands in the neighbourhood of the mouth, and the fluid which it secretes is very like the common saliva. The pancreatic fluid is carried into the intestines by a duct, which enters at the same aperture with that from the liver. Its use, whether to dilute the bile, or the chyme, or to assist in the separation of chyme from the feculent matter, has never been ascertained, but it is clearly employed in aiding the process of digestion. We know not of any disease to which the pancreas of the horse is liable. As soon as the, belly of most of our domestic animals is opened, a mem- brane is perceived spreading over all the contents of this cavity ; it is denominated THE OMENTUM, Or cmvl. It is a doubling of the peritoneum, or rather consists of four layers of it. It has been supposed to be placed between the intestines and the walls of the belly to prevent concussion and injury during the rapid movement of the animal. That, however, cannot be its principal use in t'le horse, from whom the most rapid movements are required; for in him It is unusually short, extending only to the pancreas, a small portion of the colon. Being, however, thus short, the horse is exempt from a very troublesome and, occasionally, fatal species of rupture, when a portion of the omentum penetrates through some accidental opening in the covering of the belly. The blood contains a great quantity of watery fluid unnecessary for the nutriment or repair of the frame. There likewise mingle witii it matter.^ which would become noxious if suffered to accumulate too much. THE KIDNEYS Are actively employed in separating this water, and likewise carrying off n substance which constitutes the peculiar ingredient in the urine, called tht urea, and consists principally of that which would be poisonous to the DIURETICS. 215 animal. The kidneys are two large glandular bodies, placed under the loins, very much the shape of a kidney bean. The right kidney is mos. forward, lying under tiie liver; the left is pushed more backward by the stomacli and spleen. A large artery runs to each, carrying not less than a sixth part of the whole of the blood that circulates through the frame. The artery divides into innumerable little branches, most curiously complicated and coiled upon each other; and the blood, traversing these convolutions, has its watery parts and others, the retaining of which would be injurious, separated frjm it. The fluid thus separated varies materially both in quantity and composi- tion, even during health. There is no animal in which it varies so much as in the iiorse. There is no organ in the animal so much under our com- mand as the kidney ; and no medicines are so useful, or may be so injuri- ous, as diuretics. In speaking of fever and inflammation of the lungs, and, indeed, inflammation generally, we have recommended the use of nitre and digitalis, not only on account of their febrifuge or sedative eflects, but because they act as diuretics. They stimulate the kidneys to separate more aqueous fluid than they otherwise would do, and thus lessen the quantity of blood ; the quantity which tlie heart is labouring to circulate through the frame, and the quantity which is determined or driven to a part already overloaded. The main objects we have to accomplish in these diseases is to reduce the force of the circulation, and to calm the violence of excitement ; and diuretics, by lessening the quantity of blood, are useful assistants in accomplishing these purposes. It is, however, in the varieties of dropsy that their benefit is most evident. The horse is more subject to eflusions ot fluid in particular parts than any other domestic animal. Swelled legs is a disease peculiar to him. The ox, the sheep, the dog, the ass, and even the mule, have it very seldom ; and for the removal of this deposit of fluid in the cellular substance of the legs we have recourse to diuretics. Tlie kidneys are stimulated to separate more than the usual quantity of water from the blood. In order to make up this deficiency in quantity, the absorbents set to work, and they take up and pour into the circulation the fluid whicii had been efl'used in the legs. The legs of many horses cannot be rendered fine or kept so, without the use of diuretics ; nor can grease, often con- nected with these swellings, producing them, or caused by them, be other- wise subdued. We therefore rank diuretics among the most useful of the veterinary medicines. In injudicious hands, however,' these medicines are sadly abused. Among tiie absurdities of stable management there is nothing so injurious as the frequent use of diuretics. Not only are the kidneys, so often over- excited, weakened, disposed to disease, but the whole frame becomes debilitated; for the absorbents have carried away a great part of that which was necessary to the health and condition of the horse, in order to supply the deficiency of blood occasioned by the inordinate discharge of urine. There is likewise one important fact of which the groom or the horseman seldom thinks ; that when he is removing these humours by the imprudent use of diuretics, he is only attacking a syinptom or a consequence of dis- ease, and not the disease itself. The legs will fill again, and the grease will return. While the cause remains, the effect will be produced. We shall say more of this when we treat particularly of the diseases of the extremities. In the administration of diuretics there are two things to be chiefly attended to. The first is that which seems to be contradictory, but the good effect of which the testimony of every intelligent man will confirm ; lei Ike horse have picnly to drink. Not only will inflammation be prevented, but 216 THE HOUSE. tlie opcation of the medicine will be much promoted. If more water thaa usual he drunk, a great deal more will be evacuated. The next caution it,, i.hat during the administration of a diuretic, neither the clothing nor tht stable should be too warm, otherwise that which is intended to stimulate tlw kidney will pass off by perspiration ; lor it seems to be a law of the frame, that wliat increases the discharge from the skin proportionably lessens tin; action of the kidneys. The best diuretic, and which given simply to promote an increased secretion from the kidneys, supersedes every other, is turpentine ; either the common liquid turpentine in doses of half an ounce, and made into a ball with linseed meal, and half a drachm of ginger ; or, what is better, the same quantity of powdered resin, with two drachms of linseed meal, and half a draciim of ginger, formed into a mass with palm-oil. In cases of inflam- mation or fever, nitre or digitalis should be used. The spirit of nitrous ether, cream of tartar, and balsam of capivi have some diuretic effect. INFLAMMATION OF THE KIDNEY Is no uncommon disease in the horse, and is more unskilfully and fatally treated than almost any other. The early symptoms are those of fever generally, but the seat of the disease soon becomes evident. The horse looks anxiously round at his flanks; stands with his hinder legs wide apart; straddles as he walks ; expresses pain in turning ; shrinks when the loins are pressed, and some degree of heat is felt there. The urine is voided in small quantities, and frequently it is high-coloured, and sometimes bloody. The attempt to urinate becomes more frequent, and the quantity voided smaller; until the animal strains painfully and violently, but the discharge is nearly or quite suppressed. Tlie pulse is quick and hard; full in the early stage of the disease, but rapidly becoming small, yet noi losing its character of hardness. These symptoms clearly indicate an affection of the urinary organs ; but they do not distinguish inflammation of the kidney from that of tiie bladder. The hand must be introduced into the rectum. If the bladder be felt full and hard under the rectum, there is inflammation of the neck of the bladder: if tiie bladder be empty, yet on the portion of the intestines immediately over it there is more than natural heat and tenderness, there is inflammation of the body of the bladder; but if the bladder be empty, and there is no increased heat or tenderness, there is inflammation of the kidney. Among the causes are improper food. There is no more frequent cause than hay that has been mow-burnt, or oats that are musty. The farmer should look well to this. Oats that have been dried on the kiln acquire a diuretic property, and if horses are long fed on them, the continual excite- ment of this organ which they produce will degenerate into inflammation. Too powerful, or too-often-repeated diuretics produce inflammation of the kidney ; or a degree of irritation and weakness of that organ, that disposes to inflammation from causes that would otherwise have no injurious effect. If a horse is sprained in the loins, by being urged on, far or fast, by a heavy rider, or by being suddenly pulled up on his haunches, the inflam- mation of the muscles of the loins is often speedily transferred to the kidneys, with which they lie in contact. Exposure to cold is another frequeni origin of this malady, especially if the horse be drenched with rain, or wet drips upon his loins; and more particularly if he were previously disposed to inflammation, or these organs had been previously weakened. For this reason, hackney-coach horses and others, exposed to the vicissitudes of the weather, and often fed on unwholesome provender, have, or should have, their loins protected by a leather or a cloth. THE BLADDER. 217 The treatment will only vary from that of inflammation of othei parts, Dy the consideration of the peculiarity of the organ atfected. Bleeding must be promptly resorted to, and carried to its full extent. An active purge should next be administered ; and a counter-inflammation excited as near as possible to the seat of disease. For this purpose, the loins should be ibmented with hot water, or covered with a mustard poultice; but no can- tharides or turpentine must be used, and, most of all, must no diuretic be given internally. When the groom finds this dilTiculty or suppression of staling, he immediately has recourse to a diuretic ball, to force on tiie urine; and by thus farther irritating a part already too much excited, he adds fuel to fire, and frequently destroys the horse. When the action of the purgative begins a little to cease, white hellebore may be administered, in doses of a scruple three times a day, with or witliout emetic tartar. The horse should be warmly clothed ; his legs well bandaged, and plenty of water offered to him. The food should be carefully examined, and any thing that could have excited, or that may prolong the irritation, care- fully removed, DIABETES, OR PROFUSE STALING, Is a comparatively rare disease. It is the consequence, generally, of undue irritation of the kidney, by bad food or strong diuretics; and some- times follows inflammation of the kidney. It can seldom be traced in the horse to any disease of the digestive organs. The treatment is obscure, and the result often uncertain. It is, evidently, increased action of the kidney, and therefore the most rational plan of treatment is to endeavour to abate that action ; and nearly the same course should be pursued in the early stage of diabetes, as in actual inflammation ; but the lowering system should not be carried to so great an extent. To bleeding, purging, and counter-irritation, medicines of an astringent quality should succeed, as catechu, the powdered leaf of the whortle-berry (uva ursi), and opium, in doses of two draciuns each of the two first, and half a drachm of the last. Very careful attention should be paid to the food. The hay and oats should be of the best quality ; and green meat, and especially carrots, will be very serviceable. THE BLADDER. The urine separated from the blood is discharged by the minute vessels, of which we have spoken, into some larger canals, which terminate in a cavity or reservoir in the body of the kidney, called its pe his ; and thence is conveyed by a duct, called the ureter, to a larger reservoir, the bladder. It is constantly flowing from the kidney through the ureter ; and were there not this provision for its detention, it would be incessantly and annoyingly dribbling from the animal. The bladder lies in, and, when distended by urine, nearly fills the cavity of the great bones of the haunch, termed the pelvis. It has three coats ; the outer one covering the greater part of it, and being a portion of the peritoneum ; the muscular, consisting of two layers of fibres, as in the stomach ; the external, running longitudinally and the inner circularly, so that it may yield to the pressure of the urine as it enters, and contract again to an exceedingly small space as it runo out, and by that contraction assist in the expulsion of the urine. The inner or mucous coat contains numerous little glands, which pour out a mucous fluid to defend the bladder from the acrimony of the urine. The bladder terminates in a small neck, round which there is a strong muscle, keeping' P 2 Id THE HORSE. tlie passafje closed, and retaining the urine, until, at the will of the an! nal, or when tlie bladder contains a certain quantity of fluid, the muscular coal begins to contract, and, the lungs being filled with air, the diaphragm is rendered convex towards the intestines, and presses then on the bladder, and by these united powers, the fluid is forced through the sphincter muscle at the neck of the bladder, and escapes. INFLAMMATION OF THE BLADDER. There are two varieties of this disease, the inflammation of the body of the bladder and of its neck. The symptoms are nearly the same with those of inflammation of the kidney, e.xcept that there is rarely a total sup- pression of urine, and there is heat felt in the rectum over the situation of the bladder. The causes are the presence of some acrid or irritant matter in the urine, or of calculus or stone in the i^ladder. With reference to inflammation of the body of the bladder, misciiief has occasionally been done by the introduction of cantharides or some other irritating matter tc hasten the period of horsing in the mare. The treatment will be the same as in inflammation of the kidney, except that it is of more consequence that the horse should drink freely of water or thin gruel, and that gruel or mucilage of any kind may, by one who understands the anatomy of the animal, be easily introduced into the bladder of the mare. In inflammation of the neck of the bladder there is the same frequent voiding of urine in small quantities, generally appearing in an advanced stage of the disease, and often ending in almost total suppression. There is also this circumstance which can never be mistaken by him who will pay diligent attention to the case, that the bladder is distended with urine, and may be distinctly felt under the rectum. It is spasm of the part, closing the neck of the bladder so powerfully, that the contraction of the bladder, and the pressure of the muscles, are unable to force out the urine. Here the object to be attempted is sufiiciently plain. This spasm must Oe relaxed. The most likely means to effect this is to bleed largely, and even to fainting. This will sometimes succeed, and there will be at once an end to the disease. To tlie exhaustion and loss of muscular power occasioned by copious bleeding, should be added the nausea consequent on physic. Should not this speedily have efli*ecl, another mode of abating spasm must be tried. A drachm of the powdered opium, made into a ball or drink, may be given every two or three hours; while an active blister is applied externally. In the mare the bladder may be easily evacuated by means of a catheter in skilful hands ; but owing to the curved direction of the penis, a catheter cannot be introduced into the bladder of a horse, withou* an operation to which a veterinary surgeon alone is competent. STONE IN THE BLADDER. The urine is a very compound fluid ; in a state of health it contains a preat many acids and akalies variously combined, which under disease are increased both in number and quantity. It is very easy to conceive that some of these shall be occasionally separated from the rest, and assume a solid form both in the pelvis of the kidney and in the bladder. This is known to be the case both in the human being and the brut«. These calculi or stones are in the horse found oftener in the kidney than in the bladder, contrary to the experience of the hu.man surgeon. The explana- tion of this, however, is not diflicult. In the human being the kidney is situated above the bladder, and these concretions descend from the kidney BREEDING. 2 I ft to the bladder by their weight. Tiie belly of the horse is horizontal, and tiie force of gravity can in no way atlect the passage of the calculus; therefore it remains in the pelvis of the kidney, until it increases so much in size as often to fill it. We know not of any symptoms wliich would sat- isfactorily indicate the presence of a stone in the kidney ; and if the disease could be ascertained, we are unable to say what remedial measures could be adopted. The symptoms of stone in the bladder much resemble those of spasmodic colic, except that on careful inquiry it will be found that there has been nmch irregularity in the discharge of urine, and occasional suppression of it. VVIien fils of apparent colic frequently return, and are accompanied by any peculiarity in the discharge of urine, the horse should be carefully examined. He should be thrown. If there be stone in the bladder, it will, while the horse lies on its back, press on the rectum, and may be distinctly felt if the liand be introduced into the rectum. Several cases have lately occurred of successful extraction of the calculus; but here it will be necessary to have recourse to the aid of a veterinary practitioner. Many horses occasionally void a considerable quantity of gravel, some- times witiiout inconvenience, at otheis witli evident spasm or pain. A diuretic might here be useful, as increasing the flow of urine, and possibly washing out tiie concretions before they become too numerous or bulky. Tlie urine having passed the neck of the bladder, flows along the urethra, and is discharged. Tlie sheath of the penis is sometimes considerably enlarged. When at the close of acute diseases, there are swellings and effusions of fluid, under the chest and belly, this part seldom escapes Diuretics, mixed with a small portion of cordial medicine, will be benefi- cial, although in some extreme cases slight scarifications may be necessary. The inside of the sheath is often the seat of disease ; the mucous matter naturally secreted there to defend the part from the acrimony of the urine, accumulates and becomes exceedingly oliensive, and produces swelling, tenderness, and even excoriation, and sometimes considerable discharge. A little fomentation with warm water, and the cleansing of the part with soap and water, aided perhaps by a diuretic ball, will speedily remove every inconvenience. Carters are too apt to neglect cleanliness in this respect. CHAPTER XII. BREEDING, CASTRATION, &c. This may be a proper period to recur to the important subject of breeding, particularly important when there cannot be a doubt that our breed of useful horses has, within the last twenty years, most materially degenerated. Our running-horses still maintain their supremacy ; our carriage- horses are not much lessened in excellence and value ; but our hunters and hackneys are not what they used to be. We shall endeavour to point out the cause of this. Our observations must be of a general nature, and will be very simple ; and the first axiom we would lay down is, that "like will produce like," that the progeny will inherit the qualities, or the mingled qualities, of the uaients. VVe would refer to the subject of diseases, and again state our peiffict convictio" *hat there is scarcely one by which either of the parents 220 THE HORSE. is ufl'cb'ed, that the foal will not inherit, or, at least, tl'.e prcciisj)osition to a: even the consequences of ill usage or hard work will descend to the progeny. We have already enlarged on this, but ity importance will be a Buthcient apology for the repetition. We have had prool' upon proof, that blindness, roaring, thick-wind, broken-wind, spavin, curbs, ringbones, and founder, have been bequeathed, both by the sire and tiie dam, to iht otlspring. It should likewise be recollected, that althougii these blemishes may not appear in the immediate progeny, they frequently will in the next generation. Hence the necessity of some knowledge of the parentage both of the sire and dam. Peculiarity of Ibrm and constitution will also be iniierited. This is a most important, but neglected consideration ; for iiowever desirable, or even perfect, may have been the conformation of the sire, every good point may be neutralized or lost by the defective form, or want of blood, of the mare. There are niceties in this, of wiiich some breeders used to be aware, and they employed their knowledge to great advantage. When tliey were careful tliat the essential points should be good in both parents, and that some minor defects in either siiould be met and got rid of, by excellence in that particular point in the other, the result was creditable to their judgment, and highly protitable. The unskilful or careless breeder will otten sc badly pair tlie animals, that the good points of each will be, in a manner lost: the defects of both will be increased, and the produce will be I'ai inferior to both sire and dam. Of late years, these principles have been much lost sight of in the breed ing of horses for general use ; and the following is the explanation of it Tliere are nearly as good stallions as there used to be. Few but well formed and valuable horses will be selected and retained as stallions. Thev are always the very prime of the breed ; but the mares are not wiiat they used to be. Poverty has induced many of the breeders to part with the mares from which they used to raise their stock, and winch were worth their weight in gold ; and the jade on which the farmer now rides to mar- ket, or which he uses on his farm, costs hiin but little money, and is only retained because he could not get much money for her. It has likewise become the fashion for gentlemen to ride mares, almost as frequently as geldings ; and thus the better kind are taken from the breeding service, until old age or injury renders them worth little for it. An intelligent veterinary surgeon, Mr. Custley, has placed this in a very strong light in the third volums of the "Veterinarian," p. 871. We would wisii then to impress on the minds of breeders, that peculiarity of form and constitution are inherited from both parents; that the excel- lence of the mare is a point of quite as much importance as that of the horse ; and that out of a sorry mare, let the horse be as perfect as he may, u good foal will rarely be produced. All this is recognised upon the turf, aliliough poverty or carelessness have made the general breeder neglect or tbrget It. It is rt cognised in the midland counties in the breed of cart-horses; and the strict attention which has been paid to il, has brought our heavy horses to almost the same perfection in their way as the blood-horse. It is strange that in our saddle-horses, our Imnters, and, to a great degree, our carriage- liorses, this should be left to chance. The breeder begins to care little about the quality of the mare, and the progeny is becoming comparatively of little worth. Experience, it is said, will make fools wise, but experi- ence will here be bought at a very dear rate, botii as it regards the breedei and the conmiunity. Tliat the constitution and endurance of the horse are iniierited, no BREEDING. 22 ! sporting nan ever doubted. The qualities of the sire or the dum descend from generation to generation, and the excellences or defects of certain horses are traced, and justly so, to some peculiarity in a far distant ancestor. It may, perhaps, be justly affirmed, that there is more difficulty in selecting a good mare to breed from, than a good horse, because she should possess somewhat opposite qualities. Her carcase should be long, to give room for the growth of the fcutus, and yet with this there should be com- pactness of form and shortness of leg. What can they expect who go to Smithfield Market to purchase a number of worn-out, spavined, foundered mares, about whom they fancy there have been some good-points, and send them far into the country to breed from, and, with ail their variety of shape, to be covered by the same horse? In a lottery like this, there may oe now and then a prize, but there must be many blanks. " If horse- oreeders, possessed of good judgment, would pay the same attention to breed and shape as Mr. Bakewell did with sheep, they would probi.hly attain their wishes in an equal degree, and greatly to their advaiitaL_c, whether for the collar or the road, for racing or for huntihg."* As to the shape of the stallion, little satisfactory can be said. It must depend on that of the mare, and the kind of horse wished to be bred ; but if there be one point which we should say is absolutely essential, it is this, "compactness" — as much goodness and strength as possible condensed in a little space. If we are describing the reverse of the common race of stallions for hunters and coach-horses, the fault lies with the bad taste and judgment of the majority of breeders. Next to compactness, the inclination of the shoulders will be regarded. A huge stallion, with upright shoulders, never got a capital hunter or hackney. From him the breeder can obtain nothing but a cart or dray- horse, and that, perhaps, spoiled by the opposite form of the mare. On the other hand, an upright shoulder is desirable, if not absolutely necessary, when a mere draught horse is required. It is of no little importance, that the parents should be in full possession of their natural strength and powers. It is a common error, that because a mare has once been good, she is fit for breeding when she is no longer capable of ordinary work. Her blood and perfect frame may insure a foal of some value, but he will inherit a portion of the worn-out constitution of her from whom he sprung. On the subject of breeding in and in, that is, persevering in the same breed, and selecting the best on eitiier side, much has been said. The system of crossing requires much judgment and experience; a great deal more indeed than breeders usually possess. The bad qualities of the cross are too soon engrafted on the original stock, and once engrafted there, are not, for many generations, eradicated. The good ones of both are occa- sionally neutralized to*^ most mortifying degree. On the other hand, it is the fact, however some may deny it, that strict confinement to one breed, however valuable or perfect, produces gradual deterioration. The truth here, as in many other cases, lies in the middle ; crossing should be attempted with great caution, and the most perfect of tiie same breed should be selected, but varied, by being frequently taken from diderent stocks. This is the secret of the course. The pure south-eastern blood is never eft, but the stock is often changed with manifest advantage. A mare is capable of breeding at three or four years old ; some have "*ijudiciously coamienced at two years, before her form or her strength is * Parkinson on the Breeding- and Management of Live Stock, vol ii., p. 59. 222 THE HORSE. sulBciently developed, and with the development of which this early oreeding will materially interfere. Ifslie does little more than farm-work, she may continue to be bred from until she is nearly twenty : but if she haa oeen hardly worked, and bears the marks of it, let her have been what she will in her youtii, she will deceive the expectations of the breeder in her old age. The mare comes into heat in the early part of the spring. She is said to go with foal eleven months, but there is sometimes a strange irregu larity about tliis. Some have been known to foal five weeks earlier, while the time of others has been extended six weeks beyond the eleven months. We may, however, take eleven months as the average time. In running- horses, that are brought so early to the starting-post, and whether they are foaled early in January or late in April, rank as of the same age, it is of importance that the mare should go to cover as early as possible: in a two or three-year old, four months would make considerable difference in the growth and strength ; yet many of these early foals are almost worth- less, because they have been deprived of that additional nuti'iment which nature designed for them. For other breeds, the beginning of .May is the most convenient period. The mare would then foal in the early part of April, when there would begin to be sufficient food for her and her colt, without confining them to tlie stable. From the time of covering to that of foaling, the mare may be kept at moderate work, and that not only without injury, but with decided advan- tage. The work may be continued up to the very time when she i? expected to foal ; and of which she will give at least a day's notice, by the adhesive matter that will appear about the teats. When tiiis is seen, it will be prudent to release her from work, and keep her near home, and under ihe frequent inspection of some careful person. When nearly half the time of pregnancy has elapsed, the mare should have a little better food. She should be allowed two or three feeds of corn in the day. This is about the period when they are accustomed to slink their foals, or when abortion occurs: at this time, therefore, the eye of the owner should be frequently upon them. Good feeding and moderate exercise will be the best preventives against this. The mare that has once slinked her foal is ever liable to the same accident, and therefore should never be suffered to be with other mares about the time that this usually occurs, which is about the fourth and fiflh months; for such is the power of imagination or of sympathy in the mare, that if one of them suffers abortion, the greater number of those in the same pasture will share the same fate. Farmers wash, and paint, and tar their stables to prevent some supposed infection: the infection lies in the imagination. If a mare has been regularly exercised, and apparently in health while she was in foal, little danger will attend the act of parturition. If there be false presentation of the foetus, or difficulty in poducing it, it will be better to have recourse to a well-informed practitioner, rather than injure the mother, by the violent and injurious attempts which are often made to relieve the animal. As soon as the mare has foaled, she should be turned into some well- sheltered pasture, with a hovel or shed to run into when she pleases: and as, supposing she has foaled in April, the grass is scanty, she should have a couple of feeds of corn daily. The breeder may depend upon it, that nothing is gained by starving the mother and stinting the foal at this time. It is the most important time in the life of the horse ; and if, from false t'conomv, his growth be arrested now, his puny form and want of endu- rance will ever afterwards testify the error that has been committed. The BREAKING-IN. 2'2.S corn should be given in a trough on the ground, that the foal may partake of it with the mother. When the new grass is flush and plenty, ihe corn may be gradually discontinued. Our work is intended, principally, for farmers: they weli Know that ttie mare may be put to moderate work again a month after the foaling. The foal is at first shut in the stable during the hours of work ; but as soon as it acquires sufficient strength to toddle after the mare, and especially when sJie is at slow work, it will be better for the foal and the dam that they should be together. The work will contribute to the health of the mother ; the foal will more frequently draw the milk, and thrive better; and will be hardy and tractable, and gradually familiarized with the objects among whicli it is afterwards to live. While tlie moliier, however, is thus worked, she and the foal should be well fed ; and two feeds of corn, at least, should be added to the green food which they get when turned out after their work, and at night. The mare will usually be four^d at heat at or before the expiration of a month from the time of foaling, when, if she be kept principally for breeding purposes, she may be put again to the horse. In five or six months, according to the growth of the foal, it may be weaned, [t should then be housed for three weeks or a month, or turned into some distant rick-yard. There can be no better place for the foal than the latter, as affording, and that without trouble, both food and shelter The mother should be put to harder work, and have drier meat. One oi two urine balls, or a physic ball, will be useful, if the milk should b* troublesome, or she should pine after her foal. There is no principle of greater importance than the liberal feeding of the foal during the whole of his growth, and at this time in particular. Bruised oats and bran should form a considerable part of his daily pro- vender. The farmer may be assured that money is well laid out which is expended on the liberal nourishment of the growing colt: while, however, he is well fed, he should not be rendered delicate by excess of care. A racing colt is sometimes stabled ; but one that is destined to be a hunter, a hackney, or an agricultural horse, should merely have a square rick, under the leeward side of which he may shelter himself, or a hovel, into which he may run at night, or out of the rain. The process of breaking-in should commence from the very period of weaning. The foal should be daily handled, partially dressed, accustomed to the halter, led about, and even tied up. The tractability, and good temper, and value of the horse, depend a great deal more upon this than the breeders are aware: this should be done as much as possible by the man by whom they are t'ed, and whose management of them should be always kind and gentle. There is no fault for which a breeder should so invariably discharge his servant as cruelty, or even harshness, towards the rising stock ; for the principle on which their after usefulness is founded, is early attachment to, and confidence in man, and obedience, implicit obedience, resulting principally from these. After the second winter, the work of breaking-in may commence in good earnest. He may first be bitted, and a bit carefully selected that will not hurt his mouth, and much smaller than those in common use ; with this he may be suffered to amuse himself, and to play, and to champ for an hour, on a few successive days. Having become a little tractable, portions of the harness may be put upon him, and, last of all, the blind winkers ; and a few days afterwards he may go in*o the team. It would be better, if there could be one before, and one behind him, beside the shaft horse. Let there be first the mere empty waggon. Ijot nothing be done to him, except that he r ay have an occa- 2^4 THE HORSE. sional pat or kind word. The other horses will keep him movingr, and in his place; and no great time will pass, sometimes not even the first day, before he will begin to pull witli the rest : then the load may be gradually increased. The agricultural horse is wanted to ride as well as to drav/. Let his first lesson be given wlien he is in the team. Let his feeder, if possible, be first put upon him : he will be too much hampered by his harness and by the other horses to make much resistance ; and, in the majority of cases, will quietly and at once submit. We need not repeat, that no whip or spur should be used in giving the first lessons in riding. When he begins a little to understand his business, backing, the most difficult part of his work, may be taught him; first to back well witnout any thing behind him, then with a light cart, and afterwards with some serious load ; and taking the greatest care not seriously to hurt tiie mouth. If the first lesson causes much soreness of the gums, the colt will not readily submit to a second. If he lias been rendered tractable before by kind usage, time and patience will do all that can be wished here. Some carters are in the habit of blinding the colt when teaching him to back : it may be necessary with the restive and obstinate one, and should be used only as a last resort. The colt having been thus partially broken-in, the necessity of implicit obedience may be taught him, and that not by severity, but by firmness and steadiness; the voice will go a great way, but the whip or the spur is sometimes indispensable — not so cruelly applied as to excite the animal to resistance, but to convince him that we liave the power to enforce submission. Few, we would almost say, no horses, are naturally vicious. It is cruel usage wliich has first provoked resistance ; that resistance has been followed by greater severity, and the stubbornness of the animal has increased ; open warfare has ensued, in which the man seldom gained an advantage, and the horse was frequently rendered unserviceable. Correc- tion may, or must be used, to enforce implicit obedience, after the education has proceeded to a certain extent, but the early lessons should be inculcated with kindness alone. Young colts are sometimes very perverse ; many days will occasionally pass before they will permit the l-jridle to be put on, or the saddle to be worn ; one act of harshness will double or treble this time. Patience and kindness will, after a while, prevail. On some morning, of better humour than usual, the bridle will be put on, and the saddle will be worn ; and this compliance being followed by kindness and soothing on the part of the breaker, and no inconvenience or pain being sufiered by the animal, all resistance will be at an end. The same principles will apply to the breaking-in of the horse for the road or the chase. The handling, and some portion of instruction, should commence from the time of weaning. The future tractability of the horse will much depend on this. At two years and a half, or three years, the regular process of breaking-in should come on. If it be delayed until the animal is four years old, his strength and obstinacy will be more difficult to overcome. We cannot much improve on the plan usually pursued by the breaker, except that there should be much more kindness and patience, and far less harshness and cruelty, than these persons are accustomed to exhibit, and a great deal more attention to the form and natural action of the horse. A headstall is put on the colt, and a cavesson (oi apparatus to confine and pinch the nose) affixed to it, with long reins. He is first accustomed to the rein, then led round a ring on soft ground, and at length mounted and taught his paces. Next to preserving the temper and docility of the horse, there is nothing of so much importance BREAKING-IN. 225 as to teach him every pace, and every part of his duty, distinctly and thoroughly. Each must constitute a separate and sometimes long-continued lesson, and tliat tauglit by a man who will never suffer his passion to ge. the better of his discretion. After the cavesson has been attaclied to the headstall, and tiic long rein put on, the first lesson is, to be quietly led about by the breaker, a steady boy following behind, by occasional threatening with the whip, but never by ah actual blow, to keep the colt up. When tlie animal follows readily f^nd quietly, he may be taken to the ring, and walked round, right and left, in a very small circle. Care should be taken to teach him this pace thorouglily, never suffering him to break into a trot. The boy with his whip may here again be necessary, but not a single blow should actually fall. Becoming tolerably perfect in tlie walk, he should be quickened to a trot, and kept steadily at it; the wliip of the boy, if needful, urging him on, and the cavesson restraining him. These lessons should be short. The pace should be kept perfect and distinct in each ; and docility and improve- ment rewarded with frequent caresses, and handfuls of corn. The length of the rein may now be gradually increased^ and the pace quickened, and the time extended, until the animal becomes tractable in this his first lessons, towards the conclusions of which, crupper-straps, or something similar, may be attached to the clothing. Tiiese, playing about the sides and flanks, accustom him to the flapping of the coat of the rider. The annoyance which they occasion will pass over in a day or two; for when the animal finds that no harm comes to him on account of these straps, he will cease to regard them. Next comes the bitting. The bit shooid be large and smooth, and the reins should be buckled to a ring on either side of the pad. There are many curious and expensive machines for this purpose, but the simple rein tvill be quite sufficient. The reins should at first be slack, and very gradually tightened. This will prepare for the more perfect manner in which the head will be afterwards got into a proper position, when the colt is accustomed to the saddle. Occasionally the breaker should stand in front of the colt, an J take hold of each side-rein near the mouth, and press upon it, and thus begin to teach him to stop and to back at the pressure of the rein, rewarding every act of docility, and not being too eager to punish occasional carelessness or waywardness. The colt may now be taken into the road or street to be gradually accus- lomed to objects among which his services will be required. Here, from fear or playfulness, a considerable degree of starting and shying may be exhibited. As little notice as possible should be taken of it. The same or similar objects should be soon passed again, but at a greater distance. If the colt still shies, let the distance be farther increased, until he takes no notice of the object; then he may gradually be brought nearer to it, and :his will be usually efl^ected without the slightest difficulty ; whereas, had there been an attempt to force the animal close to it in the first instance, the remembrance of the contest would have been associated with the object, and 'he habit of shying would have been established. Hitiierto, with a cool and patient breaker, the whip may have been shown, but will scarcely have been used; the colt must now, however, be accustomed to this necessary instrument of authority. Let the breaker walk by the side of the animal, and throw his right arm over his back, holding the reins in his left, and occasionally quicken his pace, and, at the moment of doing this, tap the horse with the whip in his right hand, and at rust very gently. The tap of the wliip and the quickening of the pace will soon become associated together in the mind of the animal. If necessary, 220 THE HORSE. the taps miy gradually fall a little heavier, and the feeling of pai.i be the monitor of the necessity of increased exertion. Tlie lessons of reining-in and stoppinir, and backing on the pressure of the bit, may continue to be practised at the same time. He may now be taught to bear the saddle. Some little caution will be necessary at the first putting of it on. The breaker should stand at the head of the colt, patting him and engaging his attention, while one assistant, on the otT-side, gently places the saddle ou the back of tiie animal, and another, on the near-side, slowly lightens the girths. If he submits quietly to this, as he generally will, when the previous process of breaking in has been properly conducted, the ceremony of mounting may be attempted on the following or on the third day. The breaker will need two assistants to accom- plish this operation. He will remain at the head of the colt, patting and making much of him. The rider will put his foot into the stirrup, and bear a little weight upon it, while the man on the otf-side presses equally on the other stirrup-leather ; and according to the docility of the animal, he will gradually increase the weight, until he balances himself on the stirrup. If the colt be uneasy or fearful, he should be spoken kindly to and patted, or a mouthful of corn be given to liim : but if he ofTers serious resistance, the lessons must terminate for that day; he may probably be in better humour on the morrow. When the rider has balanced himself for a minute or two, he may gently throw his leg over and quietly seat himself in the saddle. The breakei will then lead the animal round the ring, the rider sitting perfectly still. After a few minutes he will take the reins and handle them as gently aa possible, and guide the horse by the pressure of them; patting him fre- quently, and especially when he thinks of dismounting, and after having dismounted offaring him a little corn or green meat. The use of the rein in checking him, and of the pressure of the leg and the touch of the heel in quickening his pace, will soon be taught, and the education will be nearly completed. The horse having thus far submitted himself to the breaker, these pattings and rewards must be gradually diminished, and implicit obedience mildly but firmly enforced. Severity will not be often necessary ; in the great majority of cases it will be altogether uncalled for ; but should the animal, in a moment of waywardness, dispute the command of the breaker, he must at once be taught that he is the slave of man, and that we have the power, by other means than those of kindness, to bend him to our will. The educa- tion of the horse is that of the child. Pleasure is, as much as possible, associated with the early lessons ; but firmness, or if it need be, coercion, must confirm the habit of obedience. Tyranny and cruelty will, more speedily in the horse than in the child, provoke the wish to disobey ; and, on every practicable occasion, the resistance to command. The restive and vicious horse is, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, made so by ill- usage and not by nature. None but those who will take the trouble to try the experiment are aware how absolute a command the due admixture of firmness and kindness will soon give us over any horse. CASTRATION. The period at which this important operation will be best performed depends much on the breed and form of the colt, and the purpose for which he is destined. For the common agricultural horse, the age of four or five months will be the most advisable, or at least before he is weaned. Very few horses are lost when cut at that a^e. The weather, however, should CASTRATION. 221 not be too hot, nor the flies too numerous. We enter our decided protest against the recommendation of some valuable but incautious agricuhural writers, that "colts should be cut in the months of June or July, when flies pester tlie horses, and cause them to be continually moving about, and thereby prevent swelling." One moment's reflection will convince the reader that nothing can be more likely to produce inflammation, and conse- quent swelling and danger, than the torture of the flies hovering round and stinging the sore part. If the horse is designed either for the carriage or for heavy draught, the farmer should not think of castrating him until he be at least a twelve- month old ; and even then, the colt should be carefully examined. If he is thin and spare about the neck and shoulders, and low in the withers, he will materially improve by remaining uncut another six months ; but if his fore-quarters are fairly developed at the age of a twelvemonth, the operation should not be delayed, lest he become heavy and gross before, and perhaps have begun too decidedly to have a will of his own. No specific age, then, can be fixed ; but the castration should be performed rather late in the spring or early in the autumn, when the air is temperate, and partic- ularly when the weather is dry. No preparation is necessary for the suck- ing colt, but it may be prudent to bleed and to physic one of more advanced age. In the majority of cases, no after-treatment will be necessary, except that the animal should be sheltered from intense heat, and more particularly from wet. In temperate weather he will do much better running in the field than nursed in a close and hot stable. The moderate exercise which he will take in grazing will be preferable to perfect inaction. A large and well-ventilated box, however, may be permitted. The manner in which the operation is performed will be properly left to the veterinary surgeon ; although we must confess that we are disposed to adhere to the old way of opening the bag on either side, cutting off the tes. tide, and preventing bleeding by searing the vessels with a hot iron. There IS at least an appearance of brutality, and we believe much unnecessary pain inflicted, when the spermatic cord (the vessel and the nerve) is tightly compressed between two pieces of wood, as in a powerful vice, and left there either until the testicle drops off, or is removed on the following day by the operator. To the practice of some farmers, of twilchhig their colts at an early period, sometimes even so early as a month, we have stronger objection. When the operation of twitching is performed, a small cord is drawn as tightly as possible round the bag, between the testicle and the belly ; the circulation is thus stopped, and in a few days, the testicles arid the bag drop off: but the animal suffers sadly ; it is occasionally necess^ary to tighten the cord on the second or third day, and inflammation and death have frequently ensued. CHAPTER XII. THE FORE LEGS. We arrive now at those parts of the frame most essentially connected with the action and value pf the horse, and oftenest and most annoyingly, the subject of disease. The extremities contain the whole apparatus of motion, and it is with the action, and speed, and strength of the horse lh*l we are most concerned. 228 THE HORSE. We begin with the fore extremity, and with its upper part tiic shoulder It IS seen at G, page 63. THE SHOULDER. The scapula, or slioulder-bhxdc, situated forward on the side of the chest, is a bone of a somewhat triangular shape, with its apex or point downward, and its base or broad part upward. Tlie point lies between tiie first and second ribs; the hinder part of the base reaches as far back as the seventh rib ; it therefore extends obliquely along the chest. It is divided externally, into two unequal portions by a ridge or spine running through almost the whole of its extent, and designed, as we shall pre- sently siiow, for the attachment of important muscles. The broad or upper part, having no muscles of any consequence attached to it, is termi- nated by cartilage. We iiave stated that the muscles of the hinder legs are principally con- cerned in the motion of the horse. They impel the machine forward, and the main uses of tlie fore extremities are to lift the fore part of the horse from the ground, that it may be thus impelled to throw forward the legs as far as possible, that they receive this weight at a due distance, and to sup- port the force and shock of that weight when it reaches the ground. We will inquire as we proceed how far one or all of these objects are accom- plished. The shoulder-blade is united to the chest by muscle alone. There is a large muscle, with very remarkable tendinous fibres, and of immense strength (the serralus major, greater saw-shaped muscle), attached to the chest, and to the extensive smooth internal surface of the shoulder-blade, and by which, assisted, or rather strengthened, by the muscles of the breast, the weight of the body is supported, and the shock of the widest leap, or the most rapid motion, sustained. Had there been a bony union between the shoulder and the body, the vital parts contained in the chest could not have endured the dreadful shock which they would occasionally have experienced; nor could any bone have long remained whole, if exposed to such violence. The muscles witliin the shoulder-blade act as powerful and safe springs. They yield, as far as necessary, to the force impressed upon them; by their gradual yielding they destroy the violence of the shock, and then, by their elastic power, immediately regain their former situation. SPRAIN OF THE SHOULDER. In some violent and unexpected shock, these muscles are occasionally injured. Although we do not believe that, in one case in twenty, the farrier is right when he talks of his shoulder-lameness, yet it cannot be denied, that the muscles of the shoulder are occasionally sprained. This is effected oftener by a slip or a side fall, than by fair, although violent exertion. It is of considerable importance to be able to distinguish this shoulder-lame- ness from injuries of other parts of the fore extremity. We shall look in vain for much tenderness, or heat, or swelling: it is a sprain of muscles deeply seated, and v.'here these symptoms of injury cannot possibly exist. If, on standing before the horse, and looking at the size of the two shoulders, or rather their points, one should appear evidently larger than the other, we must not consider this as indicative of sprain of the muscles of tne shoulder. It probably arises from bruise of the point of the shouldei which a slight examination will determine ; or the whole of the limb, this SLANTING DIRECTION OF THE SHOULDER. J229 portion of which is enlarged, may be sound, while the other may be shrunk from want of equal exertion, arising from injury of long standing. Tiio heat and tenderness, if there be any, will be found witiiin the arm, closo to the chest; and will belong more to the muscles of the brea&t than to thoso under the shoulder. The symptoms, however, of shoulder-lameness can scarcely be mistaken ; and, when we relate them, the farmer will recollect that they very seldom occurred when the village-smith pointed to the shoulder as tiie seat of dis- ease, and punished the animal for no purpose. In sprain of the shoulder the horse will evidently sutfer extreme pain while moving, and the muscle underneath being inflamed and tender, lie will extend it as' little as possible. He will, drag his foe along the ground. It is in the lifting of the foot that the shoulder is principally moved: if the foot be lifted high, let the horse be ever so lame, the shoulder is little, if at all affected. The lame limb is suffered to bear the weight a much shorter time in this than in any other kind of lameness. In sprain of the back sinews, it is only when the horse is in motion that the injured parts are put to most pain; the pain is greatest here when the weight rests on the limb, and, therefore, there is a peculiar quickness in catching up the limb, in shoulder lameness, the moment the weight is thrown on it. This is particularly evident when the horse is going down hill, and the injured limb bears an additional jjortion of the weight. \n the stable, too, when the horse points or projects one foot before the other, that foot is usually flat on the ground. In shoulder-lameness the toe alone rests on the ground. The circumstance which most of all characterizes this affection, is, that when the foot is lifted, and then brought considerably forward, the horse will express great pain, which he will not do if the the lameness be in the foot or the leg. We have dwelt longer on this point, that our readers may be enabled to put to the test the many cases of shoulder-lameness which exist only in the imagination of the groom or the farrier. In sprain of the internal muscles of the shoulder, k\\ local measures can be adopted. The horse should be bled from the vein on the inside of the arm (the plate vein), because the blood is then abstracted more immediately from the inflamed part. A dose of physic should be given, and fomenta. tions applied, and principally on the inside of the arm, close to the chest; while the horse is kept as quiet as possible. The injury is too deeply seated for external stimulants to have a very great effect, yet a blister will very properly be resorted to, if the lameness is not speedily removed. The swiimning of the horse is an inhuman practice ; it tortures the animal, and increases the inflammation. The pegging of the shoulder (puncturing the skin, and blowing into the cellular structure beneath, until it is considerablv puffed up) is another relic of ignorance and barbarity. SLANTING DIRECTION OF THE SHOULDER. The lessening or breaking of the shock, from the weight being thrown violently on the fore legs, is effected in another way. It will be observed, that (see G and J, p. 03) the shoulder-blade and the lower bone of the shoulder are not connected togetiier in a straight line, but form a very con- siderable angle with each other. This will be more evident from the fol lowing cut, which represents the fore and hind extremities in the situations which they occupy in the horse. This angular construction of the limbs reminds us of the similar arrange- ment of the springs of a carriage, and the ease of motion, and almost per feet freedom from jolting, which are thereby obtained. 230 THE HORSE. \Ve uill not say that the form of a spring was borrowed from this con- struction of the limbs of the horse, but the effect of the carriage-sprmg beautifully illustrates the connection of the different bones in the extre ni- ties of this quadruped. The obliquity or slanting direction of the shoulder effects another very useful purpose. That the stride in the gallop, or the space passed over in the trot, may be extensive, it is necessary that the fore part of the animal should be considerably elevated. The shoulder, by means of the muscles which extend from it to the inferior part of the limb, is the grand agent in effecting this. The slightest inspection of the last cut, or that at p. 63, will show that, just in proportion as the point of the shoulder is brought forward and elevated, will be the forward action and elevation of the limb or the space passed over at every effort. At each contraction of the mus- cles which extend from G to J, or from the shoulder-blade to the bone of the arm, will the point of the shoulder be projected and elevated. In the upright shoulder it can scarcely be carried beyond the point at which it is placed in these cuts. In the oblique or slanting shoulder it commences its action from that point; therefore it js that a slanting shoulder is indis- pensable in a horse from which good action and considerable speed are required. The slanting shoulder accomplishes another very useful object. The muscles extending from the shoulder-blade to the lower bone of the shoulder are the powers by which motion is given to the whole of the limb. The extent and energy of that motion depend mucii on the force exerted or the strength of the muscle ; but there are circumstances in the relative situa- tions of the different bones which ha\e far greater influence. Let us suppose that by means of a lever we are endeavouring to raise a crrtaiu Weight. SLANTING DIRECTION OF THE SHOULDER. 231 A is a lever resting or turning on a pivot, B; C is the weight to he raised, and D is the power and situatron at wliich the power is applied. If we apply our strength in a direction perpendicular to the lever, as represented by the line E, we can easily calculate the strength which we must exert In proportion as the distance of the power from the pivot or centre of motion exceeds that of the weight from the same place, so will be the advantage gained. The power here is twice as far from the centre as the weight is, and therefore we gain advantage in the proportion of two to one , or if the weight be equal to 200 lbs., a force of 100 lbs. will balance it. If we alter the direction in which the power is applied, and suppose it to be in that of the line F, will 100 lbs. now do ? No; nothing like it. How shall we calculate, then, the power that is necessary ? We must prolong the line of direction until another line, falling perpendicularly from the lever, and commencing at the centre of motion, will cut it; and the length of that line will give us the actual effect of the strength we employ. Now, this new line is but half as long as the distance of the weight from the centre of motion, and therefore we lose advantage in the proportion of two to one ; or a strength equal to 400 lbs. must be exerted to raise the 200 lbs., and so on in proportion to the deviation from the right or perpendicular line. Let us next take the shoulder of the h'orse. The point of the shoulder, the shoulder-joint, is the pivot or centre of motion ; the leg attached to the bone of the arm is the weight ; the shoulder-blade being more fixed is the part whence the power is exerted ; and the muscles extending from the one to the other are the lines in which that power is exerted. These lines approach much more nearly to a perpendicular in the oblique than in the upright shoulder (see cut). In the upright shoulder, the shoulder-blade and the bone of the arm are almost in a straight line, and the real action and power of the muscle are most strangely diminished. In this point of view the oblique shoulder is most important. It not only gives extensive action, but facility of action ; the power of the muscles is more than doubled by being exerted in a line approaching so much nearer to a perpendicular. There is yet another advantage of the oblique shoulder. The point of the shoulder is projected forward; and therefore the pillars which support the fore part of the horse are likewise placed proportionably torward, and they have less weight to carry ; and are exposed to less concussion, a especially concussion in rapid action. The horse is also much safer ; having less weight lying before the pillars of support, he is not so likely have the centre of gravity thrown before and beyond them by an acci- dental trip; or, in other words, he is not so likely to fall ; and he rides more pleasantly, for there is far less weight bearing on the hand of the rider, and annoying and tiring him. It likewise happens unfortunately that . nature, as it were to supply the deficiency of action and of power in an upright shoulder, has accumulated on it more muscle, and therefore the upright shouldei is proverjjially thick and cloddy; and the muscles of the 232 ^ THE HORSE. breast, which were designed to strengthen the attachment of the shoulders to the chest, and to bind them together, must, when the point of the shoulder lies backward, and under the horse, be proportionably thickened and strengtlicned, and the horse is thus still more heavy before, more unpleas ant, and more unsafe to ride. Then, ought every horse to have an oblique shoulder? No! We have been speaking of those which are designed to ride pleasantly, or from which extensive and rapid action is required. In them we have said that an oblique shoulder is indispensable : but there are others which are never ridden; whose pace is slow, and who have nothing to do but throw as much weight as possible into the collar. To them an upright shoulder is an advantage, because its additional thickness gives them additional weigiit to throw into tlie collar, which the power of their hinder-quarters is fully suf- ficient to accomplish ; and because the upright position of the shoulder gives that direction to the collar which enables the horse to act upon every part of it; and that inclination of the traces which will enable his weiglit or power to be most advantageously employed. Of this, however, we sliall better speak when we come to describe the implements of agriculture, and particularly the construction of wheel carriages. An improved breed of heavy draught horses has of late years been attempted, and with much success. Sufficient uprightness of shoulder is retained for the purposes of draught, while a slight degree of obliquity has materially quickened the pace and improved the appearance. Above its junction with the humerus or lower bone of the shoulder, the shoulder-blade forms what is called the point of the shoulder. There is a round blunted projection, best seen in the cut (p. 230). The neck of the shoulder-blade then forms a shallow cavity, into which the head of the next bone is received. The cavity is shallow, because extensive motion is required, and because both of tlie bones being so moveable, and the motion of the one connected so much with that of the other, dislocation was not so likely to happen as if one of them had been fixed. A capsular ligament, or one extending round the head of both bones, confines them securely together. This joint is rarely or never dislocated; or should it suffer dislocation, the muscles of the shoulder-blade and the lower bone of the shoulder are so strong, that the reduction of it would be impossible. The point of the shoulder, however, projecting considerably, is much exposed to injury from accident or violence; even turning in a narrow stall has inflicted a serious bruise. Fomentations of warm water will usually remove the tenderness and lameness, but should they fail, blood may be taken from the plate-vein, and, in very obstinate cases, a blister may be resorted to. A description of the principal muscles of the shoulder-blade, their situa- tion, attachments, and use, may not be uninteresting to the lover of the horse, and may guide his judgment as to the capability and proper form of that noble animal. CUT OF MUSCLES ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE SHOULDER. a and b represent a portion of the muscle (the trapezius, quadrangular muscle), which rises from the longer bones of the withers, broadly and strongly, and from the ligament of the neck (a portion of which is seen ai b), and. narrowing below, and terminating almost in a point, is inserted into a prominent part of the spine or ridge of the shoulder-blade. It occu- pies the space between the withers and the upper part of the shoulder- blade, and is large and strong in proportion to the height of the withers. SLANTING DIRECTION OF THE SHOULDER. 033 and the slanting of the shoulder. Its use is evidently to sL.,-)pjrt tlie shoulder, to raise it, and likewise to draw it backward ; tijcrerbre, con- stituting one of the most important muscles connected with the action of the horse, and illustrating the advantage of i)igh withers and a slanting shoulder. A portion of it is represented as turned back, to show othei muscles beneath. A moment'3 inspection will convince the reader, that although we may have been justified in objecting to a low forehead and thick shoulder, yet still some full- ness and fleshiness are neces- sary, even about the withers ; otherwise, although there may be height of withers, and ob- liquity of shoulder to give ex- tensive action, there will not be sufficient muscular power to work the machine with either quickness or continuance. At c is a portion of the levator humeri (the )-aiser of the shoulder), descending even from the tubercle at the back of the head (see cut, page 68), and from the base of the temporal bone, and attaching .itself to the first four bones of the neck, and to the liga- ment of the neck ; inserting itself into the covering of the muscles of the shoulder, and the muscles about the point of the shoulder, and at length terminating in a ridge on the lower bone of the shoulder. It is a muscle of immense power and great utility, raising and drawing forward the shoulder and the arm, and, when tliese are fixed, turning the head and neck if one acts, and depressing them if the muscles on both sides act at the same time. At d is a portion of the great saw-like or tooth-shaped muscle of the shoulder, constituting the bulk of the lower part of the neck ; deeply seated ; arising, as here seen, from the five last bones of the neck, and llie two first ribs, and the lower portion of it springing from all the true ribs ; all the fibres tending towards, and inserted into the inner surface of , and called the extensor of the foot. It rises from the outer head of the lower bone of the shoulder, and likewise from the outer head of the bone of the arm. It becomes tendinous as it proceeds, and passes under a strong ring at the knee, by vviiich it is confined in its proper situation ; it then runs along the f-ont of the shank-bone, tied down by a strong cellulor substance; passes over tiie fietlock, and part of the upper pastern; is inserted into the lower pail o( tlie upper pastern, into the lower pastern, and the colTin-bone or bon** ■j:{S THE HORSE. of the foot. It therefure extends all these bones ; and as it passes over the shank, being tied down to it in every part of its course, it likewise serves lO extend that bone. At v., page 233, is the tendon of another extensor muscle, and at z a curious oblique one, passing over the tendon of x, confining it in its situa- tion, and likewise itself assisting in extending or straightening the leg. The muscles employed in bending the leg are both numerous and power ful. Two of the superficial ones are given in the cut, page 233. The first is at t, page 233 ; it is also seen at b, page 235. It is called the mid- dle Jlexor, or bending muscle of the shank-bone, because it lies precisely on the middle of the back part of the arm. It rises from the inner head of the lower bone of the shoulder, and is inserted into one of the bones on the inner side of the knee. The other is seen at v, page 233. It is called the external flexor of the leg, because it lies on the outer side of the arm, towards the back. It rises from the outer head of the lower bone of the shoulder; advancing towards the knee, it is tendinous, and the tendon divides into two portions, one of which is inserted into the same bone of the knee, and the other into the outer small bone of the leg. The internal flexor is seen at e, page 235. It proceeds from the inner head of the loAvei bone of the shoulder, and is inserted into the head of the inner splint bone, and its office is to bend the leg, and very slightly turn it. A portion of one of the most powerful of the flexor muscles, and powerful indeed they must be, is delineated at c, page 235. It is the Jlexor of the arm. It rises from the extremity of the ridge of the shoulder-blade in the form of a large and round tendon, which runs between the two prominences in the upper part of the front of the lower bone of the shoulder, in as perfect a groove or pulley as art ever contrived. This groove is lined witli smooth cartilage; and between it and the tendon there is an oily fluid, so that the tendon plays freely in the pulley without friction. Having escaped from this pulley, and passed the head of the lower bone of the shoulder, the cord swells out into a round fleshy body, still containing many tendinous fibres. Deeply seated, it contributes materially to the bulk of the front of the arm ; and, having reached the arm, it is inserted into the head and neck of the bone of the arm, and likewise into the capsular ligament of the elbow- joint. It is the main muscle by which, almost alone, the whole of the leg below the arm is bent. It acts at great disadvantage. It is inserted into the very head of the bone of the arm, and expanded even upon the joint. Then the power is applied almost close to the centre of motion, while the weight to be raised is fiir distant from it. The power is tiiirty times nearer the centre of motion than is the weight ; and, calculating, as before, the weight of the arm and the rest of the limb at tJO lbs., it must act with the force of thirty times sixty, or 1800 lbs. In addition to this, the line of the direction of the force strangely deviates from a perpendicular: the direction of the muscle is nearly the same as that of the limb, and the mechanical disad- vantage is almost incalculably great. We will take it at only ten times more; then this muscle, and its feeble coadjutors, act with a force of ten times 1800, or 18,000 lbs. Why this almost incredible expenditure of muscular power ? First, that the beauty of the limb might be preserved, and the joint might be compact. If tiie tendon had been inserted half way down the arm, the elbow-joint would have offered a very unsightly appearance. Beauty of form, however, is the least result of this conformation ; with- out it the animal would not have been fitted for the purposes to which wo devote him. It is the law of mechanics, that what is lost in pc Aver is gained THE ARM. 239 in velocity. The product of the power, and the space passed over Ity tha arm of the lever to which it is attached, must always be equal to the pro- duct of the weight, and of the space passed over by the arm that supports it; and if a power, equal to thirty times the weight, is obliged to be exerted at the upper part of the bone of the arm, the centre of that bone., which may be considered as the centre of the weight, will pass over thirty times the space, and the extremity of the limb will pass over sixty times the space. The muscle will contract with a great deal of rapidity, but the foot will move with sixty times that rapidity, in order to pass over sixty times the space in the same time. This is precisely what we want. Exten- sive and rapid motion are the excellencies of the horse. He is valuable irl proportion as he has them combined with stoutness ; and by this confor- mation of the limb alone could he obtain them. Therefore the tendon is at firjit unusually strong; it plays tiirough tiie natural but perfect pulley of the bone of the arm witiiout friction ; the body of the muscle is mixed with tendinous fibres, and the insertion into the fore-arm is very extensive, lest the application of such immense force should tear it from its adhe- aions. There is sufficient strength in the apparatus; tlie powur may be safely applied at this ipechanical disadvantage ; and it is applied close to \.he joint to give an extent and rapidity of motion which could not otherwise have been obtained, and without which the horse would have been compar- atively useless. At the back of the arm are other flexor muscles of great power, to bend the lower portions of the limb. We have described two of them belonging to the arm and the leg, and we must not pass over the very peculiar ones acting on the feet. Only a small portion of one of them can be seen in our cut, page 233, at 1. The first is the perforated Jlexor muscle: the reason of the name will presently appear, it rises from the lower and back part of the inner head of the lower bone of the shoulder, and intermixed with, or rather between ihe origins of the muscle next to be described, and called the perforating muscle. As it descends along the bone of the arm, it becomes tendinous ; and, approaching the knee, it is bound down by arches or bands of liga- ment, that it may not start in sudden and violent action. Proceeding from the knee it widens, and partly wraps round the tendon of the perforating muscle, and they run down together in contact, yet not adhering; freely playing over each other, and mucous fluid obviating all friction. Both of them are inclosed in a sheath of dense cellular substance, attached to them by numerous fibrils; and they are likewise supported by various ligament- ous expansions. Near the fetlock the tendon still farther expands, and forms a complete ring round the tendon of the perforating muscle. This is seen at J, p. 111. The use of this will be best explained when we are treating of the fetlock. Tiie perforated tendon soon afterwards divides, and is inserted into the smaller and larger pastern bones, and flexes or bends them. The next is the perforating flexor muscle. It has nearly the same origin as the other, but with somewhat distinct heads, it continues muscular farther down the arm than the perforated, and lies before it. At the knee 't passes, like the perforated, under strong ligamentary arches, which confine it in its situation. It then becomes round, and is partly wrapped up in the perforated ; and at the fetlock is entirely surrounded by it. It ©merges from the perforated when that tendon divides, and continues itg progress alone after the other has inserted itself into the pasterns, and passing over the navicular bone, terminates on the base of the coffin-bone, or bone of the foot. It is sufficiently plain that the arm should be large and muscular, 2H THE HORSE. Otherwise it cannot discharge all these duties. Horsemeri differ on a variety of ot^er points, but here they are agreed. A full and s\veiling» fore-arm is tne ciiaracteristic of every thorough-bred horse, and for speet and continuance he is unequalled. Whatever other good points a horse may possess, if the arm be narrow in front and near the shoulder, flat on the side, and altogether poor in appearance, that horse is radically defect- ive ; he can neither raise his knee for rapid action, nor throw his leg.** sufficiently forward. The arm should likewise be long. In proportion to the length of the muscle is the degree of contraction of which it is capable; and in propor- tion to the degree of contraction in the muscle, will be the e.\tent of motion in the part of the limb beneath. A racer, with a short arm, would be sadly deficient in stride ; a hunter, with the same defect, would not be able to double his legs well under him in the I-eap. There is, however, a medium in this, and the advantage of length in the arm will depend on the use to which the horse is applied. The lady's horse, the cavalry horse, every horse in which prancing action is esteemed a beauty, and in which utility is, to a certain degree, sacrificed to appearance, must not be too long in the arm. If he be long there, he will be proportionably short in the leg; and although this is an undoubted excellence, whether speed or continuance be regarded, the short leg will not give the grand and imposing action which fashion may require : and, in addition to this, a horse with short legs may not have quite so easy action as another whose length is in the shan'k rather than in the arm. THE KNEE. The Knee (M, p. 63, and Cut, p. 230) constitutes the joint or joints between the arm and the shank or leg; and it is far more complicated than any joint we have yet considered. Beside the lower head of the bone of the arm, and the upper heads of the three bones of the leg, there are no less than six other bones interposed, arranged in two rows, three in each row, and the seventh placed behind the other, to which an eighth is some- times added. What was the intention of this complicated structure ? A joint between the elbow and the fetlock was absolutely necessary to the action of tlie norse. An inflexible pillar of that length could scarcely have been lifted from the ground, and certainly could not have been lifted far enough for rapid or safe motion. It was likewise necessary, that the interposing joint should be so constituted as to preserve this part of the limb in a straight direction, and should possess sufficient strength to resist all common work and accidents. Being in a straight direction, the shock or jar between the ends of the bones of the arm and the leg would be dreadful, and would speedily inflict irreparable injury. The heads of all bones are covered with elastic cartilage, to protect them from injury by concussion, but this would be altogether insufficient here. Six distinct bones, then, are placed here, each covered above and below by a thick coating of cartilage, con- nected together by strong ligaments, but separated by fluids and mem- branes interposed. The concussion is thus spread over the whole of them and shared by the whole of them ; and, by the peculiarity of their connection, deadened and rendered harmless. These six distinct bones, united to eacli other by numerous and powerful ligaments, will also afford a far stronger joint than the apposition of any two bon s, however perfect and strong might be the capsular ligament, or oy Mhat ver other ligaments it could be strengthened. In addition to thf THE KNEE. 241 connection between the individual bones, there is a perfect capsular liga- meat here, extending from the bone of the arm to those of the leg; and tlie result of the whole is, that, although the centre of such a column must be the weakest part, and most liable to bow out and give way, the hardest work and the severest accidents produce little deformity, and no dislocation in tlie knee : nor do the shocks and jars of many a year cause inflammation or disease. It is an undeniable fact, that such is the perfect construction of this joint, and to so great a degree does it lessen concus- sion, that tlie injuries resulting from hard work are, almost without an exception, found below the knee. The seventh bone, the trapezium, so called from its quadrangular figure, is placed (see M, p. 63) behind the ofhers, and does not bear tiie sliglUest portion of the weight. It, however, is very useful. Two of the flexor muscles, already described, proceeding from the bone of the arm, are inserted into it; and thus, being thrown off the limb, have a less oblique direction given to them; and, therefore, according to the principle of tlie lever, act with considerably more power. It is also useful in another way. As the tendons of the various muscles descend the limbs, they are tied down, as we have described, by strong ligamentous bands : this is particu- larly the case in the neiglibourhood of the joints. The use of this is evident. The extensor tendons; which lie princi])ally on the front of the leg, are prevented from starting, and strengthened and assisted in their action ; but the flexor tendons which lie at the back would be liable to friction, and their motion would he im|)eded, if they were bound down toe lightly. This projecting bone prevents the annular or ring. like ligament from pressing too closely on the main flexor tendons of the foot; and while it leaves them room to play, leaves room likewise for a little bag, filled with mucus, to surround them, which mucus, oozing slowly out, supplies the whole course of tlie tendons down the legs with a fluid that takes away the possibiliiy of injurious friction. The knee should be broad. It should present a very striking width, compared with the arm above, or the shank below. The broader the knee is, the more space there is for the attachment of muscles, and for the accumulation of ligamentous expansions and bands. In proportion to the breadth of the knee there will be more strength ; and likewise the direction of some muscles will be less oblique, and those of others will be more removed from the centre of motion ; and, in either case, mucli power will be gained. BROKEN KNEES. The treatment of broken knees is a subject of considerable importance, for many horses are sadly blemished, and others are destroyed, by wounds in the knee-joint. The horse, when falling, naturally throws his knees forward ; they receive all his weight, and are sometimes very extensively lacerated. The first thing to be done is, by very careful washing with warm water, to cleanse the wound fi'om all gravel and dirt. It must then le ascertained whether the joint is penetrated. The grating of the probe ml one of the bones of the knee, or the depth to which the probe enters (he wound, will often too plainly indicate that the joint has been opened. Should any doubt exist, let a linseed-meal poultice be applied. This will at least act as a fomentation to the wound, and will prevent or abate inflammation ; and when, twelve hours afterwards, it is taJes in which THE PASTERNS. 25l The length and obliquity of the pastern vary, we have said, in he ditFer- ent breeds of horses, and in proportion to the length and slanting diiection of the pastern is the springiness of the horse and the easiness of his paces. The pastern must be long in proportion to its obliquity, or the fetlock would be too close to the ground, and, in rapid action, would come violently upon it. It is necessary that the fetlock should be elevated a certain distance from the ground, and this may be effected either by a short and upright or a long and slanting pastern. In proportion as tiie pastern is oblique or slanting, two consequences will follow : less weight will be tlirown on the pas- tern and more on the sessamoid, and, in that proportion, jar or concussion will be prevented ; and the jar of the weight which is thrown on the pastern will be lessened by the very obliquity of the bones, agreeably to what we have already stated of the angular construction of the limbs. Every advantage has, however, to a certain extent, its corresponding dis- advantages. In proportion to the obliquity, or slanting of the pastern, will be the stress on the fetlock-joint, and, therefore, the liability of that joint to injury and strain; and also the liability to "sprain of the back-sinews," from the increased action and play of the flexor tendons ; and likewise to injuries of the pastern-joints, for the ligaments will be weak in proportion to their length. The long and slanting pastern is an excellence in the race- horse, from the springiness of action and greater extent of stride by which it is accompanied. A less degree of it is necessary in the hunter, who is to unite continuance of exertion with ease of pace, and who, in his leaps, requires almost as much springiness as the race-horse; but, for the wear and tear of the hackney, a still less degree of obliquity should be found. There should be sufficient to give pleasantness of going, but not enough to endanger continuance and strength. Experience among horses will alone point out the most advantageous direction of the pastern for the purpose required ; but the slightest observation will prove the necessity of consider- able variety in the structure of this part. Let the reader imagine the heavy dray-horse, with his short and upright pasterns, contending in the race; or the race-horse, with his long and weak pasterns, endeavouring to dig his toe into the ground to move some heavy weight. The concussion is little in a cart-horse, because his movements are slow, and therefore the upright and strong pastern is given to him, which he can force into the ground, and on which he can throw the whole of his immense weight. The oblique pas- tern is given to the race-horse, because that alone is compatible with extent of stride and great speed. Except a horse for general purposes, and par- ticularly for riding, be very hardly used, a little too much obliquity is a far less evil than a pastern too upright. The upright pastern is unsafe. The very circumstance which enables the dray-horse to throw himself into his collar, throws the riding-horse down ; and while the jolting of the upright pastern is an insufferable nuisance to the rider, it is injurious to the horse, and produces many diseases in the feet and legs. A riding-horse, with upright pasterns, will soon begin to knuckle over, even with ordinary work ; and this will be almost invariably followed by ringbone, ossification of the cartilages, and contracted feet. they are called into sudden and forcible action. The suspensory ligament, by its reaction, instantaneously after extension, aids the flexor-muscles in bending- the pastern-joints. The astonishing activity and expedition displayed in the movementa of tlie race-horse at speed, seem to be referable, in part, to the promptitude with which tlie suspensory liga ment can act before the flexor-muscles are duly prepared; tlie latter, we should eay, tatcli, as it were, and then direct the limb first snatched from the ground by the powers uf elasticity. — PercivaU'a Lectures on the Veterinary Art, vol. i. p. 334. 252 THE HORSE. RUPTURE OF THE SUSPENSORY LIGAMENT. The suspensory ligament is sometimes ruptured by extraoi dinary exer- tion. The sessamoids are then let down, and the fetlock almost touches the ground. This is generally mistaken for rupture of the flexor tendon; but one circumstance will sufficiently demonstrate that it is the suspensory ligament which is concerned, viz: that the horse is able to bend his foot. Rupture of this ligament is a bad, ai-,d almost desperate case. The horse is frequently lame for life, and never becomes perfectly sound. Keeping him altogether quiet, bandaging the leg, and putting on a high-heeled shoe, will atford the most probable means of relief. THE FETLOCK. The fetlock-joint is a very complicated one, and from the stress which is laid on it, and its being the principal seat of motion below the knee, it is particularly subject to injury. THere are not many cases of sprain of the back-sinew which are not accompanied by inflammation of the ligaments of this joint; and many supposed cases of sprain higher up, are simple afTec- tions of the fetlock. It requires a great deal of care, and some considerable experience, to distinguish the one from the other. The heat about the part, and the point at which the horse least endures the pressure of the finger, will be the principal guides in searching out its locality. An affection of the fetlock-joint demands blistering more promptly and severely than one of the sheaths of the tendons. GROGGINESS. The peculiar knuckling over of the fetlock-joint, and tottering of the whole of the fore-leg, known by the name of Grogginess, and which is so often seen in old and over-worked horses, is seldom an affection of either the fetlock or the pastern-joints simply, although these have their full share in the mischief that has been produced by tasking the poor animal beyond his strength. Sometimes it is difficult to fix on any particular joint ; at others, it seems to be traced to a joint deep in the foot, where the flexor tendon runs over the navicular-bone. It seems oftenest to be a want of power in the ligaments of the joints generally, produced by frequent and severe sprains, or by ill-judged and cruel exertion; and, in the majority of cases, admits of no remedy; especially as dissection often discovers ulcera- tion within the joints, and of the membrane which lines the cartilage, and even of the cartilage itself, which it was impossible to reach or remove. CUTTING. The inside of the fetlock is often bruised by the shoe or the hoof of th> opposite foot. Many expedients have been tried to remove this; the inside heel lias been raised and lowered, and the outside raised and lowered; and sometimes one operation has succeeded, and sometimes the contrary; and there was no point so involved in obscurity, or so destitute of principles to guide the practitioner. The most successful remedy, and that which in the great majority of cases supersedes all others, is to put on a shoe of even thickness from heel to toe; to let the bearing be perfectly level; and then to drive but one nail, and that near the toe, in the inside of tl e shoe, which CUTTING. 263 is placed on the foot by which the injury is done; care being taken that the shoe shall not extend beyond the edge of the crust, and the crust being rasped a little at the quarters. The principle on which this shoe acts lias been stated when we spoke of the speedy cut. There are some defects, however, in the natural form of the horse, which are the causes of cutting, and which no contrivance will remedy ; as when the legs are placed too near each other, or when the feet are turned inward or outward. A horse with these defects should be carefully examined at the inside of the fetlock, and if there be any sore or callous places fuom cutting, there will be sufficient reason for rejecting the animal. Some horses will cut when ihey are fatigued, and many colts will cut before they arrive at their full strength. Fig. 2. Fig- 1- a Upper pastern. b Lower pastern. c Navicular-bone. d Coffin-bone. Fig. 2. a Sessamoid-bone. b Upper pastern. c Lower pastern. d Navicular-bone. e Coffin-bone, with the horny laminse. The upper pastern bone {b, p. 249, and a in the first figure, and h in the second in this cut) receives the lower pulley-like head of the shank-bone, and forms a hinge-joint, admitting only of banding and extension, but not of side motion ; it likewise articulates with the sessamoid-bones. Its lower head has two rounded protuberances, which are received into corresponding depressions in the lower pastern. On either side, above the pastern-joint, are roughened projections for the attachment of very strong ligaments, both the capsular ligaments and many cross ligaments, which render the joint between the two pasterns sufficiently secure. The hioer jmstern (fZ, p. 249, and i in the first figure, and c in the second in the above cut) is a short and thick bone, with its larger head downward. Its upper head has two depressions to receive the protuberances on the lower head of the upper bone, bearing some resemblance to a pulley, but not so decidedly as the lower head of the shank-bone. Its lower head resembles the lower head of the other pastern, and has two prominences, likewise somewhat resembling a pulley, and by which it articulates with the coffin-bone; and a depression in front, corresponding with a projection in the coffin-bone; and also two slight depressions behind, receiving enii- nences in the navicular-bone. Neither of these joints admit of any lateral motion. The ligaments of this joint, which is called the coffin-joint, are, like those of the pastern-joint, exceedingly strong, both the capsular and the cross ones. The tendon of the extensor muscle is inserted into the lore part, both of the upper and lower pastern-bones, as well as into the upper part of the coffin-bone (/, p. 249); and at the back of these bones the suspensory ligament is expanded and inserted, while a portion of it jToes over tiie fore part of the upper pastern to reach the extensor tendori. Th°se attachments in front of the bones are seen in the accompanying cut, 254 THE HORSE. in which a represents the lower part of the shank, bone; Z> the sessamoid-bones ; c the upper pastern; d the lower pastern; and e the coffin-bone ; ff are the branches of the suspensory ligaments going to unite with the extensor tendon ; g tlie long extensor tendon ; h ligaments connecting the two pastern-bones together ; and i the lateral cartilages of the foot. And now, having arrived at the foot, which is the most complicated and important part in the frame of a horse, we shall defer the consideration of the coffin and navicular-bones until we have described the hinder extremities. We may, however, observe that both these joints are subject to sprain, and particu- larly the coffin-joint. SPRAIN OF THE COFFIN-JOINT. Tiie proof of this is when the lameness is sudden, and the heat and ten- derness are principally felt round the coronet. Bleeding at the toe, physic, fomentation, and blisters are tlie usual means adopted. This lameness is not easily removed, even by a blister; and, if removed, like sprains of the fet- lock and of the back-sinews, it is apt to return, and finally produce a great deal of disorganization and miscliief in the foot. This wrick, or sprain of the coffin-joint, sometimes becomes a very serious affiiir, not being always attended by any external swelling, and being detected only by heat around the coronet, the seat of the lameness is often overlooked ; and the disease is suffered to become confirmed before its nature is discovered. From violent or repeated sprains of the pastern or coffin-joints, or exten sion of the ligaments attached to other parts of the pastern-bones, inflam- mation takes place in the periosteum, and bony matter is formed, which often rapidly increases, and is recognised by the name of RINGBONE. Ringbone commences in one of the pasterns, and usually about the pas- tern-joint, but it rapidly spreads, and involves not only the pastern-bones, bui the cartilages of the foot. When the first deposit is on the lower pas- tern, and on both sides of it, and produced by violent inflammation of the ligaments of the joints, it is recognised by a slight enlargement, or bony tumour on each side of the foot, and just above the coronet. (See/, in tiie following cut.) This is more frequent in the hind-foot than in the fore, because, from the violent action of the hind-legs in propelling the horse forward, the pasterns are more subject to ligamentary injury behind than before; yet the lameness is not so great, because the disease is confined principally to the ligaments, and the bones have not been injured by con- cussion ; while, from the position of the fore limbs, and their exposure to concussion, there will generally be in them injury of the bones to be added to that of the ligaments. In its early stage, and when recognised onlv by a bony enlargement on both sides of the pastern-joint, or in some kw cases on one side only, the disease may frequently be removed by active blister- ing, or by the application of the cautery ; but there is so much wear and tear in this part of the animal, that the inflammation and the disposi tion to the formation of bone rapidly spread. The pasterns first become connected together bv bone instead of ligament, and thence results what is called an anchylosed or fixed joint. Its motion is lost. From this joint RI^JGBONE. 255 the disease proceeds to the cartilages of the foot, and to the union between the lower pastern, and the coffin and navicular bones; and the motion of these parts likewise is impeded or lost, and tlie whole of this part of the foot becomes one mass of spongy bone. From this disposition to spread, (and at first round the pastern-joint, which is situated just above the coronet,) this disease has acquired the name of ringbone. CUT OF THE LEG. This cut will show the situation and appearance of this and some other detects of the fore-leg. a will represent the capped hock or enlargement of the joint of the elbow ; b the tying-in of the leg below the knee ; c the most frequent situation of splint on the side of the shank-bone, and not pro- ducing lameness after its first formation, because it does not interfere with the motion of the knee, or injure the sus- pensory ligament, d is the situation and appearance of the enlargement accompanying sprain of the back-sin- ews. This, however, is an aggravated case ; and the sprain may be great, and the lameness distressing, without all thi? swelling, e is the place of wind-gall. y gives the appearance of ring-bone, when it first appears on the side of the pastern, about the joint, and where there is naturally some prominence of bone ; g is the situation of sand-crack in the fore-leg. h the situation of the mollenders. Ringbone is one of the most serious lamenesses with which the horse can be afliicted. It is unsoundness when ex- isting in the slightest degree, for the lateral enlargement may speedily ex- tend ; and when the body deposit begins to spread, th*^ disease is incurable. The fore-ltgs, when viewed in front, should be v idest at the chest, and should gradually approach each other as we descen 1 towards the fetlock. The degree of width must depend on the purposes for which the horse is wanted. The legs of a heavy draught- horse can scarcely be too far apart- His rounded chest enables him to throw more weight into the collar ; and being seldom, if ever, required for speed, he wants not tliat occasionally increased expansion of chest which the circular form is not calculated to give. A 256 THE HORSE. hunter, a liackney, and a ccach-horse, should have sufficient expansion ot the chest, or the legs sufficiently wide apart, to leave loom for the play of the lungs ; but depth more than roundness of chest is here required, because the deep chest admits of most expansion, when the horse, in rapid action, and the circulation proportionably quickened, needs more room to breathe; yet if the breast be too wide, tliere will be considerable weight thrown before, and the horse will be heavy in the hand, and unsafe. Whether the legs are near to each other or wide apart, they should be straight. The elbow should not have the slightest inclination inward or outward. If it inclines towards the ribs, its action will be confined, and the leg will be thrown outward when in motion, and describe a curious and awkward curve ; and this will give a peculiar rolling motion, unpleasant to the rider and unsafe to the animal. The toe will likewise be turned outward, which will not only prevent the foot from coming flat on the ground in its descent, but be usually accompanied by cutting, even more certainly than when the toe turns inward. If the elbow is turned outward, the toes will necessarily be turned inward, which is a great unsightliness, and to a certain degree injurious. The weight cannot be perfectly distributed over the foot ; the bearing cannot be true ; there will be undue pressure on the inner quarter, a tendency to unsafeness, and a disposition to splint and corn. The legs should come down perpendicularly from the elbow. If they incline backward and under the horse, there is undue stress on the extensor muscles ; and the legs being brought nearer the centre of gravity, undue weight is thrown forward, and the horse is liable to knuckle over and become unsafe ; if the legs have a direction forward, the flexor muscles are strained, and the action of the horse is awkward and confined. The toe should be found precisely under the point of the shoulder. If it be a little more forward, the horse will probably be deficient in action ; if it be more under the horse, unsafeness will be added to the still greater defect in going. CHAPTER XIV. OBSERVATIONS ON THE HIND LEGS. THE HAUNCH. In describing the hinder extremities, we must begin with the bones of the naunch. The haunch (see O, p. 63, and the cut, p. 230) is composed of three bones. The first is the ilium, principally concerned in the formation of the haunch. Its extended branches behind the flanks are prominent in every horse ; and when they are more than usually wide, the animal is said to be ragged-hipped. A branch runs up to the spine at the commence- ment of the sacral vertebrae E, and here the haunch-bones are fimly united with the bones of the spine. The ischium, or hip-bone, is behind and below the ilium. Its tuberosities or prominences are seen under the tail, (cut, p. 63). The pubis unites with the two former below and behind. From the loins to tlie setting on of the tail, the line should be carried on almost straight, or rounded only in a very slight degree. Thus the haunch- bones will be most oblique, and will produce a corresponding obliquity, or slanting direction in the thigh-bone ; a direction in which, as we stated wlien describii g the fore-legs, the ' nuscles act with most advantage. This di-ei;- THE THIGH. 257 tion of the haunch is characteristic of the thorough-bred horse; and by tlie degree in which it is found, we judge as mucli as by any thing of the breeding of the animal. If the bones at D and E, p. 03, took a somewhat arched form, as they do in the cart-horse, it is evident that the bone O must be more upright, the tliigh-bone P would likewise be more upright, the stifle Q would not be so far under the body, and the power of the horse would be considerably impaired. The oblique direction of the haunch and thigh-bones, produced by the straightness of the line of the spine, does not, as is commonly supposed, afford increased surface for the attachment of muscles, but places the muscles in a direction to act with great advantage. It is in the advantageous direction, quite as much as in the bulk of the muscle, that the strength of the horse consists. It will be seen, from our cuts, that the angles formed by the fore and hind extremities have different directions. One points forward, and the other backward. We should expect this ; for thus the action of the fore-legs least interferes with the chest, and that of the hind legs with the belly. Width of haunch is a point of great consequence, for that actually affords more room for the attachment of muscles ; and even though it should be so great as to subject the horse to the charge of being ragged-kipped, and may somewhat offend the eye, it is no detriment to action. If the loins be broad, and the horse be well ribbed home, the protuberances of the ilium can scarcely be too far apart. Many a ragged-hipped horse has pos- sessed both fleetness and strength, but few which were narrow across the haunch could boast of the latter quality. The opening through the centre of these bones, which constitutes the passage through which the young animal is expelled from the mother, is large in the mare, and in every quadruped, because there cannot be, from the form of the animal, any danger of abortion from the weight of the foetus pressing on the part. The only parts of these bones exposed to injury or fracture are the tuberosities or prominences of the haunch. A fall or blow may chip off and disunite a portion of them. There are no means of forcibly bringing the disunited parts together, and retaining them in their natural position. Nature, however, will cause them to unite, yet generally attended by deformity and lameness. A charge, or very strong adhesive plaster, across ihe haunch may be useful, as helping, in some slight degree, to support the parts, and hold them together. THE THIGH. In the lower and fore part of the hip-bones is a deep cavity or cup for the reception of the head of the upper bone of the thigh.* Although in the tiction of the hind-legs there cannot be the concussion to which the fjre-legs are exposed (for the weight of the body is never thrown violently upon them), yet in the powerful action of these limbs there is much strain on the joints, and we shall find, therefore, that there are, in all of them, admirable provisions against injury. The head of the upper bone of the thigh is received into a deep cup (the acetabulum), by which it is surrounded on every side, and dislocation from which would seem almost impossible. But the bony cup may give way ? No ! provision is made against this: all three ♦This, altlioua-h the true thigrh-bone, is so concealed by thick muscles, and seeming-ly '.ly the continuation of tlie carcase, that its situation and shape are not visilile to the eye, and it is g-enorally overlooked by horsemen, who call the next bone, extending- from the Btirii- t > the hock, the thigh: therefore, to render cursives intelligible, wc term thii the upper bone of lite Ihigh. 258 THE HORSE. of the hauncli-bones unite in the formation of this cup, and the sutures J)y which these bones are held together are of such a nature, that one ^-ould think no shock, or exertion, or accident, could disunite them. There is even something more added to make the attachment doubly sure. Besides the usual capsular and other ligaments, a singularly strong one rises from the base of the cup, and is inserted into the head of the upper bone of the thigh, and would seem to render separation or dislocation altogether impos- sible, and yet such is the amazing power of the muscles of the hind limb, th-at with all these attachments, sprain of the ligaments of the haunch- joint, or the round bone, as horsemen call it, and even dislocation of the head of the thigh-bone, are occasionally found. The upper bone of the thigh we should expect to be, from the powerful muscles that are attached to it, a very strong bone, and it is both the largest and strongest in the frame. It is short and thick, and exhibits the most singular prominences, and roughnesses, and hollows, for the insertion oi'the immense muscles which belong to it. Four prominences, in particu- lar, called by anatomists trochanters, two on the outside, one on the inside, and one near the head of the bone, afford attachment to several important muscles. The head of the bone is placed at right angles with its body, by which this important advantage is gained, that the motion of the thigh-joint is principally limited to that of bending and extending, although it possesses some slight lateral, and even some rotatory or round action. The lower head of the upper bone of the thigh is complicated in its form. It consists of two prominences, which are received into corresponding depressions in the next bone, and a hollow in front, in which the bone of the knee plays aa over a perfect pulley. A short description of the muscles of the hinder extremities may not be uninteresting to the horseman. The next cut will give a few of them. The muscles of the hind extremity are more powerful in action than those of any other part of the frame ; therefore there is a provision made to hold them down in their respective situations, and thus contribute to thei* security and strength. When the skin is taken from the hind limb, we dr not at once arrive at the muscles, but they are thickly covered by a dense, strong, tendinous coat, which reaches over the whole of the haunch and thigh, and only ceases to be found at the hock, where there are no muscles to be confined. If the power of the muscles be sufficient to dislocate and fracture the thigh-bone, they need the support and confinement of this ten- dinous coat. When this tendinous band is dissected off, another is found beneath, which is represented at a, raised and turned back, larger than the former, thicker and more muscular. It proceeds from the haunch-bones to the stifle, upon the fore and outer part of the haunch and thigh, and is intended to lighten and strengthen the other. Under the part of this flat and binding muscle, which is represented in our cut as raised, is a large round muscle proceeding from the ilium, not far from the cup which receives the upper bone of the thigh, and running straight down this bone — and thence its name rectus — it is inserted into the bone of the stifle. An inspection of the cut, p. 63, will show that it is so situ- ated as to be enabled to exert its great power in the most advantageous w-ay. It is a ver)' prominent muscle, and forms what we may term the edge of the thigh forward. It terminates in a tendon, which is short and very strong, and w'lich is, before its insertion in the patella, united with the prolongation of the tendinous substance at ^, in the cut, p. 2G0, and also witli the tendon of the muscle at i, in that cut, and at c, in the following cut, and which is properly called vastus, from its great bulk. Some have divided this into two THE THIGH. J>5fi CUT OF THE MUSCLES OF THE INSIDE OF THE THIGH. muscles, the external anr internal. They proceed, the external from the outer surface of the upper bone of the thigh; the internal from the inner surface; and are inserted into the upper part of the bone of the stifle, both on the inner and outer side. These muscles act at considera- ble mechanical disadvan. tage ; they form a very slight angle, not at all ap- proaching to a right angle ; but they are muscles of immense size, and occupy all the fore-part of the thigh, from the stifle up- wards. They are power- ful extensors of the thigh, and of the hinder leg gen- erally, for they are all inserted into the bone of the knee, and that is con- nected by strong tendons with the bone of the true leg. We shall have more to say of the action of this muscle when we have described the bone of the knee. On the inside of the thigh are several other large fleshy muscles, as distinct to the eye as these, and which will be recognised after the slightest observation of the thigh of the living horse. First, we have a long, narrow, prominent muscle, the sartor/us, or tailor's muscle, enabling him to sit cross- legged, d, arising from the edge of the haunch-bone, about half way down it, and inserted into the inner and upper part of the lower bone of the thigh, for thus we call this bone extending from the stifle to the hock, and which in the human being would be properly the leg. It bends the leg, and turns it inward, not useful in the latter case in progression, but in many of the natural actions of the hoi'se. Next comes a broad thin muscle, e, which cannot be mistaken, occupying the greater portion of the surface of the inner part of the thigh, and par- ticularly the prominent part of it. It is called the gracilis, or slender nmscle. It arises from the lower part of the haunch-bone, and, in its passage downward, uniting with the last muscle, is inserted with it into the inner and upper part of the lower bone of the thigh. It also turns the leg. If its direction be considered, it acts with evident advantage ; but its insertion into the bone of the lower bone of the thigh is very disadvantageous. It applies its power very close to the joint or centre of motion, and the weigiii, consisting of the whole limb, and which may be supposed to te concentrulecJ alout its middle, is far distani. 260 THE HORSE. Still, on the inside of the thigh, and forming the posterior edge of the tliigh inwards, and contributing niucii to its bulk, is anoliier of the principal muscles of the thigh, y, proceeding from the first bones of the tail, from the tuberosity of the ischium, and from the tendinous expansion which we have described, and principally inserted into the upper and fore- part of the upper bone of the thigh, but a portion of it going to the head of the lower bone. That part which goes to the upper bone of the thigh acts with very great mechanical advantage (see cut, p. 65), and most powerfully bends the thigh on the pelvis, and lifts and extends the limb. It is one of the most effectual of the extensor muscles. Considering the weight of limb which it has to raise and extend, it had need to possess great power. At^ is another muscle concerned in the same otiice. We now turn to some of the muscles which are very evident to the eye on the outside of the thigh. CUT OF THE MUSCLES OF THE OUTSIDE OF THE THIGH. First is the outer G/utceus, or buttock muscle, d, being little more than a fleshy slip attached to the muscle next to be described. It rises as high up as the spine. It runs along the back part of the thigh in the form of a ridge, and is inserted into the smaller outer prominence of the upper bone of the thigh. Next is the great gluimis muscle, arising from the spinous and trans- verse processes of several of the bones of the loins, and from the sacrum and from the different edges of the ilium, and inserted into the great pro- tuberance of the upper bone of the thigh (page 63). behind and a little above the joint that unites the thigh to the haunch- bone. It is seen at c, in this cut; constitutes the upper and outer part of the haunch, and gives that fullness and round- ness to it, which good judges so much admire in the quarters of the horse. It is one of the main instruments in progres- sion. When the thigh has been brouglit forward under the body by the muscles already described, the p.ain action of these glutsei muscles is to extend the haunch, and force or project the body onward. To effect this they must be very powerful, and therefore they are so large, and rise from such an extensive surface; and thev ought to act at great mechanical advantage, and so, in one sense, they do; springing from the loins and ilium and the sacrum, they uc^ THE THIGH. 20 1 almost in a right or perpendicular line; in that l.ne in which we have seen that the greatest power is gained. A reference to the plate of the skeleton will place this in a striking point of view ; and this advantage is the more necessary, hecause, as is almost uniformly the case, there is a corresponding disadvantage to be overcome. These muscles are inserted into the great trochanter or protuberance of the upper bone of the thigh, and that is but a very little way removed from the joint or centre of motion. The powei is close to the centre of motion ; the weight supposed to be concentrated in the middle of the limb, is far off". It is more than 30 times as far as the power, and this muscle must act with a disadvantage of more than 30 to 1 : or, if the hinder extremity, and the weight of the trunk above amount to 600 pounds, the force applied, or the power of the muscle, must be equal to 30 times 600, or 18,000 pounds. The numerous origins of these muscles, and the extensive surfaces whence they arise, and their immense bulk, render them equal to this; and then, as we have demon- strated with regard to the flexor muscles of the arm, what is lost in powe" is gained in velocity ; for while this portion of the upper thigh-bone moves rapidly through a certain space, by the powerful contraction of the gluta;/' and other muscles, the extremity of that bone moves through 30 times the space, and the extremity of the whole limb or the foot moves through more than 100 times that space, and hence results, and hence only could result, >he speed of the horse. Now comes another consideration ; in proportion as this protuberance behind and above the joint is lengthened, so is the shorter arm of the lever lengthened, and so is power or muscular exertion spared. This protuberance is lengthened in proportion to the length of the croup, and the depth of the quarters, and hence the importance of this conformation. We have explained this as it regards the depth of the elbow. It holds more especially good here, because these are the parts with which the speed and power of the horse are most concerned. The quarters com- mence by the common consent of sporting men, from about the middle of the back, and extend to the hock downward, and to the tail behind ; and although little regarded by those who are unnaccustomed to horses, and tiie just proportions of those parts understood but by few who pretend to know the horse, the quarters are by far the most important points in his frame. Their muscularity will indicate power, and the depth of the quarters the proper direction and the advantageous action of that power. Therefore, it behooves those who are about making a selection, to have a careful eye, in regard to these parts, in order to determine whether the animal is naturally formed for the purposes required. There is another and smaller glutceus muscle under that we have last described, rising likewise from the back of the ilium, and inserted into the same protuberance of the thigh-bone, and assisting in the same office. It is not visible in our cut. There are also several other muscles pro- ceeding from different parts of the haunch-bones, and inserted about the heads of the upper thigh-bone, and performing the same work ; but there are two muscles to which we must particularly refer. The first occupies the outer part of the quarter behind, and is beautifully developed in the blood horse ; it is found at e, p. 200. It rises high up from the bones of the spine, fn^m others at the root of the tail, from the protuberances of the ischium {vide cut, p. 63), and from other bones of the pelvis. It in fact consists of three muscles, but is usually described as one muscle with three heads. Triceps femoris (the three-headed muscle of the thigh). It is inserted into the upper part of the lower bone of the thigh, and its oflice is the same as the last^ to draw back the thigh when placed under the trunk, «fi2 THE HORSE nnd by so doing urge forward the body. Being inseited nearly in a per- peiidicular direction, it has great power, but tliat power is employed (iisadvantageously, on account of being placed so near the joint or centre of motion. The muscle at /, descending likewise from the sacrum, and from the first bones of the tail, runs down posterior to the last muscle, and forms the hinder border of the haunch. It is inserted into the lower bone of the thigh, and assists in performing the same kind of motion. All these muscles are particularly prominent in the thorough-bred horse, and are the source of his strength and speed ; and hence another very important point in the horse. These muscles, to perform their full action, should be so developed, that the horse, when the observer stands behind him, although wide enough at the loins and haunch, should yet be perceptibly wider at the thighs. The following cut, containing one excellence above, and many defects below, will illustrate our meaning. CUT OF THE HAt^NCH AND HIND LEGS. over Ine joi STRAIN OF THE ROUND BONE. The joint of the upper bone of the thigh with the haunch is com- monly called the whirl or round bone. It has been stated, that it has, in some rare instances, been dislocated and fractured : it is however much oftener sprained, but not so often as the groom or farrier imagine. There is noth- ing peculiar in the lameness to detect injury of this part, except that frequently the horse will drag his leg after him on the toe. Injury of the round bone, or hip joint, will be principally dis- covered by heat and tenderness in the situation of the joint. A part so deeply seated is treated with difficulty. Fomen- tations should first be used to abate the inflammation, and after that an active blister should be applied. Strains of this joint are not always immediately relieved, and the muscles of the limb con- siderably waste ; and therefore it may be necessary to repeat the blister, while absolute rest should accompany every stage of the treatment. It may even be re- quisite to fire the part, or, as a last resort, a charge may h". pat int, and the h rse turned out fc; • two or three months. THE STIFLE. 263 THE STIFLE. The upper bone of Uie thigh is united to the lower by a somewhat com- plicated joint. It terminates by two round prominences behind, which are received into slight depressions on the upper surface of the lower bone; and in front is a curious groove, over which plays a small irregular bone, the patella or stifle-bone. The whole is called by farriers tlie stifle-joint. The patella (Q, p. 63) answers to the kneepan in the human subject. Some of the tendons of the strongest muscles of the upper bone of the thigh are inserted into it, and continued from it over the lower bone. This important joint is hereby much strengthened ; for the proper ligament? between the upper and lower bones, and these additional tendons and ligaments from the patella, must form altogether a very powerful union The patella likewise answers another and even more important purpose The tendons of some of the strong muscles are inserted into it. When these muscles are not in action, the patella lies in the groove which nature has contrived for it; but when they begin to contract, it starts from its par- tial hiding-place, becomes prominent from the joint, and alters the Ime of direction in which the muscles act: it increases the angle, and thus very materially increases the power of the muscles. The lower bone of the thigh is double: the larger portion, in front, extending from the stifle to the hock, is called the tibia. The smaller bone, or fibula, behind (see R, p. 63), reaches not more than a third of the way down. It is united to the shank-bone, like the splint-bone, by a cartilagin- ous substance, which is soon changed for bone. Of the use of these little bones we caimot speak. The lower bone of the thigh forms an angle with the upper, the reverse of that which exists between the upper bone and the pelvis. The objecl of this is twofold ; to obviate concussion, and to give a direction to the muscles favourable to their powerful action; and in proportion to the acute- ness of the angle, or the degree ia which the stifle is brought under the horse, will these purposes be accomplished. There is a great deal of differ- ence in this in ditferent horses, and the construction of this part of the frame is a matter worthy of more regard than is generally paid to it. This part of the thigh should likewise be long. In proportion to the length of the muscle is the degree of contraction of which it is capable; and in proportion to the contraction of the muscle, is the extent of motion in the limb: but it is still more necessary that this part of the thigh should have plenty of muscle, that the strength may be added to this extent or compass of motion. We should not expect much endurance from a horse with a thin arm: a horse with thin and lanky thighs cannot possibly be good for any thing. In our cuts, 259 and 260, the principal muscles of this part jf the thigh are delineated. They are usually somewhat prominent, and may readtly be traced in the living animal : a very brief notice of them may not be uninteresting. We will first take the external ones, beginning in front. The continua- tion from g, p. 260, is the tendinous expansion given to bind and strengthen these muscles. n is a very important muscle : it is the principal extensor mujcle of the hind-leg {extensor pedis, extensor of the foot). It rises from the lower part of the upper bone of the thigh, and from the upper part of the lower bone. It is a strong, round, fleshy muscle: a little before it reaches the hock, it will be seen to assume a tendinous form. It is covered and defended by a sheath of its own ; and the cut will show the bands by which it is tied down 264 THE HORSE. in ita place, within which its plays. It is seen continuing its course on the front of the cannon or shank-bone. Having arrived at the fetlock-joint, it begins to expand, and is finally inserted into the upper part of the coffin- bone, or bone of the foot, after having given various fibres to both the pasterns. The course of the corresponding tendon in the fore-leg is given in the cut, p. 249, fig. I. At 7n, p. 260, is another of the e.xtensor muscles, called the "peroncBus, from a name given to the fibula. It rises from the whole course of the fibula, and also becomes tendinous before it reaches the hock. About half way down the shank it is found in the same sheath with the principal exten- sor muscle, and is inserted with it into the coffin-bone. The office of the extensor nmscles is to raise the foot from the ground, and to bring it forward under the body. At is the Jlexor pedis, one of the principal flexor (bending) muscles of the foot, rising from the upper part of the tibia. As it approaches the hock, it is distinguished by its large round tendon, which is seen to enter into a groove at the back of the hock. It is continued down the back of the leg like a similar muscle in the fore-leg, is the perforating flexor muscle of the hind-leg, and assists in bending the pastern and coffin, joints. k is a. very slender muscle, rising from the head of the fibula, and pro* ceeding over the external part of the thigh, and, just above the hock, uniting with the tendon of the perforating muscle. j is a very powerful muscle, springing from the head of the upper bone of the thigh, and, midway down the lower bone of the thigh, ending in a flat tendon, which is inserted into the point of the hock. Its use is to extend the hock. It is evidently most advantageously situated for powerful action; for it acts almost at right angles, and its effect is increased in proportion to the projection of the point of the hock. We now turn to the inner side. See cut, p. 259. m gives a portion of the muscle which we have just described. n an inside view of the perforating flexor muscle of the foot. I is the peronaeus. is the perforated flexor tendon, having its origin from near the lower head of the upper bone of the thigh ; becoming tendinous as it passes down the thigh ; expanding over and surrounding the point of the hock, and assisting in extending it ; and then pursuing its course down the posterior part of the leg, in a manner so much resembling that of similar tendons in the fore-leg, that we shall content ourselves with referring to a description of the perforated and perforating flexor tendons at page 239. At e is a continuation of the gracilis muscle, p. 259, over the stifle. At h is the extensor pedis, already described, p. 263, with its tendon. At i is a muscle used to bend the hock, the Jlexor metatarsi, or bender of the leg; rising from the lower part of the upper bone of the thigh, and inserted into the upper part of the shank-bone ; and also the inner small splint-bone. It is a muscle of considerable power, although disadvan- tageously situated, both as to its direction and its being inserted so near to the joint. At k is a short muscle, extending from the upper to the lower thigh-bones (the poplitfEus), bending the stifle and turning the limb inward. These cuts represent the situation of some of the principal blood-vessels and nerves of the hind extremities. In the cut of the inside of the thigh, page 259, p represents the course of the principal artery ; at q are blood-vessels belonging to the groin ; at r is the large cutaneous vein, or the vein immediately under the skin. The THOROUGH-PIN— THE HOCK. <26.7 principal nerves on the fore-part of the inside of the thigh pursue their course at t, in the direction of the cutaneous vein ; and those of the pos- terior part are seen at s, and at u are those important ligamentous bands at the bending of the hock which confine the tendon. In the cut of the outside of the thigh, page 260, p will give the course of the anterior arteries and veins; q the course of the principal nerves, and coming into sight below ; and r the bands described in the former plate. Also, in the cut of the outside of the shoulder and arm, p. 233, the figures 1, 2, and 3, designate the places of the principal artery, nerve and vein of the leg ; 4 gives the subcutaneous vein running within the arm ; and 5, the subcutaneous vein of the side of the chest. In the cut of the inside of the arm, p. 235, the lines above represent, in the order from the front, the principal nerves, the arteries, and veins of the shoulder and arm, and, on the muscles, k gives the principal subcutaneous vein of the inside of the arm, and i the artery by which it is accompanied. The stifle-joint is not often subject to sprain. The heat and tenderness will guide to the seat of injury. Occasionally, dislocation of the patella has occurred, and the horse drags the injured limb after him, or I'ests it on the fetlock ; the aid of a veterinary surgeon is here requisite. The muscles of the inside of the thigh, generally, have been sometimes sprained : this may be detected by ditfused heat, or heat on the inside of the thigh above the stifle ; rest, fomentations, bleeding, and physic will be the proper means of cure. THOROUGH-PIN. We have observed that there are placed in the neighbourhood of joints, certain bags, containing a mucous fluid for the purpose of lubricating the parts, and that these sometimes become inflamed and enlarged. We have spoken of wind-galls and their treatment. A similar enlargement is found above the hock, between the tendons of the flexor of the loot and the extensor of the hock. As from its situation it must necessarily project an: both sides of the hock, in the form of a round swelling, it is called a. thorough-pin, a, p. 262. It is an indication of considerable work, but,, except it be of a very great size, it is rarely attended by lameness. The mode of treatment must resemble that recommended for wind-galls. Although thorough-pin cannot be pronounced to be unsoundness, yet it. behooves the buyer to examine well a horse with thorough-pin, and to ascer- tain whether undue work may not have injured him in other respects THE HOCK. We now arrive at a very important joint, often the evident, and much^ oftener the unsuspected seat of lameness, and the proper formation of which is essentially connected with the excellence and value of the horse. We shall describe it at length. The inferior head of the tibia is formed into two deep grooves, with three sharpened ridges, one separating the grooves, and the other two forming the sides of them, It is seen at a in the ibllowmg cut. It rests upon a very singular bone, &, called the astragalus (shaped like the die or dice used by the ancients), which has two circular risings or projections, and with a' depression between them, answering exactly to the irregularities of the tibia, and these are received and morticed into each other. At the posterior part its convex surface is received into a concavity near the base of anothur S 266 THE HORSE. CUT OF THE HOCK. bone, and with which it is united by very strong ligaments.— This bone c, is called the OS ca/cis, or bone of the heel, and it projects upwards, flattened at its sides, and receives, strongly implanted into it, the tendons of powerful muscles. These bones rest on two others, the os cuhoides, d, (cube- formed) behind, and the larger cuneiform or wedge-shaped bone e, in front. The larger wedge-shaped bone is supported by two smaller ones f, and these two smaller ones and the cube-bone by the upper heads of the shank. bone g, and the splint-bones h. The cube-bone is placed on the exter- nal splint-bone, and the cannon-bone ; the small wedge-bone, principally on the inner splint-bone, not seen in the cut; and the middle wedge-bone rests on the iinf(iik-bone orlv, g. These bones are all connected together by very strong ligaments which prevent dislocation, but allow a slight degree of motion among them, and the surfaces which are opposed to each other are thickly covsTed by elastic cartilage. Considermg the situation and action of this joint, the weight and stress thrown upon it must be exceedingly great, and it must be liable to much injury in rapid and powerful motion. What are the provisions to prevent injury ? The grooved or pulley-like heads of the tibia, and the as'ragalus, received deeply into one another, and confined by powerful ligaments, admit freely of hinge-like motioi/, but of no side motion, to which the joint might be exposed in rapid action, or on an uneven surface. The Blightest inspection of the cut will show that the stress or weight thrown by the tibia a, on the ast"agalus b, does not descend perpendi';;ularly, but 'n a slantine: diroction, b" which a sreat deal of concussion is avoided, or EXLARGEMENT OF THE HOCK-CURB. 2G'7 more readily diffused among the different bones; and the joint, consisting of six bones, each of them covered with elastic cartilage, and eacl admitting of a certain degree of motion, this diminished concussion is dif. fused among them all, and thereby neutralized and rendered harmless. Eacii of these bones is covered not only by cartilage, but by a membrane eecreting tiie synovia or oily fluid of which we have spoken in otiier joints-, so that these bones are formed into so many distinct joints, separated from each other, and therefore' guarded from injury, yet united by various liga- ments, possessing altogether sufficient motion, yet bound together so strongly as to defy dislocation. VViien, iiowever, we consider the work which tliis joint has to perform, and tiie thoughtlessness and cruelty with which that work is often exacted, we shall not wonder if this necessarily complicated mechanism is sometimes deranged. The hock is, from its complicated structure and its work, the principal seat of lameness behind. Nine- tenths of the lamenesses that occur in tlie hind-leg are to be traced to this joint, and when, after careful examination, we are unable to find any other seat of lameness, we shall usually be justified in affirming that the hock is affected. ENLARGEMRNT OF THE HOCK. First, there is inflammation or sprain of the hock-joint generally, rising principally from sudden violent concussion; from ciieck at speed; or from over-weigiit, and attended by enlargement of the wliole joint, and great tenderness and lameness. This, iiowever, like other dilfused inflammations, is not so untractable as intense inflammations of a more circumscribed nature; and by rest and fomentation, or percliance firing, tlie limb recovers its action, and the liorse becomes fit for ordinary work. The swelling, however, docs not always suijside. Enlargement, sj)rcad over the whole of the hock-joint, remains. A horse witli an enlarged iiock must always be regarded with suspicion, and is, in truth, unsound. Tiie parts, altered in structure, are to a certain degree weakened. The horse may discharge his usual work through life, witiiout return of lameness, but if one of those emergencies should occur when all his energies require to be exerted, the disorganized and weakened part will fail. The purciiase, therefore, of a horse with enlarged hock, will depend on circumstances. If he has other excellencies, he will not be uniformly rejected ; for he may be ridden or driven moderately for many a year without inconvenience, yet one extra hard day's work may lame him for ever. CURB. There are oftener injuries of particular parts of the hock-joint. We have iiad occasion frequently to describe the ring-like ligaments, which, in the neighbourhood of the joints, so usefully tie down the tendons. From sudden or over exertion these ligaments may be extended, and inflamma- tion, swelling, and lameness may ensue ; or the siieaths of the tendons in the neighbouriiood of joints, from their extent of motion in these situations, may be susceptilile of injury. C'Jkb is an affection of this kind. It is an enlargement at the back of the hock, about tliree or four inches below the point of the hock. It is represented at d, p. '202, and it is either a strain in ihe rinf-like ligament wiiich binds the tendons down in their place, or in the Kheath of the tendons; oftener, we are inclined to tiiink, of the ligament ■.iian of the slieath. Any sudden action of the limb of more than usua. violence may produce it, and therefore horses are found to 'throw out curbs' 2QS THE HORSE. aftei a Jardly contested race, an extraordinary leap, a severe gallop over Ijeavy ground, or a sudden check in tiie gallop. Young horses arc partic- ularly liable to it, and horses that are cow-hocked, (vide cut, p. '2&2,) or whose hocks and legs resemble those of the cow, the l)ocks being turned inward, and the legs forming a considerable angle outwards. This is intel. ligible enough; for in the hocks so formed, the annular ligament must be continually on the stretch to confine the tendon. Curbs are generally accompanied by considerable lameness at their first appearance, but the swelling is not always great ; indeed, it sometimes pre- sents so gradual a curve, that it is scarcely perceivable when we stand behind the horse, and both the horseman and the veterinary surgeon have over 'ooked it. It is best detected by observing the leg sideway. The first object in attempting the cure is to abate infiammation, and this will be most readily accomplished by cold evaporating lotions, frequently applied to the part. Equal portions of spirit of wine, water, and vinegar, will afford an excellent application. It will be almost impossible to keep a bandage on. If the heat and lameness are considerable, it will be prudent to physic the horse, and to bleed from the subcutaneous vein, whose course is represented at r, page 259. Whether the injury be of the annular liga- ment, or the sheath of the tendon, more active means will be necessary to perfect the cure. Either a liquid blister should be rubbed on the part, consisting of a vinous or turpentine tincture of cantharides, and this daily applied until some considerable swelling takes place, which should be allowed to subside, and then the liniment again resorted to; or, what is the preferable plan, the hair should be cut off", and the part blistered as soon as the heat has been subdued. The blister should be repeated until the horse goes sound, and the swelling has disappeared. In severe cases it may be necessary to fire, but we cannot recommend the indiscriminate recourse tc the hot iron in every case of curb, and we would uniformly give a fail trial to milder measures. If the iron be used, the strokes should be in straight lines. There are few complaints in which absolute and long-continued rest is more requisite than in curb. An injury so serious leaves the parts very materially weakened, and if the horse be soon put to work again, the lame- ness will frequently return. No horse that has had curbs should be put even to ordinary work in less than a month after the apparent cure, and even then he should very gradually resume his former habits. A horse with a curb is manifestly unsound. A liorse with the vestige of curb we should regard with much suspicion, or generally condemn as unsound ; for although the neighbouring parts may have accommodated themselves to the slight enlargement that remains, they are not in their natural situation, and have lost a portion of their natural strength: some latent disposition to relapse may continue, which extraordinary exertion may rouse to action ; and, besides this, it should be remembered that curb is an hereditary complaint, and that there may be some constitutional weak, ness of these parts. BOG- SPAVIN. The hock is plentifully furnished with mucous bags, to lubricate the dif- ferent portions of this complicated joint. Some of these are found on the inside of the joint, which could not be represented in our cut, page 262 From over-exertion of the joint they become inflamed, and considerably enlarged. They are wind-galls of the hock. The subcutaneous vein passes over tht inside of the hock, and over some of these enlarg'jd bags, BONE-SPAVIN. 2G9 and is compressed between the skin and the enlarged bag; and, consc quently, the passage of the blood through it is partially stopped. Th» blood, however, continues to be returned from the leg and foot, and being thus arrested in its course, a portion of the vein below the impediment, and between it and the next valve, is distended, and causes the soft tumour on the side of tlie hock, called the bog or blood spavin. This is a very serious disease, attended with no great, but often permanent lameness, and a disease too apt to return, when the enlargement has subsided under med- ical treatment. It must be considered as decided unsoundness. In a horse for slow draught, it is scarcely worth while even to attack it. In a horse destined for rapid action, the probability of a relapse should not be forgotten, wiien the chances of success, and the expenses of treatment are calculated. The disease (the enlarged mucous capsule) lies deep, and is with difficulty operated upon. Uniform pressure will sometimes cause the absorption of the fluid contained in cysts or bags like these, but in a joint of such extensive motion as the hock, it is difficult, or almost impossible, to confine the pressure on the precise spot where it is required ; and could it be made to bear on the enlarged bag, it would likewise press on the vein, and' to a greater degree hinder the passage of the blood, and increase the dilatation below the obstruction. The old and absurd method of passing a ligature above and below the enlarged portion of the vein, and then dissecting out the tumour, is not, in the advanced stage of veterinary science, practised by any surgeon who has a regard to his reputation. The only method of relief which holds out any promise even of temporary success, is by ex- citing a great deal of inflammation on the skin, and thus rousing the deeper seated absorbents to carry away the fluid effused in the enlarged bag. Repeated blisters then will aflx)rd the fairest prospect of removing the tumour, or firing may be tried ; but in the majority of cases, the disease will bid defiance to all our means, or will return, and baffle our hopes when we had seemed to have been accomplishing our object. A horse with bog-spavin will do very well for ordinary work. He may draw in a cart, or trot fairly in a ligliter carriage, with little detriment to his utility, but he will never do for rapid or hard work, and it is in vain to attemot to make him. BONE-SPAVIN. A still more formidable disease ranks under the name of spavin, and is an affection of the bones of the hock-joint. We have observed that the bones of the leg, the shank-bone, g, page 2G6, and the two little splint-bones behind, h, support the lower layer of the bones of the hock. The cube bone, d, rests principally on the shank-bone, and in a slight degree on the outer splint-bone. The middle wedge-bone, f, rests entirely upon the shank-bone, and the smaller wedge (not seen in the cut) rests in a very sliglit degree on the shank-bone, but principally or almost entirely on the inner splint-bone. Then the splint-bones sustain a very unequal degree of concussion and weight. Not only is the inner one placed more under the body, and nearer the centre of gravity, but it has almost the whole of the weight and concussion communicated to the little wedge-bone carried on to it. It is not, therefore, to be wondered at, that in the violent action of this joint in galloping, leaping, heavy draught, and especially in young horses, and before the limbs have become properly knit, the inner splint-bone, oi its lioaments, or the substance which connects it with the shank-bone, shouii suffer material injury. The smith increases the tendency to this, 270 THE HORSE. by liis injudicious management of the feet. It is a common notion, that cutting, and wounds in the feet, from one foot treading on the other, are prevented by putting on a shoe with a calkin on the outer heel, that is, the extremity of the heel of the shoe being bent, and thus the outer heel con- siderably raised from the ground. It is not unusual to sefe whole teams of horses, and that all the year round, with the outer heel of the hind-foot considerably raised above the other. This unequal bearing, or distribution of the weight cannot fail of being injurious; it will place an unequal strain on the ligaments of the joints, and particularly of the hock-joint, and increase the tendency to spavin. The weight and concussion which are thus thrown on the inner splint- bone, produce, in the first place, inflammation of the cartilaginous substance which unites it to the shank-bone. The consequence of this is, that tlie cartilage is absorbed, and bone deposited ; the union between the splint- bone and the shank becomes bony instead of cartilaginous; the degree of elastic action between them is des-troyed, and there is formed a splint of the hind-leg. This is uniformly on the inside of the hind-leg, because the greater weight and concussion are thrown on the inner splint-bones. As in the fore-leg, the disposition to form bony matter having commenced, and the cause which produced it continuing to act, bone continues to be deposited, and it appears generally in the form of a tumour, where the head of the splint-bone is united with the shank, and in front of that union. It is seen at c, page 262. This is called bone-spavin. Inflammation of the liga- ments of any one of the small bones of the hock, proceeding to bony tumour would equally class under the name of spavin ; but, with very few excep- tions, the disease commences on the precise spot we have described. When spavin is forming, there is always lameness, and that, frequently, to a very great degree; but when the membrane of the bone has accom- modated itself to the tumour which extended it, the lameness subsides, or disappears, or depends upon the degree in which the bony deposit interferes with the motion of the joint. We often see horses with exceedingly large spavins, that are only slightly lame, or that merely have a stiffness in their gait at first starting, and that gradually goes off after a little motion; and we meet with others with the bony tumour comparatively small, yet the lameness so great as to destroy the usefulness of the horse. There is always this peculiarity in the lameness of spavin, that it abates, and some- times disappears, on exercise; and, therefore, a horse, with regard to which there is any suspicion of spavin, should be examined, when it first in the morning is taken from the stable. If the spavin continues to increase, the bony deposit first spreads over the lower wedge-bones, y, page 266, for these are nearest to its original seat. They are capable of slight motion, and share in every action of the joint, but their principal design was to obviate concussion. The chief motion of the joint, and that compared with which the motion of the others is scarcely to be regarded, is confined to the tibia a, and the astragalus h, and therefore, stiffness, rather than lameness, may accompany spavin, even when it is beginning to affect the small bones of the joint. Hence, too, we see the advantage of these bones having each its separate ligaments and membranes, and constituting so many joints, since injury may happen to some of them, without the effect being propagated to the rest. When the bony deposit continues to enlarge, and takes in the second layer of bones, the larger wedge-bones e, and even spreads to the cube-bones on the other side, even then the lameness may not be excessive, because these two are joints, or parts of the joint, in which the motion is small; but when it extendsi BONE-SPAVIN. 271 lu Ifie union of the tibia a, and the astragalus b ; when the joint, in which is the chief motion of the hock, is attacked, the lameness is indeed forrnid- able, and the horse becomes nearly or quite useless. A recollection of the situation of the dilFerent bones of the hock, may, in some measure, guide the purchaser as to the probable value and use of the spavined horse; but he must not depend on this, for deep-seated deposits of bone, which the eye cannot reach, may interfere more with the action of the joint, than any outwaid enlargement, however great. Spavined horses are generally capable of slow work. They are equal to the greater part of the work of the farm, and therefore they will not be always rejected by the small farmer, and may generally be procured a little price. These horses are not only capable of agricultural work, but they generally improve under it; they become less lame, and even the bony tumour to a certain degree diminishes. There is sufficient moderate motion and friction of the limb to rouse the absorbents to action, and cause them to take up a portion of the bony matter thrown out, but not enough to renew or prolong inflammation. We cannot say that the plough affords a cure for spavin, but we have seen many instances in which the spavined horse has very materially improved at it. For fast work, and for work that must be regularly performed, they are not so well calculated ; for this lameness behind produces great difficulty in rising up, and the consciousness that he will not be able to rise without painful effort, prevents the horse from lying down at all ; and a horse that cannot rest well, cannot long travel far and fast. This is well known te postmasters. A foundered horse may do his work, for as soon as he hat satisfied his appetite he is down ; but the horse that will seldom or never lie down, must be speedily worn out. Our cut shows at e, the natural situation of spavin, but there is some- times an expansion of the heads of the bones of the leg, that looks very much like it, and has been mistaken for it. Both hocks should be examined, for it is rare that there will be an unnatural growth of bone of precisely the same form and appearance in both ; and if there be a natural projection, or breadth of the heads of the bones, all the other joints will present the same bold character. The treatment of spavin is simple enough, but not always effectual. The owner of the horse will neither consult his own interest, nor the dictates of humanity, if he suffers the chisel and mallet, or the gimlet, or the pointed iron, or arsenic to be used ; yet measures of considerable severity must be resorted to. Repeated blisters will usually cause either the absorption of the bony deposit, or the abatement or removal of the inflammation of the ligaments. As a last resort, however, the hot iron may be applied. We have thus presented our readers with a fearful list of diseases belonging to the hock, but our catalogue is not completed. It is well known that the horse is frequently subject to lameness behind, when no ostensible cause for it can be found, and there is no external heat or enlargement to indicate its seat. Farriers and grooms pronounce these to be affections of ■he stifle, or round bone; or if the gait of the horse and peculiar stifihess of motion point out the hock as the affected part, yet the joint may be of its natural size, and neither heat nor tenderness can be discovered. The groom has here a method of unravelling the mystery : he says that it is the beginning of spavin ; but months and years pass away, and the spavin does not appear, and the horse is at length destroyed, as incurably lame. Horse- men are indebted to Mr. W. J. Goodwin for the discovery of the seat of fre- quent lameness behind. Our cut represents two layers of small bones on 272 THE HORSE. the inside ar* the hock ; the larger wedge-like bone e above ; and the imd dley, and ihe smaller one below, and it will be seen that almost the whole of the weight of the horse, communicated by the tibia a, is thrown upon these bones. The cube-bone d does little more than support tiie poin; of the liock c. It is easy then to suppose, tiiat in the concussion of hard work or rapid travelling, these bones, or the delicate and sensible mem branes in which they are wrapped, may be severely injured. Repeated dissections of horses that have been incurably lame behind, without any thing external to point out the place or cause of lameness, have shown that inflammation of the membrane lining these joints, and secreting the fluid that lubricates them, has taken place ; and has been accompanied by all the pain of joint disease, and evils corresponding to those which we have described, when treating of broken knees, and the consequent inflam- mation of the membrane and internal part of the joint. Indeed, so clearly is this now established, that when, after careful and repeated examination by a competent person, no seat or cause of lameness can be discovered, we shall be right nineteen times out of twenty, in deciding that it is disease in this portion of the hock. No enlargement, no heat, will indicate its existence, but when it has been long established, and ossified matter has been thrown out between these bones, it will, like the true spavin, spread, and appear either on the inside of the hock, or surrounding the whole of the joint. In these cases, then, of mysterious lameness, and when, after the removal of the shoe, and the most patient search, we have failed in dis- covering a cause of lameness elsewhere, we shall be justified in considering this as the affected part, and treating it accordingly: and as the injury is deep, and in the very centre of the joint, we must adopt severe measures in order to reach it. We must blister immediately, and repeat the blister, and enjoin perfect quietude and rest; but here, as in the bone-spavin, and oftener than in that disease, all, our appliances and means may be fruitless. Our only hope lies in an early attempt to combat the evil ; and in all these obscure cases, he is unjust to himself who does not speedily have recourse to their advice, to whom science and practice have given a facility in detecting latent disease. THE POINT OF THE HOCK. If the reader has not forgotten what we have said concerning the projection )f the elbow, he will be convinced that the form of the hock is materially connected with the value of the horse. The most powerful of the fle.xor or bending muscles are inserted into the point of the hock, or the ex- tremity of the OS caJcis, c; and in proportion to the projection of the hock, or, in other words, the length of this bone, will two purposes be etfected. The line of direction will be more advantageous, for it will be nearer to a perpendicular ; and the arm of the lever to which the power is applied will be lengtbenesl, and mechanical advantage will be gained to an almost incredible extent. Suppose this bone of the hock to be three inches in length ; the joint formed by the tibia and the astragalus is evidently the centre of motion ; and the weight concentered about the middle of the shank, is the obstacle to be overcome. If the weight be four times as far from the centre of motion, as the power, a force equal to four times the weight would raise it. It is, however, here to be remembered, that it is not merely the weight of the leg whicli is to be raised, tiut the weight of the horse, for the time resting upon the leg, and that weight to be pro- elled or driven forward. At what shall we calculate this ? We mav CAPPED HOCK, ETC. 27? Ijirly suppose that the muscles whose tendons are inserted into the point of the hock exert an energy equal to 4000 lbs. Let us further suppose, that an inch is added to the point of the hock, which will be an addition ol one-tliird to its length : a muscular power of less than 3000 lbs. will now eiJect the same purpose. The slightest lengthening, therefore, of the point of the hock will make an exceedingly great difference in the muscular energy by which the joint is moved ; and a ditference that will wonderfully tell in a long day's work. On this account, tlie depth of the hock, or the length of the bone of which we are speaking, is a point of the greatest importance. Tliere is, however, a limit to this. In proportion to the length of this oone must be the space which it passes over in order sufficiently to bend the limb ; and in that proportion must be the contraction of the muscle ; and consequently the length of the muscle, that it may be enabled thus to contract; and, therefore, if this hone were inordinately lengthened, there would require a depth of quarter which would amount to deformity. A hock of tills disadvantageous length is, however, rarely or never met with, and it is received among the golden rules in judging of the horse, that this bone of the hock cannot be too long. CAPPED HOCK. The point of the hock is sometimes swelled. A soft fluctuating tumour appears on it. This is an enlargement of one of those mucous bags of which we have spoken, and which surrounds the insertion of the tendons into the point of the hock. It is seldom accompanied by lameness, but yet it is a serious business. It is usually produced by blows, and, in the majority of instances, by the injury which the horse inflicts upon himself by kicking : therefore a horse with a capped hock is properly regarded with a very suspicious eye. The whole of the hock should be most carefully examined, in order to discover' whether there are other marks of violence, and the previous history of the animal should, if possible, be obtained. Generally the kicking is in harness, but some horses have the habit of kicking in the stall ; it is possible, however, that lying on a thin bed, or no bed, may bruise the hock, and produce the swelling, or it may even result from sprain of the hock ; but we repeat that it is far oftener the conse- quence of external violence. Here again it is exceedingly difficult to apply a bandage; and puncturing the tumour, or passing a seton through it, would be a most injudicious and dangerous practice. Blisters, repeated as long as may be necessary, are the proper means to be employed. Sometimes the tumour will disappear of itself, but at others it will attain a very large size, or will assume a calloua structure that will bid defiance to all the means ^e can employ. MALLENDERS AND SALLENDERS. In the inside of the hock, or a little below it, as well as at the bend of the knee, (see h, page 254,) there is sometimes a scurfy eruption, called Mallkxijei!S in tiie fore-leg, and Sallenders in the hind-leg. They seldom produce lameness, but if no means are taken to get rid of them, a discliarge proceeds from them which it is afterwards difficult to stop; and certainly they have an unsightly appearance, and generally argue bad stable mana.i;ement. A diuretic ball should be occasionally given, and 274 THE HORSE. an ointment, composed of one part of sugar of hsad, two of tar, and six of 'ard, rubbed over tiie part. Should this fail, tlie weak mercurial ointment should be used. COW-HOCKS. The lir'ie of direction of the logs beneath the hocks sliould not be dis- regarded. The leg should descend perpendicularly to the fetlock. The weight and stress will thus be equally diffused, not only over the wiiole of the h.ick, but also the pasterns and the foot. Some iiorscs, however, have their hocks closer tlian natural to eacli other, and the legs take a divei-genl direction outward, and the toes likewise are turned outward Tlicse horses are said to be cat or cow-hocked. They are generally supposed to possess considerable speed, and we believe that they do ; and we thus account for it. The cow-hocked horse has his legs not only turned more outward, but bent more under him, and this increases the distance between the point of the hock and the tendons of the perforating muscle : (see b, cut, page 262). It increases the space which is usually occupied by thorough-pm, a, in the same page. Then the point of the hock, moved by the action ot the muscles, is enabled to describe a greater portion of a circle; and in proportion to the increased space passed over by the point of the hock, will the space passed over by the limb beneath be increased, and so the sliide of the horse may be lengthened, and thus far his speed may be increased. But this advantage is more than counterbalanced by many evils. This increased contraction of the muscles is an expenditure of animal power, and, as we have already stated, the weight and the concussion being so unequally distributed by this formation of the limbs, some part must be overstrained and overworked, and injury must ensue. On tliis account it is, that the cow-hocked horse is more subject than others to thorough-pin and spavin; and is so disposed to curbs, that these hocks are denominated by horsemen curhy hocks. The mischief extends even farther than this. Such a horse is peculiarly liable to wind-gall, sprain of the fetlock, cutting, and knuckling. A slight inclination to this form in a strong, powerful horse may not be very objectionable, but a horse decidedly cow-hocked should never be selected STRING-HALT. Before we quit the hock, we must notice a peculiar involuntary twitchmg of the hind leg, or convulsive action of the muscles by which it is bent, and which is termed Stking-Halt. This is evidently an affection of some of the nerves which communicate motion to these muscles. It is an irregular action of nervous energy ; but what particular fibril is affected, or what muscle is chiefly spasmed, has never been ascertained. It is principally observed when the horse first comes from the stable, ano gradually ceases after he has been exercised a while. It is unpleasant to the rider, but it cannot be denominated unsoundness ; on the contrary, common opinion has given to the horse with string-halt a more than usual share of strength and endurance ; and if it be an excess of nervous energy, although irregularly exerted, we shall find no difficulty in associating it with general powerful muscular action. However this may be, the precise nature of the defect has never been determined, nor has any ';ure for it been discovered. SVVELLED-LEGS. 27>i THE HIND-LEG The construction of the hind-leg, and the injuries U which it is subjeiit. are so similar to those of the fore-leg, that we shall content oiirselves with referring to our description of them given at page 243, only observing that the shank-bone is longer than that of the fore-leg ; the outer spl'int-bone is considerably larger than the inner one, and the pasterns are longer than those of the fore-leg, and less oblique. On tiie back part of the leg (f, page 262), are sometimes excrescences called by farriers rat-tails, from the appearance they give the hair. They will generally yield to the mild mercurial ointment, but in very bad cases it may be necessary to remove them with a knife. Before we quit the legs, we must notice two very frequent and very troublesome diseases. The first is SWELLED-LEGS. The fore-legs are sometimes subject to considerable enlargement, but much oftener the hind ones. Occasionally when the horse does not seem to labour under any other disease, and sometimes from apparent shifting of inflammation from other parts, (inflammation of the lungs or the eye not unfrequently thus changes its seat,) the hind-legs suddenly swell to an enormous degree from the hock, and almost from the stifle to tiie fetlock, attended by heat, and extreme tenderness of the skin, and excessive and very peculiar lameness. The pulse likewise becomes quick and hard, and the horse evidently labours under considerable fever. It is acute inflam- mation of the cellular substance of the legs, and that most sudden in its attack, most violent in its degree, and therefore attended by the pouring out of a great deal of fluid, in this cellular substance. It occurs in young horses, and in those which are over-fed and little exercised, without previ- ous inflammation in any other part. Fomentation, diuretics, or physic, or, if there be much fever, a moderate bleeding, will often relieve the distension almost as suddenly as it appeared. The kind of swelled-legs most frequent of occurrence, and most trou. blesome, is of a different nature, or rather it is so various in its kind and causes, and consequences and mode of treatment, that it deserves attentive consideration. One principle, however, will guide us to a right opinion and treatment of it: that it is produced either by actuator comparative debility or loss of power in the part attacked. Horses seemingly in perfect health, and with a full allowance of food, if suffered to remain several days without exercise, will have swelled-legs. The arterial capillary vessels have con- veyed a great deal of fluid to the extremities; from over-feeding and want of muscular exertion and the perspiration connected with it, the fluids have accumulated, and are lodging in the extremities, because the vessels have not power to return them. The heart is acting upon an additional quantity of fluid, while, by want of exercise, the limbs are deprived of the principal power by which the fluids are returned ; for the blood is materially assisted in its return through the veins by the action of the muscles, and the absorbents are roused to action by the exercise and motion of the different parts. The cure, therefore, is sufficiently plain; by physic or diuretics, the quantity of the fluid is lessened, and by exertion increasing the perspi- ration, it is likewise diminished, and, what is nf.ore important, both the veins and the absorbents are assisted in their actioa i76 THE HOUSE, Horsea taken fron: grass and brought into close stables very speedily have swclled-legs, because the difference of food, and increase of nutri- ment, rapidly increase the quantity of the circulating fluid ; while the wanl of exercise takes away the means by which it might be got rid of. The remedy here needs not to be stated. Svvelled-legs, however, may proceed from general debility ; they may be the consequence of starvation, or dis- ease tliat has considerably weakened the animal ; and these parts, being farthest from tlie centre of circulation, are the first to show the loss of power by the accumulation of fluid in them. Here the means of cure would be to increase the general strength, with which the extremities would sympa- thize, and mild diuretics and tonics are evidently indicated. Horses in the spring and fall are subject to swelled-legs. The powers oi the constitution are principally employed in providing a new coat for the animal, and the extremities have not their share of vital influence. Mingled cordials and diuretics are indicated here; the diuretic to lessen the quantity of the circulating flood ; the cordial to invigorate the frame and restore the tone of tlie stomach. Svvelled-legs are most teasing in horses that are in tolerable or good health, but whose work is somewhat irregular. The pleasure-horse and the hunter are frequent subjects of this complaint. The cure is to give more equable exercise ; to walk the horse out daily when the usual work isj not required, and by some mechanical means to supply to the extremities the want of motion of the parts, and the consequent urging on of the return of the fluid. Friction, by hand-rubbing, is an excellent means of fining the legs, at least for a time. Bandages have a greater and more durable effect, for nothing tends more to support the capillary veins, and rouse the action of the absorbents, than moderate pressure. Hay-bands will form a very good bandage for the agricultural horse, and their effect will probably be increased by previously dipping them in water. As to medicines, we have little to say: the fewer of them that are given in these cases the better. The diuretic, or urine-ball, the constant resource of the idle groom or carter, is particularly objectionable. Its frequent and undue stimulus of the urinary organs will be followed by speedy, and often incurable debility. If the swelling bids defiance to exercise, and friction, and bandage, the aid of the diuretic may be resorted to, but never until these have failed, unless there be an evident tendency to grease or humour. GREASE. Swelled-legs, although distinct from Grease, are apt to degenerate into it. This disease, therefore, comes next under our consideration. It is an inflammation of the skin of the heel, sometimes of the fore, but oftener of the hind-foot. It is not a contagious disease, although when it once appears in a stable it frequently goes through it, for it is usually to be traced to bad stabk management. The skin of the heel of the horse somewhat differs from, that of any other part. There is a great deal of motion in the fetlock, and to prevent the skin from excoriation or chapping, it is necessary that it should be kept soft and pliable; therefore, in the healthy state of the part, the skin of the heel has a peculiar greasy feel. Under inflammation, the secretion of this greasy matter is stopped ; the heels become red, dry, and scurfy; and being almost constantly in motion, cracks soon succeed: thesn sometimes extend, and the whole surface of the heel becomes a mass of soreness, ulceration and fungus. The heel is subject to this virulent inflammation, on account of itf si»ua GREASE. 277 tion, far removed from the centre of the circulation. It is likewise exposed to more variations of temperature than any other part of the frame. As the horse stands in the closed stable, the heat of the part is increased by being deeply imbedded in straw. When the stable-door is open, the heela are nearest to the door, and most powerfully receive the current of cold air; and when the horse is taken from the stable to his work, the heels are covered with mire and wet, and chilled by the slow and long process of evaporation, which is taking place from them. We cannot wonder then at the frequency with which the heels are attacked with inflammation, nor the difficulty there is in subduing that inflammation. In the winter season, chaps and cracks will occasionally appear in the best conducted stables; but where the comfort of the animal is neglected, and every kind of fllth is suffered to accumulate, the disease will be more frequent and more virulent. The farmer's horse is not so subject to grease as many others, because he is not usually exposed so much to sudden and extreme changes of temperature, and the heels particularly are not thus exposed. In many instances he lives al.most entirely out of doors, or, if he is stabled, the stables of the little farmer are not always air-tight. The wind finds its way through many a cranny, instead of entering at the door alone, and blowing upon the heels. A great deal of error has prevailed, and it has led to much bad practice, in connecting grease with the notion of humours flying about the horse, which must have vent somewhere, and which attack the heeis as the weaker part of the frame. Thence arise the physicking, and the long course of diuretics, which truly weaken the animal, and often do irreparable mischief. Grease is a local complaint; it is produced principally by causes which act locally; and it is most successfully treated by local appli- cations. Physic and diuretics may be useful in abating inflammation ; but the grand object is to abate the inflammatory action which exists in the skin of the heel, and to heal the wounds, and remedy the mischief which it has occasioned. The first appearance of grease is usually a dry and scurfy state of the skin of the heel, with redness, heat, and itchiness. The heel should be well washed with soap and water; as much of the scurf should be detached as is easily removable: white ointment, composed of one drachm of sugar of lead, rubbed down with an ounce of lard, will usually supple, and cool, and heal the part. When cracks appear, the mode of treatment will depend on their extent and depth. If they are but slight, a lotion, composed of a solution of two drachms of blue vitriol, or four of alum, in a pint of water, will often speedily dry them up and close them. But if the cracks are deep, with an ichorous discharge, and the lameness considerable, it will be necessary to poultice the heel. A poultice of linseed meal will be the most eflfectual, unless the discharge is thin and offensive, when an ounce of finely pow- ■iered charcoal should be mixed with the linseed meal, or a poultice may be made of carrots boiled soft, and mashed. The efficacy of a carrot poultice is seldom sufficiently appreciated in cases like these. When the inflammation and pain have evidently subsided, and the cracks discharge good matter, they may be dressed with an ointment composed of one part of resin, and three of lard, melted together, and one part of cala- mine powder added, when these begin to get cool. The healing will be quickened if the cracks are occasionally washed with either the vitriol, or alum solution. A mild diuretic may here be given every third day., hut a mild do.se of physic will form the best medicine that can be afimini.stf red. ^78 T'HK HORSE. After the chaps or cracks have healed, the legs will sometimes continue gorged and swellfd. A flannel bandage, evenly applied over tiie whole of the swelled part, will be very serviceable, or, should the season admit of it, a run at grass, particularly spring grass, should be allowed. A blister is inadmissible, from the danger of bringing back the inflammation of skin, and discharge from it; but the actual cautery, taking especial care not to penetrate the skin, must be occasionally resorted to. In some cases the cracks are not confined to the centre of the heels, but spread over them, and extend on tiie fetlock, and even up the leg, while the legs are exceedingly swelled, and there is a waterv discharge from the cracks, and apparently oozing through the skin at other places. The parts are exceedingly tender, and sometimes hot, and there is an appearance which the farrier thinks very decisive as to the state of the disease, and which the better informed man should not overlook : the hee/s smoke; the skin is so hot, that the watery fluid partly evaporates as it runs from the cracks, or oozes through the skin. There will be great danger in suddenly stopping this discharge. Inflam- mation of a more important part has rapidly succeeded to the injudicious attempt. The local application should be directed to the abatement of the inflammation. The poultices just referred to should be diligently used night and day, and especially the carrot poultice ; and, when the heat, and tender- ness, and stiffness of motion have diminished, astringent lotions may be applied; either the alum lotion, or a strong decoction of oak bark, changed, or used alternately, but not mixed. The cracks should likewise be dressed with the ointment above-mentioned ; and the moment the horse can bear it, a flannel bandage should be put on, reaching from the coronet, to threide, between the frog and the quarters is admirably contrived, both to admit of, and to limit to its proper extent, the expansion of the foot. When the foot is placed on the ground, and the weight of the animal is thrown on the little leaves, of which we have just spoken, we can miagine these arches shortening and widening, in order to admit oi' the expansion of the quarters; and we can see again the bow returning to its natural curve, and powerfully assisting the foot in regaining its usual form. We can also perceive what protection these bars must form against the contraction, or wiring in of the quarters. If they are taken away, there will be nothing to resist the falling of the quarters when the foot is exposed to any disease or bad management which would induce it to contract. Again, we see the security wliich they afford the frog a; and the effectual protection which they give against the pressure of tiie lateral or side parts ot the foot. Then appears the necessity of sparing and leaving them prom- inent when the foot is pared for shoeing. It is the custom with too many 5JQ4 THE HORSE. smiths lo cut them perfectly away. They imagine that that gives a more open appearance lo the heels of the horse; a seeming width wnich may impose upon the unwary. Horses shod for the purpose of sale have usualiv the bars removed with this view ; and the smiths in the neighbour- liood of tlie metropolis and large Ic A-ns, shoeing for dealers, too often habit- ually pursue, without regard to their customers, the injurious practice of removing the bars. The horny frog, deprived of its guard, will speedily contract, and become elevated and thrushy ; and the whole of the heel, deprived of the power of resilience or re-action, which the curve between the bar c and the crust d affords, will speedily fall in. Therefore, when treating of shoeing, we shall lay it down as a golden rule, that the bars should be left prominent, and we shall show why it is of essential import- ance that the shoe should rest on the angle formed by the crust and the bar. THE FROG. In the space between the bars, and accurately filling it, is the frog. It is a triangular portion of horn, projecting from the sole, almost on a level with the crust, and covering and defending a soft and elastic substance, called the sensible frog. It is wide at the heels, and there extending above a portion of the crust ; narrowing rapidly when it begins to be confined between the bars, and terminating at a point at somewhat more than half the distance from the heel to the toe. It consists of two rounded or project, ing surfaces, with a fissure or cleft between them, reaching half way down the frog, and the two portions again uniting to form the point or toe of the frog. The frog is firmly united to the sole, but it is perfectly distinct from it. It is of a different nature, being softer, and far more elastic; and it is secreted from a ditferent surface, for it is thrown out from the substance which it covers. Without entering into many of the questions which have been agitated, with far too much warmth among veterinarians, as to the uses of the frog, it is sufficient to refer to our cut, and consider the form and situation of this part. It very much resembles a wedge with the sharp point forwards; and it is placed towards the back part of the foot. The foot is seldom put flush and flat upon the ground, but in a direction down- wards, yet somewhat forwards ; then the frog evidently gives safety to the tread of the animal ; for it, in a manner, ploughs itself into the ground, and prevents the horse from slipping. This is of considerable consequence, when we remember some of the paces of the horse, in which his heels evidently come first to the ground, and in which the danger from slipping would be very great. We need only refer to the gallop of speed as illus- trative of this. The frog being placed at, and filling the hinder part of the foot, discharges a part of the duty sustained by the crust; for it supports the weight of the animal. It assists, likewise, and that to a material degree, in the expansion of the foot. It is formed internally of two prominences on the sides (see a, p. 283), and a cleft in the centre, presenting two con- cavities with a sharp projection in the middle, and a gradually rounded one oi each side. It is also composed of a substance peculiarly flexible and elastic What can be so well adapted for the expansion of the foot, when a portion o' the weight of the body is thrown on it ? How easily will these irregular surfaces yield, and spread out, and how readily return again to their natural state? In this view, therefore, the horny frog is a powerful agent in openiaig the foot; and the dimunition of the substance of the frog, eiid its elevation above the ground, are both the cause and the consequence THE SOLE. 285 )f contraction : the cause, as being able no longer powerfully to act in expanding the heels; and the consequence, as obeying a law of nature, by which that which no longer discharges its natural function is gradu- ally removed. It is, however, the cover and defence of the internal and sensible frog, at which we are not yet arrived, and, therefore, we are at present unable to develop its full use; but we have said enough to show the absurdity of the common practice of unsparingly cutting it away. To discharge, in any degree, some of the offices which we have assigned to it, and fully to discharge even one of them, it must come in occasional contact witii the ground. In the unshod horse it is constantly so: but the additional support given by the shoes, and more especially the hard roads over which the horse is now compelled to travel, render this complete exposure of the frog to the ground, not only unnecessary, but injurious. Being of so much softer consistence than the rest of the foot, it would be speedily worn away: occasional pressure, however, or contact with the ground, it must have. The rough and detached parts should be cut off at each shoeing, and the substance of the frog itself, so as to bring it just above or within the level jf the shoe. It will then, in the descent of the sole, when the weight of ;he horse is thrown upon it in the putting down of the foot, descend like- wise, and pressing upon the ground, do its duty; while it will be defended from the wear, and bruise, and injury which it would receive if it came upon tiie ground with the first and full shock of the weight. This will be the proper guide to the smith in operating, and to the proprietor in the directions wiiich he gives; and the latter should often look to this, for it is a point of very great moment. A few smiths carry the notion oi" frog pres- sure to an absurd extent, and leave the frog beyond the level of the sole; a practice which is dangerous in the horse of slow draught, and destructive to the hackney or the hunter; but the majority of them err in a contrary way, and, cutting off too much of thft frog, lift it above the ground, and destroy its principal use. It should be left jusl above, or wUhin the level of tke shoe. THE SOLE. This is the under concave and elastic surface of the foot (see b, p. 283), extending from the crust to the bars and frog. It is not so thick as the crust, because, notwithstanding its situation, it has not so much weight or stress thrown on it as there is on the crust; and because it was intended lo expand, in order to prevent concussion, when, by the descent of the bone of the foot, the weight was thrown upon it. It is not so brittle as the crust, and it is more elastic than it. It is thickest at the toe (see /, page 249), because the first and principal stress is thrown on that part. The coffin-bone y is driven forward and downward in that direction. It is like- wise thicker where it unites with the crust than it is towards the centre, for a similar and evident reason, because tiiere the weight is first and prin- cipally thrown. In a state of nature it is, to a certain degree, hollow. The reason of this is plain. It is intended to descend or yield with the weight of the horse, and by that gradual descent or yielding, most materially lessen the shock which would result from the sudden action of the weight of the animal in rapid and violent action ; and this descent can only be given by u hollow sole. A flat sole, already pressing upon the ground could not U; b:-ought lower: nir could the functions of the frog be then discharged; 2Q0 THE HORSE. nor would thw loot have so secure a hold. Then, if the sole be naturall> hollow, and hollow because it must descend, the smith must not interfert with this important action. When the fool will bear it, he must pare out suflicient of the horn to preserve the proper concavity, a small portion at the too and near the crust, and cutting deeper towards the centre; and he must put on a shoe which shall not prevent the descent of the sole; which not only shall not press upon it, but shall leave sufficient room between it and the sole to admit of this descent. If the sole is pressed upon by the coffin-bone, by the lengthening of the elastic leaves, and the shoe will not permit its descent, the sensible part between the coffin-bone and the horn will necessarily be bruised, and inflammation and lameness will ensue. It is from this cause, that if a stone insinuates itself between the shoe and the sole, it produces so much lameness. Of the too great concav- ity of the sole, or the want of concavity, we shall treat when we arrive al the diseases of the foot. THE COFFIN-BONE. We proceed to the interior part of the foot. The lower pastern, a small portion of which (see d, page 249) is contained in the horny box, has been already described. Beneath it, and altogether inclosed in the hoof, is the coffin-bone, or proper bone of the foot, (see^, page 249, and d, fig. 1, page 253). It is fitted to, and fills the fore part of the hoof, occupying about half of it. It is of a light and spongy structure (see d, fig 1, page 253), and filled with numerous holes. Through these pass the blood-vessels of the foot, which are necessarily numerous, considering the important and various secretions there carrying on, and the circulation through the foot it is plain could not possibly be kept up, if these vessels did not run through the substance of the bone. The holes about the body of the coffin- bone convey the blood to the little leaves with which it is covered ; those near the lower part go to the sole. Considering the manner in which this bone is inclosed in the horny box, and yet the important surfaces around and below it which are to be nourished with blood, the circulation which is thus carried on within the very body of the bone is one of the most beauti- ful provisions of nature that is to be found in the whole of the frame. No inconvenience can arise from occasional or constant pressure, but the bone allows free passage to the blood, and protects it from every possible obstruction. The fore-part of the coffin-bone is not only thus perforated, but it is curi- ously roughened for the attachment of the numerous little leaves about to be described. On its .upper surface it presents a concavity for the head of the lower pastei'n, p. 235. In front, immediately above d, is a striking prominence, into which is inserted the extensor tendon of the foot. At the back, e, p. 249, it is sloped for articulation with the navicular-bone, and more underneath, is a depression for the reception of the perforating flexor tendon, m, continued down the leg, passing over the navicular-bone at n, and at length inserted into this bone. On either side, as seen at p. 254. are projections, commonly called the wings or the heels of the coffin-bone, and at the bottom it is hollowed to answer to the convexity of the interna' part of the sole. That which deserves most attention in the coffin-bone is the production of numerous little leaves round its front and sides. They are prolongations of the thick and elastic membrane covering the coffin-bone, and consist of cartilaginous, fleshy plates, proceeding from it, running down the coffin SENSIBLE SOLE AND FROG. 287 bone, and corresponding with, and 'received between the horny leaveb ihat line the inside of the crust. The horny little leaves are secreted from, or produced by the fleshy, and being, as we have stated, five hundred in num. I)er, their union with each other is so strong, that no violence can separate them. While the animal is at rest, the whole weight of the horse is sup- ported by them, and not by the sole. This extraordinary fact has been put to the test of experiment. The sole, bars, and frog were removed from the foot of a horse, and yet as he stood, the coffin-bone did not protrude, or in the slightest degree descend ; but when the rapidity with which the foot descends is added to the weight of the horse, these little leaves, horny and fleshy, gradually lengthen, and suffer the bones to press upon the sole The sole then descends, and, in descending, expands; and so, by an admirable mechanism, the violent sliock which would be produced by tne pressure of such a weight as that of the horse, and the velocity with which it descends, is lessened or destroyed, and the complicated apparatus of the foot remains uninjured. When the foot is again lifted, and the weight wliich pressed upon it is removed, the principle of elasticity is called into exercise, and by it the sole resumes its concavity, and the horny frog its folded state; tiie quarters return to their former situation; the little leaves regain their former length, and every thing is prepared for a repeti- tion o{ action. HE SENSIBLE-SOLE. Between the coflin-bone and the horny-sole is situated the sensible-sole s, p. 249, formed above of a substance of a ligamentous or tendinous uature, and below of a cuticular, or skin-like, substance, plentifully supplied with blood-vessels. It was placed between the coffin-bone and the sole, by its yielding nature to assist in preventing concussion, and also to form a supply of horn for the sole. It extends beyond the coffin-bone, but not at a'l under the frog; leaving a space for the frog, it proceeds over the bars, and there is covered with some laminae, to unite with those we have described, page 283, as found in the bars. It is here likewise thicker, and more elastic, and by its elastieity is evidently assisting in obviating concussion. It is supplied with nervous fibres, and is highly sensible, as the slightt-st experi- ence in horses will evince. The lameness which ensues from the pressure of a stone or of the shoe on the sole is caused by inflammation of the sensible-sole. Corns result from bruise and inflammation of the sensible- sole, between the crust and the bar. THE SENSIBLE-FROG The coffin-bone does not occupy more than one half of the hoof. The posterior part is filled by a soft mass, partly ligamentous and partly ten- dinous (o, page 249). Its shape below corresponds with the cavities of the horny frog: in front it is attached to the inferior part of the coffm-bone; and farther back it adheres to the lower part of the cartilages of the heels, where they begin to form the rounded protuberances which constitute the heel of the foot. It occupies the whole of the back part of the foot, above the horny frog, and between the cartilages. Running immediately above ♦he frog, and along tlie greater part of it, we find the perforans flexor ten- don, which passes over the navicular-bone, e, p. 249, and is inserted into the heel of the coffin-bone. 288 THE HORSE. THE NAVICULAR-BONE. This navicular bone is placed behind and below the lower paslern-bone and behind and above the heel ol" the coffin-bone, e, p. 249, so that it forms a joint with both bones, and answers a very important office in strengthen- ing the union between these parts; in receiving a portion of tlie weight which is thrown on the lower pastern ; and in enabling the flexor tendon to act with more advantage. Supposing that this tendon were inserted into the coffin-bone, without the intervention of the navicular-bone, it would act in a very disadvantageous way, in bending the pastern, for it is inserted near the end of the coffin-bone, and the weight, concentrated about the middle of the bone, is far off, and requires a power to raise it proportionate to the distance between the weight and the power, from tlie centre of motion, which is here the place where the tendon passes over tlie end of the coffin-bone : but when the navicular-bone is interposed, the centre of motion becomes the posterior edge of that bone, where it is in contact with the tendon, and then it will be seen that the distance of the power from the centre of motion is nearly or quite the same as the weight, and very great expenditure of muscular power will be saved. In the one case, the power must be at least double the weight, in the other they will be nearly equal; and also the angle at which the tendon is inserted, is, like the angle pro- duced by the introduction of the knee-bone, considerably more advantageous. We are inclined to believe that this is the principal ir,e of the navicular- bone; but at the same lime we are aware of the benefit which accrues (see page 249) from a portion of the weight being taken from the coffin-bone, and thrown on the navicular-bone, and from it on the tendon, and the ten- don resting on the elastic frog underneath. The navicular-bone is some- limes, but inaccurately, said to descend with the motion of the foot. It does not do that; it cannot; for it is connected both with the pastern and coffin, bones, by inelastic ligaments. When, however, the horny bulb, with its tuft of hair, at the back of an oblique fetlock, descends in the rapid gallop, and almost touches the ground, the navicular-bone, being as it were a part of the pastern, must descend with it: but with this exception, both in the extending and the bending of the pastern, the navicular-bone turns or rolls upon the other bones, rather than descends, or ascends, and with this remarkable advantage, that when the pastern is extended (see page 249), the navicular-bone is placed in that situation which enables the flexor tendon to act with greatest advantage, in again bending the foot. THE CARTILAGES OF THE FOOT There is a groove extending along the upper part of the coffin-bone, and on either side, except at the protuberance which receives the extensor ten- don d, p. 253, occupied by cartilage, which, like the crust, is convex out- wards and concave inwards, and which extends to the very posterior part of the foot; rising about the quarters, half an inch or more above the hoof, and diminishing in height forward and backward. These cartilages occupy a greater portion of the foot than does the coffin-bone, as will be seen in the cut, page 254, where they are represented as extending far behind the coffin-bone. They are held in their situation not merely by this groove, but by other connections with the coffin-bone, the navicular-bcne, and the flexor tendon, and are thus perfectly secured. INFLAMMATION OF THE FOOT. 289 Below are other cartilages connected with the under edges of the former, and on either side of' tiie frog. Between these cartilages is the sensible frog, filling up the whole of the space, and answering several important purposes, being an elastic bed on which the navicular-bone, and the tendon (see page 249), can play with security, and with concussion or shock, by which all concussion communi- cated to the cartilages of the foot is destroyed, and by which these carti- lages are kept asunder, and the expansion of the upper part of the foot preserved. As the descent of the sole increases the width of the lower part of the foot, so the elevation of the frog, a portion of it being pressed upward and outward by the action of the navicular-bone and tendon, causes the expansion of its upper part. Precisely as the strong muscle peculiar to quadrupeds at the back of the eye (see page 88) being forcibly con- tracted, presses upon the fatty matter in which the eye is imbedded, which may be displaced, but cannot be squeezed into less compass, and which, being forced towards the inner corner of the eye, drives before it that important and beautiful mechanism of the haw, so the elastic and yielding substance of the frog, being pressed upon by the navicular-bone and the tendon, and the pastern, and refusing to be condensed into less compass, forces itself out on each side of them, and expands the lateral cartilages, and which again, by their inherent elasticity, recur to their former situation, when the frog no longer presses them outward. It appears, that by a different mechanism, but both equally admirable, and referable to the same principle, viz., that of elasticity, the expansion of the upper and lower portions of the hoof are effected, the one by the descent of the sole, thn other by the compression and rising of the frog. It is this expansion upward, which contributes principally to the preser- vation of the usefulness of the horse, when our destructive methods of shoeing are so calculated to destroy the expansion beneath. In draught- horses, from the long continued, as well as violent pressure on the frog, and from the frog on the cartilage, inflammation is occasionally produced, which terminates in the cartilages being changed into bony matter. CHAPTER XVI. THE DISEASES OF THE FOOT. Of these, we have a long list to lay before our readers, but that will not be wondered at by those who have duly considered the complicated structure of the foot, the duty it has to perform, and the injuries to which it is exposed. We begin with that which is the cause of many other diseases of the foot, and connected with almost all. INFLAMMATION OF THE FOOT, OR ACUTE FOUNDER. The sensible lamellae, or the fleshy plates on the front and sides of the coffin-bone, being replete with blood-vessels, are, like every other vascular Dart, liable to inflammation, from its usual causes, and particularly from the violence with which, in rapid and long-continued action, they are length- ened and strained. When in a severely contested race they have been stretclied to the utmost ; while, at the fullest stride of the horse, his weight was thrown on them with destructive force; or, when the feet have been \)atterea and bruised in a hard day's journey, no one will wonder if inflam- 29(1 THE HORSE. niation of the over-worked parts should ensue, and the occurrence of it ina) probably be produced and the disease aggravated by the too prevalent absurd rriode of treating the animal. If a horse that has been ridden or driven hard be suffered to stand in the cold, or if his feet be washed and not speedily dried, he is very likely to have "fever in the feet." There is no more fruitful source of inflammation in the human being, or the brute, than these sudden changes of temperature. This has been explained as it regards grease, but it bears more immediately on the point now under con- sideration. The danger is not confined to tiie change from heat to cold ; a sudden transition from cold to heat is as injurious, and therefore it is that so many horses, after having been ridden far in the frost and snow, and placed immediately in a hot stable, and littered up to the knees, are attacked by this complaint. The feet and the lungs are the organs oftenest attacked, because they have previously suffered most by our mismanagement, and are most disposed to take on disease. Whatever would cause slight inflam- mation of other parts, or trifling general derangement, will produce all its mischief on these organs. Sometimes there is a sudden change of inflammation from one organ to another. A horse shall have laboured for several days under evident inflam- mation of the lungs; all at once that will subside, and the inflammation will appear in the feet, or inflammation of the feet may follow similar affections in the bowels or the eyes. To the attentive observer the symptoms are clearly marked, and yet there is no disease so often overlooked by the groom and carter, and even by the veterinary surgeon. The earliest symptoms of fever in the feet are fidgeti- ness, frequent shifting of the fore-legs, but no pawing, much less any attempts to reach the belly with the hind-feet. The pulse will soon be quickened, the flanks heaving, the nostrils red, and the horse, by his anx- ious countenance, and perhaps by moaning, indicating great pain. Pres- ently, he will look about his litter, as if preparing to lie down, but he does not do it immediately; he continues to shift from foot to foot; he is afraid to draw his feet sufficiently under him for the purpose of lying down : but at length he drops. The circumstance of his lying down at an early period of the disease will sufficiently distinguish inflammation of the feet from that of the lungs, in which the horse obstinately persists in standing until he drops from mere exhaustion; and his quietness when down will distin- guish it from colic or inflammation of the bowels, in both of which the horse is frequently up and down, and rolling and kicking when down. When the grievance is in the feet, the horse experiences so much relief, from getting rid of the weight painfully distending the inflamed and highly sensible little plates, that he is glad to lie as long as he can. He will like- wise, as clearly as in inflammation of the lungs or bowels, point out the seat of disease by looking at the part: his muzzle will sometimes rest on the feet or the affected foot It is easy to conclude what all this indicates. If the feet be now examined, they will be evidently hot; the horse will express pain if they are slightly rapped with a hammer, and the artery at the pastern will throb violently. No great time will now pass, if the disease be suffered to pursue its course, before he will be perfectly unable to rise ; or, if he is forced to get up, and one foot be lifted, he will stand with diffi- culty on the other, or perhaps drop at once from intensity of pain. The treatment will resemble that of other inflammations, with such differences as the situation of the disease may suggest. Bleeding is indis- pensable ; and that to its fullest extent. If the disease be confined to the fore-feet, four quarts of blood should be taken as soon as possible from the toe of each, at the situation pointed out, fig. 2, p. 249, and in the manner PUMICEL FEET. 2 crust is not only less oblique than it ought to be, but it has not the smooth, even appearance of the good foot. The surface is sometimes irregularly roughened, but it is muchoftener roughened in circles or rings. The form of the crust likewise presents too much the appearance of a cone; the bot- tom of the foot is unnaturally wide in proportion to the coronet ; and the whole of the foot is generally, but not always, larger than it should be. When the foot is lifted, it will often present a round and circular appearance, with a fullness of frog, that would mislead the inexperienced, and indeed be considered as almost the perfection of structure; but, being examined luore closely, many glaring defects will be seen. The sole is flat, and the smith finds that it will bear little or no paring The i)ars are THE CONCAVE-SEATED SHOE. 3| I small in size. They are not cut away by the smith, but they can be scarcely said to have any existence ; the heels are low, so low that the very coronet seems almost to touch the ground ; and tlie crust, if examined, seems scarcely thick enough to hold the nails. Horses with these feet can never stand much work. They will be subject to corns, to bruises of the sole, to convexity of the sole, to punctures in nailing, to breaking away of the crust, to inflammation of the foot, and to sprain and injury of the pas- tern, and the fetlock, and the flexor tendons. These feet admit of little improvement. Shoeing as seldom as may be, and with a light, yet wide concave web ; little or no paring at the time of shoeing, with as little violent work as possible, and especially on rough roads, may protract for a long period the evil day, but he who buys a horse with these feet wijl sooner or later have cause to repent his bargain. CHAPTER XVII ON SHOEING. The period when ihe shoe began to be nailed to the foot of the horse is uncertain. William the Norman introduced it into our country. We have seen, in the progress of our inquiry, that while it aflfords to the foot of the horse that defence which seems now to be necessary against the destructive effects of our artificial and flinty roads, it has entailed on tiie animal some evils. It has limited or destroyed the beautil"ul expansibility of the lower part of the foot ; it has led to contraction, although that contraction has not always been accompanied by lameness ; in the most careful fixing of the best shoe, and in the careless manufacture and setting on of the bad one, much injury has often been done to the horse ; yet, as we have already stated, to nothing like the extent which some have fancied or teared. THE CONCAVE-SEATED SHOE. The proper form and construction of the shoe is a subject deserving of very serious inquiry, for it is most important to ascertain the kind of shoe that will do the least mischief to the feet. We subjoin a cut of that which we strongly recommend for general purposes. It is in use in many of our best forges, and is gradually superseding the flat and the simple concave shoe. The following cut exhibits the near fore shoe. It presents a perfectly flat surface to the ground, to give as many points of bearing as possible, except that, round the outer edge, there is a groove ov fuller, in which the nail-holes are punched, so that, sinking into the fuller, tlieir heads project but a little vvay, and are soon worn down level with the shoe. The ground surface of the common shoe used in the country is somewhat convex, and the inward rim of the shoe comes first on the ground; the consequence of this is, that the weight, instead of being borne fairly on the crust, is supported by the nails and the clenches, which must be injuria us to the crust, and often chip and tear it. The wob of the shoe is of the same thickness throughout, from the toe to the heel; and it is sufficiently wide to guard tae sole from bruises, suid 'Jill THE HORSE. at fl'ide at the heel as the frog will permit, in order to cover the seal o. ctjfn, and enable the horse to stand at his natural ease. On the foot side it is seated. The outer part of it is accurately Hat, and of the width of the crust, and designed to support the crust, and tiie crust otly ; for it has already been proved that by the crust alone, or rather by the union between the numerous little plates proceeding from the crust and the covering of the coffin-bone, the whole weight of the horse is sup- ported. Towards the heel this flattened part is wider, and occupies the wnole breadth of the web, to support (see page 283) the heel of the crust and its reflected part, the bar: thus, while "it defends the horn included within this angle from injury, it gives that equal pressure upon the bar and the crust, which is the best preventive against corn, and a powerful obstacle to contraction. It is fastened to the foot by nine nails, five on the outside, and four on the inner side of the shoe; those on the outside extending a little farther down towards the heel, because the outside heel is thicker and stronger, and there is more nail-hold ; the last nail on the inner quarter being farther from the heel on account of the weakness of that quarter. For feet not too large, and where moderate work only is required from the horse, four nails on the outside, and three on the inside, will be sufficient; and the last nail being far from the heels, will allow more expansion there. The inside part of the web is bevelled off, or rendered concave, that it may not press upon the sole. Notwithstanding our iron fetter, the sole does, although to a very inconsiderable extent, descend when the foot of the horse is put on the ground. It is unable to bear constant or even occasional pressure, and if it came in contact with the shoe, the sensible sole, between the horny sole and the coffin-bone, would be bruised, and lameness would ensue. Many of our horses, from too early and undue work, have the natural concave sole flattened, and the disposition to descend and the degree of descent are thereby increased. The concave shoe pre- vents, even in this case, the possibility of injury, because the sole can never descend in the degree in which the shoe is bevelled. A shoe bevelled still iurlher is necessary to protect the projecting or pumiced foot. THE PREPARATION OF THE FOOT. 31 y While the horse is travelling, dirt and gravel are too apt to insinuate themselves between the web of tlie shoe and the sole. If tiie shoe were flat, they would be easily retained there, and would bruise the sole and be productive of injury ; but when the shoe is thus bevelled off, it is scarcely possible for them to remain. They must be shaken out every time the foot comes in contact with the ground. The web of the shoe is likewise of that thickness, that when the foot is properly pared, the prominent part of the frog shall lie just within and above its ground surface, so that in the descent of the sole the frog shall come sutliciently on the ground, to enable it to act as a wedge, and to expand the quarters, while it is defended from the wear and injury it would receive if it came on the ground with the first and full shock of the weight. The nail-holes are, on the ground side, placed as near the outer edge of the shoe as they can safely be, and brought out near the inner edge* of the seating. The nails thus take a direction inward, resembling the direction of the crust itself, and take firmer hold ; while the strain upon them in the common shoe is altogether prevented ; and the weight of the horse being thrown on a flat surface, contraction is not so likely to be produced. The smith sometimes objects to the use of this shoe, on account of its not being so easily formed as one composed of a bar of iron, either flat or a little bevelled. It likewise occupies more time in the forming ; but these objections would vanish, when the owner of the horse declared that he would have him shod elsewhere ; or when he consented, as in justice he should, to pay somewhat more for a shoe that required better workman ship and longer time in the construction. THE PREPARATION OF THE FOOT. We will suppose that the horse is sent to the forge to be shod. If the master would occasionally accompany him there, he would find it much to his advantage. The old shoe must be first taken off. We have something to observe even on this. It was retained on the foot by the ends of the nails being twisted off, turned down, and clenched. These clenches should be first raised, which the smith seldom takes the trouble thoroughly to do ; but after going carelessly round the crust, and raising one or two of the clenciies, he takes hold first of one heel of the shoe, and then of the other, and by a violent wrench separates them from the foot, and by a tiiird wrench, applied to the middle of the shoe, he tears it off. By this means he must enlarge every nail-hole; and weaken the future hold, and' sometimes tear off portions of the crust, and otherwise injure the foot. The horse generally shows by his flinching tha!. he suffers by the violence with wiiich this preliminary operation is performed. The clenches should always be raised or filed off; and where the foot is tender, or the horse is to be examined for lameness, each nail should be partly punched out. Many a stub is left in the crust, the source of future annoyance, when this unnecessary violence is used. The shoe having been removed, the smith proceeds to rasp the edges of llie crust. Let not the stander-by object to the apparent violence which he uses, or fear that the foot will suffer. It is the only means he has, with safety to liis instruments, to detect whether any stubs remain in the nail- lioles ; and it is tiie most convenient method of removing that portion of the crust into wiiich dirt and gravel have insinuated themselves. Next comes the important process of paring out, with regard to which it IS almost impossible to lay down any specific rules. This, however, we can say with confidence, that more injury has been done by the neglect X 314 THE HORSE. of paring, than by carrying it to too great an extent. The act of paring is a work of much more labour than the proprietor of the horse often imagines ; the smith, except he be overloolvcd, will give himself as little trouble about it as he can ; and that which, in the unshod foot, would be worn away by contact with the ground, is suffered to accumulate month after month, until the elasticity of the sole is destroyed, and it can no longer descend, and the functions of the foot are impeded, and foundation is laid for corn, and contraction, and navicular disease, and inflammation. That portion of horn should be left on the sole, which will defend the internal parts from being bruised, and yet suffer the external sole lo descend. How is this to be measured? The strong pressure of th" thumb of the smith will be the best guide. The buttress, that most destructive of all instruments, being banished from the respectable forge, the smiih sets to work with his drawing-knife, and he removes the growth of horn, until the sole vvill yield, although in the slightest possible degree, to the very strong pressure of his thumb. The proper thickness of horn will then remain. If the foot has been previously neglected, and the horn is become very hard, the owner must not object if the smith resorts to some means to soften it a little ; and if he takes one of his flat irons, and having heated it, draws it over the sole, and keeps it a little while in contact with it. When the sole is thick, this rude and apparently barbarous method can do no harm, but it should never be permitted with the sole that is regularly pared out. The quantity of horn to be removed in order to leave the proper degree of thickness will vary with different feet. From the strong foot a great deal must be taken. From the concave foot the horn may be removed until the sole will yield to a moderate pressure. From the flat foot little need be pared; while the pumiced foot will spare nothing but the ragged parts. The paring being nearly completed, the knife and the rasp of the smith must be a little watched, or he will reduce the crust to a level with the sole, and thus endanger the bruising of the sole by its pressure on the edge of the seating. The crust should be reduced to a perfect level, all round, but left a little higher tiian tbe sole. The heels will require very considerable attention. From the stress which is thrown on the inner heel, and from the weakness of the quarter there, it usually wears considerably faster than the outer one ; and, if an equal portion of horn were pared from it, it would be left lower tiian the outer heel. The smith should, therefore, accommodate his paring to the comparative wear of the heels, and be very careful to leave them as precisely level as possible. If the reader will recollect what we have said of the intention and action of the bars, he will readily perceive that the smith should be checked in his almost universal fondness for opening the heels, or, more truly, removing that which is the main impediment to contraction. That portion ot the heels between the inflection of the bar and the frog should scarcely be touched; at least, nothing but the ragged and detached parts should be cut away. The foot may not look so pretty, but it will last longer without contraction. The bar likewise should be left fully prominent, not only at its flrst inflection, but as it runs down the side of the frog. The heel of our shoe is designed to rest partly on the heel of the foot, and partly on the bar, for reasons that have been already stated. If the bar is weak, tiie growth of it should be encouraged, and it should be scarcely touched at the shoeing until it has attained a level with the crust. We recall to the recollection of THE PUTTIAG ON OF THE SHOE. 3^5 Hir readers, the observation wliicli we have made in page 283, that the ileslruction of the bars not only leads to contraction by removing a power. ful impediment to it, but by adding a still more powerful cause ill the Wanting direction which is given to the bearing at tiie heels, when the bar does not contribute to the support of the weight. It will also be apparent that the horn between the crust and the bar should be carefully pared out. Every horseman has observed the relief which is ^•iven to the animal lame with corns when this angle is well thinned; a .elief, however, which is but temporary, for when the horn grows again, jmd the shoe presses upon it, the torture of the animal is renewed, w^th the greater probability of permanent ill consecjuences. The degree of paring to which the frog must be subjected will depend on its prominence, and on the shape of the foot. The principle has already been stated, that it must be left so far projecting and prominent, that it shall be just within and above the lower surface of the shoe, it will then descend with the sole, t>ufficiently to discharge the functions which we have attrib- uted to it. If it be lower, it will be bruised and injured ; if it be higher, it cannot come in contact with the ground, and thus be enabled to do its duty. The ragged parts must be removed, and especially those occasioned by thrush, but the degree of paring must depend entirely ou this princi- ple, and be governed by the circumstances enumerated. It appears, then, that the office of the smith requires some skill and judgment in order to be properly discharged ; and the horse proprietor will find it his interest occasionally to visit the forge and complain of the careless, or idle, or obstinate, and reward, by some trifling gratuity, the expert and diligent. He should likewise remember that a great deal more depends on the paring out of the foot than on the construction of the shoe ; that few shoes except they press upon the sole, or are made outrageously bad, will lame the horse ; but that he may be very easily lamed from ig- norant and improper paring out of the foot. THE PUTTING ON OF THE SHOE. The foot being thus prepared, the smith looks about for a shoe. He should select one that as nearly as possible fits the foot, or may be altered to the foot. He will sometimes care little about this, for he can easily alter the foot to the shoe. The toe-knife is a very convenient instrument for him, and plenty of horn can be struck off with it, or i-emoved by the rasp, to make the foot as small as the shoe; while he cares little, although by this destructive method the crust is materially thinned where it should receive the nail, and the danger of puncture is increased, and also the danger of pressure upon the sole, and a foot so artificially diminished in size will soon grow over the shoe, to the hazard of considerable or perma- nent lameness. While choosing the shoe, we must once more refer to the shape of our pattern shoe; the web is of equal thickness from toe to heel. A shoe thinner at the heel than at the toe, by letting down the heel too low, is apt to produce sprain of the fiexor tendon, and a shoe thicker at the heel than at the toe is fit only to elevate the frog, to the desl ^uction of its function, and lo its own certain disease, and also to press upon, and to uatter, and to bruise that part of the foot which is soonest and most destructively injured. 316 THE HORSE. CALKINS. It is expedient not only that the foot and ground surface of tlie slioe should be most accurately level, but that the crust should bi; exactly smoothed and fitted to the shoe. Much skill and time are necessary to do tliis perfectly with the drawing- knife. The smith has ax'opted a method of more quickly and more accurately adapting the shoe to the foot. He pares the crust as level as he can, and then he takes the shoe, at a heat some- thing below a red heat, and applies it to the foot, and detects any little elevations by the deeper colour of the burned horn. This practice has beer much inveighed against; but it is the abuse and not the use of the thing which is to be condemned. If the shoe be not too liot, nor held too long on the foot, an accuracy of adjustment is thus obtained, which the knife would be long in producing, or would not produce at all. If, however, the shoe is made to burn its way to its seat with little or no previous preparation of the foot, the heat must be injurious both to the sensible and insensible parts of the foot. The heels of the shoe should be examined as to their proper width. Whatever be the custom of shoeing the horses of dealers, and the too prev- alent practice, in the metropolis, of giving the foot an open appearance, although the back part of it is ti)ereby exposed to injury, nothing is more certain than that, in tlie horse for work, the heels, and particularly the seat of corn, can scarcely be too well covered. Part of the shoe projecting outward can be of no possible good, but rather an occasional source of miscliief, and especially in a heavy country. A shoe, the web of which projects inward as far as it can, without touching the frog, affords protec- tion to the angle between the bars and the crust. Of the manner of attaching the shoe to the foot the owner can scarcely be a competent judge; he can only take care that the shoe itself shall not be heavier than the work requires; that for work a little hard, the shoe shall still be light, with a bit of steel welded into the toe; that the nails shall be as small, and as few, and as far from the heels, as may be con- sistent witii the security of the shoe ; and that, for light work at least, the shoe shall not be driven on so closely and firmly as is often done, nor the points of the nails be brought out so high up as is generally practised. There are few cases in which the use of calkins (a turning up and elevation of the heel) can be admissable in the fore-feet, except in frosty weather, to prevent the slipping of the feet. If, however, calkins are used, let them be placed on both feet. If the outer heel only be raised with the calkin, as is too often the case, the weight cannot be thrown evenly on the foot, and undue straining and injury of some part of the foot or of the leg must be the necessary consequences. Few things deserve more the atten- tion of the horseman than this most absurd and injurious of all the practices of the forge. One quarter of an hour's walking, with one side of the shoe or boot raised considerably above the other, will painfully convince us of what the horse must suffer from this too common method of shoeing. We cannot excuse it even in the hunting shoe. If the horse be ridden fiir to cover, or galloped over much hard and flinty ground, he will inevitably .suffer from this unequal distribution of the weight. If the calkin be put on the outer heel to prevent the horse from slipping, either the horn of that heel should be lowered to a corresponding degree, or the other heel of the shoe siiould be raised to the same level by a gradual thickening. Of the use of ca'kins in the hinder foot, we shall presently speak DIFFERENT KINDS OF SHOES. 317 CLIPS. These are portions of the upper edge of the shoe, hammered out, ami turned up so as to embrace the lower part of the crust, and wliich is usually pared out a little to receive the clip. They are very useful, as more securely attaching the shoe to the foot, and relieving the crust from that stress upon the nails which would otherwise be injurious. A clip at the toe is almost necessary in every drau^iiht-horse, and absolutely so in the horse of heavy draught, to prevent the shoe from being loosened or torn oil by the stress which is thrown upon the toe in the act of drawing. A clip on the outside of each shoe at the beginning of the quarters will give security to it. Clips are likewise necessary on the shoes of a-ll heavy horses, and of all others that are disposed to stamp, or violently paw with their feet, and thus incur the danger of displacing the shoe; but they are evils, in that they press upon the crust as it grows down, and should only be used when cir- cumstances absolutely require them. THE HINDER SHOE, In forming the hinder shoes, it should be remembered that the hind limbs are the principal instruments in progression, and that in every act of pro- gression, except the walk, the toe is the point on which the whole frame of the animal turns, and from which it is propelled. This part, then, should be strengthened as much as possible; and, therefore, the hinder shoes are made broader at the toe than the fore ones, and the toe of the foot, which is iiaturally broader than that of the fore-foot, is still further widened by rasping. Another good etTect is produced by this, that the hinder foot being shortened, there is less danger of over-reaching or forging, and especially if the shoe be wider on the foot surface than on the ground one; and thus the shoe is made to slope inward, and is a little within the toe of the crust. The shape of the hinder foot is somewhat ditferent from that of the forcr foot; it is straighter in the quarters, and the shoe must have the same shape. For carriage and draught-horses generally, calkins may be put on tiie heels, because the animal v/ill thus be enabled to dig his toe more firmly into the ground, and urge himself forward, and throw his weight into the collar with greater advantage. But the calkins must no be too high, and they must be of an equal height on each heel ; otherwise, as has been stated with regard to the fore-feet, the weight will not be fairly distributed over the foot, and some part of the foot or of the leg will materially suffer. The nails in the hinder shoe may be placed nearer to the heel than in the fore shoe, because, from the comparative little weight and concussion thrown on the hinder feet, there is not so much danger of contraction. DIFFERENT KINDS OF SHOES. The shoe will vary in substance and weight with the kind of foot, and the nature of the work. A weak foot should never wear a heavy shoe, nor any foot a shoe that will last longer than a month. Here, perhaps, we may be permitted to caution the horse-proprietor against having his cattle shod coo much by contract, unless he binds down his farrier or surgeon to remove the shoes once at least in every month ; for if the contractor, by a heavy shoe, and a little steel, can cause five or six weeks to intervene between th' shoeings, he will do so, although the feet of the horse must necessarily suffer The shoe should never be heavier than the work requires. An a,sj THE HOilSE. ounce or two in the weight of the shoe will sadly tell before the end of a hard day's work. This is acknowledged in the hunter's shoe, which is narrower and lighter than that of the hackney with even smaller feet than the hunter; and it is more decidedly acknowledged in the racer, who wears a shoe only sufficiently thick to prevent it from bending when used. THE HUNTING SHOE. The hunter's shoe is different from that of the hackney in shape as well as weight. It is not so much bevelled off as the common concave seated shoe. Sufficient space alone is left for the introduction of a picker between the shoe and the sole, otherwise, in going over heavy ground, the clay will get in, and by its tenacity loosen, and even tear off the shoe. The heels likewise are somewhat shorter, that they may not be torn off by the toe of the hind-feet when galloping fast, and the outer heel is frequently and injudiciously turned up to prevent slipping. The reader will remember what we have just said of this. If calkins are necessary, let, at least, both heels have an equal bearing. THE BAR- SHOE. A bar-shoe is a very useful contrivance. It is the continuation of the common shoe round the heels, and by means of it the pressure may be taken off some tender part of the foot, and thrown on another which is better able to bear it, or more widely and equally diffused over the whole foot. It is principally resorted to in case of corn, the seat of which it perfectly covers; in pumiced feet, the soles of which may be thus elevated above the ground, and secured from pressure; in sand-crack, when the pressure may be removed from the fissure, and thrown on either side of it; in thrushes, when the frog is tender, or is become cankered, and requires to be frequently dressed, and the dressing can by this means alone be retained. In these cases the bar-shoe is an excellent contrivance, if worn only for one or two shoeings, or as long as the disease requires it to be worn, but i* must be left off as soon as it can be dispensed with. If it be used for the protection of a diseased foot, however it may be chambered and laid off the frog, it will soon be flattened down upon it; or if the pressure of it be thrown on the frog, to relieve the sand-crack or the corn, that frog must be very strong and healthy which can long bear the great and continued pressure. More mischief is often produced in the frog than previously existed in the part which was relieved. It will be plain that in the use of the bar-shoe for corn or sand-crack, the crust and frog should be precisely on a level, and the bar should be the widest part of the shoe, to afford as extended bearing as possible on the frog, and therefore less likely to be injurious. Bar-shoes are evidently not safe in frosty weather; they are never safe when much speed is required from the horse, and they are apt to be wrenched off in a heavy, clayey country. TIPS. Tips are short shoes, reaching only half round the foot, and worn while the horse is at grass, to prevlent the crust being lorn by the occasional baro- ness of the ground, or by the pawing of the animal; and the quarters at the same time being free, the foot disposed to contract has a chance of expanding and regaining its natural shape. FELT OR LEATHER SOLES. THE EXPi^NDING SHOE. iUb Our subject would not be completed if we did not describe the supposed expandinjT shoe. It is either seated or concave like the common shoe, with a joint at the toe, by which the natural expansion of the loot is said lo be permitted, and the injurious consequences of shoeing prevented. There is, however, this radical defect in the jointed shoe, that the nails occupy the same situation as in the common shoe, and prevent, as do the nails of the common shoe, tiie gradual expansion of the sides and (juarters, and allow only of a hinge-like motion at the toe. This is a most imperfect accommodation of the expansion of the foot to the action of ils internal parts, and even this accommodation is afforded in the slightest possible degree, or rather can scarcely be afforded at all. Either the nails fix the sides and quarters as in the common shoe, and then the joint at the toe is useless ; or, if that joint merely opens like a hinge, the nail- holes m the shoe can no longer correspond with those in the quarters, whicli are unequally expanding at every point ; and, therefore, there will be more stress on the crust at these holes, which will not only enlarge them, and destroy the fixed attachment of the shoe to the hoof, but will often tear away portions of the crust. This has, in many cases, been found to be the effect of the jointed shoe : the sides and quarters of the foot have been broken until it has become difficult to find nail-hold. This shoe, to answer the intended purpose, should consist of many joints, run- ning along the sides and quarters, which would make it too complicated and expensive and frail for general use While the shoe is to be attached to the foot by nails, we must be content with the concave seated one, taking care to place the nail-holes as far from the heels, and particularly from the inner heel, as the state of the foot and the nature of the work will admit ; and where the country is not too heavy nor the work too severe, even omitting the nails on the inner side of the foot. Shoes nailed on the outer side, and at the toe, are more secure than some would imagine, while the inner quarter will be left free, to prevent contraction, or to arrest its progress. The attempt, however, to lessen the evils produced by shoeing is most praiseworthy ; and men like Mr. Bracy Clark deserve the respect and the thanks of the public, although their labours may not be crowned with suc- cess. Every contrivance permanently to fix the shoe on the foot wHhoul the use of nails has failed ; but a make-shift shoe has been contrived, and is to be procured at most saddlers, which is easily carried in the pocket, and put on in a minute or two, if a shoe is lost in hunting or on the road ; and which will remain securely attached to the foot, and prevent injury to it, during a journey of thirty or forty miles. FELT OR LEATHER SOLES. When the foot is bruised or inflamed, the concussion or shock produced by the hard contact of the elastic iron on the ground gives the animal much pain, and causes a short and feeling step, or even lameness, and aggravates the injury or disease. A strip of felt or leather is sometimes placed between the seating of the shoe and the crust, which, from its want of elasticity, deadens or materially lessens the vibration or shock, and the horse treads more freely and is evidently relieved. This is a very good contrivance while the inflammation or tenderne.ss of the foot continues, but a very bad practice, if constantly adopted. The nails cannot be driven so surely or so securel}' when this substance is interposed between the shoe and the foot; 320 THE HORSE. the contraction or swelling of the felt or leather from the effect ot moisture or dryness Nviil soon render the altaclnnent of the shoe less firm; there will be too much play upon the nails; the nail-iioles will enlarge, and the crust will be broken away. After wounds or extensive bruises of the sole, or where the sole is thin and flat and tender, it is sometimes covered with a piece of leather, fitted to the sole, and nailed on with the shoe. This may be allowed as a temporary defence of the foot; but there is the same objection to its permanent use from the insecurity of fastening, and the strain on the crust, and the frequent chipping of it: and there are these additional inconveniences, that if the hollow between tlie sole and the leather be filled with stopping and tow, it is exceedingly difiicult to introduce them so evenly and accurately as not to produce some partial or injurious pressure; tlial a few days' work will almost invariably so derange the padding as to pro- duce partial pressure; that the long contact of the sole with stopping of almost every kind will produce, not a healthy, elastic liorn, but horn of a scaly, spongy nature; and that, if the hollow be not thus filled, gravel and dirt will insinuate themselves, and cause unequal pressure, and eat into tnd injure the foot. CHAPTER XVIII. OPERATIONS. These belong more to the veterinary surgeon than to the proprietor of the horse, but a short account of the manner of conducting the principal ones should not be omitted. It is frequently necessary to bind the human patient, and in no painful or dangerous operation should this preliminary be omitted. It is more necessary to bind the horse, who is not under the control of reason, and whose struggles may not only be injurious to himself, but dangerous to the operator. The /retJ?s is a machine indispensable to every continental forge; even rhe quietest horses are there put into it to be shod. It is found in many of our country forges, and is occupied by horses that cannot otherwise be shod without manifest danger to the smith. It seldom, however, finds a place in our improved forges, although it would be useful for docking, firing, and many other purposes. The horse is confined within enormous bars of wood, and slung there, but many have been destroyed in their determined resistance to such restraint. The s'de-Iine is a very simple and useful method of confining the horse, and places him in sufficient subjection for the operations of docking, nicking, and slight firing. The long line of the hobbles, or a common cart, rope with a noose at the end, is fastened on the pastern of one hind-leg. The rope is then brought over the neck and round the witl)ers, and there lied to the portion that comes from the leg. The leg may thus be drawn so far forward, that while the horse evidently cannot kick with that leg, he ii, disarmed of the other; for he would not have sufficient support under him if he attempted to raise it. Neither can he easily use his fore-legs, or, if he attempts to use them, one of them may be lifted up, when he becomes 'learly powerless. If necessary, the aid ci" the twitch or the barnaolss, »nay be resoitcd to. BLEEDING. 321 F:)r every minor operation, and even for many ihat are of more impori- ance, tiiis mode of restraint is sufficient; especially if the operator has active and determined assistants : and we confess that we are no frifnds tc> the casting of horses, if it can possibly be prevented. Whin both legs are included in the hobble or rope (as in another way of using tiie side-line), the horse may appear to be more secure, but there is greater danger ol" his falling in his violent struggles during the operation. For castrating and severe firing, the animal must be thrown. The con- struction of the hobbles is well known to every farrier, and almost to every proprietor of horses. We will only say that the safety of the horse and of the operator will require the use of the improved hobbles, by which any leg may be released from confinement, and returned to it at pleasure ; and, when the operation is ended, the whole of the legs may be set at liberty at once without danger. The method of putting the legs as closely together as possible before tiie pull, the necessity of the assistants all pulling together, and the power, which one man standing at the head, and firmly holding the snafile-bridle, and another at the haunch, pushing the horse when he is beginning to fall, have in bringing him on the proper side, and on the verj spot on which he is intended to lie, need not to be described. This, how. ever, is a method of securing the horse to which we repeat that we are not partial, and to which we should not resort, except necessity compelled ; for in the act of falling, and in the struggles after falling, many accidents have oc>.urred both to the horse and the surgeon. Among the minor methods of restraint, but sufficient for many purposes, are the twitch and the barnacles. The former consists of a noose passed through a hole at the end of a strong stick, and in which the muzzle is inclosed. The stick being turned, the muzzle is securely retained, while the horse suffers great pain from the pressure — sufficiently great to render him comparatively inattentive to that which is produced by the operation ; at the same time, he is afraid to struggle, for every motion increases the agony caused by the twitch, or the assistant has power to increase it by giving an additional turn to the stick. The barnacles are the handles of the pinchers placed over and inclosing the muzzle, and which, being compressed by the assistant, give pain almost equal to that of the twitch. These may appear to be barbarous modes of enforcing submission, but they are absolutely indispensable. In a hw instances, the blindfolding of the horse terrifies him into submission ; but this is not to be depended upon. The twitch should be resorted to when the least resistance is offered ; and when that, as it occasionally does, renders the horse more violent, recourse must be had to the side-line or the hobbles. In painful exami'iation of the fore-leg or foot while on the ground, the other foot should be held up by an assistant; or, if his aid be required in an operation, the knee may be fully bent, and the pastern tied up lo the arm. When the hind-leg is to be examined in the same way, the fore-leg on that side should be held or fastened up. BLEEDING. The operation of Bleeding has been already described (p. 179), but we rt'ould remind our readers of the necessity, in every case of acute inflam- mation, of making a large orifice, and abstracting the blood as rapidly as possible, for the constitution will thus be the more speedily and beneficially affected ; and also, of the propriety of never determining to take a precise quantity of blood, but of keeping the finger on the artery until the pulse 322 THE HORSE. begins tc ch?n;5e; until the strong pulse of fever becon.es softer, or the animal is faint, or the oppressed pulse of inflammation of the lungs is rounder and fuller. In cases of inflammation, and in the hands of a skilful practitioner, ')leeding is tlie sheet-anchor of the veterinarian ; yet few things are more to be reprobated tiian tiie indiscriminate bleeding of the groom or the farrier. The change which takes place in the blood after it is drawn from the vein is very diligently noticed by many practitioners, and is certainly de- serving of some attention. The blood coagulates soon after it is taken from the vein. The coagulable part is composed of two substances, tiiat which gives colour to tlie blood, and that in which the red particles float. These by degrees separate from each other, and the red particles sink to tlie bottom. If the coagulation takes place slowly, the red particles have more time to sink through the fluid, and there appears on the top a thick, yellowish, adhesive coat, called the huffy coat. It is supposed that the slowness of coagulation, and the thickness of huffy coat, are indicative of inflammation, and of the degree of inflammation. In a healthy state of the system, the coagulation is more rapid, the red particles have not time to fall through, and the huffy coat is thin. These appearances are worth observing; but n uch more dependence is to be placed on the pulse, the change of the pulse, and the symptoms generally. When the horse is exhausted, and the system nearly broken up, the blood will sometimes not coagulate at all, but be of one unitorm black colour and loose texture. When the blood runs down the side of the vessel ii. »vhich it is received, the coagulation will be very imperfect. When it is drawn in a full stream, it coagulates slowly; when more slowly, or from a smaller orifice, the coagulation is more rapid ; therefore, all these extraneous circumstances affecting so much the coagulation and consequent appearance of the blood, the pulse, and the general symptoms, should be the chief objects of regard. BLISTERING. Of Blisters we have also spoken when treating of the various diseases to which they are applicable. The principle on which they act is, that no two intense inflammations can exist in neighbouring parts, or perhaps in the system, at the same time. Hence we apply some stimulating acrimo- nious substance to the skin, to excite external inflammation, and to lessen or draw away inflammation in some deeper-seated, and generally not far- distant part. Thus we blister the sides in inflammation of the lungs; the belly, in that of the bowels ; the legs, in that of the cellular substance surrounding the sheaths of the tendons, or the sheaths themselves, and the coronet or the heel in inflammation of the navicular-joint. Blisters have likewise the property of increasing the activity of the neighbouring vessels: thus we blister to bring the tumour of strangles more speedily tb a head ; we blister to rouse the absorbents to more energetic action, and take away tumours, and callous and even bony substances. The judgment of the practitioner will decide when the desired effect will be best [)roduced by a sudden and violent action, or by the continuance of one of a milder nature. Inflammation should be met by active blisters; old enlargements and swellings will be most certainly removed by milder stimulants — by the process which farriers call sweal/ng doxcn. There is no better blister ointment or active blister than the Spanish fly, mixed with the proportions of lard and resin already mentioned, BLISTERING. 31:3 0. 186, The best liquid or sweating blister is an infusion of the fly in mrpentine, and that lowered with neat's-foot oil according to the degree o. activity required. In preparing the horse for blistering, the hair should be clipped or shaved as closely as possible, and the ointment thoroughly rubbed in. Much faul. js often found with the ointment, if the blister does not rise, when the real blame should be attributed to the idleness of the operator. The head of the horse must be tied up for the first two days; except that when the sides are blistered, the body-clothes may be so contrived as to prevent the horse from nibbling and blemishing the part, or blistering his muzzle. At the expiration of twenty-four hours, a little olive or neat's-foot oil may be applied over the blister, which will considerably lessen the pain and supple the part, and prevent cracks in the skin that may be difficult to heal. The oil should be applied morning and night, until the scabs peel otf. When they begin to loosen, a lather of soap and water applied with a sponge may hasten their removal, but no violence must be used. Every particle of litter should be carefully removed from the stall ; for the sharp ends of the straw, coming in contact with a part rendered so tender and irritable by the blister, will cause very great annoyance to the animal. After the second day, the horse may be suffered to lie dov/n ; but still, the possibility of blemishing himself should be prevented by a cradle or wooden necklace, consisting of round strips of wood strung together, reaching from the lower jaw to the chest, and preventing the horse from sufficiently turning or bending his head to get at the blistered part. A blister thus treated will rarely produce the slightest blemish. When the scabs are all removed, the blister may be repeated, if the case should appear to require it, or the iiorse may be turned out. In inflammations which threaten life, a blister can scarcely be too --Native or too extensive. In inflammation of the lungs, it should reach over the whole of the sides, and a greater part of the brisket; for should a portion of tlie fly be absorbed, and produce slrtmgury, (inflammation, or spasmodic affection of the neck of the bladder,) even this new irritation may assist in subduing the first and more dangerous one; but in blistering for injuries or diseases of the legs or feet, some caution is necessary. When speaking of the treatment of sprain of the back sinews, p. 247, we stated, that "a blister never should be used while any heat or tenderness remains about the part;" for we should then add to the superficial inflammation, instead of abating the deeper-seated one; and enlargements of the limb and ulcera- tions might follow, which would render the horse perfectly unserviceable. When there is a tendency to grease, a blister is a dangerous thing, and has often aggravated the disease. In winter, the inflammation of the skin produced by blistering is apt to degenerate into grease; therefore, if it should be necessary to blister the horse during that season, great care must be taken that he is not exposed to cold, and, particularly, that a current of cold air does not come upon the legs. The inhuman practice of blistering all round, and perhaps high on the leg at the same time, cannot be too strongly reprobated. Many a valuable horse has been lost through the excessive general irritation which this has produced, or its violent effects on the urinary organs; and this has been particularly the case, when corrosive sublimate has entered into the com- position of the blister. If Strangury should appear, the horse should be plentifully supplied with linseed tea, which is thus best prepared : a gallon of boiling water is poured on half a pound of linseed; the infusion suffer^ to stand still till 324 THE HORSE. nearly cold, and the clean mucilaginous fluid then poured off. Three- quarters of a pound of Epsoin salts should also be given, dissolved in a quart of water, and after that, a ball every six hours, composed of a scruple of opium, and a drachm of camphor, with linseed meal and treacle. Half a pound or a pound of good nmstard powder, made into a paste with boiling water, and applied hot, will often produce as good a blister as cantharides, with far more swelling. It is a j)referable one, where, as in inflammation of the kidneys, the effect of cantiiarides on the urinary organs 's feared. Hartshorn is not so effectual. Tincture of croton makes an "UJtive liquid blister. FIRING. Whatever seeming cruelty may attend this operation, it is, in many cases, <»'idispensable. Tiie principle on which we have recourse to it is similar to that which justifies the use of a blister; by producing superficial inflam- mation we may be enabled to remove a deeper-seated one, or we may excite ;he absorbents to take away any unnatural bony or other tumour : it has also this additional advantage, that, while it raises intenser external inflam- mation than we can produce by other means, it is the most powerful agent that we have -at our disposal. Huuianity, however, will dictate, that on account of inflammation which it excites, and the pain which it inflicts, it Bhould only be had recourse to when milder means have fixiled, except in :hose cases in which experience has tauglit us that milder means rarely prove successful. The part which is to be submitted to the operation is shaved, or the hair rse-play. It is that which can never be considered as operating as a reward, and thereby rendering the horse tractable; nor does it increase the affection of the animal for his groom, because he is annoyed and irritated by being thus incessantly teased. 33G THE HORSE. GETTING THE CHEEK OF THE BIT INTO THE MOUTH. Some horses that are disposed to be mischievous try to do this, and ar« ver)'- expert at it. They soon find what advantage it gives them over their driver, wiio by this manoeuvre loses almost all command. Harsli treatment is here completely out of the question. All that can be done is, by some mechanical contrivance, to render the thing difficult or impossible, and this may be managed by fastening a round piece of leather on the inside of the cheek of the bit. KICKING. This, as a vice, is another consequence of the culpable habit of grooms and stable-boys of teasing the horse. That which is at first an indication of annoyance at the pinching and tickling of the groom, and without any design to injure, gradually becomes the expression of anger and the efFort at mischief. There is no cure for this vice; and he cannot be justified who keeps such a kicking horse in his stable. Some horses acquire a habit of kicking at the stall or the bail, and par- ticularly at night, from mere irritability and tidgettiness. The neighbour- ing horses are disturbed, and the kicker gets swelled hocks, or some more serious injury. This is also a habit very difficult to correct, if suf- fered to become established. Mares are generally far more subject to it than horses. Before the habit is inveterately established, a thorn-bush or a piece of furze fastened against the partition or post will sometimes efTect a cure. When the horse finds that he is pretty severely pricked, he will not long continue to punish himself. In confirmed cases, it may be necessary to have recourse to the log, but the legs are often not a Itttle bruised by it. A rather long and heavy piece of wood attached to a chain is buckled above the hock, so as to reach about half way down the leg. When the horse attempts to kick violently, his leg will receive a severe blow from this, and the repetition of the blow will soon teach him to be quiet. A much more serious vice is kicking in the harness. From the least annoyance about the rump or quarters, some horses will kick at the most violent rate, and destroy the bottom of the chaise, and endanger the limbs of the driver. Those that are fidgetty in the stable are most apt to do this. If the reins should perchance get under the tail, the violence of the kicker will be most outrageous; and while the animal presses down his tail so tightly tiiat it is almost impossible to extricate the reins, he continues to plunge until he has demolished every thing behind him. This is a vice standing foremost in point of danger, and which no treat- ment will often conquer. It will be altogether in vain to try coercion here. If the shafts are very strong and without flaw, or if they are plated with iron underneath, and a stout kicking-strap used, which will barely allow the horse the proper use of his hind limbs in progression, but not permit him to raise them sufficiently for the purpose of kicking, he may be prevented from doing mischief; or, if he is harnessed to a heavy cart, and thus con. fined, his efforts to lash out will be restrained: but it is a very unpleasant thing frequently to witness these attempts, although inefTectual, to demolish the vehicle; and the shafts or the kicking-straps may possibly break, and extreme danger may ensue. A horse that has once begun to kick, whatever may have been the original cause of it, can nevei be depended! on again j »»ud he will be very unwise who ventures behind him RUNNING AWAY. US' UNSTEADINESS WHILE BEING MOUNTED. When this merely amounts to eagerness to start (very unpleasant, indeed, at times, for many a rider has been thrown from his seat before he wa3 fairly fixed in it), it may be remedied by an active and good horseman. We have known many instances in which, while the elderly, and inactive, and fearful man, has been making more than one ineffectual attempt to vault into the saddle, the horse has been dancing about to his annoyance and danger; but the animal has no sooner been transferred to the manage- ment of a younger and more agile rider, than he became perfectly subdued. Severity will here, more decidedly than in any other case, do harm. The rider should be fearless; he should carejessly and confidently approach the horse, mount at the first effort, and ihen restrain him for a while, pf ^ ting him, and not suffering him to proceed until he becomes perfectly quiet. These horses should not be too highly fed, and should daily have sufficient exercise. When the difficulty of mounting arises not from eagerness to start, but unwillingness to be ridden, the sooner such a horse is disposed of, the better. He may be conquered by a determined rider, but a skilful and determined horseman alone will manage him ; and even he will not succeed without frequent and often dangerous contests that will mar all the pleasure of the ride. REARING. This sometimes results from playfulness, carried indeed to an unpleasant and dangerous extent; but it is oftener a vice, and is a desperate and fre- quently successful effort to unhorse the rider. The horse that, has twice decidedly and dangerously reared, should never be trusted again, unless, indeed, it be the fault of the rider; unless he has been using a deep curb and sharp bit. Some of the best horses will contend against these, and then rearing may be immediately and permanently cured by using a snaffle- bridle alone. The horse-breaker's remedy, that of pulling the horse backward on a soft piece of ground, is worthy of him, and would be pi-actised only by reckless and brutal men. Many horses have been injured in the spine, and others have broken their necks, by being thus suddenly brought over; while even the horse-breaker, who fears no danger, is not always able to extricate himself from the falling horse. If rearing proceeds from vice, and is unprovoked by the bruising and laceration of the mouth, it fully partakes of the inveteracy which attends the other divisions of restiveness. RUNNING AWAY. Some headstrong horses will occasionally endeavour to bolt with the best rider. Others, with their wonted sagacity, endeavour thus to dislodge the timid or unskilful. Some are hard to hold, or bolt only during the excite- ment of the chace; others will run away, prompted by a vicious propensity alone. There is no cure here. That method which affords any proba- bility of success, is to ride such a horse with a strong curb and sharp bit; to have liim always firmly in hand ; and, if he will run away, and the place will admit of it, to give him (sparing neither curb, whip, nor spur) a great deal more running than he likes. THE HORSE. VICIOUS TO CLEAN. It would scaicely be believed to what an extent this exists in some .lo 9es that are otherwise perfectly quiet. It is only at great hazard that they ".ar be cleaned at all. The origin of this is probably some maltreatmi nt. There is a great difference in the sensibility of the skin in different horb-;s, Some seem as if they could scarcely be made to feel the whip; others can- not bear a fly to alight on them without an expression of annoyance. In young horses the skin is peculiarly delicate. If they have been curried with a broken comb, or hardly rubbed with an uneven brush, the recollec- tion of the torture they have felt makes thorn impatient, and even vicious, during every succeeding operation of the kind. Many grooms, likewise, seem to delight in producing these exhibitions of uneasiness and vice; although, when they are carried a little too far, and to the hazard of the limbs of the groom, the animals that have been almost tutored into these expressions of irritation, are brutally kicked and punished. This, however, is a vice which may be conquered. If the animal be dressed with a lighter hand, and wisped rather than brushed, and the places where the skin is most sensitive be avoided as much as thorough cleanliness will allow, the horse will gradually lose the recollection of former ill-treat, ment, and become tractable and quiet. VICIOUS TO SHOE. The correction of this is more peculiarly the business of the smith; yel ihe master should diligently concern himself with it, for it is oftener the consequence of injudicious or bad usage than of natural vice. It may be expected that there will be some difficulty in shoeing a young horse for the first few times. It is an operation which gives him a little uneasiness. The man to whom he is most accustomed should go with him to the forge ; and if another and steady horse were shod before him, he might be induced more readily to submit. We cannot deny, that after the habit of resisting this necessary operation is formed, force may sometimes be necessary to reduce our rebellious servant to obedienee ; but we affirm that the majority of horses vicious to shoe are rendered so by harsh usage, and by the pain of correction being added to the uneasiness of shoeing. It should be a rule in every forge that no smith should be permitted to strike a horse, much less to twitch or to gag him, without the master-farrier's order; and that a young liorse should never be twitched or struck. There are icsv horses that may not be gradually rendered manageable for this purpose by mild- ness and firmness in the operator. They will soon understand that no harm is meant, and they will not depart from their usual habit of obe- dience ; but if the remembrance of corporal punishment is connected with shoeing, they will jalways be fidgety, if not dangerous. This is a very serious vice, for it not only exposes the animal to occa- sional severe injury from his own struggles, but also from the correction of the irritated smith, whose limbs, and even whose life being in jeopardy, may be forgiven if he is sometimes a little too hard-handed. Such a horse is very liable, and without any fault of the smith, to be pricked and lamed in shoeing; and if the habit should be confirmed, and should increase, and it at length becomes necessary to cast him, or to put him in the trevis, thj owner may be assured that man}'- years will not pass ere some formidable and even fatal accident will take place. If, therefore, mild treatmen\ will not correct the vice, the horse cannot be too soon got rid of. CRIB-BITING. 331) Horses have many unpleasant hahits in the stable and the road, Jvhich cannot be said to amount to vice, but which materially lessen their value SWALLOWING WITHOUT GRINDING. Some greedy horses swallow their corn without properly grinding it, and the power of digestion not being adequate to the dissolving of the husk, no nutriment is extracted, and the oats are voided whole. This is particularly the case when horses of unequal appetite feed from the same manger. The greedy one, in his eagerness to get more than his share, bolts a portion of his corn vvhole. If the farmer can, without considerable inconvenience, so manage it that every horse shall have his separate division of the man- ger, the horse of smaller appetite and slower feed would have the oppor- tunity of grinding at his leisure, without the fear of his share being stolen from him by his neighbour. Some horses, however, are naturally greedy feeders, and will not, even when alone, allow themselves tin^e to chew or grind their corn. In conse- quence of this, they carry but litjLle fiesh ; they are not equal to severe work; and, if their rack has been supplied with hay when the corn was put into the manger, their stomachs will become distended with half- chewed and indigestible food ; they will be incapable of exertion for a long time after feeding, and, occasionally, dangerous symptoms of staggers will occur. The remedy is, not to let such horses fast too long. The nose-bag should be the companion of every considerable journey. The food should likewise be of such a nature that it cannot be easily bolted. Chatf should be plentifully mixed with the corn, and in some cases, and especially in horses of slow work, should, with the corn, constitute the whole of the food. Of this we shall treat more largely under the article, "Feeding." In every case of this kind the teeth should be very carefully examined. Some of them may be unduly lengthened, particularly the first of the grinders; or they may be ragged at the edges, and may scratch and wound the cheek. In the first case, the horse cannot properly masticate his food; in the latter, he will not: for these animals, as too often happens in sore throat, would rather starve than put themselves to much pain. CRIB-BITING. This is a very unpleasant habit and a considerable defect, although not so serious a one as some have represented. The horse lays hold of the manger with his teeth, violently extends his neck, and then, after some con- vulsive action of the throat, a slight grunting is heard, accompanied by an apparent sucking or drawing in of air. Whether, however, air is actually drawn in, and thus the horse becomes more subject to the colic than one without this trick, or whether a portion of air is expelled, showing the pre- vious existence of flatulence and a disposition to colic, are points that have not been settled among veterinarians. The horse is evidently making the edge of the manger a fixed point, by means of which he may overcome that obstacle which the formation of the soft palate and the back part of the mouth (see page 152) would present to either the expulsion or drawing in of tlie air, if accomplished through the medium of the mouth. When we consider, however, that any air expelled fronn the stomach might easily find a passage through the nostril, without the action of crib-biting; while it would be difficult or impossible, without some material alteration in the natural form and action of the parts at the back of the mouth, and, particularly the depression cf the »pi 3 10 THE HORSE. glottis or covering of the wind-pipe, to convey air to the stomach, we arc inclined .o conclude, that this fixed point is used to enable the animal to accomplish tiiis alteration, and suck up and convey a portion of air into the stomach. The elfcct of crib-biting is plain enough. The teeth are injured and worn away, and that, in an old horse, to a very serious degree ; a consider- able quantity of corn is often lost, for the iiorse will frequently crib with his mouth full of corn, the greater part of vvliich will fall over tiie edge of the manger; and much saliva flows out while the manger is thus forcibly held, the loss of which must be of serious detriment, as impairing the digestion. The crib-biting horse is notoriously more subject to colic than other horses usually are, and to a species dilHcult of treatment, and even dangerous. Although many a crib-biter is stout and strong, and capable of all ordinary work, these horses do not generally carry much flesh, and liave not tlie endurance of others. On these accounts, crib-biting has very properly been decided to be unsoundness. It is one of those tricks which are very contagious. Every companion of a crib-biter in the same stables is likely to acquire the habit, and it is the most inveterate of all habits. The edge of the manger will in vain be lined with iron, or with sheep-skin, or with sheep-skin covered with tar or aloes, or any other unpleasant substance. In defiance of the aimoyance which these may occasion, the horse will in a very short time again attack his manger. A strap buckled tightly round the neck, by compressing the wind-pipe, will prevent the possibility of this action ; but the strap must be constantly worn, and its pressure is too apt to produce a worse affection, viz: an irritation in the wind-pipe, which terminates in roaring. Some have recommended turning out for five or six months; but this has never succeeded, except with a young horse, and then rarely. The old crib-biter will employ the gate for the same purpose as the edge of hia n)anger, and we have seen him gallop across a field for the mere object of having a gripe at a rail. Medicines, in cases similar to this, will be altogether thrown away. The only remedy is a muzzle, with bars across the bottom; sufliciently wide to enable the animal to pick up his corn, and to pull his hay, but not to grasp the edge of the manger. If this be worn a very long time, the horse may be tired of attempting that which he cannot accomplish, and may possibly for a while forget the habit; but in the majority of cases the desire of crib-biting will return with the power of gratifying it. The causes of crib-biting are various, and some of them beyond the control of the proprietor of the horse. We have said that it is often the result of imij:ation ; but it is more frequently the consequence of idleness. The high-fed and spirited horse must be in mischief, if he is not usefully employed. Sometimes, but we believe not often, it is produced by partial otarvation, whether in a bad straw-yard, or from unpalatable food. An occasional cause of crib-biting is the frequent custom of grooms, even when the weather is not severe, of dressing them in the stable. The horse either catches at the edge of the manger, or at the edge of the partition on each side, if he has been turned, and thus he forms the habit of laying hold of these substances on every occasion. WIND- SUCKING. This bears a cose analogy to crib-biting. It arises from the same c.iuse.'^i the same purpose is accomplished; and the same results follow. Tho horse stands with his neck ben*; his head drawn inward; his lips flter OVERREACH. 341 nately a little opened and then closed, and a noise is heard as if he were sucking. If we may judge from the same comparative want of condition, and the flatulence wliich we have described under tlie last liead, either some portion of wind enters the stomach, or there is an injurious loss of saliva. This diminishes the value of the horse almost as much as crib- biting; it is as contagious, and it is as inveterate. The only remedies, and they will seldom avail, are tying the head%p, except when the horse is feeding, or putting on a muzzle, with sharp spikes towards the neck, and which shall prick him whenever he attempts to rein his head in for the purpose of wind-sucking. CUTTING. Of this habit we have already spoken, at page 252, and we would advise the owner of a cutting horse, without trying any previous experiment of raising or lowering the heels, to put on the cutting foot a shoe of ever thickness from heel to toe, not projecting in the slightest degree beyond the crust, and the crust itself being rasped a little above the quarters ; and to kt that shoe be fastened as usual on the outside, but with only one nail on the inside, and that almost close to the toe. The principle on which the shoe acts, has been explained at page 252. NOT LYING DOWN. It not uncommonly happens that a horse will seldom or never lie down in the stable. He sometimes continues in apparent good health, and feeds and works well ; but generally his legs swell, or he becomes fatigued sooner than another horse. If it is impossible to let him loose in the stable, or to put him into a spare box, we know not what is to be done. No means, gentle or cruel, will force him to lie down. The secret is that he is tied up, and either has never dared to lie down through fear of the con- finement of the halter, or he has been cast in the night, and severely injured. If he can be suffered to range the stable, or have a comfortable box, in which he may be loose, he will usually lie down the first night. Some few horses, however, will lie down in the stable, and not in a loose box. A fresh, well-made bed will generally tempt 'be tired horse to lie down. OVERREACH. This unpleasant noise, known also by the terms "clicking," "over- reach," &c., arises from the toe of the hind-foot knocking against the shoe of ♦he fore-fjot. In the trot, one fore-leg and the opposite hind-leg, are first iiftcd from the ground and moved forward, the other fore-leg and the opposite hind-leg remaining fixed ; but, to keep the centre of gravity within the base, and as, the stride, or space passed over by these legs, is often greater than the distance between the fore and hind-feet, it is nece.ssary that the fore-feet should be moved alternately out of the way for the hind- feet to descend. Then, as occasionally happens with horses not perfectly Droken, and that have not been taught their paces, and especially if they have Iiigli hinder quarters and low fore ones, if the fore-feet ate not raised in time, the hind-feet will strike them. The fore-foot will generally be i^aught wlien it has just begun to be raised, and the toe of the hind-fool will meet tlie middle of the bottom of the fore-foot. It is a very disagree- nble noise, ar.d not altogether free from danger; for it may so hajtpen thai tilii THE HORSE a horse, tlie action of whose feet generally so much interferes with each other, may advance the hind-f(jot a little more rapidly, or raise the fore one a little more slowly, so that the blow may fall on the heel of the shoe, and loosen or displace it; or the two shoes may be locked together, and the animal may be thrown; or the contusion may be received even higher, and on the tendons of the le^, when considerable swelling and lameness may follow. * If the animal is young, the action of the horse may be materially im- proved ; otherwise, nothing can be done, except to keep the toe of the liind- fbot as short and as round as it can safely be, and to bevil off and round the toe of the shoe, like that which has been worn by a stumbler for a fort- night, and, perhaps, a little lower to the heel of the fore- foot. A blow, received on the heel of the fore-foot in this manner, has not unfrequently, and especially if neglected, been followed by quittor. PAWING. Some hot and irritable horses are restless, even in the stable, and paw frequently and violently. Their litter is destroyed, the floor of the stable broketi up, the shoes worn out, the feet bruised, and the legs sometimes sprained. If this habit does not exist to any great extent, yet the stable never looks well. Shackles are the only remedy, with a chain sufficiently long to enable the horse to shift his posture, or move in his stall; but even these must be taken off at night, otherwise the animal will seldom lie down. QUIDDING. A horse will, sometimes, partly chew his hay, and suffer it to drop from his mouth. If this does not proceed from irregular teeth, which it will be the business of the veterinary surgeon to rasp down, it will be found to be connected with sore-tliroat, and then the horse will exhibit some other symptom of indisposition, and the swallowing of water will be accompanied by a peculiar gulping effort. In this case the disease (catarrh, with sore throat) must be attacked, and the quidding will cease. ROLLING. This is a very pleasant and perfectly safe amusement for a horse at grass, but cannot be indulged in the stable without the chance of his being dan- gerously entangled with the collar rein, and being cast. Yet, although the horse is cast, and bruised, and half-strangled, he will roll again on the following night, and continue to do so as long as he lives. The only rem- edy is not a very pleasant one to the horse, nor always quite safe; yet it must be had recourse to if the habit of rolling is inveterate. "The horse," says Mr. Castley, in the Veterinarian, "should be tied with length enough of collar to lie down, but not to allow of his head resting on the ground ; because, in order to roll over, a horse is obliged to place his head quite down upon the ground." SHYING. Ve have briefly treated of the cause of this vice at page 98, and observed that while it is often the result of cowardice, or playfulness, or want of work, it is at other times the consequence of a defect of sight. It Jias been 'emarked, and we believe very truly, that shying is ofiener a vi(.c of SHYING. 343 half )r quarter-bred horses, than of those who have in them more of tlie genuine racing blood. In the treatment of shying, it is of great importance to distinguish between that whicli is tlie consequence of defective sight, and that which results from fear, or newness of objects, or from mere affectation or skittishness. For the first, the nature of which we have explained at page 98, every allowance must be made, and care must be taken that tht fear of correction be not associated with the imagined existence of some terrifying object. The severe use of the whip and the sp«ur cannot do good here, and are likely to aggravate the vice tenfold. A word, half encouraging and half scolding, with a gentle pressure of the heel, or a slight touch of the spur, will tell the horse that there was nothing to fear, and will give him confidence in his rider on a future occasion.* It should be remembered, however, that although a horse that shies from defective sight may be taught considerable reliance on his rider, he can never have the cause of the habit removed. We may artificially strengthen the human sight, but the horse's must be left to itself The shying from skittishness or affectation is quite a different affair, and must be conquered. But how ? Severity is out of place even here. If he is forced up to the object by dint of correction, the dread of punishment will afterwards be associated with that object, and on the next occasion, his startings will be more frequent and more dangerous. The way to cure him is to go on, turning as little as possible out of the road, giving the animal a harsh word or two, and a gentle touch with the spur, and then taking no more notice of the matter. After a few times, whatever may have been the object which he chose to select as the pretended cause of affright, he will pass it almost without notice. In page 225, under the head " Breaking in," we have described how the colt may be cured of the habit of shying from fear or newness of objects ; and if he then be accustomed as much as possible to the objects among tvhich his services will be required, he will not possess this annoying vice tvhen he grows to maturer age. Mr. John Lawrence, in his last pleasing work on the horse, says: "These animals generally fix on some particular shying butt: for example, [ recollect having, at different periods, three hacks, all very powerful ; the one made choice of a wind-mill for the object or butt, the other a tilted waggon, and the last a pig led in a string. It so happened, however, that [ rode the two former when aniiss from a violent cold, and they then paid no more attention to either wind-mills or tilted waggons than to any other objects, convincing me that their shying when in health and spirits was pure affectation ; an affectation, however, which may be speedily united with obstinacy and vice. Let it be treated with marked displeasure, mingled with gentle, but decided firmness, and the habit will be of short endurance. "* * "We will suppose a case, a very common one, an every-day one. A man is riding a young' horse upon the hiffh-road in the country, and meets a stag-e-coach. What with the noise, the bustle, the imposing appearance altogether, and the slashing- of the coachnuin's whip, tlie animal at its approach, erects his head and crest, pricks liis ears, looks affrighted, and no sooner conies alongside of the machine than he suddenly starts out of the road. His rider, annoyed by this, instantly commences a round of castiga'ion with whip, spur, and curb, in whicii he persists until the horse, as well as himself, has lost his temper; and then one whips, spurs, and pulls, and the other jumps, plunges, frets, and throws up his head, until both, pretty well exhausted by the conflict, grow tranquil again, and proceed on iheir journey, tliough not for some time afterwards in their former mutual confidence and satisfaction. Should ihey in their njad, or even on a distant day, meet with another coach, wijat is 'he consequence 1 That the horse is not only mc*e alarmed than before; but now 344 THE HORSE. Shying on coming out of the stable is a habit that can rarely or never be cured. It proceeds from the remembrance of some ill-usage or hurt which the animal has received in the act of proceeding from the stable, such as striking his head against a low door-way, or entangling the harness. Coercion will but associate greater fear and more determined resistance with the old recol- lection. Mr. Castley, to whom we are indebted for much that is valuable on the subject of the vices of the horse, gives an interesting anecdote which tends to pi'ove that while severity will be worse than useless, , even kind treatment will not break a confirmed habit. "I remember a very fine grey mare that had got into this habit, and never could be persuaded to go throug a door-way without taking an immense jump. To avoid this, the servants used to back her in and out of the stable ; but the mare happening to meet with a severe injury of the spine, was no longer able to back; and then I have seen the poor creature, when brought to the door, endeavouring to balance herself with a staggering motion upon her half-paralyzed hind extremities, as if making preparation and summoning up resolution for some great effort; and then, when urged, she would plunge headlong for. ward with such violence of exertion, as often to lose her feet, and tumble down 'altogether most pitiable to be seen.' This I merely mention," he continues, "as one proof how inveterate the habits of horses are. They are evils, let it always be remembered, more easy to prevent than cure." SLIPPING THE COLLAR. This is a trick at which many horses are so clever, that scarcely a nisht passes without their getting loose. It is a very serious habit, for it enables the horse sometimes, to gorge himself with food, to the imminent danger of staggers; or it exposes him, as he wanders about, to be kicked and injured by the other horses, while his restlessness will often keen the whole team awake. If the web of the halter, being first accurately fitted to his neck, is suffered to slip only one way, or a strap is attached to the halter and buckled round the neck, but not sufficiently tight to be of serious inconvenience, the power of slipping the collar will be taken av\'ay. TRIPPING. He must be a skilful practitioner or a mere pretender who promises to remedy this habit. If it arises from a heavy forehand, and the fore-legs being too much under the horse, no one can alter the natural frame of the beast: if it proceeds from tenderness of the foot, grogginess, or old lame- ness, these ailments are seldom cured ; and if it is to be traced to habitual carelessness and idleness, no whipping will rouse the drone. A known stumbler should never be ridden, or driven alone, by any one who values his safety or his life. A tight hand, or a strong bearing-rein are precautions that should not be neglected, but they are generally of little avail; for the inveterate stumbler will rarely try to save himself, and tins tight rein may sooner and farther precipitate the rider. If, after a trip, the horse suddenly starts forward, and endeavours to break into a canter, the rider or driver may be assured that others before him have fruitlessly endeavoured to remedy the nuisance. If the stumbler has the foot kept as short and the toe pared as close as the moment he has started, being- conscious of his fault, and expecting- chastisement, he jumps about in fearful ajritation, makinsr plunsres to strike into a callop, and attemptincr to run away. Sc^ that by this correction, instead of rendering- his horse tranquil during- the passag-c of a coacli, the rider adds to the evil of shying tliat of sulisequently plunging-, and perhaps running away." — The Veterinarian, by Messrs. Percivall and Youati, vol. i. p. 96. AIR. 34f safety will permit, and the shoe be rounded at the toe. or have that shape giveii to it which it naturally acquires, in a fortnight, from the action of such a horse, the animal may not stumble quite so much; or if the disease which produced the habit can be alleviated, some trilling good may be done; liut in almost every case a stumbler should be got rid of, or put to slow and heavy work. If the latter alternative be adopted, he may trip as much as ho pleases, for the weight of the load, and the motion of the other horses will keep him upon his legs. WEAVING. This consists in a motion of the head, neck, and body, from side to side, like the shuttle of a weaver passing through the web, and hence the name which is given to this peculiar and incessant action. It indicates an im- patient, irritable temper, and a dislike to the confinement of the stable; and a horse that is thus incessantly on the fret will seldom carry flesh, or be safe to ride or drive. There is no cure for it, but the close tying up of the auimal, except at feeding time. CHAPTER XX. THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF THE HORSE. Tins is a most important part of our subject, even as it I'egards the farmer, although there are comparatively few glaring errors in the treat- nient of the agricultural horse: but it comes more especially home to the gentleman, who is too often, and too implicitly under the guidance of an idle, and ignorant, and designing groom. We will arrange the most important points of general management under the following heads: AIR. A supply of pure air is necessary to the existence and health of man and beast. In some agricultural stables, the supply, if not too great, is care- lessly and injudiciously admitted; for the wind blows in from every quarter, and beats directly upon the animal. When he has been well seasoned to this, it seems to do him little harm, except that he has an un- thrifty coat, and is out of condition. Tlie common error, however, is to exclude, as much as possible, every breath of air, and to have the atmos- phere of the stable hot, contaminated, and unwholesome. The effect of several horses being shut up in the same stable, is to render the air unpleasantly hot. A person coming from without cannot breathe it many minutes without profuse perspiration. The horse stands hour after hour m it, and sometimes clothed; and then his covering is suddenly stripped off", and he is led into the open air, the temperature of which is thirty or forty degrees below that of the stable. Putting the humanity of the thing for a moment out of the question, we ask, must not the animal, thus unnat- urally and absurdly treated, be subject to rheumatism, catarrh, and inflam- mation of the lungs? It has been replied, that the horse keeps himself v/arm by exercise while he is thus exposed, and that a man, using strong exertion, cares little about the quantity of clothing upon him. Is the horse ;Mf, THE HORSE. constantly in motion after liis great-coat and all his body clothes have been stripped from him, and he has been turned out naked, when the mercury in the thermometer is below the freezing point? Does he not often stand, liour after liour, in the road or the street, while his owner is w^arming himself within, and tliis perhaps after every pore has been opened by a brushing gallop; and his susceptibility to the painful and the injuriouc influence of cold has been excited to the utmost? It is not so generally known as it ought to be, that the return to a hot stable is quite as dangerous as the change from a heated atmosphere to a cold and biting air. Many a horse, that has travelled without harm over a bleak country, has been suddenly seized with inflammation and ievi r when he has, immediately at tlie end of his journey, been surrounded wi h heated and foul air. It is the sudden change of temperature, whether from heat to cold, or from cold to heat, that does the mischief, and yearly destroys a multitude of horses. The stable should be as large, compared with the number of horses which it is destined to contain, as circumstances will allow. A stable for six horses should not be less than forty feet in length, and thirteen or fourteen feet wide. If there be no loft above, the inside of the roof should always be plastered, to prevent direct currents of air and occasional drop- pings from broken tiles; and the heated and foul air should escape, and cool and pure air be admitted, by elevation of the central tiles; or by large tubes carried through the roof with caps a little above them to prevent the beating in of the rain ; or by gratings placed high up in the walls. These latter apertures should be as far above the horses as they can conveniently be placed, by which means all injurious draught will be prevented. If there is a loft above the stable, the ceiling should be plastered in order to prevent the foul air from penetrating to the hay above, and injuring both its taste and its wholesomeness; and no openings should be allowed above the racks, through which the hay may be thrown into the rack, for they also will permit the foul air to ascend to the provender, and, in the act of nlling the rack, and while the horse is eagerly gazing upward for his food, many a grass-seed has fallen into his eye, and produced considerable in- flammation ; while at other times, when the careless groom has lelt open the ♦rap-door, a stream of cold air beats down on the head of the horse. The stable with a loft over it, should never be less than twelve feet high, and proper ventilation should be secured either by tubes carried up through the loft to the roof, or by gratings close to the ceiling. These gratings or openings should be enlarged or contracted by means of h covering or shutter, so that during spring, summer, and autumn, the stable should possess nearly the same temperature with the open air, and, in winter, a temperature not more than ten degrees above that of the external atmosphere. A hot stable has, in the mind of the groom, been long connected with a glossy coat. The latter, it is thought, cannot be attained without the former. To this we should reply that, in winter, a thin, glossy coat is not desirable. Nature gives to every animal a warmer clothing when the cold weather approaches. The horse acquires a thicker and a lengthened coat, in order to defend him from the surrounding cold. Man puts on an additional and a warmer covering, and his comfort is increased, and his health preserved by it. He who knows any thing of the horse, or cares any thing for his enjoyment, will not object to a coat a little longer and a little roughened, when the wintry wind blows bleak. The coat, however, need not be so long as to be unsightly ; and warm clothing, even in a cool stable, will, with plenty of honest grooming, keep the hair sufliciently LITTER. 347 smooth and glossy to satisfy the most fastidious. The over-heated an" of n. close stable saves much of this grooming, and therefore the idle attendant unscrupulously sacrifices the liealth and safety of the horse. If the stable is close, tlie air will not only be hot, but ti:)ul. The breathing of every animal contaminates it; and when, in the course of the night, with every aperture, even the key-hole, stopped, it passes again and again through the lungs, the blood cannot undergo its proper and healthy ciiange ; digestion cannot be so perfectly performed, and all tlie functions of life are injured. Let the owner of the valuable horse think of his passing twenty or twenty-two, out of tlie twenty-four hours, in this debilitating atmosphere. Nature does wonders in enabling every animal to acconmiodate itself to the situation in which it is placed, and the horse that lives in the stable-oven suffers less from it than would scarcely be conceived possible; but he does not and cannot possess the power and tlie hardihood which he would acquire under other circumstances. The air of the improperly-close stable is still further contaminated by the urine and dung, which rapidly ferment in the heat, and give out stimulating and unwholesome vapours. VVHien a person first enters an ill- managed stable, and especially early in the morning, he is annoyed not only by the heat of the confined air, but by a pungent smell, resembling hartshorn; and can he wonder at the inflammation of the eyes, and the chronic cough, and the inflammation of the lungs, with which the animal, that has been shut up in this vitiated atmosphere all night, is often attacked; or if glanders and farcy should occasionally break out in such stables? It has been ascertained, by chemical experiment, that the urine of the horse contains in it an exceedingly large quantity of hartshorn ; and, not only so, but that, influenced by the heat of a crowded stable, and possibly by other de- compositions that are going forward at the same time, this ammoniacal vapour begins to be rapidly given out, almost immediately after the urine is voided. When disease begins to appear among the inhabitants of these ill- ventilated places, is it wonderful that it should rapidly spread among them, and that the plague-spot should be, as it were, placed on the door of such a stable? When distemper appears in spring or in autumn, it is, in very many cases, to be traced first of all to such a pest-house. It is peculiarly fatal there. The horses belonging to a small establishment, and rationally treated, have it comparatively seldom, or have it lightly; but, among the inmates of a crowded stable, it is sure to display itself, and there it is most of all fatal. The experience of every veterinary surgeon, and of every large proprietor of horses, will corroborate this statement. Agriculturists should bring to their stables the common sense which directs them in the usual concerns of life; and should begin, when their pleasures and their property are so much at stake, to assume that authority, and to enforce that obedience, to the lack of which is to be attributed the greater part of bad stable-management and horse disease. Of nothing are we more certain, than that the majority of the maladies of the horse, and those of the worst And most fatal character, are directly or indirectly to be attributed to tlie unnatural heat of the stable, and the sudden change of the animal from a high to a low, or from a low to a high temperature. LITTER. Having spoken of the vapour of hartshorn, which is so rapidly and so plentifully given out from the urine of a horse in a heated stable, we take next into consideration the subject of litter. The first caution is frequently ^o remove it. Tlie early extrication of gas shows the rapid putrefaction of the u""ine- and the consequence of which wiU be 'he rapid putrefaction of giS THE HORSE. the litl'^r that lias been moistened by it. Every thing hastening to deeom. ,;osilion should bo carefully removed where lile and liealtii are to be pre- served. Every portion of the litter that has been much wetted, or at all sjofteued by the urine, and is beginning to decay, should be swept away every morning: the greater part of the remainder may be then piled under the manger, a little being left to prevent tlie painful and injurious pressure of the feet on the hard pavement during the day. Tiie soiled and macer- ated portion of that which was left should be removed at night. No heap of fermenting dung should be suffered to remain during the day in the corner, or in any part of the stable. With regard to tiiis, the direciions of the master should be peremptory. The stable should be so contrived that the urine shall quickly run off and the ollensive and injurious vapour from the decomposing urine and the litter will thus be materially lessened: if, however, the urine be carried away by means of a gutter running along the stable, the floor of the stalls must slant toward that gutter, and the declivity will sometimes be so great as to strain the bade sinews, and become an occasional, although unsus- pected cause of lameness. Mr. R. Lawrence well observes that, "if the reader will stand for a few minutes wiih his toes higher than his heels, the pain he will feel in the calves of his legs will soon convince him of the xruth of this remark. Hence, when a horse is not eating, he always endeavors to find his level, either by standing across the stall, or else as far back as his halter will permit, so that his hind-legs may meet the ascent of the other si'tle of the channel." This direction of the stall is also a frequent cause of contraction of the heels of the toot, by tii rowing too great a proportion of the weight upon the toe, and removing that pressure on the heels which tends most to keep them open. Care, therefore, must be taken that the slanting of the floor of the stalls shall be no more than is sufficient to drain off the urine with tolerable rapidity. Stalls of this kind certainly do best for mares; but for horses we much prefer those with a grating in the centre, and an inclination of the floor on every side towards the middle. A short branch may communi- cate with a larger drain, by means of which the urine may be carried off to a reservoir outside the stable. Traps are now contrived, and may be procured at little expense, by means of which neither any offensive smell nor cuirent of aii can pass through the grating. The farmer should not lose any of the urine. It is from the dung of the horse that he derives a principal and the most valuable part of his ma- nure. It is that which earliest takes on the process of putrefaction, and forms one of the strongest and most durable dressings. That which is most of all concerned with the rapidity and perfection of the decomposition, is the urine. The. reasons why the horse should always stand on litter have been given at page 295. Humanity and interest, as well as the appearance ol' the stable, will induce the general proprietor of the horse to place a mode- rate quantity of litter under him during the day. The farmer, who wants to convert every otherwise useless substance into manure, will have addi- tional reason for adopting this practice; especially, as he does not confine hinistlf to that to which in towns and in gentlemen's stables custom seems to have limited the bed of the horse. Pea and bean-haum, and potato- tops, and heath, occupy in the stable of the farmer, during a part of the year, the place of wheaten and oaten straw. It should, however, be remembered, that these substances are disposed more easily to ferment an-l putrefy than straw, and therefore should be more carefully examined, and otkner removed. It is the faullv custom of some farmers to let the bed LIGHT. 349 accumulate until it reaches almost to the horse's belly, and the bntU)in ot it is a mass of duij<:. If there were not often many a hole and cranny through which the wind can enter, and disperse tlie ibul air, tiie hoaltli of the animal would suflcr. LIGHT. This neglected branch of stable- management is of far more consequcncf than is generally imagined ; and it is particularly neglected by those for whom these treatises are principally designed. The ftirmer's stable is fre- quently destitute of any glazed window; and has only a shutter, which is raised in warm, and shut down in cold weather. VV^hen the horse is in the ratable only during a few hours of the day, this is not of so much conse- quence; nor of so much, probably, to horses of slow work ; but to car- riage horses and hackneys, so far at least as the eyes are concerned, a dark stable is little less injurious than a foul and heated one. To illus- trate this, reference may be made t-o the unpleasant feeling and the utter impossibility of seeing "distinctly, when a man suddenly emerges from a dark place into the I'ull blaze of da) The sensation of mingled pain and giddiness is not soon forgotten ; and some minutes pass before the eye can accommodate itself to the increased light. If this were to happen every day, or several times in the day, the sight would be 'irreparably injured; or, possibly, blindness would ensue. Can we wonder, then, that the horse taken from a dark stable into a glare of light, and feeling, probably, as we should under similar circumstances, and unable, for a considerable time, to see any thing around him distinctly, should become a starter, or that the frequently repeated violent effect of sudden light should induce inflamma- tion of the eye, so intense as to terminate in blindness? There is, indeed, no doubt, in the mind of any one familiar with the subject, that horses kept in a dark stable are frequently notorious starters, and that starting has been evidently traced to this cause. Farmers know, and should profit by the knowledge, that the darkness of the stable is not unfrequently a cover for great uncleanliness. A glazed window, with leaden divisions between the small panes, would not cost much, and would admit a degree of light somewhat more approaching to that of day; and, at the same time, would render the concealment of gross inattention and want of cleanliness impossible. If plenty of light be admitted, the walls of the stable, and especially that portion of them which is before the horse's head, must not be of too glaring a colour. The constant reflection from awiiite wall, and especially if the sun shines into the stable, will be as injurious t(5 the eye as the sudden changes from darkness to light. The perpetual slight excess of st-imulus will do as much mischief as the occasional, but more violent one, when the animal is taken from a kind of twilight to the blaze of day. The colour of the stable, therefore, should depend on the quantity of light. VVhere much can be admitted, the walls should be of a grey hue. Where darkness would otherwise prevail, frequent whitewashing may in some degree dissipate the gloom. For another reason it will be evident that the stable should not possess 00 glaring a light. It is the resting-place of the horse. The work of the farmer's horse, indeed, is confined principally to the day, but the labours of others are demanded at all periods. The hour of exertion having passed, the animal returns to his stable to feed and to repose, and the latter is as necessary as the former, in order to prepare him for renewed work. Something approaching f" the dimno«« of twilight is requisite, to induce tl)e 3^vS THK HORSE. auiinul to coiii])os(' hiinsuH' In sleep. Tliis halfliglit more particularly suits horses of lieavy work, and wIid draw almost as much i)y tlic weight of carcase which they can throw into the colhir, as by the de;Liree of muscular eneroy of which they are capable. In the (juiciness of a dimly-liiihted stable they obtain repose, and accumulate flesh and Hit. Dealers are i)er feetly aware of this. Tliey have their darkened stables, in which the young horse, with little or no exercise, and fed upon mashes and ground corn, is made up for sale. The round and plunip appearance, however, which may delude the unwary, soon vanishes with altered treatment, and the animal is found to be unfit for hard work, and predisposed to every inflammatory disease. The circumstances, then, under which a stable somewhat darkened may be allowed, will be easily determined by the ownei of the horse; but, as a general rule, dark stables are unfriendly to cleanli. ness, and the frequent cause of the vice of starting, and of the most seriou diseases of the eyes. GROOMING. Of this much need not be said, since custom, and, apparently without ill effect, has allotted so little of the comb and the brush to the farmer's horse. The animal that has worked all day, and is turned out at night, requires little more to be done to him than have the dirt brushed off hi?, limbs. Regular grooming, by rendering his skin more sensible to the alteration of temperature, and the inclemency of the weather, would ht prejudicial. The horse that is altogether turned out needs no grooming. The dandriff or scurf which accumulates at the roots of the hair is a pro- vision of nature to defend him from the wind and the cold. It is to the stabled horse, highly fed, and little or irregularly worked, that grooming is of so much consequence. Good rubbing with the brush or the currycomb opens the pores of the skin, and circulates the blood to the extremities of the body aad through the minute vessels of the skin, and produces free and healthy perspiration, and stands in the room of exercise. No horse will carry a fine coat without either heat or dressing. They both effect the same purpose; they both increase the insensible perspira- tion ; but the first does it at the expense of health and strength, while the second, at the same time that it produces a glow on the skin, and a determina- tion of blood to it, rouses all the energies of the frame. It would be well for the proprietor of the horse if he were to insist upon it, and to see that liis orders are really obeyed, that the fine coat in which he and his groom so much delight, is produced by honest rubbing, and not by a heated stable and thick clothing, and most of all, not by stimulating or injurious spices. When tiie weather will permit the horse to be taken out, he should never be groomed in the stable. Without dwelling on the want of clean- Jiness, when the scurf and dust that are brushed from the horse lodge in his manger, and mingle with his food, experience teaches, that if the cold is not too great, the animal is braced and invigorated from being dressed in the o])en air, to a degree that cannot be attained in the stable. There is no necessity, however, for half the punishment which n)any a groom inflicts upon the horse in the act of dressing; and particularly on one whose skin is thin and sensible. The currycomb should at all times be lightly applied. With many horses its use may be almost dispenscu with; and even the brush need not be so hard, nor the points of the bristles so irregular as they often are. A soft brush, with a little more weight of the hand, will be equally effectual and a great deal more pieasanl EXERCISE. 351 lo the horse. A hair cloth, while it will seldom irritate and tease, will be al-nost sufHcient with horses that have thin hair, and that have not been neglected. VVhoever would be convinced of the benefit of friction to the horse's skin, and to the horse generally, need only observe the effect produced by well hand-rubbing the" legs of a tired horse. Wiiile every enlargement subsides, and the painful stiflhess disappears, and the legs attain their natural warmth; and become fine, the animal is evidently and rapidly reviving; he attacks his food with appetite, and then quietly lies down to rest. EXERCISE. Our observations on this important branch of stable-management must have only slight reference to the agricultural horse. His work is usually regular and not exhausting. He is neither predisposed to disease by idleness, nor worn out by excessive exertion. He, like his master, has enough to do to keep him in health, and not enough to distress or injure hiniT on the contrary, the regularity of his work pn^ongs life to an extent rarely witnessed in the stable of a gentleman. Our remarks on exercise, then, must have a general bearing, or have principle reference to those persons who are in the middle stations of life, who contrive to keep a horse for business or pleasure, but cannot afford to maintain a servant for the express purpose of looking after it. The first rule we would lay down is, that every horse should have daily exercise. The horse that, with the usual stable feeding, stands idle for three or four days, as is the case in many establishments, must suffer. He is disposed to fever, or to grease, or, most of all, to diseases of the foot; and if, after these three or four days of inactivit)^, he is ridden fast and far, is almost sure to have inflammation of the lungs or of the feet. A gentleman or tradesman's horse suffers a great deal more from idle- ness than he does from work. A stable-fed horse should have two hours' exercise every day, if he is to be kept free from disease. Nothing of ex. traordinary, or even of ordinary labour can be effected on the road or in the field without sufficient and regular exercise. It is this alone which can give energy to the system, or develop the powers of any animal. How then is this exercise to be given ? As much as possible by, or under the suprintendence of, the owner. The exercise given by the groom is rarely to be depended upon. It is inefficient, or it is extreme. It is in many cases both irregular and injurious. It is dependent on the caprice of him who is performing a task, and who will render that task subservient to his own pleasure or purposes. In training the hunter and the race-horse, regular exercise is the most important of all considerations, however it may be forgotten in the usual management of the stable. The exercised horse will discharge his task, and sometimes a severe one, with ease and pleasure, while the idle and neglected one will be fatigued ere half his labour be accomplished, and if he be pushed a little too far, dangerous inflammation will ensue. How often, nevertheless, does it happen, that the horse that has stood inactive m the stable three or four days, is ridden or driven thirty or forty miles in the course of a single day ? This rest is often purposely given to prepare for extra-exertion ; to lay in a stock of strength for the performance of the task required of him: and then the owner is surprised and dissatisfied, if the animal is fairly knocked up, or possibly becomes seriously ill. Nothing is so common and preposterous, as for a person to buy a horse from a 352 'I'HE HORSE. deab-ir's stable, where he has been idly fattening for sale for many a day, and immediately to give him a long run after the hounds, and complain bitterly, and tiiink that he has been imposed upon, if the animal is exhausted before the end of the chase, or is compelled to be led home suffering from violent inflammation. Regular and gradually increasing exercise would have made the same horse appear a treasure to' his owner. Exercise should be somewhat proportioned to the age ^)f the horse. A young horse requires more than an old one. Nature has given to young animals of every kind a disposition to activity; but the exercise must not be violent. A great deal depends upon the manner in which it is given. To preserve the temper, and to promote health, it should be moderate, at least at the beginning and the termination. The rapid trol, or even the gallop, may be resorted to in the middle of the exercise, but the horse must be brought in cool. If the owner would seldom intrust his horse to boys, and would insist on the exercise being taken witliin sight, or in the neighbourhood of his residence, many an accident and irreparable injury would be avoided. It should be the owner's pleasure, and is his interest, personally to attend to all these things. He manages every other part of his concerns, and he may depend on it, that he suffers when he neglects, or is in a manner excluded from his stables. FOOD. The system of manger-feeding is becoming general among tarmers. There are few horses that do not habitually waste a portion of their hay; and by some the greater part is pulled down and trampled under foot, in order first to cull the sweetest and best locks, and which could not be done while the hay was inclosed in the rack. A good feeder will afterwards pick up much of that which was thrown down; but some of it must be soiled and rendered disgusting, and, in many cases, one-third of this division of their food is wasted. Some of the oats and beans are imperfectly chewed by all horses, and scarcely at all by hungry and greedy ones. The appear- ance of the dung will sutficiently evince this. The observation of this induced the adoption of manger-feeding, or of mixing a portion of chaff with the corn and beans. By this means the animal is compelled to chew his food ; he cannot, to any great degree, bolt the straw or hay ; and while he is forced to grind that down, the oats and beans- are ground vvith it, and yields more nourishment; the stomach is more slowly filled, and therefore acts belter on its contents, and is not so likely to be overloaded; and the increased quantity of saliva thrown out in the lengthened grinding of the food, softens it, and renders it more fit for digestion. If, when considerable provender w^as wasted, the horse maintained his condition, and was able to do his work, it was evident that much might be saved to the farmer, when he adopted a system by which the horse ate all that was set before him; and by degrees it was found out that even food somewhat less nutritious, but a great deal cheaper, and which tlie horse eitlier would not eat, or would not properly grind down, in its natural state, might be added, while the animal would be in quite as good plight, and always ready for work. Chair may be composed of equal quantities of clover or meadow hav, and wheaten, oaten, or barley straw, cut into pieces of a quarter or half an inch In length, an.' mingled well together; the allowance of oats or beans is afterwaids added, and mixed with the chaff. Many farmers very proPc-^rly bruise the oats or beans. The whole oat is apt to slip out of the t half and FOOD ' 353 be lost; but when it is bruised, and especially if the chaff is a little vvottod, it will not readily separate; or, should a portion of it escape the grinders, It will be partly prepared for digestion l")y the act of bruising. The preju dice against bruising the oats is, so far as the farmer's h.orse, and thr wafjgon-liorse, and every horse of slow draught is concerned, altogether unfounded. The quantity of straw in the chaff will always counteract any supposed purgative quality in the bruised oats. Horses of quicker draught, except they are naturally disposed to scour, will thrive better witii bruised than with whole oats; for a greater quantity of nutriment wilJ be extracted from the food, and it will always be easy to apportion the quantity of straw or beans to the effect of the mixture on the bowels of tlie horse. The principal alteration that should be made in the horse of harder and more rapid work, such as the post-liorse, and the stage-coach horse, is to increase the quantity of hay, and diminish that of straw. Two trusses of hay may be cut with one of straw. Some gentlemen, in defiance of the prejudice and opposition of the coacfi- man or the groom, have introduced this mode of feeding into the stables of their carriage horses and hackneys, and with manifest advantage. There has been no loss tsf condition or power, and considerable saving of proven- der. Tliis system is not, however, calculated for the hunter or the race- horse. Their food must be in smaller bulk, in order that the action of the lungs may not be impeded by the distention of the stomach; yet many hunters have gone well over the field, who have been manger-fed, the pro- portion of corn, however, being materially increased. For the agricultural and cart-horse, eight pounds of oats and two ol beans should be a-lded to every twenty pounds of chaff; and tlilrty-four or thirty-six pounds of the mixture will be sufficient for any moderate- sized horse, with fair or even hard work. The dray and waggon-horse may require forty pounds. Hay in the rack at night is, in this case, supposed to be omitted altogether. The rack, however, may remain, as occasionally useful for the sick horse, or to contain tares or other green meat. In order to prevent some horses from turning much of the chafi' out of the manger in their search for the oats, small iron bars may be placed across it, and t'^e provender plentifully sprinkled with water, but the water should be appl'.ed only at the time of feeding, for the wetted mixture would soon become sour and mouldy. Horses are very fond of this provender. The majority of them, after having been accustomed to it, will leave the best oats given to them alone, for tite sake of the mingled chaff and corn. We would, however, caution the farmer not to set apart too much damaged hay for the manufacture of the chaff. The horse may be thus induced to eat that which he would otherwise refuse; but if the nourishing property of the hay has been im- paired, or it has acquired an injurious principle, the horse Will either lose condition, or become diseased. More injury is done by the eating of damaged hay or musty oats than is generally imagined. Thero will he sufficient saving in the diminished cost of the provender by the inti'oduc- tion of the straw, and in the improved condition of the horse, without poisonmg him with the refuse of the farm. While the mixture of chafI with the corn prevents the corn from bemg '.oo rapidly devoured, and a porlion of it swallowed whole, and therefore .he stomach is not too loaded with that on which, as containing the mosi nutriment, its chief digestive power should be exerted, yet, on the whole, ft groat deal of time is gained by this mode of feeding, and more is left fb: rps.T. When t horse comes in wearied at the close of the day, it occupies J54 THE HORSE. aflei he has eaten his co.n, two or thrje hours to clear his racii. On ihe systt'm of manger- feeding, the chalf being already cut into small pieces, and the beans and oats bruised, he is able fully to satisfy his appetite in an hour and a half. Two additional hours are therefore devoted to rest. Tiiis is a circumstance deserving of much consideration even in the farmer's stable, and of immense consequence to the postmaster, the stage-coach proprietor, and tlie owner of every hard-worked horse. Manger-food will be the usual support of the farmer's horse during the winter, and while at constant or occasional hard work ; but from the middle or end of April, to the end of July, he may be fed with this mixture in^the day, and turned out at night, or he may remain out during every rest day : a team in constant employ should not, however, be suffered to be out at night, after the end of July. The farmer should take care that the pasture is thick and good ; and that the distance from the yard is not too great, nor the fields too large, other- wise a very considerable portion of time will be occupied in catching the horses in the morning. He will likewise have to take into .consideration the sale he would have for his hay, and the necessity for sweet and untrod- den pasture for his cattle. On the whole, however, turning out in this way, when circumstances will admit of it, will be found to be more beneficial for the horse, and cheaper than soiling in the yard. The small farmer's horse i« sometimes fed on hay or grass alone, and the animal, although he rarely gets a feed of corn, maintains himself in tolerable condition, and does the work that is required of him; but hay and grass alone, however good in quality, or in whatever quantity admin, istered, will not support the horse under hard work ; and therefore other sub- stances, containing a larger proportion of nutriment in a smaller compass, have been added. We will briefly enumerate them, and consider their compartive value. In almost every part of Great Britain, the O^jt has been selected as that portion of food which is to afford the principal nour- ishment. It contains seven hundred and forty-three parts out of a thousand of nutritive matter. The oat should be old, heavy, dry, and sweet. The new oat will weigh ten or fifteen per cent, more than the old oat; but the difference consists principally in watery matter, which is gradually evapo- rated. The new oat is not so readily ground down by the teeth as the old one, and forms a more glutinous mass, difficult to digest, and, when eaten in considerable quantities, is apt to occasion colic and even staggers. The old oat forms, when chewed, a smooth and uniform mass, which readily dissolves in the stomach, and yields the nourishment which it contains, and perhaps some chemical change may have been slowly effected in the old oat, disposmg it to be more readily assimilated. Oats should be plump, bright in colour, and free from unpl^nsant smell or taste. The musty smell of wetted or damaged corn is caused by a fungus which grows upon the seed, and which has an injurious effect on the urinary organs, and often on the intestines, producing profuse staling inflammation of the kidney or colic, and inflammation of the bowels. Tiiis musty smell is removed by kiln-drying the oat, but care is here requisite that too great a degree of heat is not employed. It should be sufficient to destroy the fungus without injuring the life of the seed. Tiie kiln-burnt oat, however, is not so grateful to the animal : it acquires a healing :|uality — causes increased discharge of urine, and not unfrequently pro- duces inflammation of the eyes, and mangy affections of the skin. Of die quantity of oats in the chaff we have already spoken. .\n improvement would be effected, by cutting the unt'^reshed oat siraw into rdiair. The expense of thresiiing would be saved. Oat straw is heXlof FOOD. 35h han barley siraw, but does not contain as much nourishment as that of wheat. When the horse is fed on hay and oats, the quantity of the oats must vary with his size and the worli to be performed. In winter, lour feeds, or nine or ten pounds of oats a day, will be a fair allowance for a horse ol* fifteen hands one or two inches higli, and that has moderate work In summer, half the quantity, with green food, will be sufficient. Oatmeal will form a poultice, more stimulating than one composed of linseed meal alone — or they may be mingled in different proportions as c'rcunistances may require. In the form of gruel it constitutes one of the most important articles of diet for the sick horse — not indeed forced upon him, but a pail containing it being slung in his box, and of which he will soon begin to drink when water is denied. In cases of poisoning, or of over purging, it is useful, whether administered by the mouth, or as an injection. White-water, made by stirring a pint of oatmeal into a pail of water, the chill being taken from it, is an excellent beverage for the thirsty and tired horse. Barlkv is a common food of the horse on various parts of the Continent, and, until the introduction of the oat, seems to have constituted almost his only food. It is more nutritious than oats, containing nine hundred and twenty parts of nutritive matter in every thousand. There seems, how- ever, to be something necessary besides a great proportion of nutritive matter, in order to render any substance wholesome, strengthening, or fat- tening. Except where horses are very hardly worked, barley does not seem in our country to agree with them so well as oats. They are more subject to inflammatory complaints, and particularly to surfeit and mange. When barley is given, the quantity should not exceed a peck daily. It should be always bruised, and the chaff should consist of equal quantities of hay and barley straw, and not cut too short. If the farmer has a quantity of spotted or unsaleable barley which he wishes thus to get rid of, he must very gradually accustom his horses to it, or he will probably produce serious illness among them. For horses that are recovering from illness, barley, in the form of malt, is often serviceable, as tempting the appetite and recruiting the strength. It is best given in mashes; water, considerably below the boiling heat, being poured upon it, and the vessel or pail kept covered for half an hour. Grains fresh from the mash-tub, either alone or mixed with oats or chatf, or both, may be occasionally given to horses of slow work; they would, however, afford very insufficient nourishment for horses of quicker or harder work. Wheat is in Great Britain more rarely given than barley. It contains nine hundred and fifty-five parts of nutritive matter. When farmers have a damaged or unmarketable sample of wheat, they sometimes give it to their horses, and, being at first used in small quantities, the horse becomes accustomed to it, and thrives and works well. It must, however, always be bruised, and given in chaff. Wheat contains a greater proportion of gluten, or sticky adhesive matter, than any other kind of grain; it is difficult of digestion, and apt to cake and form obstructions in the bowels. This will oftener be the case if the horse is suffered to drink much water soon after feeding upon wheat; for the water passing rapidly through the stomach and small intestines, in its way to the coecum, (see page 204,) car. ries off with it all the starch, which is the most nourishing, and leaves this sticky mass behind, which accumulates, and hardens, and obstructs the intestines, md often destroys the horse. A horse that is fed on wheal ^56 THE HORSE. sliould have very little ha)^ The proportion should not be more than one truss of hay to two of straw Wheaton flour, boiled in water, to the thick riess of starch, is given witl good effect in over purging, and especially if combined with chalk and opium. Beans. — These form a striking illustration of the principle, that the nourishing or strengthening effects of the difTerent articles of food dei)end more upon some peculiar property which they have, or some combination which they form, than on the actual quantity of nutritive matter. Beans contain but five hundred and seventy parts of nutritive matter, yet they add materially to the vigour of the horse. There are many hordes that will not stand hard work without beans being mingled with their food, and these not horses whose tendency to purge it may be necessary to restrain by the astringency of the bean. Tliere is no traveller who is not aware of the difference in the spirit and continuance of his horse if he allows or denies him beans on his journey. They afford not merely a temporary stimulus, but they may be daily used without losing their povver, or producing exhaustion. Two pounds of beans may, with advantage, be mixed with the chafi" of the agricultural horse, during the winter. In summer, the quantity may be lessened, or the beans altogether discontinued. Beans are generally given whole. This is very absurd ; for th.e young horse, whose teeth are strong, seldom requires them; while the old horse, to whom they are in a manner necessary, is scarcely able to masticate them, swallows many of them whole which he is unable to break, and drops much corn from his mouth in the ineffectual attempt to break them. Beans should not be merely split, but crushed; they will even then give sufficient employment to the grinders of the animal. Some postmasters use chaff with beans instead of oats. With hardly-worked horses, they may possibly be allowed ; but in general cases, the beans, withou-t oats, would be too binding and stimulating, and would produce costiveness, and probably megrims or staggers. Peas are occasionally given. They appear to be in a slight degree more nourishing than beans, and not so heating. They contain five hun- dred and seventy-four parts of nutritive matter. For horses of slow work they may be used ; but the quantity of chaff should be increased, and a few oats added. They have not been found to answer with horses of quick draught. It is essential that they should be crushed ; otherwise, on account of their globular form, they are apt to escape from the teeth, and many are swallowed whole. Exposed to warmth and moisture in the stom-ach, they swell very much, and mav painfully and injuriously distend it. Many horses have died after gorging themselves with peas, and the stomach has been found to have been burst by their swelling. If a small phial is filled with peas, and warm water poured on them, and the bottle tiglitly corked, it will burst in a few hours. Herbage, green and dry, constitutes a principal part of the food ot the horse. There are few things with regard to which the farmer is so care- less as the mixture of grasses, on both his upland and meadow pasture. Hence we find, in the same field, the ray grass, coming to perfection only in a loamy soil, not fit to cut until the middle or latter part of July, and yielding little aftermath ; the meadow fox-tail, best cultivated in a clayey soil, fit for the scythe in the beginning of June, and yielding a plentiful aftermath; the glaucous fescue grass, ready at the middle of June, and rapidly deteriorating in value as its seeds ripen; and the fertile meadow grass, increasing in value until the end of July. These are circum- stances, the importance of which will, at no distant period, be recog- fiised. In the moan time, Sinclair's account of the different gras>*Ph;. FOOD. SSI or tlie conaensation of the most important part of his work in Sir tJuii'.phry Davy's Agricultural Chemistr}-, are well deserving of the diligent perusa) of the farmer. Were there not too many proofs that the very refuse of th3 farm is often devoted to the keep of the agricultural horse, it would be needless to repeat that the animal that works constantly and hard should have the best food, and plenty of it. Old hay, as having longer undergone that slow process of fermentation, by which the sugar it contains is developed, is far more nutritive and wholesome than new hay. Mowburnt hay is more injurious to horses than to any other of ti)e domestic animals, and is a fruitful sourcA of disease. • Where the manger system of feeding is not adopted, or where hay is still given at night, and chatf and corn in the day, there is no error into which the farmer is so apt to fall as to give an undue quantity of hay, and that generally of the worst kind. If the manger system is good, there can be no necessity for hay, or only for a small quantity of it; but if the rack is overloaded, the greedy horse will be eating all night, instead of taking his rest; and when the time for the morning feed arrives, his stomacii will be already filled, and he will be less capable of work, from the want of sleep, and from the long-continued distension of theslomach rendering it impossible for the food to be properly digested. It is a good practice to sprinkle the hay with water in which salt has been dissolved. It is evidently more palatable to the animal, who will leave the best unsalted hay for that of an inferior quality that has been moistened with brine; and there can be no doubt that the salt very mate- rially assists the process of digestion. The preferable way of salting the hay would be to sprinkle it over the different layers as the rick is formed. From its attraction for water, it would combine with that excess of moisture which, in wet seasons, is the cause of too rapid and violent fermentation, and of the hay becoming mowburnt, or the I'ick sometimes catching fire, and it would become more incorporated with the hay. The only objection to its being thus used is, that the colour of the hay is not so bright; but this would be of little consequence for home consumption. Of the value of Tares, as forming a portion of the late spring and sum- mer food of the stabled and agricultural horse, there can be no doubt. They are very nutritive, and they act as a kind of medicine. When surfeit- lumps appear on the skin, and the horse begins to rub himself agai-nst the divisions of the stall, and the legs swell, and the heels threaten to crack, a few tares, cut up with the chatf, or given instead of a portion of tlie hay, will often afford immediate and perfect relief Ten or twelve pounds may be given daily, and half that weight of hay subtracted. It is an erroneous notion, that, given in moderate quantities, they either roughen the coat or lessen the capability for hard work. 11ye-(Jrass affords a valuable article of fiDod, but is inferior to the tare. It is not so nutritive; it is apt to scour; and occasionally, and late in the spring, it has appeared to become injurious to the horse. Clover, for soiling the horse, is inferior to the tare and the rye-grass, but, nevertheless, is useful when they cannot be obtained. Clover liay is, perhaps, preferable to meadow hay for chaff; it will soinetimes tempt tho sick horse, and may be given with advantage to those of slow and heavy work; but custom seems properly to have forbidden it to the hunter and the havkney. LucERN, where it can be obtained, is preferable even to tares, and Salnt-foin is superior to lucern. Although they contain but a smali quantity of nutritive matter, that is easily digested, and perfectly assimi. 358 THE HORSE laicd ; llie^ speedily put both muscle and fat on the horse that is worn down by labour, and they are almost a specific for hide-bound. Some farmers have thought so higiily of lucern as to substitute it for oats. This may do for the agricultural horse of slow and not hard work; but he from whom speedier action is sometimes required, and the horse of all work, must liave a proportion of hard meal within him. The Swedish Tuknip is an article of food, the value of which has not been suIRciently appreciated, and particularly for agricultural horses. Although it is far from containing the quantity of nutritive matter which has been supposed, that, like the nutriment of the saint-foin and the lucern, seems to be capable of easy and complete digestion. Tt should be sliced with chopped straw, and without hay. Thirty pounds of tlie turnip, with two or three quarterns of oats, and six pounds of straw, will be sufficient for a horse of moderately hard work. Hackneys have been kept on them with a less quantity of oats. Carrots. — The virtues of this root are not sufficiently known, whether as contributing to the strength and endurance of the healthy horse, or the rapid recovery of the sick one. To the healthy horse they should be given sliced in his chaff. Half a bushel will be a fiair daily allowance, and the two pounds of beans, and three pounds of the oats, may be withdrawn. There is little provender of which the horse is fonder. Some farmers allow a bushel of carrots with chaff, and without any oats; and the horses nre said to be equal to all agricultural or slow work. Potatoes have been given, and with advantage, in their raw state, sliced with the chaff; but, where it has been convenient to boil or steam them, the benefit has been far more evident. Some have given boiled potatoes alone, and horses, instead of rejecting them, have soon preferred them even to the oat ; but it is better to mix them with the usual manger feed, in the proportion of one pound of potatoes to two and a half pounds of the other ingredients. The use of the potato must depend on its cheapness, and the facility for boiling it. Half a dozen horses would soon repay the expense of a steaming boiler in the saving of provender, without taking into the account their improved condition and capability for work. A horse fed on potatoes should have his quantity of water materially curtailed during the continuance of such feeding. Furze has sometimes been given during the winter months. There is considerable trouble attending the preparation of it, although its plentiful- ness and little value for other purposes would, on a large farm, well repay that trouble. The furze is cut down at about three or four years' growth; the green branches of that and the preceding year are cut off, and bruised in a mill, and then given to the horses in the state in which tiiey came from the mill, or cut up with the chaff. Horses are very fond of it. If twenty pounds of the furze be given, five pounds of straw, the beans, and three pounds of the oats, may he withdrawn. It may not be uninteresting to conclude this catalogue of the different articles of horse food with a list of the quantities of nutritive matter ".ontained in each of them ; for although these quantities cannot be con- sidered as expressing the actual value of each, because other circum- stances besides the simple quantity of nutriment seem to influence their effect in supporting the strength and condition of tiie horse, yet many a useful hint may be derived when the farmer looks over the produce of his soil, and inquires what other grasses or vegetables might suit his .soil. The list is partly taken from Sir Humphry Davy's Agricultural Chemistry: 1000 parts of wheat contain 955 parts of nutritive matter; barley, 970; oats, 743 ; peas, 574 ; beans; 570; potatoes, 230 ; red beeu FOOD. 350 148 ; parsnips, 99; carrots, 98. Of the grasses, 1000 parts of the meadow cat's tail contain at the; time of seeding 98 parts of nutritive matter ; narrow- leaved meadow grass in seed, and sweet-scented soft grass in ilower, 95; narrow-leaved and flat-stalked meadow grass in flower, fertile meadow grass in seed, and tall fescue, in flower, 93; fertile meadow grass, meadow fescue, reed-like fescue, and creeping soft grass in flower, 78; sweet- scented soft grass in flower, and the aftermath, 77; florin, cut in winter, 76; tall fescue, in the aftermath, and meadow soft grass in flower, 74; cabbage, 73; crested dog's tail and brome flowering, 71; yellow oat, in flower, 60 ; Swedish turnips, 64; narrow-leaved meadow grass, creeping beet, round-headed cocksfoot, and spiked fescue, 59; roughish and fertile meadow grass, flowering, 56 ; florin, in summer, 54; common turnips, 42; saint-foin, and bi'oad-leaved and long-rooted clover, 39; white clover, 32 ; and lucern, 23. The times of feeding should be as equally divided as convenience will permit; and when it is likely that the horse will be kent longer than usual from home, the nose-bag should invariably be taken. The small stomach of the horse is emptied in a kw hours; and if he is suffered to remain hungry much beyond his accustomed time, he will afterwards devour his food so voraciously as to distend the stomach and endanger an attack of staggers. When this disease appears in the farmer's stable, he may attribute it to various causes; the true one, in the majority of instances, is irregu- larity in feeding. If the reader will turn back to page 104, he will be con- vinced that this deserves more serious attention than is generally given to it. When extra work is required from the animal, the system of management is often injudicious; for a double feed is put before him, and as soon as he has swallowed it, he is started. It would be far better to give him a double feed on the previous evening, which will be digested before he is wanted, and then he may set out in the morning after a very small portion of jorn has been given to him, or perhaps only a little hay. One of the most successful methods of enabling a horse to get well through a long journey IS to give him only a little at a time while on the road, and at night to give him a double feed of corn and a full allowance of beans. Water. — This is a part of stable management little regarded by the farmer. He lets his horses loose morning and night, and they go to the nearest pond or brook, and drink their fill, and no harm results; for they obtain that kind of water which nature designed them to have, in a -nanner prepared for them by some unknown influence of the atmosphere, as well as by the deposition of many saline admixtures. The difference between hard and soft water is known'to every one. In hard water soap will curdle, vegetables will not boil soft, and the saccharine matter of the malt cannot be foully obtained in the process of brewing. There is nothing in which the difl'erent effect of hard and soft water is so evident as in the stomach and digestive organs of the horse. Hard water, drawn fresh from the well, will assuredly make the coat of a horse unaccustomed to it stare, and it will not unfrequently gripe and otherwise injure him. Instinct or expe- rience has made even the horse conscious of this, for he will never drink hard water if he has access to soft : he will leave the most transparent and pure water of the well for a river, although the water may be turbid, and even for the muddiest pool.* He is injured, however, not so much by tliG hardness of the well-water as by its coldness — particularly by its coldness * Some trainers have so much fear of hard or strangre water, that they carry with thein to the (lifferctit courses the water that the animal has been accustomed to drinit, aiiJ .um tliey Kiiow agrees with it. 360 THE HORSE. in summer, and when it is many degrees below the temperature of t/ie atmospliere. The water in the brook and the pond being warmed by long exposure to the air, as well as having become soft, the horse drinks freeU of it without danger. If tlie horse were watered three times a day, and especially in summer, he would often be saved from the sad torture of thirst, and from many a disease. Whoever has observed the eagerness with which the over- worked horse, hot and tired, plunges his muzzle into tlie pail, and the difficulty of stopping him until he has drained the last drop, may form some idea of wiiat he had previously suffered, and will not wonder at the violent spasms, and inflammation, and sudden death, that often result frorxT drinking too much cold water. There is a prejudice in the minds of many people against the horse being fairly supplied with water. They think that it injures his wind, and dis- ables him for quick and hard work. If he is galloped, as he too often is, immediately after drinking, his wind may be irreparably injured; but if he were oftener sutfered to satiate his tiiirst at the intervals of rest, he would be happier and better. It is a fact unsuspected by those who have not carefully observed the horse, tliat if lie has frequent access to water he will not drink so much in the course of the day, as another who, to cool his parched mouth, swallows as fast as he can, and knows not when to stop. On a journey a horse should be liberally supp'lied with water. When he is a little cooled, two or three quarts of water may be given to him, and after that his feed. Before he has finished his corn, two or three quarts more may be offered. He will take no harm if this be repeated three or four times during a long and hot day. It is a judicious rule with travellers, that when a horse begins to refuse his food, he should be pushed no farther that day. It may, however, be worth while to try whether this may not proceed from thirst, as much as from exhaustion, for in many instances his appetite and his spirits will return soon after he has partaken of the refreshing draught. Maxagempnt of the Feet. — This is the only division of stable manage- ment that remains to be considered, and one sadly neglected by the cartel and groom. The feet should be carefully examined every morning, for the shoes may be loose, and the horse would have been stopped in the middle of his work ; or the clenches may be raised, and endanger the wounding of his legs; or the shoe may begin to press upon the sole or the heel, and bruise of the sole, or corn, may be the result ; and, the horse having stood so long in the stable, every little increase of heat in the foot, or lameness, will be more readily detected, and serious disease may probably be prevented. When the horse comes in at night, and after the harness has been taken off" and stowed away, the heels should be well brushed out. Hand- rub- bing will be preferable to washing, especially in the agricultural horse, whose heels, covered with long hair, can scarcely be dried again. If the dirt be suffered to accumulate in that long hair, the heels will become sore, and grease will follow; and if the heels are washed, and particularly during the winter, grease will result from the coldness occasioned by the slow evaporation of the moisture. The feet should be stopped — even the leet of the farmer's horse, if he remains in the stable. No clay stopping should be used, for it will get hard, and press upon the sole; cow-dung is the best stopping to preserve the feet cool and elastic ; but before the stopping is applied, the picker must be run round the whole of the foot between the shoe and the sole, to detect any stone which may have UXSOUxXDNESS. ^Q I'niimf.ated itself there, or a wound on any other part of the sole. Fo- the hackney and hunter, stopping is indispensable. After several days' Jiard work, it will atFord very great relief to take the shoes off", having put plenty of litter under the horse, or to turn him, if possible, into a loose box ; and the shoes of every horse, whether hardly worked or not, should be removed or chann;ed once a month. CHAPTER XXI. ON SOUNDNESS AND THE PURCHASE AND SALE OF HORSES There are few sources of greater annoyance, both to the buyer and the seller of the horse, tiian disputes with regard to the soundness of the animal. Although, in describing the various parts of the horse, we have glanced at the connection of certain natural conformations, and some alterations of structure, and accidents, and diseases, with the question of soundness and unsoundness, it may not be uninteresting to those for whom our work was designed, if we now bring into one point of view the substance of that which has been scattered over many pages. That horse is sound in whom there is no disease, nor any alteration of structure in any part which impairs, or is likely to impair, his natural use- fulness. That horse is unsound that labours under disease, or that has some alteration of structure that does interfere, or is likely to interfere, with his natural usefulness. The term '■'natural usefulness ^^ must be borne in mind. One horse may possess great speed, but is soon knocked up; another will work all day, but cannot get beyond a snail's pace: one with a heavy forehead is liable to stumble, and is continually putting to hazard the neck of his rider; another, with an irritable constitution and a washy make, loses his appetite, and begins to scour if a little extra work is exacted from him. The term unsoundness cannot be applied to either of these; it would be opening far too widely a door to disputation and endless wran- gling. The buyer can discern, or ought to know, whether the form of the horse is that which will render him likely to suit his purpose, and he should try him sufficiently to ascertain his natural strength, endurance, and man- ner of going. Unsoundness, we repeat, has reference only to disease, or to that alteration of structure which is connected with, or will produce dis- ease, and lessen the usefulness of the animal. These principles will be best illustrated by a brief consideration of the usual supposed causes of unsoundness. ' IJroken-knees certainly do not constitute unsoundness after the wounds are healed, unless they interfere with the action of the joint, for the horse may have fallen from mere accident, or through the fault of the rider; but no person would buy a horse with broken knees until he had thoroughly tried him, and satisfied himself as to his form and action. CAPrED Hocks may be produced by lying on an unevenlv-paved stable with a scanty supply of litter, or by kicking, in neither of vvhicii cases would they constitute unsoundness, though in the latter they would be an indication of vice; but in the majority of instances, they are either tiie consequence of sprain of the hock, and accompanied by enlargement of it, when they would be unsoundness. A special warranty should always be ^iiken against capped-hocks. CoNTKACTiON is a Considerable deviation from the natural form of th A A 62 THE HORSE. foot, but mt necessarily constituting unsoundness*; it rcqui es, however, s most careful examination on the part of the purchaser or veterinary surgeon to ascenain that there is no heat about the quarter, or ossification of tht cartilage; that the frog, althougb diminished in size, is not diseased; that the horse does not step short and go as if the foot were tender, and that there is not the slightest trace of lameness. Unless these circumstances, or some of them, are detected, a horse must not be pronounced to be unsound Decause his feet are contracted, for many horses with strangely contracted feet, are never lame: a special warranty, however, should be required where the feet are at all contracted. Coi{.\s manifestly constitute unsoundness. The portion of the foot in which they are situated will not bear the ordinary pressure of the shoe; and any accidental additional pressure from the growing down of the horn, or the introduction of dirt or gravel, will cause serious lameness. They render it necessary to wear a thick and heavy shoe, or a bar shoe, to protect the weakened and diseased part ; and corns are very seldom radi- cally cured. ' Cough. — This is a disease, and consequently unsoundness. Howevei slight may be its degree, and of whatever short standing it is, although it may sometimes seem scarcely to interfere with the usefulness of the horse., a change of stabling, or slight exposure to wet and cold, or the least over- exertion, may at other times cause it to degenerate into many dangerous complaints. A horse, therefcjre, should never be purchased with a cough upon him without an especial warranty ; or if, the cough not being observed, he is purchased under a general warranty, he may be returned as soon as it is discovered. Roaring, Wheezing, Whistling, High-blowing, and Grunting, being the result of alteration of structure or disease in some of the air passages, and interfering with the perfect freedom of breathing, and especially when the horse is put on his speed, without doubt constitute unsound- ness. There are decisions to the contrary, which are now universally admitted to be erroneous. Broken-wind may be regarded as still more decidedly unsoundness. Crib-biting. — Although there is some difference of opinion among vete- rinary surgeons on this point, crib-biting must be regarded as unsoundness. This unnatural sucking in of the air, must be to a certain degree injurious to digestion, must dispose to colic, and so interfere with the strength, and usefulness, and health of the horse. Some crib-biters are good goers, but they would have probably possessed more endurance had they not acquired this habit; and it is a fact well established, that as soon as a horse begins to become a crib-biter, he, in more than nine cases out of ten, begins to lose condition. He is not, tb the experienced eye, the horse he was before. It may not lead on to absolute disease, or it may rarely do so to any consider, able degree; but a horse that is deficient in condition, must, to that extent, have his capability for extraordinary work diminished, although not so as often to be apparent in ordinary work, and so far, the horse is unsound. Were there no other consideration, the wear of the front teeth, and even the frequent breaking of them, make a horse old before his time, and sometimes render it difficult or almost impossible for him to graze, when the stale of the animal or the convenience of the owner require that he should be turned out. Curb constitutes unsoundness while it lasts, and perhaps while the swell- ing remains, although the inflammation may have subsided ; for a horse hat has once thrown out a curb, is, for a while at least, very liable lo do so iigain on the slightest extra exertion. A horse, jjowever, is not returnahie UNSOUNDNESS 3G3 if he sliould spring a curb five minutes after the purchase for it is done in a moment, and does not necessarily indicate any previous unsoundness or weakness of the part. Cutting, as rendering a horse liable to serious injury of the legs, ana indicating that he is either weak, or has an awkwardness of gait inconsist^ ent with safety, should be considered as unsoundness. Many horses go lame for a considerable period after cutting themselves severely ; and others have dropped from the sudden agony, and endangered themselves and their riders. As some doubt, however, exists on tiiis subject, and as it is a very material objection to a horse, cutting, when evident, should have its serious- consequences provided against by a special warranty. Enlarged Glands. — The enlargement of the glands under the jaw has not been so much considered as it ought, in our estimate of the soundness of the horse. Simple catarrh will occasionally, and severe affection of the chest will generally be accompanied by swelling of these glands, and which does not subside for a considerable time after the cold or fever has apparently been cured. To a slight enlargement of the glands under the jaw much attention need not be paid ; but if they are of considerable size, and especially if they are tender, and the gland at the root of the ear partakes of the enlargement, and the membrane of the nose is redder than it should be, we should hesitate in pronouncing that horse to be sound. We should fear the commencement, or the insidious lurking of disease. Enlarged FIock. — A horse with enlarged hock is unsound. The structure of this complicated joint being so materially affected, that although the horse may appear for a considerable time to do ordinary work well, he will occasion- ally fail even as to that, and a few days' hard work will always lame him. The Eyes. — Tiiat inflammation of the eye of the horse which usually terminates in blindness of one or both eyes, has the peculiar character of remitting or disappearing for a time, once or twice, or thrice, before it fully runs its course. The eye, after an attack of inflammation, regains so nearly its former natural brilliancy, that a man well acquainted with horses will not always recognise the traces of former disease. After a time, however, the inflammation returns, and the result is unavoidable. A horse from four to six years of age that has had one attack of this complaint, is long after- wards unsound, however perfect the eye may seem to be, because he carries about with him a disease that will again break out, and eventually destroy the sight. Whether, therefore, he may be returned or not, depends on the possibility of proving an attack of inflammation of the eye, prior to the purchase. Next to direct evidences of this, are appearances about the eye, of which the veterinary surgeon at least ought not to be igno- rant. They have been described at page 114. They consist chiefly of a puckering of the lids towards the inner corner of one or both eyes — a difference, although perhaps only a slight one, and not discovered except it be looked for, in the size of the eyes; a gloominess of the eye, a dullness of the iris, a little dullness of the transparent part of tlie eye generally — a minute, faint, dusky spot, deep in the eye, and generally with little radiations of white lines proceeding from it: if these symptoms, or the majority of them, were observed at the time of purchase, the animal had assuredly been diseased before, and is unsound. Starting is an equivocal proof. It is usually an indication of defective sight, but is occasionally a trick. Connected, however, with the appearances just described, it is a very strong corroborative proof. If a man buys a horse actually blind, he may repent of his bargain, hv.': he cannot get rid of it. He should be more careful, and the law will net protect hini if he does not Uvse common precaution. 3(;.J THrl HORSE. Lameness, from whatever cause arising, is unsoundness. He wever tein|)orafy it may be, or Iiowever obscure, it lessens the utility of the horse, and renders him unsound for the time. How far his soundness may be afterwards affected, must depend on the circumstances of the case. A lame horse is for the time an unsound one. Neurotomy. — A question has arisen how far a horse that has under- gone the operation of the division of the nerve of the leg (see page 110), and has recovered from the lameness with which he was before affected, and stands his work well, may be considered to be sound. In our opiniosi there cannot be a doubt about the matter. Does the operation of neurotomy render a horse as capable of work as he was before he became affected with the disease on account of which, and to relieve him from the torture of which, the nerve was divided? Is the operation of neu- rotomy so invariably followed by capability, and continued capability ol' ordinary and even extraordinary work, that they may regularly be con- sidered as cause and effect? The most strenuous defenders of the nerve operation cannot affirm this. They only say that they partially succeed in almost every fair case — that they perfectly succeed in the majority of cases; but they cannot deny that the horse will batter and bruise that foot, when he has lost sensation in it, which should have been tenderly used; that even the hoof will sometimes be lost, after operations performed with the greatest judgment; that the lameness will sometimes return after the animal has gone sound, one, two, or three years; and that, after all, there is a little unpleasantness, and even unsafeness in the action of the horse, from the peculiar manner in which the foot meets the ground, when its feeling is destroyed; and that the horse is more liable to accidents; for he will travel on without warning his rider of the evil, after a piece of glass has penetrated his foot, or a stone has insinuated itself between the sole and the shoe; and thus irreparable mischief will be done, before the cause of it can possibly be detected. A horse on whom this operation has been performed may be improved — may cease to be lame, may go well for many years; but there is no certainty of his continuing to do so, and he is unsound. Ossification of the lateral cartilages constitutes unsoundness, as interfering with the natural expansion of the foot, and in horses of quick work almost invariably producing lameness. PuMiCED-FOOT. — When the union between the horny and sensible lamella?, or little plates of the foot (see p. 291), is weakened, and the coffin-bone is let down, and presses upon the sole, which yields to this unnatural weight, and becomes rounded, and comes in contact with the ground, and gets bruised and injured, that horse must be unsound, and unsound for ever, because there are no means by which we can lift up the coffin-bone again into its place. QuiDDlNG. — If the mastication of the food gives pain to the animal, in consequence of soreness of the mouth or throat, he will drop it before it is perfectly chewed. This, as an indication of disease, constitutes unsouml- ness. Quidding sometimes arises from irregularity in the teeth, w iu'ch wound the cheek with their sharp edges; or a protruding tooth renders it impossible for the horse to close his jaws so as to chew his food thoroughly. Quidding is unsoundness for the time; but the unsoundness will cease when the teeth are properly filed, or the catarrh relieved, or the cause of this imperfect chewing removed. QuiTTOR is unsoundness. Ring-bone. — Although when the bony tumour is small, and on one ?ide only, thore is little or no lameness, and there are a few instances in UNSOUNDNESS. 3(i£ which a horse with ring-bone lias worlied for many years without lame- ness; yet, Irom the action of the foot, and the stress upon the |>art, the mllammation and tlie formation of bone have such a tendency rai)i(lly tc spread, that we must pronounce the slightest enlargement of the pastern« or around the coronet, to be a cause of unsoundness. Sand-crack is manifestly unsoundness; but it may occur without the slightest warning, and no horse can be returned for one that is sprung after purchase. Its usual cause is too great brittleness of the crust of the hoof; but there is no infallible method of detecting this, or the degree in which it must exist to constitute unsoundness. When the horn round the bottom of the foot has chipped off so much that only a skilful smith can fasten the shoe without pricking the horse, or even when there is a tendency in the horn to chip and break off in a much less degree than this, the horse may probably be returned as unsound, for this brittleness of the crust is a disease of the part, or it is such an altered structure of it, as to interfere materially with the usefulness of the animal. Spavin is unsoundness, whether the bony or the blood-spavin. In the first, lameness is produced, at least at starting, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, and there is enlargement of the hock, which rapidly spreads with quick and hard work, although the horse may be capable of, and may even get better at slow work. If there be no lameness, we would yet reject a spavined horse, because the bony enlargement is too near a very important and complicated joint, and on the least injury or sprain of that joint, would spread over it, and materially interfere with its motion. Blood-spavin is unsoundness, because, although it may not be productive of lameness, at slow work, the rapid and powerful action of the hock in quicker motion will produce permanent, although not considerable lameness, and which can scarcely ever be with certainty removed. Splent. — It depends entirely on the situation of the bony tumour on the inside of the shank-bone, whether it is to be considered as unsoundness. If it is not in the neighbourhood of any joint, so as to interfere with its action, and if it does not press upon any ligament or tendon, it can be no cause of unsoundness; although it is often very unsightly, it does not lessen the capability and value of the animal. Of this we have treated at length at pages 241 and 350. Stking-halt. — This singular and very unpleasant action of the hind- leg cannot be termed unsoundness. It is an irregular communication of nervous energy to some muscle of the thigh, observable when the horse first comes from the stable, and gradually ceasing on exercise, and has usually been found in those horses that have a more than common degree of strength and endurance. Thickening of the Back Sinews. — Sufficient attention is not, always paid to the fineness of the legs of the horse. If the flexor tendons iiave been sprained so as to produce considerable thickening of the cellular substance in which their sheaths are enveloped, they will long afterwards, or perhaps ever after, be liable to sprain from causes by which ihey would otherwise be scarcely atFected. The continuance of any considerable thickness around the sheaths of the tendons indicates pre- vious and violent sprain. This very thickening will fetter the action of the ten Jons, and after much quick work will, from the very friction, occasionally renew the LiflanuTiation and the lameness; therefore, such a iiorse cannot be sound. It requires, however, a little discrimination to distinguish this from the gummiuP'i.^ or roundness of leg, peculiar to Home breeds. There sliould be ar evident d'fference between the injured los n-d the others. .•J66 THE HORSE. Ti'oi{()T;&fi-piN, except it be of great size, is rarely productive of lame iiess, and tlierefore cannot, when unaccompanied by lameness, be termed unsoundness; but as it is the consequence of hard work, and now and then does produce lameness, the hock should be most carefully examined, and there should be a special warranty against it. Thrush. — There are various cases on record of actions on account of thrushes in horses, and the decisions have been much at variance, or perfectly contradictory. Thrush has not been considered by legal men as unsoundness: it seemed to be necessary to prove lameness, or probable injury to the foot. We confess, however, that we are inclined to consider thrush as unsoundness. We are compelled to consider it so according to our definition, that every disease is unsoundness. It is inflammation of the lower surface of the inner or sensible frog, and the secretion or throwing out of pus, almost invariably accompanied by a slight degree of tenderness of the frog itself, or of the heel a little above it; and if neglected, leading to diminution of ihe substance of the frog, and separation of the horn from the parts beneath, and undermining, and the production of fungus and canker, and ultimately a diseased state of the foot, destructive of the present, and dangerous to the future usefulness of the horse. Wind-galls. — There are few horses perfectly free from wind-galls, but they do not interfere with the action of the tetlock, or cause lameness, except when they are numerous or large. They constitute unsoundness only when they cause lameness, or are so large and numerous as to render it likely that they will soon cause it. In the purchase of a horse the buyer usually receives, embodied in the receipt, what is termed a warranty. It should be thus expressed : "Received of A. B. forty pounds for a grey mare, warranted only five years old, sound, free from vice, and quiet to ride and drive. £40. CD." A receipt, including merely the word "warranted," extends only to soundness — "warranted sound" extends no further; the age, freedom from vice, and quietness to ride and drive, should be especially named. This warranty extends to every cause of unsoundness that can be detected, or that lurks in the constitution at the time of sale, and to every vicious habit which the animal has hitherto shown. To establish a breach of the warranty, and to be enabled to return the horse or recover the price, ihe purchaser must prove that if. was unsound or viciously disposed at Ihe time of sale. In case of cough, the horse must have been heard to cough previous to the purchase, or as he was led home, or as soon as he had entered the stable of the purchaser. Coughing, even on the following morning, will not be sufficient; for it is possible that he might have caught cold by change of stabling. If he is lame, it must be proved to arise from a cause that could not have occurred after the animal was in the purchaser's possession. No price will imply a Tvarrauty, or be equivalent to one; there must be an express warranty. A fraud must be proved, in the seller, in on-ler that the buyer may be enabled to return the horse or maintain an action for the price. The war. ranty should be given at the time of sale. A warranty, or a promise to warrant the horse, given at any period antecedent to the sale, is invalid; for the horse is a very perishable commodity, and his constitution and his usefulness may undergo a considerable change in a few days. A warranty after the sale is invalid, for it is given without any legal con- sideration. In order to complete the purchase, there must be a transfer of »he animal, or a memorandum of agreement, or the payment of rarnest- WARRANTY. 367 money : the least sum will suffice for earnest. No verbal promise to buy or to sell is binding without one of these; and the moment either of inesc is effected, the legal transfer of property or delivery is made, and whatevei may happen to the horse, the seller retains or is entitled to tlje money. li the purchaser exercises any act of ownership, by using the animal without leave of the vender, or by having any operation performed, or done to him, or medicines given, he makes him his own. The warranty of a ser- vant is considered to be binding on the master.* If the horse should be afterwards discovered to have been unsound at the time of warranty, the buyer may return it. Although not legally com- pelled to give notice to tiie seller of the discovered unsoundness, it will be better for it to be done. The animal should then be tendered at the house or stable of the vendor. If he refuses to receive him, it is cruel to tie up the poor beast in the street, and leave him to the tender mercies of the other party: it will be more advisable to send the animal to a livery-stable, for an action (the horse having been tendered) may be brought for expenses as well as for price. The k^ep, however, can be recovered only for the time that necessarily intervened between the tender and the determination of the action. It is not legally necessary to return the horse as soon as the unsoundness is discovered. The animal may be kept for a reasonable time afterwards, and even proper medical means used to remove the unsound- ness; but courtesy, and indeed justice, will require that notice should be given as soon as possible. Although it is stated, on the authority of Lord Loughborough, that "no length of time elapsed after the sale will alter the nature of a contract originally folse;" yet there are eases on record in which the plaintiff was non-suited because he did not give notice of the unsoundness in a reasonable time. The extent of this reasonable time must depend on many circumstances. It used to be supposed that the buyer had no right to have the horse medically treated, and that he would vitiate the warranty by doing so. The question, however, would be, hag he injured, or diminished the value of the ho'-se by this treatment? It will generally, however, be prudent for him to rpfrain from all medical treat- ment, because the means adopted, however skilfully employed, may have an unfortunate effect, or what he does may be misrepresented by ignorant or interested observers. When a horse is returned, and an action brought for the price, it will be indispensable that in every other respect, except the alleged unsoundness, the animal shall be as perfect and valuable as when bought. The purchaser, possibly, may like the horse notwithstanding his dis- covered defect, and he may retain and bring his action for the depre- ciation in value on account of the unsoundness. Few, however, will do this, because the detention of the horse will cause a suspicion that the defect was of no great consequence, and will give rise to much cavil about the quantum of damages, and, after all, very slight damages will probably be obtained. f * The weight of authority decides that the master is bound by the act of the servant. Lord Kenyon, however, had some doubt on the subject. t " I take it to be clear law, that if a person purchases a horse that is warranted, and it afterwards turns out that the horse was unsound at the time of the warranty, the buyer may, if he pleases, keep the horse, and bring an action on the warranty; in which he will have a right to recover the difference between the value of a sound horse, and one with such defects as existed at the time of warranty; or he may return the horse, and bring an action to recover the full money paid; but in the latter case the seller has a right to expect that the horse shall be returned to him in the same state he was vvhen sold, and not by any means diminished in value; for if a person keeps a warranted article for any length of time after discovering iia defects, and when he returns it, it is in a worse state than it 2QS THE HORSE. Where Ihere is no warranty, an action may be broufjht on the g "ojnd oi fraud, bu' this is very difficult to be maintained, and few possibly will iiazard it. It will be necessary to prove that the dealer knew the defect, and that the purchaser was imposed upon by his false representation ; and that, lO'">, in a case in which a person of ordinary circumspection might have been imposed upon. If the defect was evident to every eye, the pur- chaser has no remedy — he should have taken more care; but if a warranty was given, it extends to all unsoundness, palpable or concealed. Although a person should ignorantly or carelessly buy a blind horse, warranted sound, he may return it — the warranty is his guard, and prevents him from so closely examining the horse as he otherwise would have done ; but if he buys a blind horse, thinking him to be sound, and without a warranty, he has no remedy. The law supposes every one to exercise common circu of the coat. Chronic cough, grease, farcy, and founder, are accom- Danied by hide-bound; and diet too sparing, and not adequate to the work exacted, is an unfailing source of it. If the cause be removed, the effect will cease. Should the cause be obscure, as it frequently is — should ihe horse wear an unthrifty coat, and his hide cling to his ribs, without any apparent disease — we shall be warranted in tracing it to sympathy with the actual, although not demonstrable suspension of some important secretion, and, \vf 372 THE HORSE. lepea;. generally in the alimentary canal; therefore a few mashes, anJ a mild dose of physic, are first indicated, and, simple as they appear to he, they often have a very beneficial elfect. The regular action of the bowels being re-established, that of all the organs of the frame will speedily follow. [f tiie horse cannot be spared for physic, alteratives may be administe'-ed. There is no better alterative for being hide-bound and having an unthrifty coat than that which is in common use, and which we have so often recom- mended, levigated antimony, nitre and sulphur; and given, in these cases, in doses of two drachms of the first, three of the second, and four >)f the last, and repealed every night in a mash, or in the form of ball. The peculiar effect of the antimony and sulphur on the skin, of the sulphur on the bowels, and of the nitre on the urinary organs, will be here advantageously combined. Should the horse not feed welt, and there be no indication of fever, a slight tonic may be added, as one drachm of gentian, and half a drachin of ginger; but in the majority of cases attended by a lofty condition and an unthrifty coat, and hide-bound, tonics and aromatics should be carefully avoided. Tlie cause of the impaired action of the vessels being removed, the powers of nature will generally be sufficient, and had better be let alone. There are not any more dangerous medicines in common use in the stable, and especially in cases like tliese, than tonics and cordials. They often arouse to fatal action a tendency to kvev that would otherwise have slept, or they produce a state of excitement near akin to fever, and apt to degenerate into it. By the stimulus of a cordial the secretions may be suddenly roused, and among them, this unctuous secretion from the pores of the skin, so necessary to apparent condition ; but the efTect soon passes over, a repetition of the stimulus is necessary — the habit is soon formed — the dose must be gradually increased, and in the mean time the animal is kept in a state of dangerous excitement, and the powers of nature must be eventually impaired. Friction may be employed with advantage in the removal of hide-bound. [t has repeatedly been shown that it is one of the most efficacious instru- ments we can use to call into exercise the suspended energies either of the absorbent or secreting vessels. Warmth may likewise be employed, not warmth of stable, which has been shown to be so injurious, and that in a much more important way than the mere want of condition, but warmth of clothing. But before this can be fully considered, the hair by which the skin is covered must be described. THE HAIR. The hair is the natural clothing of all our domestic quadrupeds. It la some protection from violence, and more so from cold ; and it varies with the climate in which they live. It springs from below the skin. There are found on the cellular and fatty substance, immediately in contact with the internal surface of the skin, numerous little bulbs, which penetrate into and pass through the true skin, and which arriving at the cuticle, the hair protrudes from the summit of them. The hair itself, when examined through a microscope, is seen to be a little tube, containing a pulpy matter, which runs through the whole length of it, by whicii probably the hair is fed and rendered pliant; and the loss of which under disease may add to the hard and unthrifty feeling of the coat of a horse out of condition. There is no essential difference in the structure of the hair m difTeren parts, as the mane, the tail, and the body, except that the former is larger, longer, and stronger. MOULTING. 373 Tl'O base of the bulb whence the hair proceeds being beneatn the true skin, it is easy to perceive that the hair will grow again, although the cu''cle may have been destroyed. A good blister, although it may remove tiu' cuticle, and seemingly for a while the hair with it, leaves no lasting Ijlemish Even firing, lightly and skilfully performed, and not penetrating through the skin, leaves not much blemish ; but when, in broken knees, the true skin is cut through, or destroyed, there will ever remain a spot devoid of hair. The method of hastening and perfecting the re-production of th« hair has been described in p. 243. PORES OF THE SKIN. Besides the openings already mentioned through which proceeds thi? \mctuous fluid to supple and soften the skin, there are others more numerous, through which a vast quantity of aqueous fluid escapes, and perspiration is carried on ; and, as in the human being, this actually exists in a state of health and quietness, although imperceptible, yet, when the animal is excited by exercise, or labours under some stages of disease, it becomes visible, and appears in the form of drops. This process of perspiration is not, however, so far under the control of medicine as in the human being. We can, indeed, abate those profuse perspirations which accompany want of condition, or moulting, or disease, but we cannot easily produce or increase the visible perspiration. We are not aware of any medicine that will certainly produce it. Warm clothing seems occasionally to eflect it, but this is more in appearance than reality. The insensible perspiration cannot escape through the mass of clothing, and assumes a visible form. This, perhaps, is the case, even when sheep-skins are applied over the back and loins in " locked-jaw;" and they produce a good effect, acting as a warm poultice over the part, and so contributing to relax the muscular spasms. There are, however, .^ome medi- cines, as antimony and sulphur, which have an evident and very consider- able effect on the skin, in opening its pores and exciting its vesse.s to action. Of the existence of absorbent vessels on the skin, or those which take up some fluid or substance, and convey it into the circulation, we have satisfactory proof. A horse is even more easily salivated than the human biMng. Salivation has been produced by rubbing a splint with mercurial ointment, previous to blistering; and a very few drachms rubbed on the inside of the thighs will probably produce a greater effect than the piactitioner desires. From some parts of the skin there are peculiar secretions, as that of grease in the heel, and mallenders in the knee. MOULTING. Twice in the year the hair of the body of the horse is changed. The hair of the mane and tail remains. The bulbous root of the hair does not die, but the pulpy matter seems to be removed from the root of the hair, which, thus deprived of its nourishment, perishes and drops off', and a new hairsprings at its 'jide from the same bulb. As this is a process extending over the whole of the skin, and requiring a very considerable expenditure vf vi'al power, the health of the animal is generally alFected at these times. That energy and nervous and vital influence, which should support the whole of the frame, is to a great degree determined to the skin, and the animal is languid, atjd unequal to much hard work. He perspires greatly 374 THE HORSE. with the least unusual exertion, and if he is pressed beyond his strengtl becomes seriously ill. The treatment which the groom in this case adopts is most absurd anc dangerous. The horse, from the deranged distribution of vital power, is. disposed to fever, or lie labours under a slight degree of fever, sutliciently indicated by the increased quickness of pulse, redness of nose, and heat of mouth. The lassitude and want of appetite which are the accompani- ment of tills febrile state, are mistaken for debility; and cordials of various kinds, some of them exceedingly stimulating, are unsparingly administered. Common sense would require that, in this deranged dis- tribution of power, excitants should be scrupulously avoided ; not only no cordials should be given, l)ut the usual quantity of food should be diminished — bran mashes should be given — a little fever or alterative medi- cine should be administered, such as that which we have just described, and the horse should be a little more warmly clothed, and sudden or too great exposure to cold should be guarded against. There is no doubt that spices hasten the process of moulting. The old hair is evidently more speedily thrown off, and the new produced, but this at the expense of greater derangement of the constitution — greater fever — and no little danger, if, during this process of moulting, and while nature is thus unnaturally forced on, disease of a febrile character should attack the animal. Friction may be allowed, to assist the falling off of the old hair, and to loosen the cuticle lor the appearance of the new hair, but it should be gentle. The curry- comb should by no means be used ; even the brush siiould not be applied too hard or too long. The old hair must not be forced off before the young hair is ready to take its place. The exercise should be moderate; the clothing rather warmer than usual, and the water chilled. Nature adapts the coat to the climate and to the season. The Sheltie has one as. long and as thick as that of a bear; and as the summer is short and cold too in those northern islands, the coat is rough and shaggy during the whole of the year. In the deserts of Arabia, where the winter is rarely cold, the coat remains short and glossy throughout the year. In our climate, the short covering of summer is succeeded in autumn by one of considerably greater length and thickness; and that in its turn yields in the spring to the lighter clothing which summer requires. As a thin and glossy coat adds to the beauty of the horse, and is identified, to a great degree improperly, with his condition, an artificial system has been adopted, by v/hich the coat shall remain of nearly the same length, and that a short one, during the year. Natare changes it with the change of season ; man con- trives that there shall be no change of season in the stable. It is always summer there; always sufficiently hot to make a long coat useless, and therefore nature, who accommodates herself to circumstances, does not give it. The exposure to cold during the i'ew hours of exercise may roughen the coat for a little while, but the hot clothing and the hot air of more than twenty hours out of the twenty-four, give the character to the covering which nature bestows on such an animal. This system is not now carried to the injurious extent that it used to be, but it yet partakes too much of absurdity and danger. The inflammatory complaints to which these hot-house animals are subject, and the average shortness of their lives, are sufficient proofs of the error of the practice. The farmer has, or should have, little to do with this artificial manage- ment of the coat, and he may be assured that his hackney, or his hunter, if he does occasionally venture to follow the hounds, will, with his winter hair apou him, be to all intents and purposes in as full condition, and &e COLOUR. 375 strong and as stout ab the glossiest-coated horse in the field, if 1 e has been sufTicieiitly and properly fed and trained for the purpose. Hunters that are summered out, as reason and humanity demand, should, however, if they are to wear the sliort fushionablc coat, be taken up before tiie end of June, not only because the grass may then begin to fail, and the ground begin to grow hard, and the flies to annoy, but that they may be accustomed to the warmth of the stable by day and by^ night, for a sufficient time before the moulting season commences, and that the coat may be accommmodated to that warmth ; for if they are suffered to remain out unt'il the autumnal coat begins to grow, no grooming will remove it until the following spring. CLIPPING. As to the newly. invented practices of clipping, and its supposed improve- ment, shaving the horse, and especially the hunter, such deviations from nature rarely come to any good. There may not be so much perspiration hanging about the hair when the Imnter, warmed by a long burst, comes to a check on a piercing day, and therefore the cooling process of evaporation in such a situation may not be so long continued ; but let it be remembered that this cold must be abundantly more intense, when the frosty air comes in immediate contact with the heatf-d skin. It is during these pauses of action that the animal wants clothing to protect him from the chilling, inju- rious efTect of the piercing blast upon the opened steaming pores of the skin. Wliile the animal is in action, a sufficient supply of heat is obtained by the effect of that action on the capillaries, and the increased development of temperature; but when the action is suspended, some clothing, natural or artificial, something through which the animal heat shall not escape, is absolutely necessary to prevent the chilling of the frame, the exhaustion of vital power, and the dangerous re-action of fever. COLOUR. The colour of the hair admits of every variety, and each colour becomes in turn fashionable. The colour of the hair, like that of the skin, is influ- enced by, or depends on, that of the mucous mesh-work under tlie cuticle. There are comparatively few perfectly white horses now remaining. The snow-white palfrey, with its round carcase, and barb head, originally from Spain, or perhaps from Barbary, and rarely exceeding the size of a Gal- loway, is now nearly extinct. Some yet remain in the possession of the Duke of Montrose. They are of good constitution, and pleasant in their paces. The majority of white horses are those that have become so. Light-grey colts begin to grow white before they are five years old, espe- cially if they have not much dark mixture about the joints. Grey horses are of different shades, from the lightest silver to a dark iron grev. The silver grey reminds the observer of the palfrey, improved by an admixture of Arab blod. He does not often exceed fourteen hands and a half high, and is round carcased — light legged — with oblique pasterns, calculated for a light carriage, or for a lady's riding — seldom subject to disease — but not very fleet, or capable of hard work. The iron grev is usually a larger horse; higher in the withers, deeper and thinner in the carcase, more angular in all his proportions, and in many cases a little too long in the legs. Some of these greys make good hackneys and hunters, and especially the Irish horses; but they are princi- pally used for the carriage. They have more endurance than the flat- 370 THE HORSE. noss of the chest vvou promise; but their princival defect is their feet, wnich are liable to contraction, and yet that contraction not so often accom- panied by lameness as in many other horses. The dappled grey is generally a handsomer and a better horse: all the angular points of the iron grey are filled up, and with that which not only adds to symmetry, but to use. Whether as a hackney, or the larger variety, a carriage-horse, there are few better, especially since hia form has been so materially improved, and so much of his heaviness got rid of, by the free use of foreign blood. There are not, however, so many dappled greys as there used to be, since the bays have been bred with so much care. The dappled grey, if dark at first, generally retains his colour to old age. Some of the greys approach to a nutmeg, or even bay colour. Many of these are handsome, and most of them are hardy. The roans of every variety of colour and form, are composed of white mixed with bay or red, or black. In some it seems to be a natural mix- ture of the colours; in others it appears as if one colour was powdered or sprinkled over another. They are pretty horses for ladies or light carriages, and many of them easy in their paces, but they do not usually display much blood, nor are they celebrated for endurance. If they should have white fore-legs, with white hoofs, they are too often tender-footed, or become so with even a little hard work. The strawberry horse is a mixture of sorrel with white; usually hand- some and pleasant, but more celebrated for these qualities than for strength and endurance. The pied iiorse is one that has distinct spots or patches of different colours, but almost invariably of white with some other colour. They are not liked as hackneys, on account of their peculiarity of colour, nor in teams of horses; but they look well when tolerably matched io a phaeton or light carriage. Their value must depend on their breed ; but of them- selves they have no peculiar character, except that a white leg and foot is as suspicious in them as it is in the roan. The dun, of the Galloway size, and with considerable blood, is often attached to the curricle or the phaeton; but the larger is a true farmer's or miller's horse, with no great speed, and not always extraordinary strength, and sometimes a little of a drone, yet a good-tempered, good- feeding, good-constitutioned, useful horse enough. Varieties of the dun, shaded with a darker colour, or dappled, and with some breeding, and not standing too high, are very beautiful, and are sought after for light-carriages, and particularly for ladies to drive. The cream-colour of Hanoverian extraction, with his white iris and red pupil, is appropriated to royal use. Atttached to the state-carriage of the monarch, he is a superb animal. His bulky, yet perfectly-formed body, his swellnig crest, and his proud and lofty action, as if conscious of his office, qualify him for the service which is exacted from him, but we have no ex-perience how far he would suit other purposes. Of the chesnuts there are three varieties — the lightest red or the sorrel, usually with white about them, either on the face or the legs — • generally lightly made, yet some of them bulky enough for the licaviest loads. Their colour is generally considered objectionable. Many of them nave no breeding at all, and the best bred are supposed to be somewliat deficient in endurance. The light chesnut, with less red and a little more bay or brown, is con- sidered as a preferable horse, especially if he has no white about him, or only a small portion of it; yet even he, although pleasant to ride, is some. COLOUR. jrj aines (rri'anle, and generally weak. We must except one rariety, the Suffolk punch; a heavy horse, and adapted for slow work, but perfect in his kini:, which no labour can daunt, no fatigue overcome. This is a breed now, unibrtuuately, nearly extinct. The present variety, however crossed, is not equal to the old Suiiblk. The dark-chesnut is as different a horse from the hackney light-chesnut as can be easily imagined; round in the carcase, powerful in the quarters but rather fine in the legs: possessed of great endurance, and with a con stilution that rarely knows an ailment, except that the feet are small, and disposed to contraction, and that accompanied by lameness, and that tht horse is too often of a hot and unmanageable temper. Of the bays, there are many varieties, and they include the very best of our horses of every description. The bright yellow bay, although very beautiful, and especially if his mane and tail are black, is the least valuable, because the lightness of his colour seems to give him some tenderness of constitution. The proper bay, with no white about him, and black from the knees and the hocks to the feet, is the most desirable of all colours; he has generally a good constitution, naturally good feet, and if his conforma- tion is not faulty, will turn out a valuable horse for almost every purpose. As we approach to the brown, we find in the bay- brown not always so much show and action, but more strength and endurance, and more use- fulness. He usually has more substance than the lighter bay, and more depth of leg ; and, could we find the same degree of breeding, he wouk' be as handsome, and more valuable. A good bay-brown or a brown horse, with a sufficient quantity of blood, is indeed a good horse. When, however, we arrive at the browns, it is necessary to examine the degree of breeding. This colour is not so fashionable, and therefore these horses have been considerably neglected. There are many good ones, and' those that are good are valuable; but many of them are only a half or a quarter bred, and therefore comparatively coarse, yet useful for the saddle and for harness, for slow work, and occasionally for that which is more rapid. The black-brown is generally more neglected so far as its breed la concerned, and deserves to be examined more carefully. It frequently,, however, retains much of the goodness of constitution of the brown and' bay-brown. Of the black greater care has been taken. The heavy black of Lincoln- shire and the midland counties, is a noble animal, and would be almost, beyond price if he could be rendered more active. The next in size form, the majority of our waggon-horses, and perhaps our best; and on a. smaller breed still, and to the improvement of which much attention has been devoted, many of our cavalry are mounted. A few black thorough- bred horses and black hunters have been seen, but the improvement of horses of this colour has not been studied, except for the purposes that have been mentioned. Their peculiar high action, while not unobjectionable for draught, and desirable for the parade, would be unbearable in the roadster, and some have said,' that black horses are more subject to vice, disease, and blindness, than any other colour. This charge is not, perhaps,, true to its full extent, but there certainly are a great many worthless black horses in every part of the country. After all, there is an old saying, that a good horse cannot be of a bad' colour; and it is far more necessary to attend to the conformation and points of the horse than to his colour. These observations, however, although they admit of many exceptions, may be useful in guiding to the judicious purchase of t e horse. Bb 378 THE HORSE. SURFEIT. Large pimples or lumps often suddenly appear on tlie skin of the norse, aid especially in the spring; and occasionally they disappear as quickly as they came. Sometimes they seem to be attended with great itching, but at others they appear not in the least to annoy the animal. When they have remained a lew days, the cuticle frequently peels oft", and a small scaly spot, though rarely a sore, is left. This is called a surfeit, from its resemblance to some eruptions on the skin of the human being, when indigestible or unwholesome food has been taken. These lumps are in some cases confined to the neck; but they oftener spread over the sides, back, loins, and quarters. The cause is enveloped in some obscurity. The disease most frequently appears when the skin is irritable, during or after the process of moulting, and when it sympathizes most with any dis- order of the stomach; therefore, some veterinary surgeons have attributed it to indigestion. It has been known to follow the eating of poisonous herbs or mowburnt hay, but much oftener it is to be traced to exposure to cold when the skin was previously irritable and the horse heated by exercise; it has also been attributed to the immoderate drinking of cold water when the animal was hot. It is obstruction of some of the pores of the skin and swelling of the surrounding substance, either from primary affection of tlie skin, or from its sympathy with the digestive organs. Bleeding will always be beneficial — from three to five quarts may be taken, according to the strength of the horse, the extent of the eruption, and the degree of fever. Physic never does good. If surfeit be con- nected with some unhealthy affection of the stomach or intestines, it is that which the nausea or subsequent action of the purgative increases. Alteratives will be found useful — and particularly the alterative which was recommended for hide-bound (p. 371), and in the same doses. These should be given on several successive nights. The night is better than the morning, because the warmth of the stable will cause the antimony and sulphur to act more powerfully on the skin. The horse should be warmly clothed — half an hour's walking exercise should be given, an additional rug having been thrown over him — such green meat as can be procured should be used in moderate quantities, and the chill should be taken from the water. Although the eruption may disappear after the bleeding, and that very quickly, it will, if the horse be exposed to cold, come out again as suddenly, and as extensively as before. It will rarely, however, be advisable to repeat the bleeding. Should the lumps, after several of these alternate appearances and dis- appearances, remain, and the cuticle and the hair begin extensively to peel off, a worse affection is to be feared, for it is far from unusual for surfeit to precede or degenerate into mange. The disorder, therefore, shall next oe considered. MANGE Is a pimpled or lumpy eruption. After a while the vesicle breaks, the cuticle and the hair fall off, and there is, as in obstinate surfeit, a bare epot left covered with scurf; but some fluid oozes from the skin beneath, and this scurfiness changes to a scab, which likewise soon peels '"fC, and leaves a wider spot: sometimes another scab succeeds to the first, but oftener, a mere scaly, greasy-feeling, bare spot remains. '1 his is attended with considerable itching and tenderness, and thickening of the skh\, M'hich MANGE. 379 soon becomes more or less folded or puckered. The mange generally firsl appears on the neck, at the root of the mane, and its existence may he pretty truly ascertained, even befoi'e the blotches appear, and when there is only considerable itchiness of the part, by the ease with whicli the short hair at the root of the mane is plucked out. From the neck it spreads upward to the head, or downward to the withers and back, and occasionally extends over the whole carcase of the horse. One cause of it, altliough an unfrequent one, has been stated to be neg- lected or inveterate surfeit. The more common cause is contagion. Amid the whole list of diseases to which the horse is exposed, there is not one more liighly contagious tiian mange. If it once gets into a stable, it spreads through it," for the'slightest contact seems to be sufficient for the communi- cation of this noisome complaint. If the same brush or currycomb be used on all the horses, the propaga- tion of mange is assured; and horses feeding in the same pasture with a mangy one rarely escape, from the propensity they have to nibble one another. Man<'-e in cattle has been propagated to the horse, and from the horse to cattle, but there is no authenticated instance of the same disease in the dog being communicated to the horse. There is as much difference in the character and appearance of mange in the horse and dog, as between either of them and the itch in the human subject; and the itch has never been communicated to the quadruped, nor the mange of the quadruped to the human being. Mange has been said to originate in want of cleanliness in the manage- ment of the stable. The comfort and health of the horse demand the strictest cleanliness. The eyes and the lungs frequently suffer from the noxious fumes of the putrefying dung and urine; but, in defiance of com- mon prejudice, there is no authentic instance of mange being the result. It may, however, proceed from poverty. When the animal is half-starved, and the functions of digestion and the powers of the constitution are weakened, we have seen, in the cases of hide-bound and surfeit, that the skin soon sympathizes, and we can imagine that mange may occasionally be produced instead of surfeit and hide-bound. Every farmer has proof enough of this being the case. If a horse is turned on a common, where there is scarcely sutficient herbage to sutisfy his appetite, or if he is placed in one of those straw-yards, which under the management of mercenary and unfeeling men, are the very abodes of misery, the animal comes up a skeleton, and he comes up mangy too. Poverty and starvation are fruitful sources of mange, but it does not appear that tilth has much to do with it, although poverty and filth generally go hand in hand. The propriety of bleeding in cases of mange must depend on the con- dition of tlie patient. If niange be the result of poverty, and the animal is much debilitated, bleeding will be adding power to the cause of the disease. Physic, however, is indispensable. It is the first step in the progress towards cure. A mercurial ball will be preferable to a common aloetic one, as more certain and effectual in its operation, and the mercury having probably some influence in mitigating the disease. In this, however, mange in the horse resembles the itch in the human being — that medicine alone will never effect a cure. There must be some local application. There is this further similarity, that that which is most effectual in curing this disgrace- ful complaint in man, must form the basis of every local apj)lication as it regards the horse. Sulphur is indispensable in every unguent for mange; it is the sheet-anchor of the veterinary surgeon. Tn an earlv, and not very acute state of mange, one ounce of the flowers •f sulphur, snoi dd be well rubbed down with an equal quantity of tra.n 380 THE HORSE. ^■hI, and iiaH i n ounce of common turpentine. Farriers are fond of the lilack sulphur, but that wiiich consists of eartiiy matter, with the mere dregs of the sulj^hur, cannot be so etTectual as the flowers, which are pure sublimed sulphur. A tolerably stout brush, or even a currycomb, lightlv appl'ed, should be used wherever there is any appearance of mange, to remove the dandriffor scurf. After that, the horse should be washed with strong soap and water as far as the disease has extended; and when he has been thoroughly dried, the ointment should be well rubbed in with the naked hand, or with a piece of flannel. More good will be done by a little of the ointment being well rubbed in, than by a great deal being merely smeared over the part. The rubbing should be daily repeated. The sul- phur seems to have a direct influence on the disease — the turpentine has an indirect one, by exciting some irritation on the skin of a different nature to that produced by the mange, and under the influence of which the irrita- tion of mange will be diminished, and the disease more easily combated. During the application of the ointment, as soon as the physic has set, an alterative ball or powder similar to those recommended for the other affections of the skin, should be daily given. If, after some days have passed, no progress should appear to have been made, half a pound of sulphur may be well mixed with a pint of oil of tar, or, if that is not to be obtained, a pint of Barbadoes tar, and the affected parts rubbed as before. On every fifth or sixth day the ointment should be washed off" with warm soap and water. The progress towards cure will be ascertained; the skin will be cleansed, and its pores opened, for the more effectual application of the ointment. The horse should be well supplied with nourishing, but not stimulating food. As much green meat as he will eat should be given him, or, what is far better, he should be turned out, if the weather is not too cold. It may be useful to add, that, after the horse has been once well dressed with either of these liniments, the danger of contagion ceases. It is necessary, however, to be assured that every mangy place has been anointed. It will be prudent to give two or three dressings after the horse has been cured apparently, and to continue the alteratives for ten days or a fortnight. The cure being completed, the clothing of the horse should be well soaked in water, to which a fortieth part of the saturated solution of the chloride of lime has been added ; after which, it should be washed with soap and water, and again washed and soaked in a solution of the chloride of lime, as before. Every part of the harness should undergo a similar purifica- tion. The currycomb may be scoured, but the brush should be burnt. The rack, and manger, and partitions, and every part of tlie stable which the horse could possibly have touched, should be well washed with a hair broom, a pint of the chloride of lime being added to three gallons of water. All the wood-work should then be scoured with soap and water, after which a second washing with the chloride of lime and water will render all secure. Some farmers have pulled down their stables when they have been thoroughly infected with mange. This is being unnecessarily cautious. The efficacy of the chloride of lime was not then known: and if it is carefully and sufficiently applied to every part of the stable and its furniture, there cannot afterwards be danger. Every case of itchiness of the skin should be regarded with suspicion. When the horse is seen to rub the root of his tail, or his head or neck, against the manger, the parts should be carefully examined. Some of the hair may have been rubbed or torn off", but if the roots remain firmiy adherent, and tb ;re be only redness and not scurfiness of the skin, it prob- MEDICINES. 381 ably is not mange, but only inflammation of the skin, from too great fullness of blood. A little blood should be taken away — a purgative administered, and the alteratives given. The mange ointment cannot do harm, and may possibly prevent this heat of the skin from degenerating into mange, or stop the progress of mange, if it has commenced. If a scurli. ness of skin should appear on any of tlie points that are pressed upon by the collar or harness, the veterinary surgeon will do right to guard against danger, by alterative medicine and the use of tlie ointment. WARTS These are tumours of variable size, arising first from the cuticle, and afterward? connected with the true skin by means of the vessels which supply the growth of tlie tumours. They are found sometimes on the eye- lids, on various parts of the skin, and on the prepuce. They must be removed by an operation. If the root be very small, it may be snipped asunder with a pair of scissors, close to the skin, and the root touched with the lunar caustic. If the pedicle or stem be somewhat larger, a ligature of waxed silk may be passed firmly round it, and tightened every day. The source of nutriment being thus cut olf, the tumour will, in a few days, die and drop off. If they are large, or in considerable clusters, it will be necessary to cast the horse, to cut them off close to the skin, and sear the root with a red-hot iron. Unless these precautions are used, the warts will speedily sprout again. CHAPTER XXIII. A LIST OF THE MEDICINES USED IN THE TREATMENT OF THE DISEASES OF THE HORSE. He vvill rarely consult his own interest, who, not having had the advantage of a veterinary education, undertakes the treatment of any of the serious diseases of his horses. Many of the maladies of the horse so nearly resemble each other — and are so continually varying their character, and require, in tlieir different stages, so different a treatment; and in the plainest case, not only the characteristic symptoms of disease are obscure, i)ut even the indications of returning health, or increasing danger, often scarcely ascertainable — so that the sick horse, as well as the human being, needs the care of one whom study and experience have qualified for the task. A list, however, of the drugs generally used, with a slight account of their history, adulterations, and medicinal effects, will be interesting to the horse-proprietor as well as to the veterinary surgeon ; and may occa- sionally be useful when professional aid cannot be obtained. Aloes. — There are two kinds used in horse practice, the Barbadoes and the Cape. The Socotorine, preferred by the human surgeon, are very uncertain in their efi'ect on the horse. Of the Barbadoes and the Cape, the first are much to be preferred. The Barbadoes aloes are obtained princi- pally from the island of Barbadoes, and are the juice of the large leaves of the aloe boiled to a considerable thickness, and then poured into gourds, in which they gradually harden. The true Cape is the extract of a ppecies of aloes chiefly cultivated at the Cape of Good Hope. Tlie Socotorine aloes are of a brown colour, inclining to red, at A brittle. 382 THE HORSE. Tlie BuoaJoes aloes are black, with a shade of brown, of an unctuous feeling, wiii a stronger smell, broken with difficulty, and the fracture dull. The Cape are darker coloured, stronger smelling, very brittle, and the fracture pei'feclly glossy. Every person who uses much aloes should buy them in the mass, and powder them himself, and then, by attending to this account of the diflerence of the three, he can scarcely be imposed upon. Aloes purchased in powder are too often sadly adulterated. The Cape may be powdered at all times, and the Barbadoes in frosty weathei when enough may be prepared, to be kept in closed bottles, for the year's consumption. They may also be powdered when they have been taken from tlie gourd, and exposed to a gentle heat for two or three hours before they are put into the mortar. Fifteen ounces of the powder, mixed with one ounce of powdered ginger, and beaten up with eight ounces of palm oil, and afterwards divided into the proper doses, will form a purging mass more effectual, and much less likely to gripe, than any that can be procured by melting the drug. If the physic is given in the shape of ball, it more readily dissolves in the stomach, and more certainly and safely acts on the bowels when made up with some oily matter, like that just recommended, than when combined with syrup or honey, which are apt to ferment, and be themselves the cause of gripes. It is also worse than useless to add any diuretic to the mass, as soap, or carbonate of soda. The action of these on one set of organs will weaken the action of the aloes on another. A physic mass should never be kept more than two or three months, for after that time it rapidly loses its purgative property. Directions for physicking will be found at p. 210. We will only add that, as a promoter of condition, the dose should always be mild. A few fluid stools will be sufficient for every good purpose. Violent disease will alone justify violent purging. Three drachms of Barbadoes aloes will have as much purgative power as four of the Cape, exclusive of griping less and being safer. If the horse is well mashed, and carefully exercised, and will drink plenty of warm water, the Cape may be ventured on, or at least mixed with equal quantities of the Barbadoes; but if there be any neglect of preparation for physic, or during the usual operation of the physic, the Cape are not to be depended upon, and may be dangerous. Some persons are fond of what are called half-doses of physic. Three or four drachms -are given in one day, and three or four on the following, and perhaps, if the medicine has operated, as in this divided state it will not always, two or three additional drachms are given on the third day The consequence is*, that the bowels having been rendered irritable by the former doses, the horse is over-purged, and inflammation, and death no' unfrequently ensue, when the effect of the three becomes combined. In physicking a horse, whatever is to be done, should be done at once. What- ever quantity is intended to be given, should be given in one dose. The system of giving small doses of alo(;s as alteratives is not good These repeated small doses lodging in some of the folds of the intestines. and at length uniting, often produce more effect than is desirable; and il is never safe to ride a horse far or fast, with even a small dose of aloes within him. Most of all objectionable is the custom of giving small dosps of aloes a.^^ a nauseant, in inflammation of the lungs. There is so much sympathy between the contents of the chest and the belly of the horse, and inflam- mation of one part is so likely to be transferred to another, that it is tread- ing on very dangerous ground, when, with much inflammation of the lun^s, that is given which will stimulate and may inflar^e the intestines. MEDICINES. 38Jk Aloe's are most commonly, because most easily, administered in ilie form of ball, but in a state of solution their effect is more speedy, effect, ual, and safe. Two ounces of aloes, and one ounce of gum (to suspend the imperfectly dissolved portion of the aloes), are put into a pmt of boiling water, and the mixture frequently stirred. When it is cold, two ounces of tincture are added, as an aromatic, to prevent the griping of the aloes, and also to keep the mixture from fermenting. The aloes must not be boiled in the water; even five minutes' boiling would take away much of the purgative effect of the drug. The dose of the solution should vary from six to eight ounces. Aloes are useful in the form of tincture. Eight ounces of powdered aloes, and one ounce of powdered myrrh, should be put into two quarts o""' rectified spirit, diluted with an equal quantity of water. The mixture sliould be daily well shaken for a fortnight, and then suffered to stand, that the undissolved portion may fall to the bottom. This will constitute a very excellent application for wounds, whether recent or of long standing, and indisposed to heal. It is not only a gentle stimulant, but it forms a thin crust over the wound, and shields it from the action of the air. The principal adulteration of aloes is by means of resin, and the altera tion of colour is concealed by the addition of charcoal, or lamp black. This adulteration is easily enough detected, by dissolving the aloes in hot water. All aloes contain some resinous matter, which the water will not dissolve, and which has a very slight purgative effect. The excess of this resin at the bottom of the solution will mark the degree of adulteration. Alteratives are a class of medicines the nature and effect of wnich are much misunderslood, and which are liable to much abuse. It is a very con- venient name to excuse that propensity to dose the horse with medicines, which is the disgrace of the groom and the bane of the stable. By alteratives we understand those drugs which effect some slow change in the diseased action of certain parts without interfering with the food or work ; but by common consent the term seems to be confined to medicines for the diseases of the circulation, or of the digestive organs, or of the skin. If a horse is heavy and incapable of work from too good keep, or if he is off his food from some temporary indigestion — or if he has mange or grease, or cracked heels, or swelled legs, a few alteratives are pre. scribed, and the complaint is gradually and imperceptibly removed. For all skin affections there is no better alterative than that so often recommended in this treatise, consisting of black antimony, nitre, and sulphur. If there is any tendency to grease, two drachms of resin may be added to each ball. If the complaint be accompanied by weakness, a little gentian and ginger may be further added, but we enter our protest against the ignorant use, and almost against the use in the most skilful hands, of mercury in any form, or any of the mineral acids or mineral tonics, or heating spices as alteratives. We indeed should be pleased if we could banish the term alterative altogether. The mode of proceeding which reason and science would dictate is to ascertain the nature and degree of the disease, and then the medicine which is calculated to restore the healthy action of the part, or, of the frame generally. Alu3I is occasionally used internally in cases of super-purgation in the form of alum-whey, two drachms of the powder being added to a pint of hot milk; but there are much better astringents, although this may succeed when others fail. If alum is added to a vegetable astringent, as oak-bark, the power of both is diminished. Its principal use is external. A solution of two drachms to a pint of water forms alone, or with a scruple of white vitriol, a very useful wash for cracked heels, and for 384 THE HORSE. grease generally ; and also tor those forms of swelled legs attended with exudation of moisture through the skin. Some add the Goulard lotion, forgetting the chemical decomposition that takes place; the result of which is, that the alumine, possessing little aslringency, is detached, and two salts with no astringency at all, the sulphate of lead, and the sulphate of Dotash, are formed. The Burnt Alum is inferior to the common alum for the purposes men- .ioned, and we have better stimulants, or caustics, to apply to wounds. Ammonia is, to the annoyance of the horse, and the injury of his eyes and his lungs, plentifully extricated from the putrefying dung and urine of the stable; but when combined with water in the common form of harts- horn, it is seldom used in veterinary practice. It has been given, and with decided benefit, and when other things have failed, in flatulent colic; and is best administered in the form of the aromatic spirit of ammonia, and in doses of one or two ounces, in warm water. Chloride of Abimonia, or sal ammoniac is scarcely deserving of a place in our list. It is not now used internally ; and as an astringent embrocation, it must yield to several that are more effectual, and less likely to blemish. Anodynes. — Of these there is but one in horse practice. Opium is the only drug that will lull pain. It may be given as an anodyne, but it will also be an astringent in doses of one, two, or three drachms. Antimony. — There are several valuable preparations of this metal. The Black Sulphuret of Antimony, a compound of sulphur and antimony, is a good alterative. It is given with more sulphur and with nitre, in varying doses, according to the disease and the slow or rapid effect intended to be produced. The maximum dose, and especially if it is to be continued, should not exceed four drachms. It should never be bought in powder, whatever trouble there may be in levigating it, for it is often grossly adulterated with lead, manganese, forge-dust, and arsenic. The adulteration may be detected by placing a little of the powder on a red-hot iron plate. The pure sulphuret will evaporate without the slightest residue — so will the arsenic, but there will be an evident smell of garlic; a portion of the lead and the manganese will be left behind. Emetic Tartar — the tartrate of potash and antimony, or a combination of super-tartrate of potash and oxide of antimony, is a very useful nauseant, and has considerable effect on the skin. It is particularly valuable in inflammation of the lungs, and in every catarrhal affection. It is given in doses of one drachm, or one drachm and a half, and combined with nitre and digitalis. It is also beneficial in the expulsion of worms. Here it must be given in doses of two drachms, and with some mechanical vermifuge, as tin-filings, or ground-glass, and administered on an empty stomacli, and for several successive days. Although it may sometimes fail to expel the worm, it materially improves the condition of the horse, and produces sleekness of the coat. To a slight degree the emetic tartar is decomposed by the action of light, and should be kept in a jar, or green bottle. It is sometimes adulterated with arsenic, which is detected by the garlic smell when it is placed on hot iron, and also by its not giving a beautiful gold-coloured precipitate when sulphuret of ammonia is added to a solution of it. Antimonial Powder — Powder of oxide of antimony, with phosphate of lime. This is the factitious James's powder, and is used as a yub^titute for that medicine in many diseases of a febrile character. The dose is from one to two drachms. The late Mr. Bloxam used to trus' to it alone MEDICINES. 385 in the treatment of epidemic catarrh in the horse, and he was very suc- cessful. It is, however, decidedly inferior to the emetic tartar. This, too, is adulterated with chalk, and plaster of Paris, and burnt bones, and other white powders, and that to so shameful a degree, that little dependence cart* be placed on the antimonial powder usually sold by druggists. Muriatic or sulphuric acid will detect most of these adulterations. Chloride of antimony is formed by distilling corrosive sublimate with antimony. The butter-like matter which is produced (whence the common name, Buiyr of Antimony) has a strong affinity for water, which h attracts from the atmosphere, and thus becomes converted into a fluid. The h^ss water it is sutTered to attract to itself, the more powerful it remains, and therefore it should be kept in stopped bottles; and the proof of its goodness is its weight. It is decidedly the best liquid caustic we have; it is most manageable, and its effect can most readily be ascertained. As soon as it touches any muscular or living part, a change of colour is per- ceived on the part ; and the effect of the caustic can be fairly judged of by the degree of change. For corns, canker, indisposition in the sole to secrete good horn, wounds in the foot not attended by healthy action, and. for every case where the superficial application of a caustic is needed, the chloride of antimony is unrivalled. Anti-spasmodics. Of these our list is scanty, for the horse is subject only to few spasmodic diseases, and there are fewer medicines which have an anti-spasmodic effect. Opium stands first for its general power, and that exerted particularly in locked jaw; and oil of turpentine as almost a specific for spasms of the bowels: camphor assafoetida, and various others, used on the human subject, have very doubtful effect in the horse, or may be considered as almost inert. Arsenic. Were it not that some practitioners continue to use it as a tonic, in doses of from ten to twenty grains daily, and others use it to core out old ulcers, we would not include it in our list, for we have little faith in it. There are better and safer tonics, and far better and safer caustics. The method of detecting the presence of arsenic, in cases of poisoning, has been described at page 200. Astringents are medicines that contract the living fibres, and thus close the mouths of small vessels, and restrain inordinate and dangerous dis- charges. Opium, alum, and catechu are powerful astringents in arresting intestinal and urinary evacuations; and alum and the superacetate of lead are astringents applied externally. Balls. The usual and the most convenient mode of administering many medicines is in the form of balls, compounded with oil, and not with honey or syrup, on account of their longer keeping soft and more easily dissolving in the stomach. Balls sho'uld never weigh more than an ounce and a half, or two ounces, otherwise they will be so large as to pass with difficulty down the gullet. Tliey should not be more than an inch in diameter and three inches in length. The mode of delivering balls is not difficult to acquire; and the balling iron, while it often wounds and permanently injures the bars, occasions the horse to struggle more than ne otherwise would against the administration of the ball. The horse should be backed in the stall; the tongue should be drawn gently put with /he left hand on tiie off-side of the mouth, and there fixed, not by con- tinuing to pull at it, but by pressing the finger against tiie side of the 'ower jaw. The ball, being now taken between the tips of the fingers of the right hand, is passed rapidly up the mouth, as near to the palate aa oossible, until it reaches the root of the tongue; it is then delivered with \ Slight jerk, and the hand being immediately withdrawn and toe tongue 386 THE HORSE. libejuieo, ihc ball is forced through the pharynx into the ajsophagus. Its passage should be watched down tiie left side of the throat; and if it ia not seen going down, a sliglit tap or blow under the chin will generally •cause the horse to swallow, or a few gulps of water will carry it down. Jf the gullet should be small or strictured, and the ball should remain in some part of it, the method of removing it has been described in page 162. Blisters are applications to the skin which separate the cuticle in the form of vesicles containing a serous fluid. They excite increased action in the vessels of the skin, by means of which this fluid is thrown out. The part or neighbouring parts are somewhat relieved by this discharge, but more by the inflammation and pain wliich are produced, and which lessen the inflammation and pain previously existing in some contiguous part. On this principle we account for the decided relief often obtained by blisters in inflammation of the lungs; their efficacy in abating deeply- seated inflammation, as that of sprain of the tendons, ligaments, or joints; and the necessity of removing first, in these latter cases, the superficial inflammation caused by the sprain, tiiat inflammation of a different kind may be excited instead of it, to which tlie deeply-seated inflammation of the part will be more likely to yield. The blisters used in horse-practice are composed only of cantharides or the oil of turpentine, to which some have added a tincture of the croton-nut. The method of forming the best blister is mentioned at page 186. Bole Armenian is an argillaceous earth combined with iron, and ia supposed to possess some astringent property. The propriety of its being best administered inwardly is doubtful; for it may remain in the intestinal canal, and become the nut of a stone. On account of its supposed astringency, it is employed externally to give consistence to ointments for grease. Even the bole Armenian has not escaped the process of adulteration, and is largely mixed with inferior earths. The fraud may be suspected, but not satisfactorily detected, by the colour of the powder, which should be a bright red. Burgundy Pitch. — See Resin. Calamine. — See Zinc. Calomel. — See Mercury. Camphor is the produce of one of the laurus species, a native of Japan, and is imitated by passing a stream of chlorine through oil of turpentine. The efficacy of this drug when used internally is very doubtful. The camphor ball is a favourite with the groom, and occasionally administered by the veterinary surgeon, but, seemingly, with no definite object, for it has not been yet determined whether it is to be considered as a sedative, anti-spasmodic, or stimulant. It is, however, a stimulant, when applied externally. In the form of camphorated oil, it promotes the absorption of fluids thrown out beneath the skin, the removal of old callus, and the suppleing of joints stitf from labour. Combined witii oil of turpentine it is more efl'ective, but in that combination it occasionally blemishes. Cantharides are the basis of the most approved and useful veterinary blisters. The cantharis is a fly, the native of Italy, and the south of France, destroyed by sulphur, dried and powdei'ed and mixed with palm oil and resin, in the proportions directed at page 186. Its action is intense, and yet superficial; it plentifully raises the cuticle, but never injures the true skin, and therefore never blemishes. The application of other acrid substances is occasionally followed by deep-seated ulcerations; but a blister, composed of the Spanish fly alone, whiie it does it-= duty, leaves, after a few weeks have passed, scarcely a trace behind. The art of blistering consists in cutting, or rather shaving the hair pertoctly close — MEDICINES. 38"? ihen well rubbing in the ointment, for at least ten minutos — and afterwards and what is of the greatest consequence of all, plastering a little more ot the ointment lightly over the part, and leaving it. As soon as the vesic.er have perfectly risen, which will be in twenty or twenty-four hours, thf torture of ths animal may be somewhat relieved by the application of olive or neat's-foot oil, or any emolient ointment. When too extensive a blister has been employed, or, from the intensity of the original inflammation, the blister has not risen, (for no two intense inflammations can exist in neighbouring parts at the same time,) strangury, or great difficulty in passing urine, or even suppression of it, has occurred. The careful washing off' of the blister, and the administration of plenty of warm water, with opium, and bleeding, if the symptoms run high, will generally remove this unpleasant effect. An infusion of two ounces of the flies in a pint of oil of turpentine, for several days, is occasionally used as a liquid blister; and when sufficiently lowered with common oil, it is called a siveat/rig oil, for it maintains a cer- tain degree of irritation and inflammation on the skin, but not sufficient to blister, and thus gradually abates or removes some old or deep inflamma- tion, or cause of lameness. Cantharides have lately been recommended to be given internally, in doses, daily, or twice in the day, of five grains, and increasing the dose to fifteen grains, for the cure of glanders. The experiments are yet too few and indecisive to admit of any satisfactory conclusion. In these doses the fly has not been injurious, and the experiments are considered as well worth prosecuting. Carraways. — These and ginger are retained as the only cordials requi- site for the horse. Castor Oil is here introduced again to warn the horse-owner and the practitioner against the too frequent use of it. If it is a purgative in the horse, it must be given in the enormous and expensive doses of a pound or a pound and a half; even then, it is uncertain in its effect — often gripes, and is unsafe and dangerous. Catechu, Japan earth, yet no earth, but extracted from the wood of one of the acacia trees, is a very useful astringent. It is given in super-pur- gation, in doses of one or two drachms, with one or one and a half drachm of opium, as a yet more powerful astringent ; four drachms of chalk, to neutralize any acid in the stomach or bowels, and two drachms of pow- dered gum being also added, to sheath the over-irritated mucous coat of the intestines. It is not often adulterated in our country, but grossly so abroad — fine sand and aluminous earth being mixed with the extract. It should not be given with any alkali, yet the prescription just recommended contains chalk. But although the chalk, being an alkali, weakens the astringencyof the catechu, it probably neutralizes some acid in the stomach or bowels, which would have diminished the power of the catechu to a greater degree. It must not be given in conjunction with any metallic salt, for the tannin or gallic acid, on which its power chiefly or entirely depends, has an affmity for all metals, and will unite with them, and form a gallate of them, possessing little astringent energy. Common ink is the union of this tannin principle with iron. A tincture of catechu is sometimes made by macerating three ounces of the powder in a quart of spirit for a fortnight. It is a very excellent application for healing wounds; and, with the aloes, constitutes all that we want of a balsamic nature for the purpose of hastening the curative pro- .^ess, and establishing soundness. Caustics. — Those are sometimes necessary to destroy fungous excres- 3gS THE HORSE. cences, or stiiiiukte indolent ulcers, or remove portions of cellular suIk stance or muscle infected by any poison. They are the bulyr of antimony — blue vitriol — verdigris — corrosive sublimate — lunar caustic, and suU phuric acid. See these different substances. Chalk is used only in combination with catechu for suj)erpurgation, and in the proportions directed under the article Catechu. The prepared or levigated chalk is generally preferred. Chamomile — The powder of the flower is a useful vegetable tonic, and the mildest in our list. It is given in doses of one or two drachms, and is exhibited in the early stage of convalescence to ascertain whether the febrile stage of the disease is passed, and to prepare the way for a more powerful tonic, the gentian. If no acceleration of pulse, or heat of mouth, or indication of return of fever, accompanies the cautious use of tlie chamo- mile, the gentian, with carbonate of iron, may be safely ventured on ; but if the gentian had been used first, and a little too soon, there might have been a considerable, and, perhaps, dangerous return of fever. Charcoal is a useful antiseptic, and, mixed with a poultice, readily removes the foetid smell of unhealthy ulcers, or cracked heels. Charges are thick, adhesive plasters, spread over parts that have been strained or weakened, and, being applied to the skin warm, adhere for a considerable time. The following mixture makes a good charge — Bur- gundy or common pitch, five ounces ; tar, six ounces ; yellow wax, one ounce, melted together, and when they are becoming cool, half a drachm of powdered cantharides well stirred in. This must be partially melted afresh when applied, and put on the part with a large spatula, as hot as it can be, without giving the animal too much pain. Flocks of tow should be scattered over it while it is warm, and thus a thick and adhesive cover- ing will be formed, which cannot be separated from the skin for many months. This is applied for old sprains of the loins, and also strains of the back sinews. The charge acts in three ways — by the slight stimulant power which it possesses, it gradually removes all deep-seated inflamma- tion — by its stimulus and by its pressure, it promotes the absorption of any callus or tliickening beneath ; and, acting as a constant bandage, it gives lone and strength to the part. Clysters. — These are useful and too often neglected means of liastenmp the evacuation of the bowels, when the disease requires their speedy action. The old ox-bladder and wooden pipe may still be employed, and a considerable quantity of fluid may be thrown into the intestine ; but the patent stomach and clyster-pump of Mr. Reid is far preferable, as enabling the practitioner to inject a greater quantity of fluid, and in a less time, and has lately been introduced into general practice. Two ounces of soft or yellow soap, dissolved in a gallon of warm water, will form a useful aperient clyster ; it will detach or dissolve many irritat- ing substances tiiat may have adhered to the mucous coat of the bowels. For a more active aperient, eight ounces of Epsom salts, or even of connnon salt, may be dissolved in the same quantity of water; a more active injec- tion, but not to be used if much purgative medicine has been previously given, may be composed of an ounce of Barbadoes aloes, dissolved in two or three quarts of warm water. If nothing else can be procured, warm water may be employed ; it will act as a fomentation to the inflamed and •rritable surface of the bowels, and will have no inconsiderable effect even as an aperient. In cases of over-purging, or inflammation of the bowels, the injection must be of a soothing nature: it may consist of gruel alone; or ;f \he uurging be great, and difficult to stop, the gruel must be thicker, low MEDICINES. 353 ounces of prepared or powdered chalk being well mixed with or suspondeo in it, with two scruples or a drachm of powdered opium. No oil should enter into the composition of a clyster, except that linseed oil may be used for the expulsion of the ascarides, or needle- worms. In epidemic catarrh, when the horse sometimes obstinately refuses to eal or to drink, his strength may be supported by nourishing clysters ; but they should consist of thick gruel only, and not more than a quart should b^ administered at once, for a greater quantity would be returned soon aftei the pipe is withdrawn. Strong broths, and more particularly ale ana wine, are dangerous ingredients ; they may rapidly aggravate tiie fever, and should never be administered, but under the superintendence, or by the direction of a veterinary surgeon. The principal art of administering a clyster consists in not frightening the horse. The pipe, well oiled, should be very gently introduced, and the fluid not too hastily thrown up ; and its heat should be as nearly as possible that of the intestine, somewhere about ninety-six degrees of Fah- renheit's thermometer. Copper. — There are two combinations of this metal, which are much used in veterinary practice: the verdigris or subacetate, and the blue vitriol or sulphate. Verdigris is the common rust of copper, produced by vinegar, or any thing sour, or even common salt. It is given internally by some practi- tioners, in doses of two or three drachms daily, as a tonic, and particularly for the cure of farcy. It is, however, an uncertain and dangerous niedi- cine. The corrosive sublimate, with vegetable tonics, as recommended at page 130, is preferable. Verdigris is, however, usefully applied externally as a mild caustic. Either alone, in the form of fine powder, or mixed with an equal quantity of the sugar (superacetate) of lead, it eats down proud flesh, or stimulates old ulcers to healthy action ; when boiled with honey and vinegar, it constitutes the farriers' Egyptiacum, certainly of benefit in cankered or ulcerated mouth, and no bad application for thrushes; but yielding, as it regards both, to better remedies, which have been men- tioned under the proper heads. Some practitioners used alum and oil of vitriol in making their Egyptiacum, forgetting the strange decomposition which is produced. Blue Vitriol — Is the union of sulphuric acid and copper ; it is a very favourite tonic with many, and has been vaunted as a specific for glanders, while others, and we think properly, have no very good opinion of it in either respect. As a cure for glanders, its reputation is now nearly passed by ; as a tonic, when the horse is slowly recovering from severe illness, ii is dangerous, and its internal use should be confined to cases of long con- tinued discharge from the nose, wher catarrh or fever have ceased. It may then be given with benefit in doses of from one to two drachms twice in the day, but it should be combined with gentian and ginger. It is principally valuable as an external application, dissolved in water in the ])roportion of two drachms to a pint, and acts as a gentle stimulant ; but when an ounce is dissolved in the same quantity of water it becomes a mild caustic. In the former proportion, it rouses old ulcers to a healthy action, and disposes even recent wounds to heal more quickly than they otherwise would do; and in the latter it removes fungous granulations oi proud flesh. The blue vitriol is sometimes reduced to powder and sprinkled upon the wound for this purpose, and is a good application for canker in the foot. Cordials are useful or injurious according to the judgment with which they ar( given. When a horse comes home thoroughly exhausted and 3i)0 THE HORSE. refuses lus food, a cordial may be beneficial ; it may rouse the stomacn and the svstem, and may prevent cold and fever; but it is poison to the animal when administered after the cold is actually caught and fever begins to appear. More to be reprobated is the practice of giving frequait cor- dials, that, by their stimulus on the stomach, (the skin sympathising so much with the stomach,) a fine coat may be produced. Tiie artificial excitement of the cordial soon becomes as necessary to enable the horse to do even common work, as is the excitement of the dram to sustain the ani- mal spirits of the drunkard. To recall the appetite of the horse slowly recovering from illness, a cor- dial may sometimes be allowed ; or to old horses that have been worked hard and used to these excitements when young ; or to draught horses, that have exhibited slight symptoms of staggers, when their labour has been unusually protracted, and their stomachs left too long empty ; or mixed with diuretic medicine, to fine the legs of the overworked and debili- tated animal ; otherwise they should never find a place in the stable, or be used at the discretion of the carter or groom. The most harmless cordial, if abused, and the best if given with discretion, is composed of four parts each of carraway powder and bruised raisins, and two each of ginger and palm oil, well beaten into a mass. Corrosive Sublimate. — See Mercury. Cream of Tartar. — See Superacetate of Potash. Croton Tiglii. — The croton-nut has not been long introduced into veterinary practice, although it has been used from time immemorial by the inhabitants of India as a powerful purgative. An oil has been ex- tracted from it, and used by a surgeon; the meal is adopted by the veteri- narian. It is given in doses from a scruple to a half a drachm, and, from its acrid nature, in ball with an ounce of linseed meal. When it does operate, the eff*ect is generally observed in six or eight hours, and the stools are profuse and watery, and ihe patient frequently griped. On account of its quick operation, it. may be given in locked jaw and staggers; and also in dropsy of the chest or belly, from the watery and profuse stools it produces ; but it is often uncertain in its operation, and its griping and the debility it occasions are serious objections to it as common physic. A tur- pentine tincture of the powdered nut makes an active blister; but not so effectual or safe as the cantharides. Diuphoretics, are medicines that increase the sensible and insensible perspiration of the animal. (See page 373.) These, as it regards tlie horse, are neither many nor powerful. Antimony in its various forms (see page 334,) and sulphur, have some effect in opening the pores of the skin, and exciting its vessels to action, and especially when assisted by warmtii of stable or clothing, and therefore useful in those diseases where it is desirable that some portion of the blood should be diverted from the ov(^.rloaded, and inflamed, and vital organs of the chest, to the skin or the extremities ; but the only diaphoretics on which much confidence can be placed, and especially to produce condition, are warm clothing and good grooming. Digestives are applications to recent or old wounds, as mild stimulants to produce a healthy appearance and action in them, and to cause them more speedily to heal. A weak solution of blue vitriol is an excellent digestive; so is the tincture of aloes, and the tincture of myrrh. The best digestive ointment is one composed of three parts of the common calamine vintmcnt (Turner's cerate) and one of common turpentine. Digitalis. — The leaves of the common fox-glove, gathered abou* the flowering time, dried carefully in the dark, and powdered, and kept in « MEDICINES. 391 close black bottle, form one of the most valuable medicines in veterinary practice. It is a direct and powerful sedative, diminishing the frequency of the pulse, and the general irritability of the system, and acting also as a mild diuretic; it is therefore useful in every inflammatory and febrile complaint, and particularly in inflammation of the chest. It is usually given in combination with emetic tartar and nitre. The average dose would be one drachm of digitalis, one and a half of emetic tartar, and three of nitre, and repeated twice or thrice in the day. Digitalis seems to have an immediate effect on thfe heart, lessening the number of its pulsa- tions; but lessening them in a singular manner, not by causing it to beat more slowly, but by producing certain intermissions or pauses in its action. When these become marked; when at every sixth or seventh beat, the pulsations are suspended, while two or three could be slowly counted, this is precisely the effect which is intended to be produced ; and however ill the horse may appear to be, or however alarming this intermittent pulse may seem to the standers-by, from that moment the animal will begin to amend. The dose must then be diminished one-half, and in a few days it may be omitted altogether; but the emetic tartar and the nitre should be continued, even for some days after the practitioner deems it prudent to try the effect of mild vegetable tonics. There is no danger in the intermit- tent pulse thus produced ; but there is much danger when the digitalis fails to produce any effect on the circulation. The disease is then too powerful to be arrested by medicine. Digitalis requires watching; but the only consequence to be apprehended from an over-dose, is, that the patient may be reduced a little too low, and his convalescence retarded for a day or two. In the form of Infusion or tincture, digitalis is very useful in inflam- mation of the eyes. It is almost equal in power to opium, and it may with great advantage be alternated with it, when opium begins to lose its power. The infusion is made by pouring a quart of boiling water on an ounce of the powder. A portion of the liquid should be introduced into the eye. Of the tincture, one or two drops should be introduced. To form the tincture, three ounces of the digitalis should be added to a quart of spirit. The infusion has been serviceable in mange ; but there are better applications. Diuretics constitute a useful, but much abused class of medicines. They stimulate the kidneys to secrete more than the usual quantity of urine, or to separate a greater than ordinary proportion of the watery parts of the blood ; but the deficiency of water in the blood thus occasioned must be speedily supplied, or the healthy circulation could not be carried on, and it is generally supplied by the absorbents taking up the watery fluid in some part of the frame, and carrying it into circulation. Hence the evident use of diuretics in every dropsical affection, in swelled legs, and also in inflammation and fever, by lessening the quantity of the circulating fluid, and therefore the quantity which is sent to inflamed parts. All this, however, is produced by the kidneys being stimulated to increased action, and if this stimulus is too often or too violently applied, the energy of the kidney may be impaired, or inflammation may be pro- duced. That inflammation may be of an acute character, and destroy the patient; or, although not intense in its nature, it may by frequent repeti- tion assume a chronic character, and more slowly, but as surely, do irre- parable mischief. Hence the necessity of attention to that portion of the food which may have a diuretic power. Movvburnt hay and fixy oata •ire tlie unsuspected causes of many a disease in tiie horse, at tir» 392 THE HORSE. obscure, but ultimately referable to injury or inflammation of the unna.y organs. Hence, too, the impropriety of suffering medicines of a diuretic nature to be at t!ie command of the ignorant carter or groom. In swelled legs, cracks, grease, or accumulation of fluid in any part, and in those superficial eruptions and inflammations which are said to be produced by humours floating in the blood, diuretics are evidently beneficial; but they should be as mild as possible, and should not be oftener given or continued longer thar- the case requires. For some cautions as to the administration of diuretics, and a list of the safest and best, the reader is referred to page 215. The expensive Castile soap, and camphor, which are so often resorted to, are not needed; the common liquid turpentine is quite sufficient in all ordinary cases, and nitre and digitalis may be added if fever is suspected. Drinks. — Many practitioners and horse proprietors have a great objec- tion to the administration of medicines in the form of drinks. A drink is not so portable as a ball, it is more troublesome to give, and a portion of it is usually wasted. If the drink contains any acid substance, it is apt to excoriate the mouth, or to irritate the throat, already sore from disease, or the unpleasant taste of the drug may unnecessarily nauseate the horse. There are some medicines, however, which must be given in the form of drink, as in cholic, and the time, perhaps, is not distant when purgatives will be thus administered, as more speedy and safe in their operation. In cases of much debility and entire loss of appetite, all medicine should be given in solution, for the stomach may not have sufficient power to dissolve the paper in which the ball is wrapped, or the substance of the ball. An ox's horn, the larger end being cut slantingly, is the usual and best instrument for administering drinks. The noose of a halter is introduced into the mouth, and then, by means of a stable fork, the head is elevated by an assistant considerably higher than for the delivery of a ball. The surgeon stands on a pail or stable basket on the off'-side of the horse, and draws out the tongue with the left hand ; he then with the right hand introduces the horn gently into the mouth, and over the tongue, and by a dexterous turn of the horn empties the whole of the drink into the back part of the mouth; the horn is now quickly withdrawn, and the tongue loosened, and the greater portion of the fluid must be swallowed. A por- tion of it, however, will often be obstinately held in the mouth for a long time, and the head must be kept up until the whole is swallowed, which a quick, but not violent, slap in the muzzle will generally compel the horse to do. The art of giving a drink, consists in not putting too much into the horn at once; introducing the horn far enough into the mouth, and quickly turning and withdrawing it, without bruising or wounding the mouth, the tongue being loosened at the same moment. A bottle is a disgraceful and dangerous instrument to use. Elder. — The elder-leaf, boiled in lard, forms an emollient ointment, usefully applied to inflamed and irritated parts. Epsom Salts. — See Magnesia. Fo3iENTATioNS open the pores of the skin, and promote perspiration in the part, and so abate local swelling, and relieve pain, and lessen inflammation. They are often used, and with more effect when the inflammation is somewhat deeply seated, than when it is superficial. The effect depends on the warmth of the water, and not any herb which may have bei;n boiled in it. They are best applied by means of flannel, fre- quently dipped in the hot water, or on which the water is poured, and the heat should be as great as the hand will bear. The benefit that might be derived from them is much impaired by the absurd method in which t^e fomentations are conducted. They are rarely continued long enough MEDICINES 395 and whe.i they are removed, the part is left wet and uncovered, ard the coldness of evaporation succeeds to the heat of fomentation. The per- spiration is thus suddenly checked, the animal suffers considerable pain, and more harm is done by the extreme change of temperature than if the fomentation iiad not been attempted. Gentian stands at the head of the vegetable tonics, and it is a stomachic as well as a tonic. It is equally useful in chronic debility, and in that which is consequent on severe and protracted illness. It is generally united with cliamomile, ginger, and, when the patient will bear it, carbonate of iron. Four drachms of gentian, two of chamomile, one of carbonate of iron, and one of ginger, will make an excellent tonic ball. An infusion of gentian is one of the best applications to putrid ulcers. Ginger is as valuable as a cordial, as gentian is as a tonic. It is the basis of the cordial ball, and it is indispensable in the tonic ball. Although it is difficult to powder, the veterinary practitioner should always purchase it in its solid form. If the root be large, heavy, and not worm-eaten, th( black ginger is as good as the white, and considerably cheaper. The pow- der is adulterated with bean-meal and the saw-dust of boxwood, and ren- dered warm and pungent by means of capsicum. Goulard's Extract. — See Lead. Hellebore, White, is a powerful nauseant, and lowers both the force and the frequency of the pulse, and is therefore given with good effect in various intlammations, and particularly that of the lungs; but it requires watching. In the hospital of the veterinary surgeon, or in the stable of the gentleman who will superintend the giving and the operation of every medicine, it may be used with safety; but with him who has to trust to others, and who does not see the horse more than once in twelve or twenty- four hours, it is a dangerous drug. If it is pushed a little too far, trem- bling, and giddiness, and purging follow, and the horse is sometimes lost. The hanging of the head, and the frothing of the mouth, and, more particu- larly, the sinking of the pulse, would give warning of danger; but the medical attendant may not have the opportunity of observing this, and when he does observe it, it may be too late. Its dose varies from a scruple to half a drachm. In doses of a drachm it could not be given with safety; and yet, such is the different effect of medicines given in different doses, that in the quantity of an ounce it is said to be a diuretic and a tonic, and. exhibited with advantage in chronic and obstinate grease. Hemlock is used by some practitioners, instead of digitalis or hellebore, in affections of the chest, whether acute or chronic; but it is inferior tO' both. The dose of the powder of the dried leaves is about a drachm. InfusIons. — The active matter of some vegetable substances is partly or entirely extracted by water. Dried vegetables yield their properties more readily and perfectly than when in their green state. Boiling water is poured' on the substance to be infused, and which is previously grossly pounded or powdered; the vessel is then covered and placed by a fire. In five or six. hours the transparent part may be poured off, and is ready for use. In a kw days, however, all infusions become thick, and lose their virtue, from, the decomposition of the vegetable matter. The infusion of chamomile is advantageously used instead of water in compounding a mild tonic drench: the infusion of catechu is useful in. astringent mixtures; the infusion of linseed is used instead of common, water in catarrh and cold; and the infusion of tobacco in some injections. Iodine. — This substance is but lately introduced into veterinary praclico, and has been given with effect in doses of five grains daily, to reduce the enlarged glands which sometimes remain after catarrh. It has likewise Cc 394 THE HORSE power in reducing almost every species of tumour, and rnay be tried where it would be dangerous to use the kniti-. Iron. — Of tiiis metal there are two preparations adopted by veterina- rians. Tne rust, or Carbonate, is a mild and useful tonic in doses from two to four drachms. The Sulphate (green vitriol or copperas) is more power- ful, but siiould never be given in early stages of recovery, and always with caution. The dose should be the same as that of the carbonate. The sulphate has lately been recommended for the cure of timt deceitful stage or form of glanders, in which there is nothing to characterise the disease but a very slight discharge from the nostrils. It is to be dissolved in the common drink of the horse. It is worth a trial, but too sanguine expectations must not be encouraged of the power of any drug over this intractable malady. Iron should be given in combination with gentian and ginger, but never with any alkali, or nitre, or soap, or catechu, or astringent vegetable. Forge water used to be a favourite tonic with farriers, and also a lotion for canker and ulcers in the mouth. It owes its power, if it has any, to the iron with which it is impregnated. Juniper, Oil of. — This essential oil is retained because it has some diu- retic property, and is a pleasant aromatic. It may, therefore, enter into the composition of the diuretic ball. Lard. — This or palm oil is far preferable to honey, or treacle, or syrups, for making up balls, because the ball more readily dissolves in the stomach. It likewise renders a purgative less liable to gripe. It is the principal basis of all ointments. Laudanum. — See Opium. Lead. — Combinations of this metal are admitted into veterinary practice. The subacetate is common under the name of Extract of Lead, or Goulard's Extract. It is used in the proportion of a drachm to a pint of water in the early stages of inflammation of the eye; but is inferior both to opium and digitalis, and cannot be used in combination with either. In double the proportion, it is serviceable in superficial inflammations of various kinds, or in poultices for the feet where there is much inflammation or pain ; but in cases of sprain, or deep injury, or inflammations, it is perfectly useless. If wliite vitriol or alum are added to the lead, the efficacy of all the ingre- dienls is destroyed. The Sugar of Lead is the acetate or superacetate of that metal. This, dissolved in water in the proportion of two drachms to a pint, makes an extemporaneous Goulard's Lotion, but not more valuable than the former. WliHe Lead, (carbonate of lead,) is sometimes sprinkled in the form of fine powder, and with advantage, on swelled legs, where the skin is very red and irritable, and moisture is exuding through it. It is used alone or mixed with paste, or a bread-and-water poultice: but lead, although in the first-mentioned form a great favourite with many persons, might, without great loss, be expunged from the Veterinary PiiarmacopcKia. Lime was formerly sprinkled over cankered feet and greasy heels, but there are less painful caustics, and more effectual absorbents of moisture. Lime water is rarely used, but the Chloride of Lime is exceedingly valuable. Diluted with twenty times its quantity of water, it should help to form the poultice applied to every part from which there is tiie slightest offensive discharge. The foetid smell of fistulous withers, poll-evil, canker, and ill-conditioned wounds, is immediately removed, and the ulcers are more disposed to heal. When mangy horses are dismissed as cured, a washing with the diluted chloride wUl Jemove pny infection that might lurk about them, or which they might carry from MEDICINES. 35)5 the place -n which tliey have been confined. One pint o' the chJoria«» mixed with three gallons of water, and brushed over the walls and niangei and rack of the foulest stable, will completely remove all uifection. Aii horse furniture worn by a glandered or mangy animal will be ellectually purified in the same way. Internally administered, it seems to have no power whatever. Liniments are oily applications of the consistence of a thick fluid, and designed either to sooth an inflamed surface, or, by gently stimulating the skin, to remove deeper-seated pain or inflammation. As an emollient lini- ment, one composed of haif an ounce of extract of lead and four ounces of olive oil will be useful. For sprains, old swellings, or rheumatism, two ounces of hartshorn, tlie same quantity of camphorated spirit, an ounce of oil of turpentine, half an ounce of laudanum, and a drachm of oil of origa- num, may be mixed together; or an ounce of camphor may be dissolved in four ounces of sweet oil, to which an ounce of oil of turpentine and a drachm of oil of origanum should be afterwards added. A little powdered cantharides, or tincture of cantharides, or mustard powder, will render either of these more powerful, or convert it into a liquid blister. Linseed. — An infusion of linseed is often used instead of water, for the drink of the horse with sore-throat or catarrh. A pail containing it should be slung in the stable or loose box. Thin gruel, however, is preferable; it is as bland and soothing, and it is more nutritious. Linseed meal forms the best poultice for almost every purpose. The oil of linseed is not a certain, but always a safe purgative. It must he given, however, in doses of a pint or a pint and a half. Lotions. — Many of the best lotions have been already described, in the chapters which treat of the various diseases of the horse. Magnesia. — The sulphate of magnesia, or Epsom Salts, should be used only in promoting the purgative effect of clysters, or, in repeated doses of six or eight ounces, gently to open the bowels at the commencement of fever. Some doubt, however, attends the latter practice ; for the dose must often be thrice repeated before it will act, and then, although safer than aloes, it may produce too much irritation in the intestinal canal, espe- cially if the fever be the precursor of inflammation of the lungs. Mashes constitute a very important part of horse provender, whether in sickness or health. A mash given occasionally to a horse that is otherwise fed on dry meat prevents him from becoming dangerously costive. To the overworked and tired horse nothing is so refreshing as a warm mash with his usual allowance of corn in it. The art of getting a horse into apparent condition for sale, or giving him a round and plump appearance, consists principally in the frequent repetition of mashes, and from their easiness of digestion and the mild nutriment which they afford, as well as their laxative effect, they form the principal diet of the sick horse. Mashes are made by pouring boiling water on bran, and stirring it well, and then covering it over until it is sufficiently cool for the horse to eat. If in the heat of summer, a cold mash is preferred, it should, nevertheless, be made with hot water, and then suffered to remain until it is cold. This is not always sufficiently attended to by the groom, who is not aware that he efficacy of the mash depends principally on the change which is effected m the bran and the other ingredients by the boiling water rendering thenr. more easy of digestion, as well as aperient. If the horse refuses the mash, a few oats may be sprinkled over it, in order to tempt him to eat it; but if It is previously designed that corn should be given in the mash, it should Se scalded with the bran, to soften it and render it more digestible. Bran mashes are v( ry useful preparatives for physic, and they are necessary y<}(S THE HORSE. diirin,^ the operation of the physic. They very soon recome sour, and the maiiirer of tlie horse of whose diet they form a principal part, should be daily and carefully cleaned out. VVhen horses are weakly and iruich reduced, nnalt mashes will often be palatable to them and very nutritive: but the water that is poured on a malt mash should be considerably below the boiling heat, or the malt wiU be set, or clogged together. If ownei's were aware of the value of a malt mash, it would be oitener given when the horse is rapidly getting weaker from protracted disease, or when he is beginning to recover from a disease by which he has b(>en much reduced. The only exception to their use is in cases of ciiest affection, in which they must not be given too early. In grease, and in mange accompanied by much emaciation, malt mashes will be peculiarly useful, and especially if they constitute a principal portion of the food. Mercuky. — The Mercurial Ointment is p'-epared by rubbing quicksilver with lard, in the proportion of one part of mercury to three of grease, until no globules appear ; the practitioner should, if possible, prepare it himself, for he can neither get it pure nor of the proper strength from the druggist. It is employed with considerable advantage in preparing splents, spavins, or other bony or callous tumours, for blistering or firing. One or tvvo drachms, according to the nature and size of the swelling, may be daily well rubbed in; but it should be watched, for it sometimes salivates the horse very speedily. The tumours more readily disperse, at the applica- tion of the stronger stimulant, when they have been thus prepared. Mer- curial ointment in a more diluted form is sometimes necessary for the cure of mallenders and sallenders ; and in very obstinate cases of mange, one- eighth part of mercurial ointment may be added to the ointment recom- mended at page 379. Calomel, X\\e submuriate or protochloride of mercury, may be given, com- bined with aloes, in mange, surfeit or worms ; yet better alteratives and more efficient vermifuges have been described. It is admissible in some cases of chronic cough, in farcy, and in jaundice, but it is not a medicine that seems to agree with the horse. Alone, it has little purgative effect, but it assists the action of other aperients. It is given in doses from a scruple to a drachm, but must not be too often or too long repeated. As soon as the gums become red, or the animal begins to quid or drop his hay, it must be discontinued. Corrosive Suhlimate, the oxymuriate, or bichloride of mercury, com- bined with chlorine in a double proportion, is a useful tonic in farcy, and perhaps the most to be depended upon. It should be given in doses of ten grains daily, and gradually increased to a scruple, until the horse is purged, or the mouth becomes sore, when it may be omitted for a few days, and resumed. Some have recommended it as a diuretic, but it is loo dangerous a medicine for this purpose. It is used externally in solution; and in sub- stancf! in quiltor, as a stimulant to foul ulcers ; and in the proportion of five grains to an ounce of rectified spirit in obstinate mange or to destroy vermin on the skin. It is, however, too uncertain and too dangerous a medicine for the horse-proprietor to venture on its use without the sanc- tion of a veterinary surgeon. .Etii/np's Mineral, the black sulphuret of mercury, is not often used in horse practice, but it is a good alterative for obstinate surfeit or fculncss of the skin, in doses of three drachms daily. Four drachms of cream of tartar ma-y be advantageously added to each dose. Mint. — If the use of an infusion or decoction of this plant, or of the oil hat is extracted from it, can be at any time admitted, it is as a vrhicle jn MEDICINES. SQ1 which the oil of turpentine and laudanum may be administered in ca.jes of cholic. MvKRH may be used in the form of tincture, or it may be united to the tuicture of aloes as a stimulating and digestive application to wounds. Diluted with an equal quantity of uater, it is a good application for canker in the mouth, but as an internal medicine it seems to be inert. NiTKE. — See Potash. Nitrous ^Etiier, Simuit of, is a very useful medicine in the advanced stages of fever, for wliile it to a certain degree rouses the exhausted powers of the animal, and may be denominated a stimulant, it never brings back the dangerous febrile action which was subsiding. It is given in doses of three or tour drachms. Oils. — The farrier's list contains many of them, but the scientific prac- titioner has discarded the greater part ; those that are worth retaining will be found under the names of the vegetables from which they are extracted. Ointments. — These have been fully described under the accidents and diseases in which their use is required. Olives, Oil of. — Tiiis is sometimes given as a purgative when aloes or other aperients cannot be obtained. It is useless to give it in a less quantity than a pint, and then it is uncertain in its operation, although harmless. In all liniments and ointments, spermaceti, or even linseed oil, may be substituted without detriment, and the peculiar smell of the latter may be subdued by oil of aniseseed or origanum. Opium. — However underrated by some, there is not a more valuable drug on our list. It does not often act as a narcotic except in enormous doses ; but it is a powerful antispasmodic, sedative, and astringent. As an anti- spasmodic, it enters into the cholic drink, and it is the sheet-anchor of the veterinarian in the treatment of tetanus or locked jaw. As a sedative, it relaxes that universal spasm of the muscular system, which is the charac- tkjristic of tetanus ; and perhaps it is only as a sedative that it has such admirable effect as an astringent; for when the irritation about the mouths of the vessels of the intestines and kidneys is allayed by the opium, undue purging and profuse staling are necessarily arrested. It should, however, be given with caution. It is its secondary effect which is sedative, and, if given in cases of fever, its primary effect in increasing the excitation of the frame is marked and injurious. In the early and acute stage of fever, it would be bad practice to give it in the smallest quantity ; but when the fever has passed, or is passing, there is nothing which so rapidly subdues the irritability that accompanies extreme weakness ; and it becomes an excellent tonic, because it is a sedative. If the blue or green vitriol, or cantharides, have been pushed too far, opium soonest quiets the disorder they have occasioned. It is given in doses of one or two drachms ; either the powdered opium being made into a ball, or the crude opium dissolved in hot water, and given with its sedi- ment. Other medicines are usually combined with it, according to the cir- cumstances of the case. Externally, it is useful in opthalmia. In the form of decoction of the poppy head it may constitute the basis of an anodyne poultice ; but it must not he given in union with any alkali, with the exception of chalk, in over- Durging ; nor with the superacetaie of lead, by which its powers are mate- rially impaired, nor witli sulphate of zinc, or copper, or iron. From its high price it is much adulterated, and it is rare to meet with it m a state of purity. Tiie best tests are its smell, its taste, its toughness ami pliancy, its fawn or l)rown colour, and its weight, for it is the heaviest af all the vegetable extracts, except gum arable; yet its weight is often 3J>S THE HORSE. fraudulfUly increased by stones and bits of lead being concealed In it. Tile Enjlisli opium is almost as good as this Turkish, and frequently sold for it ; but is distinguishable by its blackness and softness. Palm Oil, when genuine, is the very best substance that can be used for making masses and balls. It has a pleasant smell, and it never be- comes rancid. Pitch is used to give adhesiveness and firmness to charges and plasters. The common pitch is quite as good as the more expensive Burgundy pitch. The best plaster for sandcrack consists of one pound of pitch and an ounce of yellow bees-wax melted together. Physic. — Tlie cases which require physic, the composition of the most effectual and safest physic ball, and the mode of treatment under physic, liave been already described at page 211. Potash. — Two compounds of potash are used in veterinary practice. The Nitrate of Potash, Nitre, is a valuable cooling medicine, and a mild diuretic, and, therefore, it should enter into the composition of every fever ball. Its dose is from two to four drachms. Grooms often dissolve it in the water. There are two objections to this ; either the horse is nauseated, and will not drink so much water as he ought; or the salt taste of the water causes considerable thirst, and disinclination to solid food. Nitre, while dissolving, materially lowers the temperature of water, and furnishes a very cold and useful lotion for sprain of the back sinews, and other local inflammations. The lotion, however, should be used as soon as the salt is dissolved, for it quickly becomes as warm as the surrounding air. The Supertartrate of Potash, Cream of Tartar, is a mild diuretic, and combined with jEthiop's mineral, is a useful alterative in obstinate mange or grease. Poultices. — Few horsemen are aware of the value of these simple applications in abating inflammation, relieving pain, cleansing wounds, and disposing them to heal. They are fomentations of the best kind continued much longer than a simple fomentation can be. In all inflammations of the foot they are very beneficial, softening the horn, hardened by the heat of the foot, and contracted and pressing on the internal and highly sensible parts. The moisture and warmth are the useful parts of the poultice ; and that poultice is the best for general purposes in which moisture and warmth are longest retained. Perspiration is most abundantly promoted in the part, the pores are opened, swellings are relieved, and discharges of a healthy nature procured from wounds. Linseed meal forms the best general poultice, because it longest retains the moisture. Bran, although frequently used for poultices, is objection- able, because it so soon becomes dry. To abate considerable inflamma- tion, and especially in a wounded part, Goulard may be added, or the linseed meal may be made into a paste with a decoction of poppy heads. To promote a healthy discharge from an old or foul ulcer ; or separation of the dead from the living parts, in the process of what is called coring out; or to hasten the ripening of a tumour that must be opened; or to cleanse it when it is opened, two ounces of common turpentine may be added to a pound of linseed meal : but nothing can be so absurd, or is so injurious, as the addition of turpentine to a poultice that is designed to be an emollient. The drawing poultices and stoppings of farriers are often highly injurious, instead of abating inflammation. If the ulcer smells ofl^ensively, two ounces of powdered charcoal may be added to the linseed meal, or the poultice may be made of water, to which a solution of the chloride of lime has been added in the proportion ot half an ounce to a pound. As an emollient poultice for grease and cracKet* MEDICINES. 399 heel?, and especially if accompanied by much unpleasant smell, here is nothing preferable to a poultice of mashed carrots with charcoal. For old grease, some slight stimulant must be added, as a iittle yeast or the grounds of table beer. There are two errors in the application of a poultice, and particularly as it regards the legs. It is often put on too tight, by which the return ot the blood from the foot is prevented, and the disease is increased instead uf lessened; or it is too hot, and unnecessary pain is given, and the inflamma- tion aggravated. Powders. — Some horses are very difficult to ball or drench, and the violent struggle that would accompany the attempt to conquer iheni may heighten the fever or inflammation. To such horses powder must be given in mashes. Emetic tartar and digitalis may be generally uied in cases of inflammation or fever; or emetic tartar for worms; or calor»iel, and even the farina of the croton-nut for physic; but powders are too often an excuse for the laziness or awksvardness of the carter or groom. The horse frequently refuses them, especially if his appetite has otherwise begun to fail ; the powder and the mash are wasted, and the animui is unnecessarily nauseated. All medicine should be given in the form of ball or drink. Raking. — This consists in introducing the hand into the horse's rectum, and drawing out any hardened dung that may be tiiere. It may be neces- sary in costiveness or fever, if a clyster pipe cannot be obtained; but an injection will better effect the purpose, and with less inconvenience to the animal. The introduction of the hand into the rectum is, however, useful to ascertain the existence of a stone in the bladder, or the degree of disten- sion of the bladder in the suppression of urine, for the bladder will be easily felt below the gut; and at the same time by the heat of the intestine, the degree of inflammation in it or in the bladder may be detected. Resin. — The yellow resin is that which remains after the distillation of oil of turpentine. It is used externally to give consistence to ointments, and to render them slightly stimulant. ' Internally it is a useful diuretic, and is given in doses of five or six drachms made into a ball with soft soap. The common liquid turpentine is, however, preferable. Rowels. — The manner of rowelling has been described at page 186. As exciting inflammation on the surface, and so lessening that which had previously existed in a neighbouring, but deeper-seated part, they are decidedly inferior to blisters, for they do not act so quickly nor so exten- sively ; therefore they should not be used in acute inflammation of the lungs or bowels, or any vital part. When the inflammation, however, although not intense, has long continued, rowels will be serviceable by pro- ducing an irritation and discharge which can be better kept up than by a blister. As promoting a permanent, although not very considerable dis- charge and some inflammation, rowels in the thighs are useful in swelled legs, and obstinate grease. If fluid is thrown out under the skin in any other part, the rowel acts as a permanent drain. When sprain of the joint or the muscles of the shoulders is suspected, a rowel in the chest will be serviceable. The wound caused by a rowel will readily heal, and with little blemish, unless the useless leather of the farrier has been inserted. Salt, common. — See Soda. Sedatives are medicines which subdue irritation, repress spasmodic action, or deaden pain. We will not inquire whether they act first as stimulants; if they do, their effect is exceedingly transient, and is quickly IbPowed by depression and diminished action. Digitalis, hellebore, opium, turpentine, are medicines of this kind. Their effect in different diseases. 400 THE HORSE. or stages of disease, and the circumstances vvliicli indicate thf. use of an\ one of them in preference to the rest, are considered under their own respective titles. Silver. — One combination only of this metal is used, and that as a man- ageable and excellent caustic, viz: the Lunar Caustic. It is far [)referable to the liot iron, or to any acid, for the destruction of the part, if a horse should have been bitten by a rabid dog; and it stands next to the bulyr of antimony for the removal of fungus generally. Soda. — The Chloride of Soda is not so efficacious for the removal of unpleasant smells and all infection as the chloride of lime, but it is exceed- ingly useful in changing malignant, and corroding, and destructive sores into the state of simple ulcers, and in ulcers that are not malignant it much hastens the cure. Poll-evil, and fistulous withers are much benefited by it, and all farcy ulcers. It is used in the proportion of one part of the solution to twenty-four of water. Common Sa/i (Chloride of Sodium) is very extensively employed in vete- rinary practice. It forms an efficacious aperient clyster; a solution of it has even been given as an aperient drink. Sprinkled over the hay, or in a mash, it is very palatable to sick horses ; and in that languor and disin- clination to food which remain after severe illness, few things will so soon recall the appetite as a drink composed of eight ounces of salt in solution. To horses in health it is more useful than is generally imagined, as pro- motingthe digestion of the food, and, consequently, condition. Externally applied, there are few better lotions for inflamed eyes than a solution of half a drachm of salt in four ounces of water. In the proportion of an ounce of salt to the same quantity of water, it is a good embrocation for sore shoulders and backs; and if it does not always disperse warbles and tumours, it takes away much of the tenderness of the skin. Soap is supposed to possess a diuretic quality, and therefore enters into the composition of some diuretic masses. — See Resin. By many practi- tioners it is made an ingredient in the physic ball, but uselessly or even injuriously so; for if the aloes are finely powdered and mixed with palm oil, they will dissolve readily enough in the bowels without the aid of the soap, while the action of the soap on the kidneys will impair the purgative effect of the aloes. Starch may be substituted with advantage for gruel in obstinate cases of purging, both as a clyster, and to support the strength of tlie animal. Stoppings constitute an important, but too often neglected part of stable management. W a horse is irregularly or seldom worked, his feet are deprived of moisture; they become hard, and unyielding, and brittle, and disposed to corn, and contraction, and founder. The very muck of a neg- lected and filthy stable would be preferable to habitual standing on thy cleanest litter without stopping. In wounds, and bruises, and corns, moist- lire is even more necessary to supple the horn, and relieve its pressure on the tender parts beneath. As a common stopping, nothing is better than cow-dung with a fourth part of clay beaten well into it, and confined with splents from the binding of the broom, or the larger twig of the broom. In cases of wounds a little tar may be added ; but tar, as a common stopping, is too stimulating and drying. Pads made of thick felt have lately been contrived, which are fitted to the sole, and, swelling on being wetted, are sufficiently confined by the shoe. Having been well filled with water, they will continue moist during the night Tiiey are very useful in gentlemen's stables; but the cow-dung and olay are sufficient for the farmer. SuLFiu'R is the basis of the most effectual application foi mange MEDICINES. 401 It is an excellent alterative, combined usually with antimony and nitres ar.d particularly for mange, surfeit, grease, hide-bound or want of condi- tion; and it is a useful ingredient in the cough and fever ball. When given alone, it seems to have little effect, except as a laxative in doses of six or eight ounces; but there are much better aperients. The black sulphur consists principally of the dross after the pure sulphur has been separated. Tar melted with an equal quantity of grease forms the usual stopping of the farrier. It is a warm or slightly stimulant, and therefore useful, dressing for bruised or wounded feet; but its principal virtue seems to consist in preventing the penetration of dirt and water to the wounded part. As a common stopping it has been stated to be objectionable. From its warm and drying properties it is the usual and proper basis for thrush ointments; and from its adhesiveness, and slightly stimulating power, it often forms an ingredient in applications for mange; some practitioners give it, and advantageously, mixed with the usual cough medicine, and in doses of two or three drachms for chronic cough. The common tar is as effectual as the Barbadoes for every veterinary purpose. The oil, or spirit ^rectified oil) of tar is sometimes used alone for the cure of mange, but it is not to be depended upon. The spirit of tar, mixed with double the quantity of fish oil, is, from its peculiar penetrating property, one of the best applications for hard and brittle feet. It should be well rul)bed with 1 brush, both on the crust and sole, every night. Tinctures. — The medicinal properties of many substances are extracted by spirit of wine, but in such small quantities as to be scarcely available in veterinary practice for internal use. So much aloes or opium must be given to produce effect on the iiorse, that the quantity of spirit necessary to dissolve it would be injurious or might be fatal. As applications to wounds or inflamed surfaces, the tinctures of aloes, digitalis, myrrh, and opium, are highly useful. Tobacco, in the hands of the skilful veterinarian, may be advantageously employed in cases of extreme costiveness, or dangerous cholic; but ^hould never be permitted to be used as an external application for the cure of mange, or an. internal medicine to promote a fine coat. Tonics are valuable medicines when judiciously employed; but, like cordials, they have been fatally abused. Many a horse recovering from severe disease has been destroyed by their too early, or too free use. The veterinary surgeon occasionally administers them injuriously, in his anxiety to gratify the impatience of his employer. The mild vegetable tonics, chamomile, gentian, and ginger, and, perhaps, the carbonate of iron, may sometimes be given with benefit, and may hasten the perfect recovery of the patient; but there are few principles more truly founded on reason and experience, than that disease once removed, the powers of nature are suf- ficient to re-establish health. Against the more powerful mineral tonics, except for the particular purposes that have been pointed out under the Troper heads, the horse proprietor and the veterinarian should boon his guard. Turpentine. — The common liquid turpentine has been described as one tf the best diuretics, in doses of half an ounce, and made into a ball with linseed meal and half a drachm of ginger. It is added to the calamine or any other mild ointment to render it stimulating and digestive, and from its adhesiveness and slight stimulating power, it is an ingredient in mange ointments. Tlie oil of turpentine is an excellent antispasmodic. For the renioval of cholic it stands unrivalled. (See page 206.) Forming a tine- ture with cantharides, it is the basis of the "sweating blister,'' used for old •trains and swellings. As a blister it is far inferior to the common ^(j<^ THE HORSE. oiniment, as a stimulant frequently applied it, must be sufficiently lowered, or it may blemish. ViNEGjiii is a very useful application for sprains and bruises. Equal parts of boiling water and cold vinegar will form a good fomentation. Extract of lead, or bay salt, may be added with some slight advantage. As an internal remedy, vinegar is rarely given, nor has it, except in verv large doses, any medicinal power. The veterinarian and the horse-owner should manufacture their own vinegar. That which they buy may con- tain sulphuric acid, and pungent spices, and irritate the inflamed part to which it is applied. Wax. — The yellow wax is used in charges and some plasters to render them less brittle. Zinc. — The impure carbonate of zinc, under the name of Calamine Powder, is used in the preparation of a valuable healing ointment. Five parts of lard and oae of resin are melted together, and when these begin to get cool, two parts of the calamine, reduced to an impalpable powder, are stirred in. The calamine is sometimes sprinkled with advantage on cracked heels, and superficial sores. The sulphate of zinc. White Vitriol, in the proportion of three grains to an ounce of water, is an excellent application in opthalmia, when the inflammatory stage is passing over; and quittor is most successfully treated by a saturated solution of white vitriol being injected into the sinuses. A solution of white vitriol of less strength forms a wash for grease that is occasjonallv useful, when the alum or blue vitriol does not appear to succeed ON DRAUGHT. The invesliagation of the subject of draught by animal power, to which this treatise is devoted, and wiiich will form an appropriate supplement to an account of the horse — has long and frequently occupied tlie attention of theoretical and practical men; so much so, that our object will be to collect what has been said and done, and, by arranging it methodically, to show in what manner the information may be applied and rendered useful, rathei than to attempt to produce any thing absolutely new upon the subject. Notwithstanding, however, all that has been written, if we open any of the authors who have treated the subject, in the hopes of obtaining direct practical information, we shall be much disappointed. It might have been expected that the particular result of every methoo known and in use for the conveyance of a load from one spot to another, by animal power, whether by sledges, by wheel-carriages, or by water, as in canals, being so constantly and necessarily a matter of practical experi- ment, would have been accurately known and recorded ; but the contrary is too nmch the case. The theoretical investigations have been made with too little reference to what really takes place in practice; and the practical portion of the subject has not generally been treated in that useful and comprehensive manne> which it deserves and demands. In fact, there is hardly a question in practical mechanics on which, though much has been written, opinions are apparently less fixed ; or on which the information we do possess is in a less defined and available state. One great object of research has been the average force of traction or power of a horse. If we consult the most approved authors and experimentalists, Desa- guilliers, Smeaton, and others, we find this power variously stated as equal to 80 lbs., 100 lbs., 150 lbs., and even 200 lbs: we are theret'ore left almost as ignorant as before; but the knowledge of this average power is for- tunately of little or no use in practice. It is the application and efl^ect of that power which alone is useful; and that is governed by circumstances always varying and dissimilar, such as the form and state of the road, the structure of the carriage, the size and friction of the wheels, &c., &;c. ; and scarcely any two cases of draught would, as regards the efTect of the power of the tiorse, present precisely the same result. The difference of opinion here manifest is still more remarkable when existing on a purely practical question. In the inquiries instituted by a committee of the House of Commons in I80e and 1808, on the subject of roads and carriages, two well-informed practical men, Mr. Russel, of Exeter, and Mr. Deacon of Islington, the most extensive carriers in England, were examined upon an important question, viz; the advantage or disadvantage of a particular form of wheel. It was stated by one that, having given the wheels in question a twelve, month's trial, he found that they tended to injure the road and increase 401 ON DRAUGHT. the tlrauglit in the proportion of four to five; while it was stated by the other, who had also made the experiment on a large scale, that he found tiiey materially assisted in keeping the roads in repair, and diminished the draught in the proportion of five to four. Amidst such conflicting and contradictory opinions, it would appear difficult to come to any useful conclusion, and we might naturally be dis- posed to adopt a very common practice, that of taking an average result. A little consideration, however, will show that these apparent discrepan- cies and contradictions arise, in great measure, from attempting to gener- alise and apply to practice the results of experiments made in, and there- fore applicable only to, particular cases. The results of experiments thus made at various times and places, and without that identity of condition and circumstances so necessary when standard rules are to to be detiuced from them, have, nevertheless, been used for that purpose; and this circumstance, combined with the various and disiinct points to be considered before we can estimate accurately what even constitutes draught, will perhaps account for the disagreement amongst the practical and scientific authorities alluded to on the subject. We must, therefore, examine severally all these points ; and then, by carefully considering their relative bearing upon rach other, we may hope to reconcile the difierent opinions advanced, without which we cannot collect from them any information which will ultimately lead us to a prac- tical and beneficial result. We shall proceed to divide the subject under separate and distinct heads, and under each head to examine the methods or means now in use, or which have been proposed, and endeavour to estimate their com- parative advantages by availing ourselves of what is already written and known upon each. It will be necessary first, however, to explain and define clearly some terms wliich will occur frequently in the course of this paper, and especially the word "draught," wliich is the title itself of the treatise. This word is used in such a very general and vague sense, that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to give an explanation which should apply equally to all its different meanings. In the expression draught by animal power, it would seem to mean the action itself of drawing, while, on the other hand, it is frequently used to signify the amount of power employed; also, the degree of resistance, as> when we say, the draught of a horse, or the draught of a carriage. Draught power is also an expression used. We shall, however, in the course of this treatise, confine our use of the word to the two meanings — draught. the action of dragging — and draught, the resistance to the power employed to drag any given weight. Force of traction is another expression requiring explanation ; but hert; we must enter into more detail, and shall give at once a practical illustra- tion of our meaning. A force is most conveniently measured by the weight which it would be capable of raising ; but it is not therefore necessarily applied vertically, in which direction weigh' or gravity acts. If a weight of 100 !bs. be suspended to a rope, it is clearly exerting upon this rope a force of 100 lbs.; but if the rope be passed over a pulley void of friction, and continued horizontally, or in any other direction, and then attached to some fixed point, the weight still acts upon all parts of this rope, and consequently upon the point to which it is fixed, with a force equal to 100 lbs. ; and so inversely, if a horse be pulling at a rope A^.'th a ON DRAUGHT. 40«i force which, if the rope were passed over a pulley, would raise 100 lbs., the force of traction of the horse is in this case 100 lbs. Spring steel- yards being now commonly in use, we may be permitted to refer to them as affording another clear exemplification of our meaning. In pulling ai a steelyard of this description, whether the force be exerted horizontally or vertically, the index will, of course, show the same amount; and con- sequently, if the strength of the horse be measured by attaching the traces to on3 of these steelyards, the number of pounds indicated on the dial will be the exact measure of the strain the horse exerts, and the amount of strain is called his "force of traction." Having fixed as nearly as possible the meaning of these terms, which will frequently occur in the course of our progress, we shall proceed to the division of the subject. It is evident that there are three distinct agents and points of considera- tion in the operation of draught, which are quite independent of each other. They are — First, the moving power and the mode of applying it; Secondly, the vehicle for conveying the weight to be moved; Thirdly, the canal, road, or railway, or what may be generally termed the channel of conveyance. All these individually influence the amount of draught, and require separate consideration ; but the mode of combining these different agents has also a material effect upon the result: consequently, they must be considered in relation to each other; and to obtain the maximum useful efiect, with the greatest economy, in the employment of any given power, it is evidently necessary that these different agents should not only each be the best adapted to its purpose, and perfect to the greatest possible degree, but also that they should all be combined to the greatest possible advantage. We shall proceed at once, then, to examine the different agents now employed, the modes of applying them, and the proportionate etfecta produced. And, first, with regard to the species of moving power: This may be of two kinds, animal and mechanical. By animal power we mean the direct application of the strength of any animal to dragging or pulling, as in the simple case of a horse dragging a cart. By mechanical, the application of any power through the inter- vention of machinery; the source of power in this latter case may, how- ever, be animal strength, or a purely mechanical agent, as, for instance, a steam-engine. The latter is the only species of mechanical power which it has been attempted to apply practically to locomotion ; and therefore that alone we purpose to compare with the animal power. Now, although these two powers, viz: simple animal power and the steam-engine, may in most instances be applied so as to produce the same effect, and may, therefore, to a superficial observer appear similar, yet there do exist such essential differences in the mode of action, or the means by which the effect is produced, that there are many cases in which the one may be used, wherein the other may be totally inapplicable. In this treatise, draught by animal power is indeed the principal object of consideration ; out as, at the present moment, there appears to be a great effort making to supersede animal power entirely by mechanical — to dismiss our old servant, the horse, and supply his place by the steam- engme — it may be as well, in justice to the former, to say a few words in his defence, and to take a rapid and general view of the distinguisliing features of the two agents. 406 ^^ DRAUGHT. To enter into all their respective merits, and to weigh their comparative advantages under all circumstances, would involve us in many questions foreign to our immediate point of consideration, and would embrace sub- jects which may supply matter for future consideration well wortliy of our attention. It is sufHcient for our present purpose to show that there still exist great objections to the universal application of machinery to draught, objections which do not equally apply to the use of animal power; and on the other hand, that there are many advantages in the latter, which are not yet obtained by the former; and that animal power continues, tor all the ordinary purposes of traffic upon common roads, to be the most simple in its application, and certain in its effect. We shall confine ourselves particularly to the consideration of that part of the question which relates to the slow transport of heavy goods, as being the most important branch of the subject, especially for agricultural pur. poses. Economy is, of course, the grand desideratum in the consideration of this question ; consequently, the comparative expense of the two powers, supposing them for the moment equally convenient and applicable, will first demand our attention. A ditficulty arises here, however, from the want of a certain measure of ooraparison. The power of a one-horse engine is by no means exactly the same thing as that of a horse. As we have before stated, the mode of applying them being different, the variations in the results are different, and consequently the effects do not bear a constant proportion to each other, under different circumstances; we must therefore be careful not to fall into the mistake which we have ourselves pointed oui as a very com- mon source of error, viz: the drawing general conclusions from data obtained in a particular case. We shall take the power of the horse, and that of the steam-engine as ascertained practically on railways, where the effect of each is less influenced by accidental circumstances, and conse- quently can be better ascertained than on a road. We shall confine our calculations of expense to this particular case, and then endeavour to discover how far the same results are to be expected, or what modifications are likely to take place, and what alterations are to be made in the results under different circumstances. As regards the first, viz: the comparative cost of animal and mechanical power on a railway, we cannot do better than quote the words of the late Mr. Tredgold upon this subject, and we accordingly extract the following from iiis work upon Railways: " The relative expense of different moving powers for railways is an interesting inquiry, and the same materials being necessary to estimate the absolute expense for any time or place, it is desirable to give some particulars, to aid the researches of those who wish to make such com- parative estimates. The annual expense of a horse dependis on — " 1. The interest of purchase-money. "2. Decrease of value- " 3. Hazard of loss. "4. Value of food. ''5. Harness, shoeing, and farriery. , "6. Rent of stabling. "7. Expense of attendance. "According to the average duration of a horse in a state fit for labour, of the description required on a railway, the first three items may be estimated at one-fourth of the purchase-money ; the food, harness, shoo- ing, &c., included in the 4th, 5th, and 6th, will most likely not exceed 40/. per annum, nor yet be much short of that amount; and supposing one man to attend to two horses, this would add 15/. 12*. iftlie man's wages ON DRAUGHT. * 407 were 2s. per day; and, at this rate, the labour of a horse of the value of 20/. would cost 60/. 125. per year; or, since there are 312 working days in the year, the daily expense would be Ss. lO^d., or 186 farthings. But the power of a horse is about 125 lbs. when travelling at the rate of three miles per hour, and tlie day's work eighteen miles. "The annual expense of a high-pressure locomotive engine, or steam carriage, consists of — "1. The interest of the first cost. "2. Decrease of value. "3. Hazard of accidents. *'4. Value of coals and water. "5. Renewals and repairs. "6. Expense of attendance. "It is difficult to procure these particulars from the experience of tnose wl I employ engines; we will therefore annex, by way of example, such sums as we think likely to cover the expense. The first cost of the engine and its carriage may be stated at 50/. per horse power, and its decrease of value and hazard will render its annual expense about one-fifth of its first cost, or 10/. per annum per horse power. The expense cf fuel and water per day will be not less than one bushel and a half of coals per horse power, and fourteen cubic feet of water; and, taking the coals at 6d. per bushel, and the water and loading with fuel at 3d., the annual expense will be 15/. 125.; the renewals and repairs, at 20 per cent, on the first cost, will be 10/., which is as little as can be expected to cover them. Attendance, suppose one man and one boy for each six-horse engine, at 6s. per day, or Is. per day for each horse power, or 15/. 12^. per annum; therefore the total annual expense of one-horse power would be 51/. 45., or 158 farthings per day." This power is equal to a force of traction of 166| lbs. for the same number of miles per day as the horse; but from this gross amount of power we must deduct that necessary to move the engine with its supply of coals: this will reduce it at least to 155 lbs.; consequently, in the one case we have a force of traction of 125 lbs., at an expense of 186 farthings, and, in the other, a force of 155 lbs. at an expense of 158 farthings; and reducing them both to one standard quantity of work done, we find the expense of the horse is ||| = 1.4&8, and of the locomotive engine 1.019, or about as 147 is to 100. In this case, therefore, there appears to be a decided economy in the use of the steam-engine, and accordingly its application has become very general, and is becoming more 550 every day. Let us now examine what alterations are requisite, before we can apply these calculations to the case of draught upon common roads. Sup- posing both species of power equally convenient and applicable, and confining our observations merely to the amount of power and propor- tionate expense. The force of traction of the horse, and the yearly cost, will remain so nearly the same, that for our present purpose we may consider them quite unaltered. Not exactly so with the locomotive engine. All the parts of the machine must be made much stronger and heavier, and consequently more expensive for road work than for a railway, and, therefore, the first cost will be greater — the wear and tear will also be greater, and as the work will be more variable, the consumption of fuel will be increased as well as the price, which, generally speaking, will be much less on a line of raihvay, than it can possibly be elsewhere. Still, all these circumstances will not influence the result so much as the increased effect of the weight of tlie engine. On a railway with the car. 408 ON DRAUGHT. riage as now constructed, the force of contraction is not nnuch mere than Tso "'" 2^i(r "'" ^''^ weight moved; consequently, the power necessary to move the engine itself is not very considerable. On a road, however, this proportion is materially altered; here the average force required to move a well-constructed carriage cannot be estimated in practice, at less, even when the roads are in good repair, than ^' ^ ; the engine, according to the construction of the best locomotive engines now in use, will weigh, with its carriage and fuel, at least one-lialf ton, or 1120 lbs. per hoise power, and ^L of 1120 is nearly 45 lbs., wiiich we have to deduct from the gross power of the engine, and which leaves only 121|- lbs. as the available power. The proportional expense of the horse and the steam-engine is now therefore about as 115 to 100, and this without taking into account the causes of increased expenditure already alluded to as regards the prime cost, the repairs, and the consumption of fuel. From these calculations it would appear, that even if mechanical power was found as convenient and as applicable in practice as horse power, still no great economy can be expected from the employment, upon common roads, of small locomotive engines, such as the best of those now in use, and known to tlie public, unless it be in cases where other means may fail to produce some particu- lar effect which may be required; if, for instance, a considerable velocity is necessary, the power of a horse is very nearly exhausted in moving his own body, and then there can be no doubt that a mechanical agent, in which power may always be exchanged for a proportional velocity, will have some advantages on a very good road, which in fact approaches very nearly to a railway. But in every case in which velocity is not a princi- pal object, as in the one now under consideration, and where, consequently, little momentum is acquired, and frequent though slight obstructions occur, as on an ordinary road, an animal appears to possess decided advantages. He adapts himself admirably to the work, increasing or diminishing his efforts according to the variations of the draught, resting himself, as it were, and acquiring vigour where his utmost strength is not called for, and thus becomes enabled to make exertions far beyond his average strength where any impediment or obstruction is to be overcome. Indeed, he appears rather to increase the average effect of his powers by these alternations of exertion and comparative relaxation : and when it is considered that the draught will, in an ordinary road, frequently vary in the proportion of six or eight to one, and that these changes may succeed each other suddenly, the importance of such an accommodating faculty will be imme- diately appreciated. By mechanical power, such as a steam-engine affords, these advantages are not easily obtained. Without great weight or rapid motion no momen- tum can be acquired; and the carriage itself, not being in rapid motion, and the necessary economy in weight precluding the use of a fly-wheel, any small obstruction will check, and, perhaps, totally stop the machine. For instance, supposing the carriage to be advancing steadily under the effect of a force of traction of 500 lbs., and that a stone or rut suddenly causes a resistance, which it would require 000 or 800 lbs. to overcome, a case by no means rare even on tolerable roads; if the impetus or momen- tum of the mass be not sufficient to carry it over this obstruction, the machine must stop until some increased power be given to it. It is also to be remembered, that what we are accustomed, in practice, to consider as the average power of a horse, is the average excess remain- ing over and above that necessary to carry his own body ; and that in all ordiqary cases he is able to maintain and continue nearly the same excr- tions, although the comparative draught of the carriage be considerably ON DRAUGHT. 40'J increased. Thus, if the road he slightly muddy or sandy, or newly j; rav- elled, the draught, as we shall see more accurately laid down when wn come to the subject of wheeled-carriages, will be double and even treble what it is on the same road when freed tVom dust or dirt; l)iit the average power of the horse remains nearly the same, and, practically speaking, equal under both circumstances; that is to say, that the power necessarv to move the weight of the horse's body, which forms no inconsiderable por tion of his whole power, is not materially increased by a state of road which will even treble the draught of the carriage; consequently, the excess, or available portion of his power, remains unimpaired, and the full benefit of it, as well as of any increased exertions of the animal, is felt and is applied solely to dragging the load. Not so with a locomotive steam-engine, because beyond the power neces- sary to perform the work of dragging the load, an additional power must be provided to move the engine itself. In other words, if an engine of ten- horse power be capable of dragging a certain load, the weight of this engine forming a portion of the load to be moved, a corresponding portion of the power is unprofitably absorbed in moving it, and the excess, oi remaining power, is alone available for useful purposes, and can alone be compared to the animal or horse power. Now, if the draught is augmented, as we have just supposed, by any sand, dirt, or roughness of the road, or any other impediment, the fjrce required to move the useless weigjit (of the engine) is proportionably increased ; it may even, as we have stated, be doubled or trebled : and the whole power of the engine remaining the same, the surplus or remaining portion is considerably diminished, and that at the very moment when, as before stated, it produces only one-half or one-third tiie effect. Moreover, if at any part of the road a power equal to twenty horses is required, the engine, as regards its construction, must be a twenty-horse engine. It is erroneous to suppose that a steam-engine, because it is a high- pressure engine, can therefore, as occasion requires, be worked ibr any length of time beyond its nominal power, by merely raising the steam. Every part of a machine is calculated and arranged for a certain pressure and corresponding power, and that is the real power of it. It is optional to work at or below that power, but, if below, it will be to a disadvantage, and the bulk and weight of the machine will be as great as if it were always worked to its full extent, and both have to be carried over all those parts of the road where a far less power would be sufficient. The velocity of the carriage might indeed be increased, while travelling on the good and level portion of the road, but these alternations in the speed and power can- not be effected without a considerable degree of complexity, weight, and expense in the machinery, and as we are confining ourselves to the con- sideration of the case where velocity is not required, and might even be an. inconvenience, the excess of power will be wasted. These objections to the use of mechanical power, in certain cases, are pointed out, not as being insurmountable obstacles to the use of machinery,, but as serious difficulties, which, in practice, have not yet been overcome In fact, there is not at present any practical substitute for horse power ot?- common roads, and as far as the public is concerned nothing has yet beep done. We, therefore, must consider them as objections remaining to be' overcome ; and we are compelled to draw the conclusion, that, at the present moment, animal power (always confining ourselves to the question of the economical transport of heavy goods upon common roads) is superior to any mechanical agent, and that beasts of draught, and particularly the Dd JIO ON DRAUGHT. hor.'ie, are not onlv the mosi ancient, but still remain the most advantageous source of power. L'jng experience has pointed out the various modes of applying animal power; but it is tVequently ill-directed, owing to the want of an adequate knowledge of the mechanical structure of the animal, and the manner in which he exerts his strength. In the most powerful steam-engine, if too great a resistance be applied, or. practically speaking, if we attempt to make it do more work than it is calculated for, there is an immediate loss of power, in consequence of the diminution of velocity caused thereby; and if we continue to oppose a still greater resistance, we reach the point at which it is unable to overcome it. and it ceases to produce any effect. Again, a very small obstacle may be so applied as greatly to impede an engine of considerable power, or even to stop it altogether. The power of an engine is limited, and resistance must always be proportioned to it; and there is a proportion beyond which it is useless to go, and less than which would not absorb tlie whole force. An animal is but a beautiful piece of machinery, and although perflsct in Us construction, and wonderfully accommodating in its movements, it still, like the engine, has a limited power, and has its peculiar modes of action, its strong and its feeble parts; and we must well consider its structure, to be able to apply the resistance in that degree, and in that manner which shall enable it to produce the greatest effect. The consideration of the comparative effects, of the exertions of a man and a horse will at once eserf-plify this, and lead us more clearly to the knowledge of the peculiar qualities or faculties of the horse. If a horse be made to carry a heavy weight rapidly up a steep ascent, or if a man be employed to drag slowly a heavy carriage along a rough road, the strength of both will be soon exhausted, and little effect produced; but if a man be made to carry a weight up a ladder, and if a horse draw a heavy carriage along a road, they will each produce a considerable effect : yet, in the former case, the horse and the man are as strong as in the latter, but the power is not properly applied, and is consequently wasted. These different results are easily explained, by considering the mechdn- ical structure of the two bodies, and the mode in which their muscular strength is exerted. The action of pulling is effected in either case by throwing the body forward beyond the feet, which form the fulcrum, and allowing the weight of the body, iti its tendency to descend, to act against the resistance applied horizontally, and drag it forward ; as the resistance yields, the feet are car- ried forward, and the action renewed, or rather continued Let A {fg i.) be ihe centre of gravity, or the point in .viiich the whole of ON DRAUGHT. 4H the weight of ,he body may be supposed to be iccumulated, and B the ful crum, or pohit of resistance ; AC the direction of the power to be overcome. If the legs are inflexible, tiie body, acting by its gravity, tends in its descent to describe a circle around the point B, but is opposed by the resist- ance AC; and it is proved by the law of the resolution of forces, that if BU be drawn parallel to AC, the lengths of the lines AD, AB, and DB represent respectively the proportions between the weight of the body, the strain upon the point of support, and the etfect produced ; that is, if AD be taken as the measure of the weight of the body, then AB is the measure of llie strain upon the legs, and BD or AE the power pulling in the dircp tion of AC. Consequently, the effect increases with the weight of the body and the distance which it is thrown beyond the feet, and is limited only by the capability of resistance at B, or the muscular strength of the legs. This is evidently the case in practice; for even if the body were brought nearly horizontal, when its weight would act to the greatest advantage, still, if the legs are incapable of resisting the strain, they would yield, and no etfect would be produced. In a man, this muscular strength of the limbs is very gi'eat, and he can lift or carry immense weights, and can ascend easily, even loaded, a ladder ; but he is not well adapted to the ourpose of dragging: as his own weight is small proportionably to his strength ; and the centre of gravity is low, and by the construction of his body, cannot be thrown far beyond the fulcrum at his feet; conse- quently, however capable his legs may be of resisting a great strain, AE remains small, and his muscular force is not, therefore, advantageously brought into action. A horse, on the contrary, by the formation of the body, can relieve his weight partly from his fore-legs ; and, extending his hind legs as in Jig. 2, throw the centre of gravity a considerable distance in front of his feet B. AE is here proportionably much greater than in the former case, and the whole of his force is, therefore, advantageously employed. He is in fact, by his mechanical construction, a beast of draught. The same train of reasoning which has here pointed out the species of work peculiarly adapted to the different structure of the man and horse, if continued further, will now serve to show the circumstances under which the power of the latter is best applied, and the greatest effect produced. VVe shall here consider both the quality of the draught and the degree. And first, it is to be observed, that although the weight of the animal's body is the immediate cause in the action of pulling, yet, as before stated, it is by the action of the muscles in advancing the legs and raising the body, that this cause is constantly renewed, and the effort continued. The manner, and the order of succession in which a horse thus lifts and advances his legs may, of course, influence the movement of his body, and ought therefore to be examined into : accordingly we find that many writers upon draught have frequently touched upon this part of the subject, but they appear, however, to have contented the;rselves with inventing in their closet the manner in which they conceived a horse must have moved lis legs, rather than to have taken the trouble to go out of doors to see A'hat really did take place, and, consequently, many have arrived at very erroneous conclusions. The ancient sculptors, who generally studied nature so faithfully, either neglected this point, or otherwise our modern horses, by constant artificial training, have altered their step ; for we find in the celebrated frieze, from the Parthenon at Athens, a portion of which, !:ow in England, is more commonly known under the name of the Elgin marbles, the only horsps which are represented trotting, have both tljell 4}ii THE HORSE. legs on the same sirfe of the body raised at once, the other two being firm upon the ground — a position which horses of the present day never assume while trotting. In the case of these relievos, it is true that there are only four horses, out of more tlian two hundred, which are in the action of trotting, all the otiiers heing represented in a canter or gallop ; and only two of these four are entirely in the foreground, and distinct from the other figures. It would not be sate, therefore, to draw too general a conclusion from this example alone; but we have another very decided proof of the remark that we have already made, in the case of the huv horses of the church of St. Marc at Venice. Whether this was then the mode of trotting or not, it is certain that it is never seen to occur in nature in the present day ; and indeed it appeals quite inconsistent with the necessary balancing of the body, and was, tliere- fore, more probably an error of the arlist. It perhaps may have been found difficult or troublesome to watch the movement of a horse's legs ; but a very little practice will enable any body to verify what we are about to state: by keeping near the side of a horse that is walking, it will be easily seen that, immediately after the raising of either of the hind legs from the ground, the fore leg of the corresponding side is also raised, so that the latter leaves the ground just before the for mer touches it. If the fore legs be then watched, it will be seen tha., immediately after the movement of either of these, the hind leg upon the opposite side is put in action, so that the order of succession appears to be in walking, as numbered in Jig. 3. If the horse be now examined from a short distance, it will be seen that, when he is walking freely, the successive movements of the legs are at equal intervals of time, .nd that the muscular force of one limb only is brought into action at t' m same moment. But if a horse, which is drag- ging a load with some considerable exertion, be watched, it will be seen that he then acts longer upon his legs, and allows a less interval of time for raising and advancing them ; and at the same time, the regularity of tl;o movement is generally destroyed ; the limbs on the same side jrener- ally being moved more simultaneously, or at nearer intervals of time than those at the opposite corners: thus, the muscular forces of two limbg are always acting together, the movement of the whole body is less con- tinued and uniform than in the former case ; but each impulse is more powerful, and a resistance, which would be too great for the muscles of ON DRAUGHT. 413 one leu, is overcome by the united exertion of two. We shall point out, hereafter, the necessity of attending to this in the application ot his power to draught. In trotting, the action is of course quicker, and a less resistance will, as might be expected, cause the hoise to move his legs at two intervals in- stead of at four equal intervals of time : indeed, a horse accustomed to go in harness generally acquires the habit of that action. There is this strik- ing difference between trotting and walking: in walking, we have seen tiiat the interval between the movement of the legs on the same side was less than the other interval of time : in trotting, on the contrary, the legs situated diagonally, or at opposite corners, move almost simultaneously. Owing to the velocity and the momentum which the body acquires in con- sequence of that velocity, in trotting fast, the successive impulses are less distinctly perceptible, and the movement more continued and uniform than in a slow trot, or in walking. In gaJlopmg, the movement is totally different : the fore legs are thrown forward nearly simultaneously, and the hind legs brought up quickly, and nearly together; it is, in fact, a succession of leaps, by far the greatest interval of time elapsing while the legs are extended after the leap is taken : this is the position, therefore, which catches the eye, and which must be represented in a drawing to produce the effect of a horse in a gal- lop, although it is well known to be the moment when the animal is making no exertion. The canter is to the gallop very much what the walk is to the trot, though probably a more artificial pace. The exertion is much less, the spring less distant, and the feet come to the ground in more regular suc- cession : it is a pace of ease, and evidently quite inconsistent with any exertion of draught. The consequence of these peculiar movements in the limbs of the animal is, that a succession of impulses is conveyed to the body ; and when the movement is slow, and the body of the horse does not acquire any consid- erable impetus or momentum, it must be apparent that the resistance should be such as lo reccioe each of these impulses, and leave the horse unre- strained in the intervals. It must, therefore, be a rigid resistance, void of elasticity. It must not, however, be a constant, unremitted resistance. For it i'^ a well-known fact, that, however powerful may be the muscles of a limb, they must not be kept constantly on the stretch. Thus we feel even more fatigue by standing than by walking, because one particular set of muscles is then kept constantly exerted. It is evident, therefore, that the resistance or draught must not be perfectly constant, but should afford frequent opportunities of relaxing the efforts. Neither must it be a yielding resistance, as in that case the animal could not make any great exertion ; for if he applied too much power, he would be liable to fall for- ward, and should he at any time fall short of the necessary exertion, he would be drawn back by the strain, and it would require a considerable effort ♦o restore the motion. If a horse be made to drag a rope passing over a pulley and descending into a well with a certain weight, say of 200 lbs. attached to it, it is obvious that he could not make an effort greater than 200 lbs. without instantly considerably increasing his velocity, which would be a waste of power ; •lor must he for an instant relax his efforts, or fall below that mark, for he would theu be unable even to resist f, for rais inf;^ ihe earth from excavations, or the materials of a building ; but the exeriion is continued only for a few seconds, or for a distance of not more than ten or twenty yards ; if prolonged, the inconvenience would be seri- ously ielt, as it is, to a certain degree, in towing canal boats; the lenglh and curve of the rope give an elasticity to the strain, and the necessity of keeping the rope out of the water, or from dragging ahjng the towing-path, compels the animal to keep up a constant, unremitted pull, and that, too, in an oblique direction, so as to throw him into an unfavourable position We accordingly find that, under these circumstances, the average work of a horse is equivalent only to about four-fifths of that given by Smeaton, De- saguilliers, and others, who estimated the power of a horse from the work done in a horse-mill, where the resistance is inelastic, and all circumstances favourable, with the exception of the circular path. The disadvantage of this kind of resistance is well known to cartmen, though of course without consideration of the reason. A horse is said to pull better when he is close to his work, that is to say, when he is attached at once to the body to be moved, because every exertion he makes is then communicated at once to the mass : but the leader of a team, unless he keeps the traces constantly on the stretch, may frequently waste a power- ful effort without producing much effect upon the carriage. Another inconvenience resulting from harnessing horses in a team, or one before the other, is, that the leader, by tightening the traces, is con- tinually relieving the strain from the body horse, and reciprocally the body horse from the leader; so that these horses labour under all the disadvan- tages of a long, elastic, and constantly yielding connexion with the load, which is not only fatiguing to them, but, in cases where the resistance is variable, prevents the full and united effect of their exertions being pro- perly communicated to the carriage. For, if a slight obstacle, as a rut or stone in a road, checks the progress of the vehicle, the shaft-horse can immediately throw his whole weight into the collar, and the united effect of his strength and impetus is conveyed unimpared to the vehicle, and forces it over the obstacle ; but if any elasticity is interposed between the power and the resistance, as in the case of the traces of the leader of a team, the whole, or the greater part of the effect of impetus is lost, and that force, which, if concentrated in one effort, would effect the object, being lengthened into a continued and comparatively feeble pull, is insufficient. If we wish to destroy the impetus of a body moving with violence, we receive it with a yielding resistance ; the action of catching a cricket-ball exemplifies this perfectly ; and therefore, if the full effect of momentum is wanted, all elasticity in the direction of the movement should be avoided. We have entered rather fully into the consideration of this particulai point, because the principle is not only applicable to the mode of commu- nicating the immediate action of the moving power, but will be found also of considerable importance when we arrive at the subject of wheel-carriages. A consideration of these various points brings us to this conclusion, that the draught ought neither to be constantly uniform or without remission, nor yet yielding or elastic: sudden shocks or violent changes in the velo- city must also evidently be disadvantageous, as tending to distress and injure the animal. Having determined upon the necessary quality of the resistance, we will proceed to examine into the quantity or the degree of resistance or draught, and the speed best adapted to the exertion of the animal The useful effec* of a horse, or the work done, must evidently depend upon three things, viz* the rale at which he is made to travel, the power of traction he can exerl. ON DRAUGHT. 41 3 and the nuinhet of' hours he :an continue to work daily at that sj-ied ; and where there is no fixed conJition which determines any one of tliese, such as a particular load to be moved, or a certain velocity which it is desirable to attain, or a limited time to perform the work in, tl)en the object nmst be to search for those proportions of the three by which, at the end of the daj the greatest quantity of work shall have been produced. Witli respect to the first two, viz: the speed and power exerted, it will b< obvious that where a horse travels unloaded, the greatest distance he can go in any given time for several days in succession without injurious fatigue, is the limit oj" his velocity: on the other hand, the load may be so great, that he can scarcely put it in motion — this is the limit of his power: in both cases, tbe useful etfect is nothing. But between these limits of velocity and power, there is a proportion which affords the maximum quantity of effect, and which, therefore, must be the most advantageous for the applica- tion of horse-power. It has been asserted by theorists, and the theory appears to be supported by experience, that the velocity corresponding to this maximum, or that at which a horse working continually a certain number of hours per day will do the most work, is equal to half the extreme or limit of velocity of the same horse working the same number of hours unloaded; and that the force of traction corresponding to this speed, is equal to half the limit of his power. For instance, if six hours be the length of a day's work decided upon, and if a horse working that time can go six miles per hour unloaded, and therefore producing no useful effect, and supposing the limit of power of the same hor^e be equal to 250 lbs., it is found that lie will do the most work in the same number of hours when drawing a load at the rate of half six, or three miles per hour; and half of 250 or 125 lbs. will be the strain corresponding to this speed Our next step, then, must be to find \.\\esii limits: now, the limit of -vlocity depends upon the length of tifne during which the speed is Kept up; we subjoin therefore a table deduced from experiments, and which represents the proportion of the duration of labour and maximum velocity of the average of horses accus- tomed to their respective velocities. Duration of labour . Maximum velocity unload- ed in miles per hour. This within the range here given may be considered as very nearly the law of decrease of speed by increased duration of labour; and at the first glance we see the great advantage of reducing the speed and prolonging the exertion. There are, however, many causes to limit the duration of a day's work of a horse. Tredgold, in his work on Railways, before quoted, says: "The time assigned for the day's work of a horse is usually eight hours: but it is certain, from experience, that some advantage is gained by shortening the hours of labour; and we have observed, that a horse is least injured by his labour, where his day's work is performed in about six hours; where the same quantity of labour is performed in less than six hours, the over-exertion in time shows itself in slifTened joints, while tiie wearying effects of long-continued action become apparent, if the duration of the day's work be prolonged much beyond eight hours. Indeed, under the management of a good driver, a full day's work may be completed in the time before mentioned — six hours — with benefit to the health and vigour of the animal." We may be permitted, however, to abandon the idea of improving the Hours. 1 2 3 4 5 5 7 8 10 143 101 H n 6| 6 H 5i 4| jj[6 f>j>f DRAUGHT. health of the animal or of rendering his busnicss a pleasure to him — an attempt, the success of which is, we should think, very questionuLde, and content ourselves with endeavouring to check tlie barbarous practice of working horses to death either by overdriving or overloading them ; and we shall, as is generally the case, consult our own interests and follow the dictates of humanity at the same time, by not injuring so useful an animal: and we think that experience proves there will be no danger of doing this by working eight or nine hours a day. By referring to the Table above, we see that the maximum velocity of the average of horses corresponding to eight hours' work is five miles and a half per hour, consequently, the rate at which he would travel when loaded is a little more than two miles and a half per hour. There is no doubt that some horses could conveniently travel faster; but as the speed must generally be governed by that of other horses, the average is, in this case, the rate to be adopted. The force exerted under these circun:stances depending upon the quality of the horse, it is very difficult to attain even an approximate value of it, unless the experiment be made upon each individual horse: it is fortunately, however, of no great consequence in practice, because if we feel sure tliat we are employing all the j)Ower v/e can command to the greatest advantage, it is not of any very great importance that we should know the exact amount of that power. In comparing animal horse-power with that of the steam-engine, we estimated it at about 125 lbs., but we believe that, with tolerably good horses, it may generally be taken at more than that. We have thus far confined our attention to the cases where velocity, as well as duration of labour, was left to choice ; this is far from being always the case. In stage-coaches, or other conveyance for passengers, speed is absolutely necessary, and it only remains to learn how that speed can be obtained with the greatest economy. The following Table extracted from Tredgold, will show the great reduction in the effect produced by increasing the velocity. The first column being the velocity or rate per hour, continued for six hours per day ; the second represents the force of traction of which the animal is capable ; and the third, the comparative effects produced. A force of traction of 125 lbs. continued for six hours at the rate of three miles per hour being taken as the standard, and considered equal to the arbitrary number 1000. Miles per hour. Force of traction in lbs. Eflcct produced. 2 . . 166 . 888 3 . . . . 125 . 1000 H • • . . 104 . 972 4 . . . . 83 888 4^ • • . . 621 750 5 . . • . 41| . 555 5i . . . . 361 . . . 500 ir, however, the hours of labour be lessened, taking the velocity corres- ponding to the greatest useful effect, the results will be much greater, and the velocity may be raised much higher, as will be seen in the following Tal.l.-. Here the first column is the length of days' work, the second the best ve.ocny corresponding to that time", or half the limit of velocity shown in Table (I), and the thiVd column the comparative effect produced, tho force uf traction being in each case 125 lbs. ON DRAUGHT. 417 LurvUon of labour in hours. Velocity, miles per hour. Eflect prod'iced. 2 5|- 578 3 4} 709 4 3f 813 5 . ... 3i 909 6 3 1000 7 2f 1063 8 2f 1110 To attain hiirher velocity, it is necessary still further to reduce the load, and the next Table is calculated upon the supposition of the strain being oniy one half the last, viz: 62^ lbs.; this is about the average exertion of eu.;h horse in a four-horse heavy stage-coach. Eflect produced. .... 613 .... 534 .... 434 .... 307 Duration of Infwur. Ho. irs per day. Velocity. 4 . . . 51 3 . . 6| 2 1 . . . : : 1? In mails or light coaches, where ten, eleven, and even eleven and a half 3r twelve miles an hour is attained, the average strain of each horse is barely 40 lbs., and the effect produced, or value of work done, not much more than one-half the above. It must be remembered, that these Tables are all calculated upon the supposition of the road being good, and the work not such as to cause any immediate injury to the animal, and is adapted only to the average quality of horses. They are not therefore, at once applicable as data for calcula- tions in all ordinary cases, but only serve to show the comparative forces which may be exerted under difl^erent degi-ees of speed. The results or effects of this force will always be influenced by the quality of the resist- ance, as we have already observed in the cases of slow travelling; but in rapid travelling, the power is much more expensive, owing to the great loss which we see, by the Tables, is sustained by increased velocity ; and it is, therefore, the more important to study well the means of applying the power in question. In this rapid travelling, the bad consequences of a uniform and constant strain is still more felt by the horses, and the necessity of occasional relief is still more urgent than at low velocities. It is universally admitted by horse proprietors and postmasters, whose interests make them peculiarly sensible on this point, that a flat piece of road is more destructive of horses than the same length of road where gentle rises and alternate flat and swelling ground occur; and that a long hill is easier surmounted where there are occasional short levels, and even descents, than when the whole is one uniform descent. It only remains for us, before we dismiss the subject of the moving power, to consider the particular mode of applying it, or the manner of harnessing the horses. Under this head, comes the question of the best direction of the traces, '.)r, as it has generally, but less clearly, been called, the angle of inclina- •ion of the line of traction. This question appears to have been always considered one of the greatest importance : the point has been frequently discussed, and various opinions have been advanced ; some having reconi. mended it to be horizontal, and others inclined; and, as they have each ir 418 ON DRAUGHT. iheir lurn, in den"^nstrating the correctness of their own theory, proved the error of others, there can be no presumption in laying them all aside, and in taking a different, but at the same time a more simple and pr^ictical view of the case. By referring to a figure, similar to that by which we showed the mode of action of the horse in pulling, we see that if AD represent that portion of his whole weight which is relieved from his fore- legs, and AE the direction of the traces, then AF is the measure of the horizontal pull upon the carriage. Now, AF bears a constant proportion to AB, which represents the strain upon the legs; and AD being constant, AB, and, consequently, AF, increase or diminish according as the angle ADB is increased or diminished : that is to say, the horizontal pull applied to the carriage is proportionate to the strain upon the legs; but they are both dependent upon the angle formed by the traces, increasing or dimin- ishing as the latter are Fig- 4. inclined downwards or upwards from the collar ; so that whether the traces be inclined upwards, aa jig. 4, or downwards, at Jig. 6, or whether the) be horizontal, as jig. 5, makes no difference in the manner of pulling. In the first case, a por- tion of the animal's weight is borne by the traces, and is transferred by them to the carriage. AF is here small, but the strain upon the legs, AB, is also proportionably less than in the second case, where the traces are horizontal. In jgure 6, where the traces incline downwards, we see thai the horizontal force, AE, is much more consider- able; but, at the same time, AB is increased, and, consequently, the muscular exertion re- quired in the legs is pro portionably great. In fact, here a portion of the weight of the load is transferred to his shoul- ders. The comparative ad- vantages therefore of the three do not follow any general rule, but depend simply upon the peculiai qualities of the particu- lar animal employed, and his relative capabilities for lifting and pulling, PN DRAUGHT. 419 or the proportion existing between the weight oi his body and his inuscula) strength. To render this more clear to our own feelings, we will put the- case of a man : — We have already seen that an able-bodied man is more adapted for lifting than pulling; consequently, in his case, it would be ad- vantageous to throw a certain portion of the weight upon him, by making him pull upwards, as in fig. 7; or, what we are more accustomed to see and which amounts to tlie same thing, applying his strength to a wheel barrow, jig. 8 ; and we have frequently seen an ordinary man wheel 800 lbs. in this manner. If, however, we take a person accustomed to hard work, and conse quently not so strong in the legs, althougli he may be unable even to lift the wheelbarrow which the other moved with ease, still he may, by push- ing horizontally, put in motion a considerable load ; and, lastly, in the case of an invalid who can barely carry his own weight, if he lean on the back of a garden-chair, he will not only walk himself, but push on the chair; or a child who is yet too weak to stand, can, if pari of his weight be supported in a go-cart, not only move himself, but also the frame which supports him. These are very familiar and homely comparisons, but they are cases exactly similar to the three positions of the traces; and the argument will equally apply to horses as to men. It is true, v/e rarely use for draught a horse that cannot stand ; but the case is very possible that a large, heavy horse, otherwise not strong, or one which it was not desirable to fatigue, might pull better and longer, if part of the weight was thrown upon the carriage, or if, in other words, the traces pulled upwards. And we know by expe- rience that, in the case of stage-coaches, where, owing to the speed, the weight of the horse's body is already generally a burden to him, it is dis- advantageous to increase that weight by inclining the traces much down- wards ; on the contrary, where we wish to obtain the utmost effect of a powerful horse, or of a horse that is muscular, but without much weight forward, it is highly advantageous to augment the effect of his gravity by inclining the traces even as much as fifteen degrees, or about one upon three; the strain upon the traces will be then considerably increased, and the effect augmented, provided always that he is able to exert the necessary strength in his legs. As far, therefore, as the mere force of traction is concerned, there is no particular angle which will always produce the greatest effect ; but it must dupend upon the particular capability of the horse ; and this in its turn varies, and is affected by circumstances; for the same horse that upon a level road requires no addition to his weight, might be materially assisted by a slicht addition when ascending a hill, if not continued too long; and most horses would be benefited considerably by the opposite arrangement in a descent: that is, by a portion of their weight being borne up; they should, at least, have no additional load thrown on them while descendinix a hill. 120 ON DRAUGHT, There is also & time when incliiiinn; the traces downwards is almost indispensable: it is when dragging a four-wheeled waggon over a rough, broken road. If the front wheel, which is generally small, meets with aii obstacle by falling into a hole, or stopping against a stone, it requires nc profound reasoning to show, that a force pulhng upwards, in the direction AB, Jig. 9, will raise the whole wheel over the ob- stacle with much greater facility than if applied horizontally, as AC; this is the only circumstance, unconnected with the horse, that ouglu to govern the direction of the traces, and the degree of the inclination here must of course still be proportioned to the power of the horse. We see therefore that, in proportion as the horse is stronger, or that we arc disposed to make him exert a greater effort, the traces should be inclined downwards from the collar: with a good average horse, perhaps one-sixth or one-seventh of the distance from the collar to the extremity ; with a horse of inferior capabilities, arising from weakness in the limbs, and not want of weight, or with an ordinary horse, when travelling above six miles an hour, the traces should be nearer the horizontal line, except when the cir- cumstance of a rough road, before alluded to, requires some modification of this. To be able to apply these rules generally in practice, it would be necessary to have some means of altering the traces while on the road ; as we have stated that they should be ditlerently arranged, according as the road is level or rough, or ascending or descending, this would not be diffi- cult to contrive, and has, indeed, been suggested by some writers upon this subject; but it is probable that, except in stage- waggons, where the same carriage goes along a great extent, and consequent variety of road, it will be sufficient to adjust the traces according to the average state of the roads in the neigiibourhood ; and we cannot greatly err, if we bear in mind that, inclining the traces downwards from the collar to the carriage, amounts to the same thing as throwing part of the weight of the load on to the shafts, a thing frequently done in two-wheeled carts, and a manoeuvre which all gooa cartmen know how to put in practice. The impossibility of inclining the traces of the leaders, owing to their distance from the carriage, is an addi- iional reason to those given before, why they (the leaders) cannot, when required, exert such an eflbrt m- the shaft-horse or wheeler; and on rough cross-roads, is a great argumcn; n favour of harnessing horses abreast. Fig. 10. Yet what can be more contrary to the rules here laid down than tiift injudicious mode frequently adopted in harnessing horses? Hcav coi) ON DRAUGHT. 421 Fig. 11. Btantly do we see the efforts of horses paralyzed by misapplication of their respective qualities! In the preceding cut, {fg. 10,) for instance, whic>- represents a very common specimen of this, the light, muscular, little horse which is capable of considerable exertion, is nearly lifted from the ground, and prevented from making any exertion, by the traces leading upwards; while the feeble old horse, scarcely capable of carrying his own body, is nearly dragged to tiie ground, and compelled to employ his whole strength 'n carrying himself, and even part of the weight of the leader; so that the strength of the one willing to work is not employed, and the other is so over, loaded as to be useless. The mode of attaching the traces does not admit of much variety. The shoulders have always been made use of for tiiis purpose. Homer, who is supposed to have lived about nine hundred years before Christ, describes very minutely, in the twenty-fourth book of the Iliad, the mode of harnessing horses at the time of the siege of Troy, nearly 3,000 years ago; but if we suppose that his description was taken from the harness in use in his own time, it is still referring to a period about twenty- seven centuries back. A simple strap, formed of several thick- nesses of leather, so as to be very stiff, and fitted well to the neck and shoulders, served as a collar, as seen at A A, {figs. 11 and 12.) A second strap, B P>, passed round the body, and was attached to the shoulder-strap at the withers. At this point was fixed the yoke, C C, which was fixed to the pole. Fig. 12. A pair of horses were thus yoked together, without traces or breechings, as oxen are seen at the present time in many parts of the country. This was a simple arrangement, but by no means a bad one ; and it would appear that they performed all the manoeuvres of cavalry with cha- riots and horses thus harnessed. The pair yoked to the pole were called yoked horses; abreast o'i these was frequently placed what was called an outer horse, with a simple shoulder-strap or collar, FF, and a single trace, GG, passing inside, as in fig. 18. Sometimes there were two of thes»< borses, one on each side, each furnisiied with his strap or collar and trace. 422 ON DRAUGHT. These straps, if well fitted, were not bad ; but as they must have pressftd in some degree upon the throat, they could not be equal to the collar o* llie yoked horses; still less to the collar at present used. In more modern times, these shoulder-straps gave place to the breast- si rap. A horse can no doubt exert a considerable strain against such a strap, but in action it must impede the movement of the shoulder. In some parts of South America the trace is fixed to the pommel of the saddle, which in its turn is well secured to the horse by saddle-girths, breast-straps, and breechings ; and we are informed that horses in this manner drag very considerable loads. It resembles completely the harness of the ancients, with the addition of the breechings. It is, of course, a mere temporary arrangement, convenient only as requiring no preparation. The trace is, in fact, the lasso of the rider, which is always fastened to the saddle; and, when he has entangled it around the' horns of a bull, or attached it to any thing he may have occasion to transport, he takes one or two turns of the thong around the pommel of the saddle, and the horse will at full gallop drag the load after him. Here the load being generally upon the ground, the trace must incline considerably downward; and this, added to the weight of the rider, will perhaps account in some degree for the extra- ordinary effects of a young powerful horse, goaded to the utmost, and con- tinuing the exertion only for a short time. A gentleman who travelled some time in this part of America, and fre- quently witnessed the practical effects of this arrangement, has suggested the propriety of introducing it into the artillery, by means of which any number of horses might in an instant be attached to a gun, to extricate it from any heavy or broken ground in which it might be entangled. Cer- tainly, the length of these traces would enable these additional horses to secure a good footing; and any number of horses might thus be made to lend their assistance in time of need. VVe do not pretend, however, to judge of the practical utility of this measure, but merely record the sug- gestion of another. The collar now generally used is an improvement upon the ancient shoulder-strap described by Homer ; ani it is probably the bes: possible ON DRAUGHT. 423 mode of attaching the traces to the horses. If the connection is nnade at the proper place on the collar, the latter bears flat and evenly upon the muscles which cover the collar-bone, and the shoulders- of the horse are left almost as free in their action as if the collar were not there. Abouv A, {jigs. 14 and 15,) is the point of the shoulder where the trace should come ; and a little inclination downward, which can very easily be effected in the case of the sliaft-horse by the shafts, and in the others by the belly- Dand, will, if necessary, prevent the collar rising up, and inconveniencing Jie throat of the i)orse. Fig. 14. Fig. 15. Reflecting upon the various circumstances which we have shown to occur in the application of animal power, and the various conclusions we have drawn while considering the best and most advantageous application of this power — and we must be excused the frequent repetition of the terms, for the sake of the clearness gained by it — it would appear that the resistance should be, as much as possible, rigid and inelastic, so as to receive imme- diately and unimpaired the direct effects of the slightly irregular exertions of the animal ; that this resistance should not be such as to yield directly to a sudden impulse ; that it should be so far uniform as to be free from violent changes or sudden shocks, but not so constant as to allow of no remission, nor of those alternations of exertion and comparative relaxation which we have stated to be advantageous to the perfect development of animal power. That, as regards the degree of resistance, where velocity is not required, a force of traction of from 100 lbs. to 125 lbs., or even 150 lbs.,* according to the strength of the horse, continued for eight hours a-day, at about two * The load which will produce this amount of draught will be determined when we consider the subject of the roads, on the quality of which it will be seen that ihia mual mainly depent.. 424 ON DRAUGHT. and a half to three miles per hour, is the hest proportion of quantity and duration of labour; that where six or eight miles per hour is required, the durition of the day's work should be shortened to five or six hours, and the draught reduced to 80 lbs. or 100 lbs. At still higher velocities, the draught must not exceed 50 lbs. or 60 lbs., and the time of working two or three hours. But this speed can only be attained by the sacrifice of the horse ; and consequently the question will rather be what the horse is capable of doing, than what can be done with economy ; and it becomes a matter of calculation depending altogether upon the first cost of the horse, and the profits arising from his employment. With respect to the mode of harnessing the horse, it is hardly necessary to say that great care should be taken in fitting the collar and in attaching the traces to the proper point. As to the direction of the traces, it must, as we have shown, entirely depend upon the circumstances of the case. Where the draught is heavy and slow, if the road be good, the traces should be nearly horizontal, unless the journey be short, or the traffic be only in one direction, and the cart return empty, or unless any other reason render it desirable to compel the horse to exert himself more than he would natu- rally do; the traces should then be inclined downward toward the carriage with an inclination, perhaps, of one upon four or five, provided always thai the horse is capable of continuing the exertion, which, by the additional load thrown upon his shoulders, lie is Vhus called upon to make. If, in the same case of low speed, the road be very heavy, or broken and rough, the pro- portion of draught upon each horse must be lessened, but the traces sliould be attached still lower to the carriage, at a slope of one upon three or four, by which much greater power is given to the animal to drag the load over any obstruction. At all high velocities the traces should generally be horizontal. The cases of rough roads or powerful horses may slightly afiect this arrangement, as at low velocities, but not in so great a degree. We will now proceed to examine the mode in which these conditions are practically to be fulfilled, and the result of the application of the prin- ciples which we have laid down, by considering the subject of the vehicles for convejjing the rceight to be moved. Those in present use are boats, (as canal-boats,) sledges, and wheeled- carriages, which last of course include every species of carriage, whethei waggon or cart, heavy or light. Canal-boats and canals, we suspect, are going fast out of use, and will very shortly give place entirely to railways ; but still, it must be many years before this can be effected ; and, in the mean time, the produce of the most extensive manufactures in the world, and the supply of immense masses of people, will be transported over these beautifully smooth, level, noiseless roads; and, even if their beds were dry, and become the course of railways (an event which may perhaps befall some of them), we must, out of respect for the extraordinary benefits we have derived from their assistance, and the almost incredible effect they have produced upon the commerce and riches of tiie country, have devoted a few lines to that part of their consideration which bears upon our subject, viz: the draught of canal-boats. The great advantage in the transport of goods by water-conveyance, is the smallncss of the power required. A body floating in water is left sc very free in its movements, that motion may be gradually communicated to it by any power, however small : at least the limit is very far removed ; but although a very slight movement may thus easily be obtained, the slightest increase of speed causes a very great increase of resistance. ON DRAUGHT. 425 The resistance to a body moving in a fluid arises princii)ally from th** striking of the particles of the fluid against tlie front of the moving body. so that if the speed of the vessel be increased, not only does it encounter a proportionably greater number of particles, but also it is struck by each, with a force proportionate to the velocity, and consequently tlie resistance is found to increase as the square of the velocity; thus, if the speed of the vessel be trebled, the number of particles, or the quantity of water which it .neets in its progress for a certain space of time, is trebled, and the resist- ance of each particle being also three times as great, owing to the boat's striking it with treble the velocity, the united elTect is nine times as great; therefore, if in the first instance it required one pound to draw tlie vessel, it would now require nine ; but nine times the weight or resistance, moved at three times the velocity, will require twenty-seven times the quantity of power in action; consequently, we see that the resis'.ance increases as the square of the velocity, and the power required to be exerted for a given time increases as the cube of that velocity. There are some other causes of resistance, which do not vary in this proportion, but at moderate velocities ; and, in all ordinary cases, this may be considered as a tolerable approximation to the real law of the increase, and shows at once the impossibility of using water conveyance where speed is I'equired. The draught of an ordinary canal-boat, at the velocity of 2\ miles per hour, is about „ i^ of its weight ; that is to say, a canal-boat, with its load weighing 33 tons, or 73,920 lbs., is moved at tiie rate mentioned, by a force equivalent to 60 lbs., being -^ig- part of the load. This is found by Mr. Bevan to be the result upon the Grand Junction Canal, and a force of traction of 80 lbs. is here found to be equivalent to a horse-power. The average power of an ordinary horse is certainly rather more ; and in the commencement of this paper we mentioned this as an instance of a small effect being produced, most probably owing to the peculiar application of the power. We believe it to be the case, and think it likely that, if the disadvantages before alluded to, arising from the mode of applying the power, could be removed, the effect might be raised to 100 lbs. or 120 lbs. of traction, and consequently the load moved would then be 40 or 50 tons; this is an increase well worthy of consideration. We now come to the consideration of the means of transport employed on land. These are sledges, rollers, and wheel-carriages. The order in which they are here mentioned, is, probably, that in which they were invented or first employed. A sledge is certainly the rudest and most primitive form of vehicle ; the wheeled-carriage,, and even the placing the load itself upon rollers, is the effect of a much more advanced state of the mechanical arts, and is, probably, of much later date than the sledge. When mat! first felt the necessity, or the desire, of transporting any article from one spot to another, he doubtless endeavoured to lift or carry it: if it proved too heavy for him to carry, he would naturally endeavour to drag it. Here frequent experiments would soon show him how nmch less labour was required to drag a body with a smooth surface in contact withi the ground, than when the contrary was the case; and if the body to be moved did not itself present a smooth surf^ice on any of its sides, but was, on the contrary, rough and angular in all directions, he would naturally be led to interpose between it and the ground some plane surflxce, which should prevent the angles and projections of the body from entering the ground and impeding the progress; and we may presume that sledges were thtis very early brought into use. When attempting to transport still heavier masses, the accidental pressure of round stones, or a piece of a timbc, may Eb i2C> ON DRAUGHT. Iiave sliown the advantage of interposincr rolling bodies, and thus rollers may have been in\ented and first brought into use. Tliese steps appear natural, and likely to have led to these results: they aie, at any rate, sufficient to account for tiie first introduction of these two means of facilitating transport, but no steps of this kind appear capable of leading to the ijeautiful yet simple contrivance of a wheel. A roller is by no means an imperfect wheel, as it may at first appear to be; tiicy have nothing in common but their rotatory or revolving action, but the effect of this motion is totally different in the two. In a roller, friction is avoided altogether by it : ma wheel, it exists as completely as in a sledge ; but the sliding surfaces being at the centre of the wheel, instead of on the ground, are always the same, and being under control, may be kept in tiiat state which shall cause as little friction as possible : moreover, the friction is at a point where we have the means of overcoming it, by acting with the power of a considerable lever, as we shall hereafter show. Tiiei'e is, indeed, a kind of roller, which partakes somewhat of the char- acter of the wheel, but without possessing the advantages of it. Tliis species of roller may have been an intermediate step between the two, and we shall therefore describe it when we have dismissed the subject of sledges and rollers. In England sledges are at the present time very little in use. In some commercial towns the facility with which bulky and heavy articles can be placed upon them, without being raised to the height of a cart, has caused them still to be employed ; but even in these cases, they are in general used only upon the pavement, where the friction is not considerable, and for sliort distances, in which case the saving of labour, in loading and unload- ing, more than compensates for the increase of power absorbed by the draught. Low-wheeled trucks would, however, in these cases, possess the same advantage, and might easily be substituted for them, if this advantage is so indispensable : for agricultural purposes, .hey are almost become obso- lete ; and for all purposes of traffic between distant points, they are quite abandoned. It is only in the north of England, and in some parts of Cornwall, that '.hey are sometimes used in farming; but wherever good roads exist, and mechanical arts keep pace with the improvements of the age, they have given place to wheel-carriages. An examination into their nature and action will immediately account for this. A sledge is merely a frame, generally of wood, upon wliich the load is placed; and, resting at once upon the ground, the friction between the under surface of the sledge and the ground bears a considerable proportion to the load ; but if the ground be very uneven and full of holes, the sledge, by extending over a great surface, avoids the holes, and slides only upon the eminences, which being naturally the stones or the hard portions of the ground, cause less friction ; on such a road, a wheel would be continually sinking into those holes, thus opposing considerable resistance, and would also expose the load to frequent danger of upsetting. It would appear, tiierefore, that over broken ground, or even upon a very bad, uneven road, a sledge may be more advantageous than wheels, and its extreme simplicity of construction renders it very economical, as regards first cost ; but the ground must indeed be very bad, or the country be very poor, and little cultivated, where the formation of roads would not amply repay themselves by allowing the use of wiieels ; for the power required to draw a loaded sledge will be at least four or five times greater than that required for an equally loaded cart upon a tolerably good road. ox DRAUGHT. 427 The draught of a sledge, even upon the pavement, is about one-fifth of the load, so that to draw a ton weight requires a force of traction of about four hundred weight; upon roads, the friction will be much greater; it is difficult to state its amount, as it must depend so much upon the nature of the ground, but with the load before mentioned, viz: one ton, the force of traction will, probably, vary from five to seven hundred weight: over a strong rocky surface, the resistance of a sledge will be much the same as on pavement. Its use, therefore, must be confined to very particular cases, where the absence of roads, or the want of means, prevents the adoption of more improved vehicles; and these cases are, fortunately, too rare in England to render it worth our while to bestow much time upon its description. Sledges are generally formed of two longitudinal pieces of timber, four or five feet apart, with their lower edges shod with iron; and transverse planks, bolted to these, form the floor, and they are thus easily constructed. The traces should be more inclined than with wheeled carriages, because the friction bearing a greater proportion to the load, it is more advantageous to throw a portion of that loud upon the horse; and, being used upon uneven ground, it is more important to be able to lift the front of the sledge over obstacles. Although in this country the use of sledges is very limited, in many parts of the world they constitute the best, and, indeed, the only means of conveyance. Upon ice, the friction is so trifling, that they oppose less resistance even than wheels, for the reasons before stated of their covering a larger surface, and thereby s.liding over those asperities which would impede the progress of a wheel; upon snow, the advantage is still more decided : — where a wheel would sink a considerable deptii, and become almost immoveable, a sledge will glide upon the thin frozen crust without leaving a trace, and with an ease truly wonderful. In all cold climates, they are consequently in general use; and the depth of winter is there the season for the transport of merchandise. The Esquimaux with their dogs, the Laplanders with their rein-deer, and the Russians with horses, use the sledge to a great extent in the winter, over the frozen rivers or the hard snow. In tiie warm climates, on the contrary, not only are they now almost un- known, but the records which refer to periods so far removed as 3000 years make no mention of such conveyance. Rollers come next under consideration ; they certainly afford the means of transporting a heavy weight upon land with much less power than any other means with which we are acquainted; their motion is not necessarily attended with any friction. A cylinder, or a sphere, can roll upon a plane without any rubbing of the surfaces whatever, and consequently without friction ; and, in the same manner, a plane will roll upon this roller without friction : in practice, this is always more or less the case, according to the perfection of workmanship in the formation of the rollers, and if the cylin- drical, the care with which they are placed at right angles to the direction at which they are to move. There is, it is well known, only one source of resistance which is inseparable from the use of rollers, viz: the unevennesa of tliC surfaces, or the yieldings of the material, which amounts to nearly the same thing. A circle resting upon a straight line can only touch it in a single point, and the contact of a cylinder with a plane is merely a line: consequently, .r the material of the roller, and the surface on which it rolled, were per- fectly hard and inelastic, such would be their contact, whatever weight might be placed upon the roller. 499 ON DRAUGHT. But in practice no such material can be obtained, and rollers, on the contrary, aie gen. erally made of wood, and, when loaded, thej must yield until the surface A B,fg. 16, is pro- portionate to the pressure. Still, if the sub- stance were perfectly elastic — that is to say, if it would return to its original form with the same force and velocity wiiich were required to distort it — this alteration would not cause any resistance ; the elasticity at E would tend to raise the back of the roller with a force D E, fig. 17, equal to and exaptly similar, but opposite to C B, and would consequently bal- ance it. Although perfect elasticity is unattainable, yet most hard substances possess this quality to some extent; consequently, when the load is not sufficient to crush the materials, the resistance is not much increased by even a considerable yielding; provided this yielding, as we before said, arises from elasticity. Thus, if a bladder be filled with air, and used as a roller, the resistance will not be greater than if a perfect and hard cylinder were employed, although the bladder may be nearly flattened under the weight ; but the permanent compression of the roller, and the crushing of dust or other extraneous substances lying in the way are the great impediments to its movement; these constitute a resistance in the direction B C, which is not counterbalanced by any force arising from elasticity on the opposite side. The eflect of this resistance is dependt^nt upon the dian)eter of the roller, diminishing when the latter is increased, though not in so rapid a proportion. If A B C be a circle, let a horizontal force P be applied at G,fg. 18; if an obstacle be placed at E, the force P will tend to push the roller over the obstacle, and will act with a lever equal to G F, and for all small obstacles, G F may be considered equal to G D the diameter. The weight upon the roller pressing it down, acts with a lever equa. to EF; but E F is equal to V G F, X V' F D ; therefore E r, which is equal to F D, remaining con- stant, and the diameter being increased, E F increases only as the square root of diameter, and consequently the force neces- sary to advance the roller is inversely as the square root of the diameter; that is to say, if a roller be increased four times in diameter, the resistance 1 arising from the causes now under consideration will be reduced to V4 or 1, and if increased nine times in diameter, the resistance will be only 1 equal to or i V9. This being the only source of resistance to the action of a roller, it will easily be conceived that, in practice, by laying a plank, or any other plane surface upon the ground, and preparing in like manner the lower surface of the body to be moved, and interposing rollers between the two, a very JTij-IS. ON DRAUGHT. 429 great weight may be moved with comparatively small power ; but, on tlio otiier hand, there is a serious practical inconvenience attending the use of a roller, which prevents its adoption except in very particular cases. A weight moved upon rollers proceeds at twice the rate of the roller, for U'Cfg. 19, be the centre of the roller, D the point of contact with the ground, and E that with the weight to be moved, and VV tiie weight, if this weight be put in motion, the point D is for an in- stant stationary, since it is in close contact with the ground. The diameter E C D moves, therefore, round the point D as a centre, and, consequently, E being twice as far from D as C is, describes E e twice as great a distance as C cy fresh points are now brought to the summit and in contact with the ground, and again the latter is stationary, while the former moves twice the distance which the point C does. The summit, therefore, or that point which IS in immediate contact with the weight, always moves with twice the velocity of the centre of the roller; but the velocity of the centre is, of course, that of the roller, and the velocity of the point E, which is in con- tact with, and is moved by, the weight, is the same as that of the weight moved ; therefore, as the weight is forced forward, it moves at twice the rate of the roller, it will gain upon the rollers, and others must be continu- ally supplied in front — an inconvenience much felt in practice. This confines the use of the roller to cases where the distance is very short, or where the weight conveyed is exceedingly great, and reduction in the resistance of more importance than the inconvenience alluded to. The most remarkable instance of the application of rollers is the trans- port of the rock which now serves as the pedestal of the equestrian statute of Peter the Great at St. Petersburgh. Pirr, 20. Fig. 21. This rock, a single block of granite, was discovered in the centre of a bog, four miles from the waterside; it weighed, after being cut into a it-mvenient shape, 1217 tons. Notwithstanding its enormous weight, it was raised and turned upon its side, and placed upon a frame. A road was made across tlie bog, and a timber railway laid down ; the whole was then left till the depth of winter, wiien the boggy ground was trozen i&O ON DRAUGHT. a/ivl the o;«;rations then commenced. The railways consisted of two line? of limbei a a a a, (figs. 20, 21, 22,) furnished with hard metal grooves similar and corresponding metal grooves were fixed to the under sideof tlie sledge, and between these grooves were placed the rollers, which were spheres of hard brass, about six inches in diameter. The impossibility of confinmg cylindrical rollers to a perfectly parrallel direction, and without which the friction would have been considerable, rendered the adoption of spherical rollers or balls running in a groove a matter of necessity, as otherwise the small surface upon which they can bear, and the consequent danger of crushing, or at least flattening tiiat surface, is a serious objection to spheres: once placed upon the rollers, it was drawn by means of cap- stans. The resistance does not appear to have been great, considering the enormous weight, since sixty men at the capstans with treble purchase blocks moved it with ease. The transport of this enormous rock under such disadvantageous cir. cumstances of country, over a distance of four miles, and its subsequent passage of thirteen miles by water in a vast cassoon or vessel constructed for the purpose, was a work surpassing any thing of the sort attempted by the ancients ; and, indeed, in modern limes the only thing which can be compared to it is the dragging a ship-of-the-line up a slip ; the weight is *n this case nearly the same as that of the rock, but the distance traversed is short, and the difficulties to be overcome much less. A plane of inclined timber is prepared and well greased ; a frame of wood, technically called a cradle, is fixed under the vessel, it is floated on to the inclined plane, and drawn up by the united eflforts of a number of well-manned capstans, with powerful tackle : in this case no rollers are used ; it is a sledge, the sur. lace being well covered with grease to lessen the friction. We have stated that there was a particular construction of roller which might be considered, as regards its form, merely, an intermediate step between the roller and the wheel. It consists of a roller with the diameter of the extremities increased as in fg. 23 ; the only advantage of this roller is that the body rests upon the small part of the roller, see Jig. 24, and when put in motion. n^. 23. ON DRAUGHT. 431 t'ig. 24. will not gam so rapidly on the roll ers ; or, in other words, the roller will move with more than half the velocity of the body. A mere in speclion of fg. 25, is sufficien. to show that the velocity of the centre, C, will be to that of the body resting on the point B, as C D to B i), so that if the ends of the rollers are twice the size of the intermediate part, C D will be equal to two-thirds of B D, and the roller will move at two-thirds of the rate of the body ; a less number of rollers are therefore required, and the resistance is somewhat diminished by having larger rollers in contact with the ground. In using a roller of this sort, the idea may have struck the workman, or it may have occurred accidentally, to confine the spindle of the roller, and compel it to move with the body; and thus a clumsy pair of wheels, fixed to a spindle, would have resulted from his experiment. Such a supposition is quite gratuitous, as we have no record of any such contrivance having existed before wheels were made ; indeed it is inferior botli to the roller and the wheel : the only argu- ment in favour of such a theory is, that rollers of this sort have been em- ployed in comparatively modern times. At Rome, in 1588, an obelisk, 90 feet high, of a single block of stone, weighing upwards of 160 tons, and which had originally been brought from Egypt, was removed from one square, in which it stood, to another in the Vatican, and there again erected in the spot where it now is. In dragging this through the streets of Rome, it was fixed in a strong frame of wood, which rested upon a smaller frame, which were furnished each with a pair of rollers, or spindles, of the form above referred to; they were turned by capstan bars: indeed, they cannot be better described than by stating that they resembled exactly the naves of a pair of cart wheels (all the spokes being removed), and fixed to a wooden axle. If a heavy waggon lay upon a pair of these, we can conceive that by putting bars into the mortices of the nave, we could force them round, and thus advance the waggon ; but the resistance would evidently be greater than if either roll- ers or wheels were employed. All the difficulties incidental to the use of the roller appear to be sur- mounted, and all objections met, by the contrivance of the wheel. The wheel being attached to the load, or to the carriage which contains It, moves with it, is pari of the machine, and consequently as we require only the number of wheels immediately necessary for the support of the load, we can afford to construct them of those dimensions and materials best suited to the purpose. By increasing their diameter, we are enabled to surmount impediments with much greater facility, as we have shown in the case of the roller ; and although there is a resistance arising from friction at the axle, which does not exist in the roller, yet this may be so reduced, by increasing the diameter of the wheel, as to form an inconsider- able part of the whole resistance, or draught of the carriage. Of the first introduction of the wheel we have no record whatever 432 O^ DRAUGHT The principle appears to us so simple as to have been necessarily the re- sult of pure invention, almost inspiration ; while, at the same time, it is so exceedingly effective and perfect, as hardly to admit of improvement. The great antiquity o^" wheeled-carriages or cliariots precludes all hopes of discovering their o'Jj;in. About fifteen hundred years before the Chris- tian era they appear m hftve been in very common use amongst the Egyp- tians in their warfar.-. Pharaoh despatched six hundred chosen chariots in pursuit of the I- aelites, immediately that he was informed of their escape, while the re .t of the army followed with all the chariots of Egy[)t ; here, therefore, they were in constant use, and serving as the cavalry of the present day. Moreover, the oldest records which enter into any detail of their con- struction described them in a very forward and perfect state. At the siege of Troy, nearly three thousand years ago, they formed, according to Homer, the cavalry of the Greeks and Trojans ; and every officer or hero of good blood possessed, at least, a pair of horses and a charioteer. These chariots being built to run over broken ground, where no roads existed, were made very low and broad, and they were by no means badly contrived for the purpose for which they were intended ; the wheels were constructed with a nave and spokes, felloes and tires ; and the pole, a, appears to have been fixed on the axle-tree, h, in the manner shown in fig. 2G. The body of the chariot was placed upon this frame. The team most generally consisted, as we have before stated, of a pair of horses, attached to the pole ; six and even a greater number of horses were, however, very frequently harnessed abreast, but in that case a second pole was generally affixed to the axle-tree, so as to have a pair of horses attached to each pole, and the axle-trees themselves were always made nearly as long as the whole width occupied by the horses. They appear to have had light chariots for more domestic purposes, and four-wheeled carriages for conveyance of heavy goods; and certainly King Priam, when he went to the Grecian camp to ransom the body of his sor. Hector, travelled with some degree of comfort and luxury: he rode himself in a heautlful new-huih travelling carriage, drawn by favourite horses, while the treasures, which he intended as a ransom, were conveyed in a four- wheeled waggon drawn by mules. All these details, as well as the mode of harnessing the horses, which operation, it must be confessed, was per- formed by Priam himself and his sons, are fully described in the twenty, fourth book of the Iliad. That Homer was well acquainted with the construction of the spoked wheel running freely upon the axle-tree, and, perhaps, even with the mode of hanging the body of the carriages upon straps for springs, in the same manner as the public coaches are to this day in many parts of France-, and •sven in the neighbourhood of Paris, is evident from the passage in vvhich ON DRAUGHT. 433 he Jescribes Juno's chariot. He there says, while Juno was putting the golden bits to tiie horses, Hebe fastened on the wheels to tlie iron axles. " These wheels had eight brazen spokes, and the felloes were of gold, and the tires of brass." — "The seal was fastened with gold and silver cords." Tins, of course, gives us Homer's ideas of perfection in a chariot. All the epithets which could convey ideas of swiftness, were applied to these chariots and to the horses, but we have no positive information as regards the real velocity with whicii they would travel : as roads were scarce, and probably at best merely tracks, much could not be expected from vehicles constructed under such circumstances; the wheels were small, from twenty to thirty inches in diameter, and all tiie parts of the chariots were excessively heavy, so as to resist the repeated siiocks to which they were sui)ject. The chariots represented upon the Frieze of the Parthenon, before alluded to, and which is probably upwards of 2200 years old, are very light in their construction, and only want springs to be called gigs. The advancement of all the branches of the mechanical arts has necessarily introduced many improvements in the details of the construction of the wheel itself, as well as that of the axle and the rest of the carriage, and l)y this means no doubt increased very greatly the use and advantage of it; but it is a remarkable fact, that tiiese improvements have been con- fined exclusively to the workmanship and mechanical detail, and that the principle has remained exactly the same, and has not even received any addition during this immense lapse ol" time. Upwards of 3000 years ago, the wheels appear to liave been independent of each other, and running upon fixed axles; we can say no more of the most improved wheel of the most finished carriage of the present day. We are far from intending to cast any slight upon modern invention, or to compare the groaning axletrees and creaking wheels of the ancients with the noiseless Collinge's axles of the nineteenth century; but truth compels us to acknowledge that a period of thirty centuries, more than half the lime which is supposed to have elapsed since the creation of the world, has produced no radical change nor brought into action any new principle in che use of the wheel as applied to carriages. The particular form and construction of the wheel, as well as of all the other parts of the carriage, however, admit of great variety, and the draught is materially affected by their variation. We shall, therefore, after examining the action of wheels in general, describe the mode of construction now adopted, and then endeavour to point out the advantages and disadvantages of the various forms which have been given to the different parts of it. First, let us examine the theory of it, and suppose it acting on a level plane. The wheel being a circle, the centre will remain always at the same height, and consequently will move parallel to the plane in a perfectly *evel line: if any weight be attached to or suspended from its centre, this will also move in a continued straight line without rising or falling, and consequently when once put in movement, there is nothing to check its progress (neglecting for the moment the slight resistance of the air), and it will require no force to keep in motion so long as the wheels continue to turn. We have therefore in this case only to examine into the force necessary to turn the wheels. The wheels, if left to themselves, would roll on with perfect freedom, whatever might be their weight, or whatever weight might Ije attached to them, provid d nothing in the mode of attaching that weight 434 ON DRAUGHT. iihneded iheir revolution; but in practice we cannot aamit of tlie load revolving with the wheel, and we have no means of suspending it to the wheel, except by means of an axle fixed to the load, and passing through the centre of the wheel. This axle presses upon the lower surface of the hole, and consequently, when the wheel revolves, causes a friction propor- tionate to the load upon the axle. This friction is then the only source of resistance to the motion of a wheel, under the circumstances here sup- posed ; and it is the action of this friction, the degree in which it affects the draught, and by what means this effect is increased and diminished, that we are now about to consider. Let C,fg. 27, be the centre of a wheel, of which C D is the radius, and C A that of the axle passing through the wheel, and which being fixed to the load does not revolve with the wheel. If a force C B be applied to the cen- tre of the wheel, tending to advance it in the direction B, the point D being in contact with the ground, the wheel is compelled to turn or roll, and the force C B in turning the wheel acts with a leverage equal to C D, but the friction between the axle and the wheel is at the point A, and in preventing the turning of the wheel it acts only at the extremity of the lever C A ; consequently, if C D be ten times as great as C A, the force C B need only be equal to one-tenth of the amount of the friction, and, as a general rule, the radius of the axle, and the friction remaining the same, the force necessary to overcome the resistance, arising from this friction, will be inversely as the radius or the diameter of the wheel_ or, in other words, the draught will, in this case, diminish exactly in pio- portion as the diameter of the wheel is increased. The exact amount of resistance occasioned by friction will depend upon the nature of the substances in contact at the axle, as well as upon the pro- portionate dimensions of the wheel and axle. The friction between polished surfaces bears a certain proportion to tne pressure: if the pressure is doubled, the friction will, within certain limits, be also doubled ; but the proportion between the friction and the pressure is only constant so long as the same substances are employed: it varies very much with different substances. Thus, with soft wood sliding upon soft wood the friction amounts to one-fourth or one-third of the pressu.'e, while between hard brass and iron, the surfaces smooth and oiled, the resistance may be as low as 3'^ of the pressure. The relative advantages, therefore, of different materials, as applied to the axle and box of a wheel, is a point of much consequence. Metals, generally speaking, are the best adapted for this purpose. Owing to their hardness, the friction between them is small, and they will bear without injury a greater pressure, proportionably to the sur- face ; and from their strength, the axle may be of much smaller dimen- sions than if made of wood ; and we have proved that a reduction in the diameter of the axle causes a proportionate reduction in the resistance caused by friction. In consequence of these advantages, iron or steel axles, working in iron boxes, are now almost universally adopted. The friction in this case, when the parts are in proper order, greased, and the pressure upon them not excessive, amounts to about one-eighth, or, at the most, one-fifth of the pressure or weight; suppose it one-sixth, and if the diameter of the wheel is to that of the axle as 18 or 20 to 1, which is ON DRAUGHT. 435 about the proportion in a large two-wheeled cart, the whole rcsistanco arising from friction at the axl'^ will be equalled to i of Jj, or of 3"^) wiiicl: is equal to yig and j^^ respectively. So that to move one ton wjuld not, in the latter case, require a force of traction greater than 181 lbs.; ana having overcome this resistance, the force of traction required remains nearly the same at all velocities; that is to say, friction is not materially affected by velocity: therefore the resistance arising from it is not sensibly augmented by a considerable increase in the speed. In practice, however, the friction at the axle is far from being the greatest impediment to the motion of a carriage. We have hitherto, for thp purpose of considering friction alone, supposed the surface upon which the wlieel moved as per- fectly hard, smooth, level, and plane: we need hardly say that such can never be the case in a road. The friction, however, remains, practically speaking, the same, and the laws which govern the amount and the effects of it remain unaltered; and we have only to ascertain what is the addi- tional resistance, arising from other sources, to obtain the whole draught of the carriage. We have already stated, when pointing out the difference between the roller and the v/heel, that the movement of the latter was attended with two sources of resistance, viz : friction at the centre, which we have considered, and another, which is common both to the wheel and the roller, arising from impediments in the road, or the yielding of the materials. The laws which affect the amount of this latter are, of course, the same in a wheel as in a roller. We have found that the power required to overcome it is inversely as the square root of the diameter; therefore, by increasing the diameter of the wheel, the effect of friction, which is inversely as the diameter, diminishes much more rapidly than that caused by impediments in the roads; and on ordinary roads, with common carts, the amount of the latter is about three times as great as that of the foriner, and when the roads are at all injured by weather or by neglect, or if they are naturally heavy or sandy, it bears a much greater proportion. A light four-wheeled cart, weighing, with its load, 1000 lbs.* was repeatedly drawn upon ditferent sorts of roads, the average of a number of experiments gave the following results: -- ... r T, A Force of Traction required Descnption of Road. ^^ ^^^.^ 1,^^ carriage. Turnpike road — hard, dry, 301 lbs. Ditto dirty, " 39 Hard, compact loam, 53 Ordinary by-road, 106 Turnpike road — new gravelled, .... 143 Loose, sandy road, 204 The friction at the axles, which were of wood, was, of course, nearly constant, and probably absorbed at least -g\ of the weight, or 12i lbs. of the force of traction, leaving, therefore, for the resistance caused by the road in ♦he different cases, as under: „ ... „„ , Force of Traction required to rr.ovf tlie Description of Road. Carriage, independent of tlie Friction at tlie Axles. Turnpike road — hard, dry, about ... 18 lbs. Ditto dirty, ^ 261 Ditto new gravelled, .... 130^ Loose, sandy road, 191 J * The experiment was not marie with a load of exactly 1000 ll>s., l)ut the proportic^ns ol the results are calculated to this standard. The public are iiidcbtod to Mr. Hevan foi those as well as a ijreat number of other highly useful and practical experinfienta upon the effects of power in various cases. 436 ON DRAUGHT. SO that in ihe last case, one by no means of rare occurrence in many parts of the country, the portion of draught immediately caused by the state of the roads was ten times as great as on a good turnpike road, and about fdteen times as great as that which arose from the friction at the axles. It would be hopeless to attempt to remedy this by increasing the size of the wheel: the experiment was made with wlieels of tlie ordinary size. To double their diameter would evidently be attended, in practice, with insurmounla- ble difficulties; and yet, even if this were elFected, it would barely reduce the total amount of the draught by one- fourth ; but as the form of the wheel may materially influence the state of the road, we shall, therefore, proceed to consider the various forms employed. Some years ago, when the principal turnpike roads of the kingdom were at many parts, at particular seasons of the year, in little better condition than that on which the last experiment was tried, various attempts were made to reduce the resistance, by using narrow wheels. These attempts, and the laws which it was found necessary to enact to prevent the entire destruction of the roads, led, at last, to curious results, having gradually caused the introduction of the worst-formed wheel which could probably be invented, either as regards mcreasing the draught or the destruction of the road. To understand these alterations clearly, we must describe the principal features of the wheel now in use. The general construction of it presents a striking instance of strength arising from the judicious union of substances of very different qualities — wood and iron. A strong circular frame of wood, composed of different segments, called felloes, is bound together by a hoop, or several hoops of iron, called tires, which thus, at the same time that it gives great strength, protects the outei surface from wear. The nave, a circular block of wood, is sustained in the centre of this frame by the spokes, which, instead of being in the plane of the felloes_. form a cone: this is called the dishing of the wheel. The object of it is to give slifFness, to resist lateral shocks, as when the wheel slips sideways, into a rut or hole. A reference to a comparative view of the wheel, with and without dishing, will more clearly explain our meaning. Fig. 28, is a wheel witii the spokes all in one place; jig. 29, a wheel with a consider. able degree of dialling. J.^.a^ilillli Fig. 29. Here it J« evident that a small pressure on the nave in fig. 29, would jave a tendency to push it through, and would ^eet with but little resistan';e ON DRAUGHT. 437 Firj. 30, In jig. 30, on the contrary, this force would be opposed at once by the direction of the spokes, which form an arch, or dome, that cannot be flat- tened without bursting the felloes, or tires. The dishing, therefore, givt'si the wheel a great degree of stiffness and strength, which it would noi otherwise possess. In consequence of this conical form, the necessity of keeping the lower spokes which support the weight as vertical as possible, has required that the whole wheel should be placed oblique, and the axle bent downwards, as m jg. .30: this, as we shall hereafter show, is attended with very serious evils. As a wheel is intended to roll upon the ground, without friction, it is natural to suppose that the outer surface of the tires should be cylindrical, as it is the only form which admits of the wheel rolling freely in a straight line; but it is never- theless the form of this surfoce, its breadth, and the degree of dishing which have varied so much from the causes before mentioned, viz: the state of the roads, and to the consideration of which it may be proper we should now return. A road, however much neglected and out of repair, will generally have., at a certain depth, a hard bottom; above this will be a coat of mud of loose stuff, more or less deep, according to the material used, and the frequency of repair or the quantity of wet to which it may be exposed. It is sinking through this, until it reaches the hard bottom, that causes the resistance to the progress of the wheel: whether the wheel be wide or narrow, it must squeeze or grind its way to the bottom of this mud; a narrow wheel evidently displaces less, and therefore offers less resistance. The great object of carriers, then, was very naturally to place as great a load as they could upon wheels, which were as narrow as possible, consistent with the necessary strength. It was soon perceived that the entire destruction of the roads would be the consequence of this very system, which had its origin in the bad state of the roads. A certain width of tire proportionate to the load was therefore required by law. The endeavour to evade this law was the cause of the absurd form of wheel we are about to describe and to condemn. In apparent obedience to the law, the felloes of the wheels were made of an excessive breadth ; but to retain the advantages of the narrow wheel, the middle tire was made to project so far beyond the others, [see Jig. 31,) that it in fact constituted the wheel, the others ''•^ ^ ^ ^ ^ being merely to give a nominal, and not a real width. The enormous loads which it was found advantageous to place on these wheels rendered it necessary to give them a considerable degree of dishing, to resist lateral shocks, and, besides, the carriers were by this means enabled to give a creat width of floor to the carriage, still keeping the vehicle in the common tracks or ruts, so that the wheels ultimately assumed the form represented. Jig. 32. If such a machine had been constructed, for the express purpose of giinding the materials of the road to powder, or of serving as a check, or drag, to the waggon, it might, indeed, iiave been judicious, but as 43S ON DRAUGHT wheel, it was monstrous. Yet iliis is the form of wheel upon which the contradic- tory opinions referred to in the first page of this treatise, were given before a com- mittce of the House of Commons. A car- rier of Exeter advocated these wlieels, and, in support of his opinion, adopts them to this day. But a kw days ago we saw one of his Vv'aggons with wheels which, although only about twelve inches wide, were six inches smaller at the outside than than at the inside. Such a cone, if set a rolling and left to itself, would run round in a circle of litUe more than twenty feet diameter. What must be the grinding and the friction, then, when it in constantly compelled to go on a straight line? yet enough has been written and said upon this subject to convince, we should imagine, the most preju- diced of the absurdity of the system. We shall reoeat the principal arguments which were made use of at the time of the mquiry mentioned. Mr. Gumming took great pains, by constructing models, to show that conical wheels were not adapted for rolling in a straight line, by making a small conical wheel run over longi- tudinal bars, as in f.g. 33. It was seen that if the middle part of the tire rolled upon the centre bar without moving it, the bar A was pushed backwards, while the bar C was pushed forwards; clearly showing if, instead of sliding bars, the wheel had moved upon a road, how much it must have ground the road, and what a small portion of the tire was truly roJJivg. That such must have been the case is, indeed, easily proved without a model. We will take on!)' three dif- ferent parts of he wheel, and consider them as independent hoops of differ- ent diametp'-; if these hoops are compelled to go the same number of revo- lutions, the larger one will evidently gain upon the second, while the third will be left far behind. Now, if, instead of being independent of each other, they are fixed to the same axle, and compelled to revolve together, the large one not being able to advance faster than the others, must tear up the ground. The smaller one, on the contrary, being dragged forward faster than it would naturally roll, must drag up the ground; and this is what must take place, and does, with any but a cylindrical wheel, and that to a very considerable extent. Suppose, for instance, a conical wheel, of an average diameter of five feet; that is to say, that the centre advances about fifteen feet to every revolution of the wheel. If the inner tire be six inches larger in diameter than the outer tire, the circumference of it will be about eighteen inches greater; therefore, at each revolution of the wheel, the inner tire would naturally advance eighteen inches more than the outer tire: but thoy are compelled to go over the same distance of ground. The one or the other ON DRAUGHT. 439 therefore, must nave disturbed the ground, or, what is nearer the truth, upon every fifteen feet run of road, the former has passed over nine inches less ground than the development of its circumference ; the latter, nine inches more — the one continually pushing back the ground, the other drag^ ging it forward. Every child knows that the front ivheel of a carriage goes oftener round than the hind wheel. If, then, the front wheel were obliged to make only one revolution to every revolution of the other, but still impelled at the same rate, it must be partly dragged over the road. If these wheels be placed side by side, instead of one being in front of the other, the effect must be the same. Now, suppose them to be the outer and inner tire of the same wheel, the circumstances are not thereby altered : the smaller circle and the larger circle cannot both roll upon the ground. A conical wheel is then constantly twisting the surface upon which it rests, and hence arises a very considerable resistance, as well as destruction to the roads. If these arguments are not sufficient to decide the point completely, let the reader bear in mind simply, that a cone, when left to itself, will always roll in a circle. The frustrum of a cone, AB,fg. JM, is only a portion of the entire cone, ABC, which will Fii/. 34. roll round the point C ; if this entire cone be completely severed at the point B, the two parts will still continue to roll round the same point, and if the portion BC be now abstracted, the motion of the remainder will not be altered. If a wine-glass or decanter, any thing which is not of the same size at the two parts which are in contact with the surface on which it rests, be rolled upon a table, those who are not already too familiar with the fact to require an illustrstion of it, will immediately see the truth of this statement. If, then, a wheel thus formed would naturally quit the straight line, when compelled to follow it, it is clear that exactly tlie same ef- Ij I /^^^^^ahl feet must be produced as when a cylin- [| \j f^Bm drical mill-stone, as in fg. 35, which would proceed in a straight line, is compelled to follow a curved line, and is constantly twisted round the centre C, it would grind every thinff beneath it to powder. Yet these travelling grindstones have been in use upwards of twenty years, to the destruction of the roads, and at a great expense of power to those who have persisted in employing them. The increased strain upon the axles, from this constant tendency of the u^eel to be twisted outwards, with the consequent friction, is a .source of resistance absorbed and rendered comparatively inconsiderable, by the fl\r greater friction on the ground ; but it is not the less a cause "of great increase of draught, and the union of all these serious disadvantages justi- fies, we think, our assertion, that such a wheel is as injudicious a contriv- ance as could po.ssibly be invented. We trust they will not long continue to di.sgrace our wheelwrights, and injure our roads. We hope that none of our readers will consider that we have wasted our arguments upon a point too self-evident to require proof. In reply to this, however, we will state that, at the last meeting of the parlies interested ir Fi^.35. 440 ^^ DRAUGHT. the management of a considerable portion of a principal road in the middle of England, the question was considered, and it was agreed to encourage the use of conical wheels, as at least equal to, if not superior to cylindrical ones, by allowing them to run at a less toll, than that required by act of parliament. The cylindrical form is the only one which ought to be admitted. As a wheel must, however, always be liable to sink a little into the road, and cannot be expected always to bear perfectly flat upon the ground, the surface of the tires should be slightly curved, and the edges rounded off, as in Jig. 36. As tJie rounding is rendered necessary by the yield- iiig of the road, its degree must depend upon the state of the road, and tiie form of the wheel may approach more nearly to the true cylinder, in proportion as the roads approach nearer to perfection in point of hardness and flatness. When the roads are good, a very little dishing will be sufficient, and a slight inclination of the wheel from the vertical, will make it correspond with the barrel or curve of the road, which is now generally very trifling. Next to the form, the breadth of the wheel is the point requiring most consideration: it is one, however, which de- pends entirely upon the state of the road. We have seen, that tbe displacement or crushing of the materials form- ing the upper surface of the road is one of the principal causes of resist- ance. If the whole mass of the road were formed of a yielding substance, into whicii the wheel would sink to a depth exactly proportionate to tiie weight bearing upon it, it is probable that great breadth would be advan- tageous, so that the wheel might form a roller, tending to consolidate the materials, rather than cause any permanent displacement ; but, in the improved state of modern roads, it may safely be considered that such is never the case. A road, as we have before stated, always consists of a hard bottom, cov- ered with a stratum, more or less thick, of soft yielding material. A wheel, even moderately loaded, will force its way through, and form a rut in this upper coating. The resistance will be nearly pro[)ortionale to the breadth of this rut; the depth of it will not increase in the ratio of the pres- sure. In considering, then, simply, the case of a single wheel or a pair of wheels forming two distinct ruts, it is evident that it should form as narrow a rut as possible, but that it should not in any degree crush or derange the core or hard basis of the road. When a rut is thus formed, a small track or portion of the road is for a time rendered clean and hard, and conse- quently capable of bearing a greater load than before, and with less injury. It is, then, highly important in a four-wheel carriage that the hind wheels should follow exactly in the track of the front wneels. If rollers were necessary for the road, as if, for instance, it was merely a bed of clay, then indeed, but only in such a case, would it be judicious to cause the wheels to run in different tracks, as has been proposed, and was carried into effect under the encouragement of an act of parliament. Such wheels were called straddlers : they might have been necessary tools for the pre- servation of such roads as then existed, but the increased draught soon taught the public to evade the law which encouraged them. Mr. Deacon, one of the principal carriers in England, in an excellent practical work on wheel-carriages, published in 1310, describing these wheels, says: " If the axle of a six-inch wheel is of that length to cause the hind-wheels to make tracks five inches outside the tracks of the fore- ON DRAUGHT. 441 wheels, and nine-inch wheels seven inches outside, tjey are then called straddlers, and are allowed to carry a greater weight than if not so. The original intent of these was most excellent ; but the effect has been defeateQ Dy the carrier or other person not only making the bed or axle contrary tc what was intended, but also by carrying with them a false collar, with a joint therein, to put on and take off at pleasure ; so that they have no great difficulty in making the wheels straddlers a little while before they como to a weighing machine, and making them not so when they have passed the same." On modern roads such an arrangement would hardly be beneficial even to the road itself, and would nearly double the amount of draught. Too great care and precaution cannot be taken to insure the wheels run- ning in'the same track. Let it be remembered that, on a good road, the forming the rut is the cause of three-fourths and oftener five-sixths of the whole resistance. Narrow wheels, therefore, running in the same track, without doubt offer the least resistance, provided there is surface sufficient to sustain the weight borne upon them, without material destruction to the foundation of the road. Six inches in breadth of the flat or cylindrical part, a, b, fig. 3G, inde- pendent of the rounded edges, will be quite sufficient, in a wlieel of ordi. nary size, to bear a ton without injury to the roads, if in good condition ; and"^according as the weight upon each wheel is more or less than this, tho breadth should be proportionably increased or diminished. While upon the subject of wheels, it may be as well to state the several new modes of constructing wheels lately introduced, which severally pos- sess their merits and disadvantages. The last improvement is that known, under the name of "Jones's patent wheels." It consists in making the felloe of a single ring of cast iron. The nave, which is also of cast iron, is suspended in the centre by eight wrought iron rods : these rods are crossed or alternately dished inwards and outwards, to give stiffness, which is thus obtained without affecting the cylindrical form of the whole. Figs. 37 and 33 (see next page) represent different views of this wheel, F F being the cast iron felloe, S S the spokes, and N the nave. These wheels have been adopted to a very great extent in London, and therefore, we may conclude that they are found to answer; but they are expensive, and not easily repaired, except at the original manufactory, and therefore we should think are not so well adapted tor agricultural, as for commercial purposes, and in a large town where the means of repair may be at hand. The most simple innovation upon the original wooden wheel is the cast iron nave. This we should think, must be much less liable to wear than the wooden nave, which is literally honeycombed with the mortices for the spokes ; and a wheel of this sort can be repaired by the most ordi- nary wheelwright, provided he has one of the castings at hand. We should strongly recommend that these naves should be made with a double row of sockets for the spokes, so as to cross the dishing of them in the same manner as those of the wrought iron wheels described above : and vve think they would then form a strong, durable, and economical wheel. There might be some danger from the effects of wet or damp rejnaining in the cast iron soclcets, and attacking the wood ; but we shoula think a small hole bored into the socket to allow the moisture to escape, aud common precaution in painting these parts, would prevent any evil ucnsequences Ff 14» ON DRAUGHT. JONES S PATENT WHEEr,. Fi'T 37. Fie. 38. Willi respect to the size of wheels, we have shown that wheels of large diameter certainly offer less resistance than small ones ; but expense and weight cause a limit to this. From 4 ft. 9 in. to 5 ft. 6 in. is a good size for cart-wheels, and is about the limit where any great increase of diameter would cause more inconvenience and expense than would be compensated for by any advantage gained, and if much less in diameter than this, the draught is unnecessarily augmented. Yet the front wheels of a waggon are always below this standard, rarely exceeding four feet, and frequently much less. This is a serious evil attending the use of four wheels, it is an arrangement originally made for the purpose of enabling the front wheels to lock under the body of the waggon, which may thus turn in a small space. Now it rarely happens that a waggon is required to turn short round, and it cannot cause any serious inconvenience if it be rendered altogether incapable of doing so. In this i-espect a great improvement has taken place within a kw years. In the place of those moving mountains which were formerly dragged slowly along upon immensely heavy and broad, but low, wheels, ve now see, particularly on the roads leading northward from London, a great number of light, well-built waggons, with much larger wheels, especially the Iront wheels, which, instead of being small enough to turn under the floor of the waggon, are about four feet six inches in diameter. As those waggons are used only on the road, and are never required to turn in 8 small compass, but a very small action is allowed to the fore-axle, and the floor and body of the waggon is continued from end to end of nearly the same width. ON DRAUGHT. 443 A waggon wifn part of the floor and body cut away, so as to form a sort of recess for the front wheel to turn into, allows of all the movements tha^ can be acquired, except in the crowded streets of a town, and by this arrangement there is nothing to prevent the front wheel being made of large diameter, as in the case just described. Our present object, however, is not to enter into a detailed description of how we should build a waggon, but simply to recommend the use of large front wheels, as tending much to diminish the draught. An intelligent wheelwright will always know how to construct a waggon so as to admit of this. The consideration of the subject of the wheels naturally includes that of (he comparative advantages of two-wheeled and four-wheeled carriages. Upon this point opinions differ as much as upon any of those we have already considered; and we fear that we are not likely to do more than to arrange the different opinions given by others, without advancing any of our own. If we succeed, however, in doing this clearly, we shall have done much, because we may thus enable each individual to separate those arguments which apply particularly to his own case; and combining these opinions with his own judgment, he will be more likely to arrive at a just conclusion, than if he were altogether unaided by the opinions and experience of others. The advocates of light two-wheeled carts assert that a horse working alone is capable of performing more work than when forming one of a team; and that in consequence of this increased effect, there is a saving of expense nearly in the proportion of three to two, or one-third. The advocates for waggons assert, on the contrary, tiiat it requires that each horse in a single-horse cart should be of a superior quality, and, therefore, more expensive than those of a team, where the average power only is considered ; that the wear and tear, first cost, and expense of attend- ance of several small carts, is greater than that of a waggon carrying the same load, and that in consequence there is an economy obtained by the latter in a proportion of four to three. Numbers of facts and the results of long experience are adduced on either side, all of which convey much useful information, and the substance of the whole appears to be, that with light single-horse two-wheeled carts, good horses are able to draw greater loads, and do more work in proportion than a waggon team ; that these carts are easier loaded and unloaded, do less injury to the roads, and that they do not require more horses in action than are sufficient for the work to be performed. On the other hand, it is found that the horses must be stronger and better fed; that being entirely dependent on their own exertions, although doing more work, they are more fatigued and sooner knocked up; that on rough roads they are liable to be shaken and injured by the sudilen movements and shocks of the cart, all of which are conveyed by the shafts directly to the horse ; that in ascending or descending hills the whole weight being above the axle-tree, it destroys the balance, and is thrown too much upon the horse in the former case, or tends to raise him from the ground in the latter, which, even if any alteration of the balance be found advantageous, is exactly the contrary of what would be necessary. That with a waggon, the average power of several horses is obtained, horses of inferior quality may therefore be used; they are not so much 'atigued, because by relieving each other they can alternately exert them- selves or relax. Greater loads can be carried with less attendance of drivers, and they are less liable to accidents; they are easier withdrawn from any b'^le, or forced over any obstruction, because only half the load 444 ON DRAUGHT. being upon eaci) pair of wheels, the whole force of the team is applied sue cessively to eacK half of the load, consequently in any bad road the powei occasionally required is less, although the draught of the carriage, properly speaking, is greater than that of a two-wlieeled cart. These various arguments would appear to lead to the conclusion, that upon good roads, and for short distances, with good horses, two-wheeled single-horse carts are the best; but that, with inferior roads and ordinary horses, light four, wheeled waggons, with a team of three or four horses, are generally the most advantageous. Two-wheeled carts with two horses are decidedly inferior to either of these: the shaft horse suffers all the inconveniences complained of in the single horse-cart, and the leader does not produce more etlect than when in a waggon team. It is impossible to decide generally upon the comparative merits of the different arrangements, because the result depends entirely upon the cir- cumstances of the case. We may, however, endeavour to unite in some degree the advantages claimed by both. The draught of a cart is less than that of a waggon for several reasons: amongst others, because the wheels are larger and the horse produces more effect, because his force is applied immediately to the resistance. A light waggon with large front wheels would not be much inferior in point of draught to the carl, and two horses abreast in double shafts would work with equal advantage to the single horse ; while an additional horse may always be applied when an excessive load or the state of the road should require it. All that we have said with respect to the size and contrivance of wheels is equally applicable to light carriages as to heavy, and we shall now pro- ceed to cohsider the different modes of placing the loads upon the wheels. It might appear at first sight that this would not affect the amount of the draught; that provided a weight to be moved were placed upon the wheels, and the wheels put in motion, that nothing more could be required. Upon a perfectly level smooth plane, and with a constant force of traction, this would, indeed, be the case; but, in practice, the conditions are entirely altered. Impediments are continually met with which obstruct the progress of the wheels, and the draught is constantly varying by the different inclina- tions of the road ; it is, therefore, necessary to study the means by which impediments can be easiest overcome, and by which the I'csistance thus caused will affect the animal, which is the source of power, in the least disadvantageous manner. We have, in the commencement of this treatise, proved, that impetus is necessary to overcome an obstruction, and that elasticity m the direction of the movement is destructive of the full effect of impetus. When, therefore, the wheel of a carriage comes in contact with any impediment, it is most essential that the whole of the impetus or momentum which the carriage has already obtained, should be brought into full action; to force the wheel forward. To effect this, no elasticity should intervene between the wheel and the load, at least, in the direction of the motion that is longitudinally; otherwise, as we instanced in the case of catching a cricket-ball, a force which would be quite irresistible if opposed by a rigid resistance, is checked with ease by a very little degree of elasticity ; so with a wheel meeting a small stone, if the load were so placed, or hung upon Ihe wheels, as to allow free or elastic action longitudinally, that is, in the direction of the movement, the wheel being stopped against the stone, the whole load would be gradually checked, and brought to a full stop; ON DRAUGH1 445 whereas, if this same load had been fixed firmly to the wlieel, its impetus would have carried the wheel over the stone, with very little loss of its velocity. In the fi.rst case, it would be necessary for the horses to drag the load over the stone by main force; in the latter, they v/ould only have to make up by degrees for the loss of velocity which the mass had sListained in passing over the stone. The quantUy of power required will indeed be the same in either case; but in the one, the horses must exert it in a single effort, while in the other, this momentary exertion is borrowed, as it were, from the impetus of the mass in motion, and being spread over a greater degree the average resistance. It is thus that the fiy-wheel of a steanj- space of time, as far as the liorses are concerned, only augments in a small engine in a rolling-mill accumulates power, sometimes for several miimtes, till it is able to roll, with apparent ease, a large mass of metal, which, with- out the effect of the fly-wlieel, would stop the engine immediately ; or, to mention a case more to the point, in the operation of scotching a wheel, a large stone, and even a brick, will render almost immoveable a waggon, which, when in motion, would pass over the same stone, without any sen- sible alteration of speed. It is most essential, therefore, that the efiect of the momentum of the load, should in no way be reduced by any longitudi- nal elasticity, arising either from the injudicious application of springs, or weakness in the construction of the carriage. The action of impetus, and the effect of an injudicious mode of hanging the load, is of course more sensible at high than at low velocities, and in a carriage hung upon springs, than in a waggon without springs, but although not so sensible to the eye, it nevertheless affects the draught materially even in the latter case. Carriages hung upon springs, as in^^. 39, which are called C springs, and which admit of very considerable lon- gitudinal movement in the body of the carriage, are notoriously the most heavy to pull; and cabriolets, which are hung in this manner, are expres- sively called, in tiie stable, horse murderers, and require heavy, powerful horses to drag them, while lighter animals are able to drag much greater weiirhts in Stanhopes and spring-carts, which do not admit of this elasticity. This is one of the reasons why the draught of a two-wheeled cart is less than that of a waggon. In a cart, the horse pulls at once on tlie shafts which are fixed immediately both to the load and to the axletree, so that Mot only the impetus of the load, but also of the horse, acts directly and without elasticity upon the wheel. In a waggon, owing to the stnallness of the front wheel, there is a considerable space between the fore-axle and .'tie floor of the waggon, which is filled up with pieces of timber, called 140 ON DRAUGHT. l)olsl(>rs; tl 13 admits of considerable play in the parts, and except in new, built or very strong waggons, there is never that firm connexion between the load and the wheels, which we have stated to be necessary. Large wheels would bring the axletrecs much nearer the floors of the waggons, and, therefore, admit of a much stronger and firmer mode of attachmei;t, which would be found to produce a very considerable effect in diminishing the draught. We have been very particular in confining our observations to longitudi- nal elasticity, or yielding in the direction in which the power is applied, and in which the progressive movement takes place; because elasticity in any other direction, instead of increasing the draught, tends very much to diminish it. Let us suppose the load placed upon perfectly easy springs, which allow it to move freely in every direction, except longitudinally, when any one of the wheels comes in contact with a stone, the elasticity of the spring will allow it to run over the stone without sensibly raising the load which is upon it, and the force which is required to pull the wheel over the stone, will be restored again by the descent of the wheel from the stone, which will tend to impel the mass forward with exactly the same force as was required to draw it up to the top of this impediment: without this elasticity it would be necessary to raise the whole load with a sudden jerk, and thus instantaneously impart rapid movement to the whole mass, which would absorb much power, and which would by no means be returned by the load falling down from the stone. We see, therefore, that the use of springs is to enable the wheels to rise and fall according to the inequalities of the ground, while the load continues one constant equable, motion. The advantages of this action are very clearly pointed out, in a letter addressed to the Committee on the Highways of the Kingdom, by Mr. D. Giddy, and given in the Appendix to their first Report, printed in the year 1808; and this letter explains so clearly, and in such few words, the whole theory of wheels, as well as springs, that we think we cannot do better than quote it at length. "Taking wheels completely in the abstract, they must be considered as answering two different purposes. " First, They transfer the friction which would take place between a sliding body, and the rough uneven surface over which it slides, to the smooth, oiled peripheries of the axis and box, assisted by a leverage in the proportion of the diameter of the wheel to the axis. "Secondly, They procure mechanical advantage for overcoming obsta- cles, by introducing time proportioned to the square roots of their diameters, when t!ie obstacles are small as compared with the wheels; and they pass over transverse ruts or hollows, small in the same comparison, with an absolute advantage proportioned to their diameters, and a mechanical one proportionate to the square roots of these diameters. "Consequently, wheels thus considered, cannot be too large; in practice, however, they are limited by weight, by expense, and by experience. " ^Vith reference to the preservation of roads, wheels should be made wide, and so constructed, that the whole breadth may bear at once; and every portion of the wheel, In contact with the ground, should roll on H-ithout any slidinir. " It is evident, from the well-known properties of the cycloid, that the above conditions cannot all unite, unless the roads are perfectly hard, smooth, and flat; and the felloes of the wheels, with their tire, are accurate portions of a cylinder. These forms, therefore, of roads and wheels, would seem to be asymptotes, towards which they should always approximate, but which, in practice, they are never likel} to reach. ON DRAL .xiT. 447 '* Roads must have some degree of curvature to throw off water, and the peripheries of the wheels should, in their transverse section, be as nearl* as possible tangents to this curve ; but since no exact form can be assigne ~—^- -^^^^^^—;^ FPq -^^^ ff-S a a a, jig. 40, represents a side view of these bars, of which J is a section, c c c are the blocks of stone on which it rests. Fig, 42 is a per- spective view of 51 pair of these parallel bars, consiituling together the 452 ON DRAUGHT. jrC9.41 tion of w-ll be railways, which is all easily conceived that hard, cast-iron wheels railway; and Jig. 41 represents an end view of the rail w'th a pair of wheels. The ground is afterwards filled up nearly to the level of the bars, leaving only about one inch of tlieir upper edge exposed : upon this the wheels run. The wheels are generally of cast iron, about three feet in diameter, and slightly conical, with an edge or flange inside to guide them in the centre of the rails. This brief description is suffi- cient to give a general idea of the construe- hat is necessary for our present purpose. It running upon smooth edges of iron in this manner, can meet with but little resistance, except those arising from friction at the axle. Accordingly, we find, upon a well- constructed railway, in good order, that the resistance does not exceed, in any sensible degree, that which must arise from this cause. It has been found that a force of traction of 1 lb. will put in motion a weight of 180, 200, and even, in some cases, 250 lbs. : so that a horse exerting an elFort of only 125 lbs., would drag on a level 10 tons. This is about ten times the average effect of his work upon a good common road, and, as it arises entirely from the hardness and smoothness of the road, we cannot conclude our observations by a more striking and unanswerable argument than this, in proof of the immense advantages and saving of expense which would result from greater attention to the state of the roads. GENERAL INDEX- At;iioN of the hacknpy described, 30 Action, higli, not essential in hackney, 31 .Ethiop's mineral, an alterative, 396^ Age, natural, of the horse, 146 Age of the horse, as indicated by teeth, 137' Age, other indications of, 146 Age, how ascertained before 8 years, 137 Ag-e, " " after 8 years, 145 Air, a supply of pure, necessary for the health of the horse, 345 All abroad, what, as applied to the horse, 235 Aloes, Barbadoes, far preferable to Cape, 3S1 Aloes, the best physic, 211 Aloes, description of different kinds of, 381 Aloes, principal adulterations of, 333 Aloes, solution, its composition and use, 383 Alteratives, the best, 372, 383 Alteratives, nature and effect of, 383 Alum, use of in restraining purging, 383 Alum, solution of, good wash for grease, 383 Alum, burnt, a stimulant and mild caus- tic for wounds, 384 American horse, description of the, 21 Ammonia, given in flatulent colic. 384 Ammonia, chloride of, its medicinal use, 384 Ammonia, carbonate of, " " 384 Annnonia, vapour of, extracted plenti- fully from dung and urine, 384 Ammonia, vapour of, most injurious to the eyes and lungs, 115, 384 Anchylosis of bones, what, 165 Anderson's, Dr. account of the Galloway, 58 Animal power, compared with that of the steam-engine, 405 Animal power, its advantage, except in velocity, over mehanical, 408 Animals, zoological divisions of, 61 Anodyne, opium the only one to be de- pended on, 384 Ant^a-spinatug muscle described, 234 Anticor, nature and treatment of, 171 Antimonial powder, a good febrifuge, 384 Antimony, black sulphtuet of, method of detecting its adulterations, 384 Antiinony, black sulphuret of, used as an alterative and diaphoretic, 384 Antimony, chloride of, one of the best liquid caustics, 385 Antimony, tartarized, used as a nauseam, d, 357 Saint Domingo, wild horses in, 8 Sal ammoniac, medical use of, 334 Saliva, nature and use of the, 143 Salivary glands, description of the, 143 Sallenders, nature and treatment of, 273 Salt, use of, in veterinary practice, 400 Salt, value of, mingled in the food of animals, 357 Sandcrack, nature and treatment of, 299 Sandcrack, most dangerous when pro- ceeding from tread, 300 Sandcrack, liable to return, unless the brittleness of hoof is remedied, 300 Sandcrack, constitutes unsoundness, 365 Sartorius muscle, description of the, 259 Sclerotica, description of the, 91 Scouring, general treatment of, 209 Semicircular canals of the ear, descrip- tion and use of the, 83 Sedatives, a list of, and their mode of action, 399 Semiramis, number of horsemen and chariots possessed by, 2 Seriatus magnus muscle described, 223 Sesostris, number of liorses possessed by 2 PAGk Scssamoid bones, admirable use of, in obviating concussion, 250 Setons, mode of introducing, 321) Setons, cases where they are indicated, 32G Setons, compared with rowels and blis- ters, 326 Setting on of the head, the proper, 155 Shalokh horse, description of tlie, 17 Shank-bone, the, 243 Shetland pony, description of the, 59 Ship, method of dragging a, up a slip, 430 Siioe, concave-seated, cut of the, 312 Shoe, concave-seated, described and re- commended, 311 ' Shoe, manner in which the old, should be taken off, 313 Shoe, putting on of the, 315 Shoe, the, should be fitted to the foot, and not the foot to the shoe, 315 Shoe, the hinder, described, 317 Shoe, the bar, 313 Shoe, the tip, 313 Shoe, the hunting, 31S Slioe, the jointed, or expansion, 310 Shoeing, not necessarily productive of contraction, 293 Shoeing, preparation of the foot for, 313, 314 Siioeing, the principles of, 311 Shoeing, singular, 21 Shoes, wearing too long, a cause of con- traction, 294 Short-bodied horses, when valuable, 53 Shoulder, anatomically described, 223 Shoulder, slanting direction of the, ad- vantageous, 229, 231, 237 Shoulder, when it should be oblique and when upright, 232, 233 Shoulder, sprain of the, 22' Shoulder-lameness, ascertaining, 229 Shoulder-blade, muscles of the, 233 Shoulder-blade, why united to the chest by muscles alone, 223 Slioulder-blade, lower bone of, descrip- tion of the, 232, 235 Shoulder-blade, muscles of the lower bone of the, 235 Shying, probable cause of, 93, 342 Shying, treatment of, 343 Shying on coming out of the stable, de- scription of, 344 Side-line, description of the, 320 Silver, nitrate of, an excellent caustic, 400 Sinuses in the foot, necessity of follow- ing the, as far as they reach, 304 Sitfasts, treatment of, 169 Skeleton of the horse, description of the, 63 Skin, anatomical description of the, 369 Skin, function and uses of the, 370 Skin, pores of tiie, 373 Skin, when the animal is in health, is soft and elastic,- 371 Skull, anatomical description of the, 66 Skull, arched form of the roof, 74 Skull, fracture of the, 100 Sinithfield-market, early account of, 24 Sledges, calculation of the draught of, 425 Sledges, description of the inechan'.sm and Ui^e of. 426 INDEX. 407 PAGE Sledj'es. where more advantag-eous than wheels, 426 Sledges, where very disadvantageous, 426 Sledges, calculation of the power of, 427 Sledges, their advantage in travelling over ice and snow, 427 Sledges, Esquimaux, account of the, 427 Slipping the collar, remedy for, 344 Smell, the sense and seat of, 118 Smell, very acute in the horse, 118 Soap, its use in veterinary practice, 400 Soda, chloride of, its use in ulcers, 400 Sole, horny, description of the, 285 Sole, horny, descent of the, 285 Sole, horny, proper form of the, 285 Sole, horny, management of, in shoeing, 286 Sole, the sensible, 287 Soles, felt or leather, use of, 319 Solomon, imported horses from Egypt, 4 Sound, theory of, 78, 81 Soundness, consists in there bein|f lo disease nor alteration of strufture that does or is likely to impair the usefulness of the horse 361 Soundness, with reference to the pnnci pal causes of unsoundness, 361 South American horse described, 5, 8 South American horse, management of, 6 South American horse, harnessing the, 422 Spanish horse, description of the, 20 Spanish horse, introduced into England, 25 Spasmodic colic, nature and treatment of, 206 Spavin, blood, treatment of, 179, 263 Spavin, blood, is unsoundness, 365 Spavin, bog, cause, nature, and treat- ment of, 179, 269 Spavin-bone, 269 Spavin-bone, why not always accompa- nied by lameness, 270 Spavin-bone, is unsoundness, 365 Spavined horses, the kind of work they are capable of, 271 Speed of the horse, producing rapid di- minution of power, 417 Speed, and lime of labour the most ad- vantaiTcous proportion of, 424 Speed, sacrifice of the horse in endeav- ouring to obtain, 425 Speedy-cut, account of, 245 Sphenoid-bone, description of the, 74 Spinalis dorsi muscle, description of the, 168 Spine, description of the, 163 Spleen, description of the, 214 Splenius muscle described, 119, 154, 234 Splent-bones, description of the, 243 Splint, nature and treatment of, 243, 244 Splint, is unsoundness, 365 Sprain of the back sinews, treatment of, 246 Sprain of the back sinews, sometimes requires firing, 247 Strain of the back sinews, any thickening remaining after, is unsoundness, 365 Spring steel-yard, the force of traction illustrated by, 405 Springs to carriages, theory of, 446, 447, 449 Springs, with modifications, adapted to the heaviest waggons, 447 Springs, advantageous in rapid travel, 447 [Springs, grasshopper, description of the, 447 I Springs, C, disadvantages of, 445, 447 I Stables, hot and foul, highly injtirious, 346 I Stables, dark, occasional cause of in- ! flainmation of the eye, 115 Stables, hot and foul, frequent cause ol inflammation of the eye, 115 Stables, hot and foul, cause inflamma- tion of the lungs, 345 Stables, hot and foul, produce glandera, 125 Stables, should be large, compared with the number of horses, 346 Stables, management of, too much neg- lected by owners of horses, 347 Stables, ceiling of, should be plastered, if there is a loft above, 347 Stables, should be so contrived that the urine will run off, 348 Stables, the stalls in, should not have too much declivity, 349 Stables should be sufficiently light, yet without any glaring colour, 349 Stables, importance of cleanliness and coolness in, 115,125,183 Stables, infection of, removed by the chloride of lime, 395 Staggers, stomach, symptoms, cause, and treatment of, 103 Staggers, stomach, generally fatal, 103 Staggers, stomach, producing blindness, 104 Staggers, stomach, often epidemic, 104 Staggers, mad, symptoms and treatment, 105 Staling, profuse, cause and treatment of, 217 Stallion, description of the proper, for breeding, 221 Stamford, races first established at, 27 Stanhopes, advantage of construction of, 445 Starch, useful in superpurgation, 400 |Stargazer, the, 156 Steam-engine, compared with the exer- tion of animal power on railways, 405 Steam-engine, compared with animal power on common roads, 407 Steam, calculation of the expense of, 407 Steam, small, little advantage in expense over horse-power, 408 Steeple-hunt, described and censured, 57 Stifle, description of the, 262 Stifle, accidents and diseases of the, 265 Sterno maxillaris muscle, description of the, 119,156,234 Sternum, or breast-bone, described, 169 Stirrups, not used in South America, 7 Stomach, description of the, 193 Stomach, very small in the horse, 190 Stomach, inflammation of the, 200 Stomach-pump, recommended, 103 Sfcne in the bladder, symptoms and treatment of, 218 Stone in the kidney, 218 Stoppings, the best compositions cf, and their great use, 400 Straddlers, wheels so called, described, 440 Straddlers, objection to, 440 Straddlers, curious method of evading the law concerning, 441 Strain, uniform and constant in draught, bad consequences of, 417 Strangles, symptoms and treatment oi, 149 468 INDEX. Straug-lco, ilifTcrcnt from srlanders, 123 Straiig-lcs, importance of blistering in, 123 Strang-ury prixlucetl by blistering, 323 Strangury, treatment of, 323 Strawberry hor5e, account of the, 376 Stringhalt, nature of, 274 Stringlialt, is not unsoundness, 365 Structure of tlie horse, importance of a knowledge of, 65 Stylo-maxillaris muscle described, 119, 234 Sul)lingual gland, description of the, 149 Submaxillary glands, description of tlie, 14S Submaxillary artery, description of the, 120 Subsrapulo hyoideus muscle described, 119 Suffolk punch, description of the, 39 Suffolk punch, honesty and continuance of the old breed, 39 Sugar of lead, use of, 394 Sullivan, the Irish whisperer, anecdotes of his power over the liorse, 333 Sullivan the younger did not inherit his father's power, 333 Sulphate of copper, use of, in veterinary practice, 334 Sulphate of iron, 394 j Sulphate of magnesia, 395' Sulphate of zinc, 402 Sulphur, an excellent alterative in all j applications for mange, 4011 Summering the hunter, 56| Surfeit, nature and treatment of, 378: Surfeit, importance of bleeding in, 373 Suspensory ligament, mechanism of the, 250 Suspensory ligament, rupture of the, 252 Suspensory muscle of the eye described, 99 Sweating blister, composition of, 387 Swedisli horse, description of the, 20 Swelled legs, cause and treatment of, 276, Swelled legs, most frequently connected j with debility, 276 Sweet-bread, description of the, 214 Sweet spirit of nitre, a mild stimulant j and diuretic, 397, Sybarite horses, anecdote of, 43! Sympathetic nerve, description of the, 76i Tail, anatomy of the, 32Si Tail, setting on of the, a character of breeding, 328 Tipetum lucidum, colour and design of, 91 Tar, its use in veterinary practice, 401 Tares, a nutritive and healthy food, 357 Tartary horses, description of the, S, 18 Tartary horses, descent of, traced, 5J Tarsee horse, description of the, ^ 15} Team, disadvantages of, in draught, 414i Team, united power of, not equal to the [ calculation of so many horses, 414 Tears, secretion and nature of, 86 Tears, how conveyed to the nose, 87 j Tears, sometimes shed from pain, etc., 86 Teeth described, as connected with age, 137 j Teeth described at birth, 1371 Teeth described at 2 months, 137 j Teeth described at 12 months, 133 ^ Teeth described at 13 months, 139 j Teeth described at 2 years. 140i, Teeth, the front, sometimes pushed out, that the next may sooner appear, and the horse seem older, 141 Teeth described at 3 and 3 1-2 years, 141 Teeth described at 4 and 4 1-2 years, 142 Tectii described at 5 and 6 years, 143 Teeth described at 7 and 8 years, 144 Teeth, change of the, 140 Teeth, enamel of the, 138 Tecih, irregular, inconvenient, etc. 146 Teeth, mark of the, 135 Teeth, frauds practised with the, 140 Teeth, diseases of the, 147 Temper denoted by the eye, 84 Temper denoted by tlie ear, 77 Temperature, sudden change of, bad, 345 Temporal bones, description of the, 70 Tendons of the leg, should be distinct, and far from the shank-bone, 245 Tetanus, symptoms and treatment of, 107 Thick-wind, nature and treatment of, 193 Thick-wind, in round-chested horses, 193 Thigh and haunch-bones, advantage of oblique direction of the, 257 Thigh, lower bone of the, described, 263 Thigh, lower bone of the, should be long and muscular, 265 Thigh, muscles of the lower bone of the, 263 Thigh, upper bone of the, described, 257 Thigh, muscles of the inside of the up- per bone of the, 259 Thigh, muscles of the outside, etc., 260 Thigh, muscles of the, mechanical cal- culation of their power, 261 Thigh, the liorse should be wider at the, than at the haunch, 262 Thirst, strange effect of, on horses, 9 Thorough-bred horses, the quality of, has not degenerated, 49 Thorough-pin, nature and treatment of, 265 Thorough-pin, is unsoundness, 366 Thrush, nature and treatment of, 309 Thrush, the consequence, rather than the cause of contraction, 295 Thrush, its nature and consequences not sufficiently considered, 303 Thrush, is unsoundness, 366 Thyroid cartilage of the wind-pipe, de- scription of the, 160 Tied in below the knee, nature and dis- advantage of, 52, 245 Tips, description and use of, 318 Toe, bleeding at the, described, 181 Tongue, anatomy of the, W Tongue, diseases of the, 147 Tongue, bladders on underpart of the, 147 Tonics, account of the best, 401 Tonics, their use and danger in veteri- nary practice, 401 Toorkoman horse, description of the, 17 Toorky horse, description of the, 15 Towing, power of the horse, how dimin- ished in, 414 Traces, direction of the, very important in draught, 417 Traces, proper angle of the, 419, 424 Traces, proper inclination of, depends on the kind of horse and road, ti9. 424 409 Traces, should be inclined downward on rough roads, 420 Traces, inclined downward, throws part of the weig-ht on the shafts, 420 Traces, direction of, rarely attended to, 221 Traces, manner of fixing the, in South America, 422 Track, importance of both wheels run- .' ning in the same, 441 j Traction, the force of, explained, 404 Traction, the force of, illustrated by the spring steel-yards, 405 Traction, proper line of, very important in draught, 417 Training, principles of, 53 Traiisversaliscostarum muscle described, 232 Trapezius muscle, description of the, 232 Trapezius bone, description of the, 241, 245 Travelling, different rate at diff 'nt times, 35 Tread, nature and treatment of, 301 Tread, often causes sandcrack or quittor, 301 Tredgold's comparison of moving power in draught, 406 Trevis, description of the, 320 Triceps femoris muscle described, 261 Tripping- an inveterate habit, 344 Trochanter of the thigh described, 258 Trochanter of the thigh, importance of, 261 Trotting, action of the horse during, 413 Trotting, the limbs in, unfaithfully rep- resented in the Elgin marbles and the church of St. Mark, 412 Turbinated bones, description of the, 117 Turkish horse, description of the, 19 Turnips, as an article of food, 358 Turpentine, the best diuretic, 216 Turpentine, oil of, an excellent medicine in spasmodic colic, 206 Turpentine, useful in many ointments, 401 Tushes, description of the, 142, 145 Twitch, description of the, 321 U Ukraine, description of the horses of the, 5 Ulcers in the mouth, treatment of, 151 Ulna, description of the, 236 Unguiculata, a tribe of animals, 62 Ungulata, a tribe of animals, 62 Unsoundness, contraction does not al- ways cause, 293 Unsounehiess being discovered, the ani- mal should be tendered, 367 Unsoundness being discovered, the ten- der not legally necessary, 367 Unsoundness, liorse may be returned for, and action brought for deprecia- tion in value, but not advisable, 367 Unsoundness, horse returned for, must be as valuable as before in every other respect, Unsoundness, medical means may be adopted to cure the horse of, yet they had better be declined, 307 Unsteadiness while mounting, ?3' Utero-gcstation, tlie period of, 22' Vastus muscle, description of the. Vatican, curious method of moving the obelisk in the, 431 Vehicles of draught, the best, compared, 424 Veins, description of the, 178 Veins of the arm, 260 Veins of the neck, 157 Veins of tiie face, 119 Veins of the shoulder, 260 Veins inside of the thigh, 257 Veins outside of the thigh, 260 Veins, treatment of inflamed, 153 Verdigris, an uncertain medicine, when given internally, 389 Verdigris, a mild caustic, 3S9 Vertebratcd animals, what, 61 Vices of horses, account of the, 330 Vicious to clean, a bad habit that may be conquered, 333 Vicious to slioe, may also be conquered, 333 Vinegar, its use in veterinary practice, 402 Vision, tlicory of, 96 Vitreous humour of the eye, 95 Vitriol, blue, in veterinary practice, 389 Vitriol, green, " " 394 Vitriol, white, " " 40i W Waggon-horse, the, 41 Waggons, inferior horses may be used in, compared with carts, 443 Waggons, horses drawing, not so fa- tigued as in carts, 443 Waggons require fewer drivers, and are not so liable to accidents, 443 Waggons, with inferior roads and ordi- nary horses, preferable to carts, 444 Waggons with large front wlieels, ad- vantage of, particularly with two horses abreast, 444 Waggons, why they have more draught than two-wlieeled carts, 445 Walking, movement of the legs in, 412 Walking, different when drawing a load, 412 Wall-eyed horses, what, 93 Wall-eyed horses, whether become blind, 93 War-horse, description of the ancient, 24 Warbles, treatment of, 169 Warranted, the word extends only to soundness, 366 Warranty, the form of a, 366 Warranty, breach of, how established, 366 Warranty, no price will imply a, 306 Warranty, when there is no, action must be brought on ground of fraud, 368 Warts, method of getting rid of, 381 Washing the heels, produces grease, 279 Washy horses, described and treated, 210 Water generally given too sparingly, 360 Water, management of, on a journey, 361 Water, hard and soft, different effect of, 359 Water, spring, its coldness injurious, 360 Water in the ear, use of, 82 Water in the stomach, 204 Water-farcy, nature and treatment of, 131 Water conveyance, singular smallness of power required in, 424 Water conveyance, resistance increases v.iih the square of the velocity, 425 470 INDEX. Waver conveyance, power in, increases as the cube of the velocity, 425 Water dropwort, poisonous, 200 Water hemlock, " 200 Water parsley, " 200 Wax used in charg-es and plasters, 402 Weakness of the foot, what, 310 Weaving, indicating- an irritable temper, and no cure for it, 345 Weig-ht, calculation of the power of the horse to overcome, 38 Wellesley Arabian, account of the, 11, 48 Welsh pony, description of the, 58 Wheat, as food for the horse, 355 Wheat, inconvenience and dang-er of, 355 Wheels, the principle on which they act explained, 431, 433, 446 Wheels, effect of increasing- diameter of, 431 Wheels, no record of the time invented, 432 Wheels, spoked, known to Homer, 432 Wheels, little improvement in principle of, from the earliest times, 433 Wheels, principle of, on a level surface, 433 Wheels, theory of the degree of friction attending, 433, 446 Wheels, friction of, on the axle, depend- ent on the material employed, 434 Wheels, various forms of, 436 Wheels, dishing of, described, 436 Wheels, dishing, advantages of, 437, 447 Wheels, conical and flat, effects of, 403, 437 Wheels, obliquely placed, 437 Wheels, narrow and broad, compared, 437 Wheels, conical, strange degree of fric- tion and dragging with, 438 Wheels, conical, travelling grindstones, 438 VVheels, cylindrical, best form of, 440, 446 VVheels, cylindrical, described, round- ing of the edges, 440, 447 Wheels, cylindrical, but influenced by the state of the road, 440 VVheels, hind, should follow the precise track of the fore ones, 440,441 Wheels, their effect on the road, 440, 446 Wheels, straddlcrs, their effect, 441 Wheels, proper breadth of, 441 Wheels, Jones's patent, description of, 441 rACL. Wheels, with cast iron naves, 442 Wheels, size of, 442, 446 Wheels, advantage of large front, 442 Wheels, slightly convex in centre, 447 Wheels, arra»£-ement of the spokes of, 447 Wheezcr, description of the, 196 Wliipping sound, cruelty of, 37 Wliisperer, his power over the horse, ^32 Whistler, description of the, 190 Whistler, is unsound, 362 White Turk, account of the, 28 White lead, use of. 394 White vitriol, in veterinary practice, 402 Wild horse, description of tlie, 5, 11 William the Conqueror, improvement in the English horse by 24 Wind-broken, nature and treatment of, 194 Wind-galls, nature and treatment of, 248, 255 Wind-galls, unsoundness when lameness is caused, or is likely to be, 366 Windpipe, description of the, 46, 159 Windpipe, prominent and loose, 159 Windpipe, opening the, 162 Wind-sucking, nature of, and remedy, 341 Wind, thick, nature and treatment of, 193 Wiring-in of the heels, 293 Withers, description of the, 154, 166 Withers, high, advantage of, 167 Withers, fistulous treatment of, 168 Wolves' teeth, what, 140 Work of the horse, should not exceed six hours per diem, • 415 Worms, treatment of, 210 Wounds in the feet, treatment of, 303 Wounds in the mouth, treatment of, 151 Yellows, symptoms and treatment of, 213 Yew, the leaves of, poisonous, 200 Yielding resistance, the effect of, in neutralizing impetus, 414 Zoolosfical classification of the horse, 61 Zygomatic arch, reason of the strong construction of the, 71 Zygomaticus muscle, description of the, 119 THE ESBD. r ^ ^ , '^"^^fi-T^^.