Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-03-16

ne mas termed 'crotallne. But until now
no knowledge has been obtained of any
thing antagonistic to this toxic agent.
though alleged cures" for srake-bite have
been plentiful enough. The remedy SO long
looked for has been found a. last in strych-
nine.
The deadly fluid secreted by certain spe-
cies of snakes was made a subject of study
from very early date, but the old-time in
vestigators knew not how to solve the in
tricate problems of organic chemistry. All
that they accomplished was to create pro-
digious number of antdotes so-called, most
of which in their turn were declared in
fallible. Not one of them was worth a
penny. The most notable work in this line
within recent years has been performed by
DR.. Weir Mitchell of Philadelphia, who,
for the sake of obtaining sufficient quanti-
ties Of the poison, has sometimes kept as
many as one hundred serpents in his lab
oratory. His method of securing the
venom for examination was to seize the
snake by the neck with tongs. forcing a
saucer between the jaws. The enraged
animal would then bite into the saucer.
on which the poison emitted was left.
The substance thus obtained is a yellow
ish. transparent, sticky fluid, without smell
or taste, easily dissolved in water. When
dried 1t will retain it's toxic properties for
any length of time. apparently. looking
served for twenty-five years without alter
ing in the least On this ground it is ad-
visabie to handle with caution even the
dried fangs of snakes long dead. Boiling.
unless continued for a long time, does not
render the fluid harmless.
Poison In Saliva.
1t is a fact sufficiently well known that
poisoning and even death sometimes re-
suits from the bites Of rats. dogs, cats.
horses, cows and even man himself Re-
cent Investigations have proved that in
such cases the consequences are due to the
presence in the saliva of minute organisms.
These bacteria find their way into the
wound, and. rapidly multiplying. cause
blood poisoning. Not SO very long ago it
was imagined that some sort of bacterium
in snake poison might be accoun table for
it's effects. Drs. Wolfenden and Williams
tried to grow cobra venom upon gelatine.
proceeding on this theory. If 1t had been
correct, they would have been able to pro-
duce any quantity of the toxic agent by
artifice; but they were entirely unsuccess-
full. 1t is now established beyond question
that serpent venom Is specific poison.
having nothing to do with bacteria. 1t
paralyzes the heart and the nervous
centers.
Alcohol has long held the first place in
popular esteem as an antidote for snake
poison. In truth it is not such at all.
though useful to sustain the vitality of the
person bitten against the attack made
upon it by the toxic agent. 1t stimulates
the nerve centers ard the action of the
heart, if taken III small doses. But the
mistake ordinarily made is to pour into the
patient large quantities of whisky, the eff
feet of which is exactly the opposite of
that required. In such great doses alcohol
depresses instead of stimulating the vital
functions. Intoxication, far from helping
the cure, aids the poison. And, by the say,
people have often died from snake-bite
who were bitten when dead drunk.
lieo0 rnI t1oso h.
case is exactly opposite. Danger is far
more likely to result from hesitation in
using it literally than from an over dose.
Superintendent a poison scarcely less
terrible than snake Venom-actS directly
upon the nerves, stimulating and turning
on their batteries which the snake poison
seeks to depress and turn off. Acting with
the unerring certainty of a chemical test,
it neutralizes the effects of the serpent
venom But it must be administered in ex-
traordinary quantities. even to the point
of producing Spasmodic twitchings of the
muscles.
Use of the Drug.
In fact the ordinary doses must be
greatly exceeded, and the administration
of the st1ychnine must be continued, even
II the total quantity injected within an
hour or two amounts to what, in the alb
sence of snake poison, would be danger
Gus, if not a fatal, dose. The few failures
drug thus far recorded have nearly all
been traceable to an insufficiency of the
antidote. In urgent cases as much as
twenty to twenty-five minims should be
given to any person over fifteen years Of
age If, at the end of twenty minutes, the
symptoms show no abatement, second
injection Of the same strength should be
made promptly, and, unless then a de-
cided improvement is perceptible, third
one after a like interval. The action OF
the drug when applied as an antidote Is
not cumulative
The tendency to relapses is always great
where much venom has been absorbed.
Apparently yielding to the strychnine for
time, the insidious poison, after an inter-
val, during which it seems to have been
conquered, all at once reasserts it's pres
ence, and has to be met by fresh injec-
lions, regardless of the quantity previously
administered. With children the amount
of the remedy to be given must not be
judged by the age of the child, but by
the amount of venom to be counteracted,
the degree of danger chiefly depending
reptile, of course, the more poison it has.
Furthermore, 1t is to be remembered that
of all American serpents the rattlesnake
is the most dangerous, the copperhead less
so, and the water moccaSin least.
Until the Doctor Comes.
In case of snake bite the first thing to
be done is to tie string or handkerchief
as tightly as possible between the wound
and the heart. whenever practicable.
Next cut deeply into the punctures made
by the fangs, so as to cause the blood to
flew freely; suck the blood from the wound
"a proceeding perfectly harmless, mas
much as the poison does no harm when
taken internally. Then carefully loosen
the 1igature so as to admit a small guam
tity of fresh blood to the member, in order
that modification may not ensue. Small
doses of whisky may now be given at fire.
quent intervals. If the patient has to wait
for the arrival of doctor this is the time
to try all means to produce profuse per-
spiration. The physician will administer
extract Of jaborandi, for a sudorific and
diuretic, and hypodermic injections of tif-
teen to twenty minims of liquid strychnia,
repeated every twenty minutes until slight
spasms appear.
1t has been ascertained that human be-
ings and other animals are rendered COM
paratively immune against snake poison
by repeated small doses of the venom
This suggests the idea of preventive in
oculation, which, though not worth while
in the United States, might be decidedly so
in such serpent-cursed countries as India
and Australia, or for travellers in regions
where snakes are plentiful and dangerous.
1t is fact that the poisonous snakes are