The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1883-09-15

that If this WAS efflcaciOus to cure the bite
of q snake 1t might be OF use In the treat.
ment Of hydrophObla. Nevertheless, II
was never used for that purpose, although
occasionally referred TO IN scientific works.
Recently DIR. Gutenberg, in Germany,
treated successfully hydrophobla patient
with species of wOOrara obtained from
the Indians of Brazil. What this wOorara
Is, or how II Is manufactured, We do not
know 1t is beyond doubt vegetable
substance. 1t Is sold by the Indians as q
cure for snake bites, and Is brought by
them packed in leaf-c0vered jars into
Para, where 1t finds ready market, as the
reptiles around there are numerous and
venomOus. 1t IS a potent poison, and in
its action, when taken in fatal doses, pro-
duces death by paralysis. 1t relaxes all
the muscles, IN which respect 1t differs
from strychnine and the other poisons that
produce commissions.
81 procured some of II, and after reduC-
to try Its power. Soon after these tests
used it in a pronounced case of hydIophO-
bia and 1t proved entirely successful.
II was called IN great haste to visit Mr..
&c. He was evidently IN the incipient
stage of hydrophobIa. | learned that some
months before q young Newfoundland dog
bit the servant girl, both of Mr.. C.'s chill.
dren aud nephew. When Mr.. 9. went
to examine the dog the animal bit him
through the index finger OF the right hand.
The dog was drowned. Mr.. C.'s wound
rapidly healed The servant girl died Of
unmistakable rabies. Mr.. &. had been low
spirited, nervous and irritable for about
ten days before sending for me. l pre-.
scribed One-twelfth of a grain of strychnia
every three hours, and sent for DIR. Flint,
of New York. We decided TO continue
this treatment On the fifth day he was
seized with such violent paroxysms that
if repeated three or four times they would
surely have proved fatal. He believed he
was about to die. | gave him q sub
curtaneous injection of one.sixteenth of a
grain of woorara He had slept very little
before, but twenty minutes after the mice
ton he fell asleep Three hours later he
awoke, and gave him an injection of one
ninth OF grain of woorara, which put him
to sleep again. In about three hours |
gave him another injection OF One-sixth OF
grain, which was followed by natural
sleep. Two hours later he was quiet and
rational, declared that he was feeling per-
tectly well, and all his unfavOlable symp-
toms had vanished. He has never since
shown any symptom of the disease.
"Now, | am satisfied that If we can OBJ
tam genuine fresh woorara OF uniform
strength, we shall be able to successfully
COR bat th,s disease, provided the remedy
be administered early enough. But the
trouble with wOorara is that its strength
varies an that il cannot he safely used until
1t has been carefully tested. | am now
trying to extract from pure woorara Its
jalkalOld, known as curarine. If succeed
the difficulty arising from the varying
strength of woorara in given volume will
be overcome, for the alkaloid will possess
uniform strength IN equal quantities. With
this object IN view entered recently into
correspondence with Secretary of State
Frelinghuyson, and he instructed the
American consuls at Para and other South
American ports to forward specimens OF
the drug, with all the information they can
procure about 1t. We await their replies