Encyclopaedia Britannica; or, A dictionary of arts and sciences, compiled upon a new plan … > Volume 2, C-L

FARR
will form it into a half; give it every morning farting for
a month ; or it may be given at firft for a fortnight only,
intermitting a fortnight, and then repeat it. If it be ob-
ferved that the horfe ihews an uneafinefs at the ftomach
after taking it, a horn or two of any liquor fliould be
given after it, or it may be diffolved at firll in his water,
or mixed with his corn ; though the ball, where it agrees,
is the eafiert method of giving.
When hcrfes take drinks with great reludtance, pow¬
ders muft be given in their feeds ; thus crude antimony,
or liver of antimony linely powdered, may be given to
the quantity of half an ounce, night and morning; but
in all forfeits, gum guaiacum mixed with antimony is
found more efficacious. Thus,
Take of crude antimony finely powdered, or, where
it can be afforded, cinnabar of antimony, and gum
guaiacum, of each a pound: mix together with an
oily peftle to prevent the gum’s caking: divide the
whole into thirty-two dozes, viz. an ounce each
doze; let one be given every day in the evening
feed.
Or,
Take of cinnabar of antimony, gum guaiacum, and
Cartile or Venice foap, of each half a pound, fait
of tartar four ounces; beat them up into a mafs,
and give an ounce every day. To thefe may be ad¬
ded very advantageoufly, an ounce and an half of
camphor.
iEthiops mineral given to the quantity of half an ounce
a-day, is a very good fweetener and corrector of the
blood and juices ; but it has been obferved, after having
been taken a week or ten days, to make fame horfes flab
ber, and unable to chew their hay and oats; and the
fame fymptoms have arofe, where only two drams of
crude mercury has been given, and continued about the'
fame fpace of time.
Diet Di-inks.— i. A decodtion of logwood, prepared
like-that of guaiacum, is alfo fuccefsfully given in fur-
feits.
2. Lime-water, prepared with ftavings offaffapharas and
liquorice, is a good diet-drink, to fweeten and corredt a
horfe’s blood ; and may be given with the nitre balls for
that purpofe.
3. Tar-water alfo, as has before been hinted, may in ma¬
ny cafes be well worth trial: but let it be remembered,
that all medicines of this kind ffiouid be continued a confi-
derable time in obftinate cafes.
#/■ Rowelling-.
There Teems to be no remedy fo much made ufe of,
and fo little underftood by farriers in general, as rowels ;
for which reafon we ffiall endeavour to let the whole af¬
fair in a clearer light, than hitherto it has appeared in.
Wefliall begin then by defcribing rowelling, which is
an artificial vent made between the Ikin and flelh, in or¬
der to unload and empty the veffels in general, and there¬
by relieve particular parts, when too much oppreffed by
afulnefs'or redundancy.
The general and abfurd reafoning of farriers on the
effedts and ufe of towelling, in feme meafure makes this
fedlion the mo{.e neceffary, as it is too notoiious how
I E R Y. 567
impertinently they talk on this fubjedt: for in ffiort, with
them, a rowel is to draw off all the bad and corrupt hu¬
mours from the blood by a fort of magic.
It is neceffary to obferve, that the matter generally
difeharged by a rowel, is nothing more than ah on zing
from the extremities of the veffels divided in the making
.of it; in fad! then, it is blood, which lofes its colour,,
by being ffied out of the vcffels, the warmth of the part,
and its confinement.
If this is granted, it will evidently appear, that the-
good effedts enfuing this operation, muft be owing to a
gradual depletion or emptying of the veflels in general
by which means the furcharge or load on a particular
part, is taken off and removed, and impurities or bad.
juices (generally called humours) run off with the good
in proportion to their quantity in the blood.
Thus, to lean hide-bound horfes, and thofe of a dry
hot conftitution, the difeharge, by depriving the confti-
tution of fo much blood and fluids, is daily exhaufting
the (Length of the animal ; and may be produdtive of
bad confequences, by defrauding the conftitution of a ne¬
ceffary fluid.
But in diforders from fulnefs, attended with acrimony,
or (harpnefs of the juices, and with defluxions on the
eyes, lungs, or any part of confequence; the gradual
difeharge, brought on by thefe means, will contribute to
leflen the fulnefs on the parts affefted, and give the vef¬
fels an opportunity of recovering their tone, while eva¬
cuating and alterative medicines are doing their office.
It may be neceffary, however, to obferve, that there
is a wonderful communication between the veffels of the
cellular membrane under the (kin, which remarkably ap¬
pears, by inflating thofe of (beep, calves, &c by the
butchers ; hence probably it is that fome diforders of this.
integument, are fo apparently relieved by iffues, or row¬
els, without our having any recourfe to that general de¬
pletion of the veflels, we have juft obferved, to account
for it; and hence alfo may be deduced their utility, fome-
times in draining off any extravafated fluids, which may
lodge between the interftices of the mufcles, after violent,
drains of the (houlder; alfo in difcharging fuch vitious
or (harp fluids as are thrown on the membranes, and oc-
cafion thofe flying pains and lamenefles, which we find
are often removed by this local remedy.
Of Strains in Various Parts,
It is neceflary to obfervej that in all drains, the muf-
cular or tendinous fibres are overftretched; and fome-
times ruptured, or broke. To form therefore a true
idea of thefe diforders, let us firft confider every mufcle
and tendon as compofed of fpringy elartic fibres, which
have a proper power of their oWn to contraft and extend
themfelves; or, to make their a&ion more familiar, let
us compare them to a piece of catgut, that we may the
better judge with what propriety oily medicines are diredt-
ed for their cure. Thus then, if by a violent extenfion of
this catgut, you had fo overftretched it as to deftroy its
fpringinefs or elafticity, and was inclined to recover its
loft tone; would you for that purpofe think of foaking it
in oil ? And is not the method of treating drains, or over¬
ftretched;