The treatment of nephritis consists in applying fresh sheepskins to the loins. Should the case be urgent, a quantity of lukewarm made mustard may be first rubbed in and the sheepskin placed over it; or mustard poultices in any case may be employed and covered over to prevent them becoming dry, till sheepskins can be procured. Injections of warm linseed tea should be thrown up every hour, as these are the nearest approach that can be made to actual fomentation. Two scruples of croton farina, mixed with half a drachm of belladonna, may be given immediately in the form of a ball, the bulk of which should be made up with crushed linseeds and treacle. One scruple of calomel, with one drachm of opium, may be sprinkled on the tongue every hour while the acute stage continues. A pail of good linseed tea should be kept before the horse; but as for more substantial provender, none is requisite during the agony of the disease. Should the slightest doubt be entertained concerning the nature of the affection, immediately insert the arm up the rectum. This intestine is anatomically spoken of as "a floating gut." It is suspended from the spine by mesentery or a loose fold of thin membrane, and, therefore, is easily raised or depressed. It is situated under the kidneys, and nothing consequently interposes between the diseased organ and the inserted hand but the pliable coats of the bowel and the fatty substances which immediately surround the glands. The hand is not conscious of the soft wall of the intestine which covers it. The motion is so free, and the fingers are so readily moved, that previous knowledge alone assures the operator his arm is within a circumscribed canal, and not located in a free space. [Illustration: _a a a._ The spine. _b b b._ The mesentery. _c c c._ The rectum. A. The extent to which the rectum may by very gradual force be depressed without injury to the animal. B. The rectum, with the natural length of mesentery, when not depressed. C. The rectum raised, showing that the mesentery is very pliable.] By inserting the hand and moving it gradually upward, an approach can be made to the immediate vicinity of the inflammation. Sensitiveness will be exhibited as the seat of disease is touched. Heat will also be felt. A fore leg should, however, be held up on the same side as the operator stands. Should the horse struggle violently and denote positive agony when the hand is approaching the region of the kidneys, the signs may be considered conclusive without attempting farther exploration. Should the animal remain quiet at first, nevertheless let the operator be cautious, as the too near vicinity to the inflamed part provokes resistance, which, in its utter heedlessness, is closely allied to madness. [Illustration: A CERTAIN TEST FOR INFLAMMATION OF THE KIDNEYS.]