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AGRICULTURE. --+--

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AGRICULTURE. --+-- Congestion of the Lungs in Horses. The difference between congestion and inflammation is not popularly recognised, although the two diseases are quite distinct, and really require opposite methods of treatment. In congestion the blood is stagnated, and conse- quently the circulation in the part is stopped, the natural result of this will be the arrestation of the functions of the tissues so affected, and their ultimate death, unless the disease can bo removed and the circulation restored. If a string be tied tightly round the finger, the part above the ligature soon becomes dark in colour, and if not released would die, and finailyjmdergo deosmposition, and drop off, supposing that tsa ligature were so effectually applied as to arrest the circulation completely. In a greater or less degree this state of parts represents congestion, no matter from what cause it may arise. A certain amount of blood is collected in a part of the organism, some obstruction exists to its free passage, and if the obstruction ia not removed, a loss of vitality is the consequence. Congestion of the lung, of a horse, for example, then, means an excess of blood in those organs, a quantity disprdportioned to the extent of accommodation, and the necessary loss of power of circulation, which is the consequence of overcrowding, whether in regard to fluids or solids. The existence in the lungs, or in portions of them, of such a condition of the vessels, must inevitably, in the first place, lead to the diminution of the breathing space, and cause a difficulty in respiration. The greater the amount of congestion the greater the dis- tress, until we reach the point at which the pressure of the exeess of blood practically obliterates, the air .tubes, and the animal dies from suffocation. In its most decided form, congestion of the lungs is .the result of over exertion, and by this is meaut not a given amount of exercise, or a gallop of any specified length, but exertion ^disproporiionesl to the animal's capabilities at the time. It is of no consequence to allege that a Gaitain horse was only driven along tie road for a few miles before' being attacked. If, from his condition at the time, the drive of a few miles was equivalent to a severe gallop for a horse in good train- ing, tha intensity of the action of the cause would be the same,, and the consequences not Ies3 marked. Exposure to cold after exertion is a fruitful cause of congestion, and for this reason horses are commonly attacked Ja the night after being brought in from work, and particularly if their legs or other parts have been Trashed with cold water and not properly dried; or if, ,in order to prevent a recurrence of sweating, they have been groomed outside the stable door on a cool evening. Cold, as a cause of congestion, may be presumed to act by generally depressing the nervous functions, lessening the activity of tha circulation over the whole of the surface of the body, and thus throwing a large mass of blood into the internal parts. Symptoms of congestion of the lungs will vary according to the extent of the disease, but ia every case there will be quickened breathing, amounting in some instances to rapid panting; the nostrils are dis- tended, the animal distressed, and evidently suffering from the alarm which a feeling of suffocation occasions A shivering fit often ushers in tho disease, and some- timescontinuea until the congestion is relieved or the animal dies; the surface of the body is cold, and the pulse small in its beat, although the artery under the jaw is distended and hard. When congestion occurs during violent exertion, considerable hemorrhage sometimes takss place from the nostrils, the con- sequence of the rapture of some pulmonary vessels; but unless the bleeding continues to a serious extent it appears to be beneficial, as those cases often recover much more rapidly than others which araless alarming in appearance. The symptoms altogether are sufficiently indicative of disease of the lungs, but there is little or nothing in those symptoms to enable the non-scientific observer to decide whether the horse is suffering from con- gestion or inflammation, and there can be no doubt that the two diseases are commonly confounded under one title and treated upon precisely tha same principles. Treatment of congestion of the lungs mast be prompt to be effectual. A dose of carbonate of ammonia, one, or in extreme cases two, drachms in a fall pint of colcl watsl", should. be given at once, and repeated in an hour if there is no improvement apparent. A strong mustard poultice should be at once applied to each side, and the surface of the body sufficiently covered with clothing; the legs should be well hand-rubbed and bandaged, and an enema of warm water may be administered. In the course of a few hours considerable improvement maybe expected to take plac9; at the end of three or four hours the carfeonate of ammonia may be repeated if necessary, and more mustard applied; but generally theae cases of congestion are rapidly relieved by this active treatment, or the animal is soon reduced to a hopeless state, unless, as it sometimes happens, the disSase becomes complicated with inflammation. After congestion ia fairly removed, very little treat- mentwill be necessary, beyond a few days' rest with soft diet. Occasionally an annoying cough is left for a week or two, but this is a trifling matter compared with the consequences which. result, from an acute attack of m xi_amma yion, from- T7hich an ammal very rarely re- covers completely.-The Field.. THE fine waather of last week has wonderfully im- proved the cereal crops in England. A correspondent of an Oxford paper says In this neighbourhood we have a thin crop of wheat and weak in 1 the straw. The weather was very favourable daring1 tha time the wheat was in bloom, and the present fine weather is improving t1$ crop daily, and likely to produce a line quality. Barley and oats are promising for an aver- age crop. Beans and peas very promising at the pre- sent time. Potatoes are looking well. IN Nottingham the hop plant is progressing favour- ably. In the neighbourhood of Ollerton the plant is looking' remarkably well, the bine is in a healthy condition, and there is comparatively little filth. At KntJord the bine is short and uneven. At Walesby also the bine is uneven, and there is a little filth among the plant.

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