CURE, with the details of a plan which I hope to see hereafter recognized as legitimate treatment. Bnt I am sorry to be under the necessity of lengthening this paper for the purpose of giving utterance to the disappointment and chagrin which I feel at New unfetter- the worse than cold reception the new unfettered ed plan of shoeing, as received plan of shoeing has met with at the Royal VeteriVeterinary Col-nary College. I repeat the words, worse than cold;

at the Royal

lege.

because had the innovation in question on the old method of shoeing been boldly and flatly condemned as worse than useless by both the Professors, I should not have had any just cause for the complaint I am about to make, however severely I might have felt the disappointment at the time; but certainly nothing like a murmur would ever have escaped me; for I do not hesitate to avow, that I should be most thoroughly averse to yield on a professional point for courtesy sake, against my own judgment or opinion.

The case stands thus:-Many months ago I made a visit to the Veterinary College, when Mr. Coleman happened to be lecturing that morning upon the foot. I was thus induced to stay and hear him-at all times a perfect treat, in this instance more particularly-as the worthy Professor took in his hand one of my side-nail shoes, descanted upon it at considerable length, and in the presence of the most numerous class I ever saw in that theatre, extolled the merits of the system in the warmest terms,

without perceiving or expressing any practical objection to it; and finally gave it his most decided support and recommendation, as a most important improvement in the shoeing art.

The apparent success and sanction of the new system did not stop here; for Mr. Professor Sewell, without being aware of the high encomium it had just received in the lecture room, expressed himself so very spiritedly in its praise before the pupils, that I was quite astounded; and moreover requested Model shoe forthat another model shoe might be forwarded to Professor him, that he might have the pleasure of introducing particular reit in his lectures of course, I punctually complied with his request, and sent the shoe.

Now, the burden of my story is, that these eminent professors and distinguished leaders of our parent institution, "have not suited the action to the word." I am not so unreasonable as to complain that the one-sided-nailed shoeing is not generally practised at the College forge with working horses; but I do openly complain that it has not had even the show of a trial; and further, I am informed, both in writing and upon verbal authority of the most unquestionable character, that not even a solitary infirmary patient has been indulged with this really easy shoe.

My fear is, that so great is the reluctance to the admission of the unfettered shoeing within the College walls, that I have strong apprehensions that

warded to Mr.

Sewell by his

quest.

Reluctance to the admission

of unfettered shoeing within the College.

the College Professors will be deaf to their professional friends on this knotty point, and will actually procrastinate it till the day will arrive when their non-professional friends (clamorous from the accumulation of striking facts) will hold a more convincing argument on the subject of horse-shoeing than even the Professors themselves.. A recent author has told us, that "For great truths there will always come a time and place."

87

CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS.

It will be seen in the foregoing pages which relate to shoeing, that the reiterations of Mr. Bracy Clark respecting the baneful effects of nails upon the elastic hoof of the horse have, at last, been responded to in a way which, in some respects at least, cannot be otherwise than highly gratifying to the feelings of this persevering and acute observer. Although this intelligent and highly talented author has availed himself of every subtilty of expression in his recent publications on the foot of the horse, to stifle, conceal, and underrate the importance of navicular disease, whilst the works of other authors of the same date, and veterinary lectures, are found to teem with the subject, and have not willingly omitted the name of its promulgator, Mr. Bracy Clark has almost denied even The importthe existence of such a disease, under a blind in-ance of navicufatuation, that by his long continued labours he had much undermade the subject of the foot of the horse solely his Bracy Clark. own, to the utter exclusion of all other veterinary aspirants. Notwithstanding, as a junior veterinarian, I would scorn to withhold the praise which I think due to this scientific veteran.

lar disease

The author's

It is undeniably true, that the evils which result from the resistance of the nails have been published repeatedly by numerous authors, and in a very pointed manner by an able writer only a few years before Mr. Bracy Clark's first publication on the foot appeared; but, nevertheless, there is great merit due to Mr. Clark, merely viewing this single point alone, for he has never ceased to declare the same doctrine in our ears ever since: and I believe I may add, that he has contributed much towards rousing us out of this veterinary lethargy which has been of about thirty-five years' duration, dating before Mr. Clark's time, by commencing with Mr. Strickland Freeman, who expressed the whole thing in the plainest possible terms in his splendid work on the Mechanism of the Horse's Foot, and its natural Spring explained, and published in the year 1796.

I do conscientiously repeat, that I think it would opinion of Mr. be well for every veterinary student, however much on the foot of he may know or think he knows, to read most

Clark's works

the horse.

thoroughly and study Mr. Bracy Clark's works on the foot of the horse, so far as they relate to the anatomy, but more especially to the physiology, of that organ. I also equally feel it my duty, at the same time, to warn them against too hastily imbibing that author's views regarding the pathology of the foot; as I think time will soon shew that this prominent character has yet much to learn concerning