New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-05-17
CURING SNAKE BITES.
SOME OF PROFESSOR FRAsER's ANTI
DOTES

REPEATED INCUBATION IN SMALL DOSES AND
SWALLOWING THE VENOM IN LARGE GUAM
Titles GIVE IMMuNrTY-oLD SAY
INGs COME TRUE
In all times and in almost all lands the venom OF
serpents has been dreaded among the deadliest
infections humanity could suffer. Folk lore. classic
fable, and even sacrsd myths. have turned upon the
theme 1t Is the poison OF a snake tina, torments
LoRi for the crime OF Badurs death and II is the
venom Of the Midgard serpent tina; WILL in Ragna-
rok at last destroy earth-shaking Thor. In Holy
Writ the viper IS made type OF deadly evil Pliny
and Celsius devote chapters 10 discussing possible
cures for snake bites. An asp was the means OF
death chosen by the woman for whom half the
known world thrown away. In these later years
and these prosac times the literature OF snake stories
is vouminous and the deadliness OF rattesnakes and
copperheads proverba In India II Is reckoned that
20000 persons perish every year from the bites OF
cobras and other snakes. In this country nobody
knows how many lives are saved only by liberal pota-
tons OF whskey. how many men are driven to
drink advance antdote to snake bites feared
for the future.
Whatever the merits of whiskey "a a cure for rat
tlesnake bites its efficacy for the bites of other SER
penis is apparent The. copperhead In America,
the cobra in India and various other serpents else
where have a venom too deadly for any medicine
hitherto known so that their bite has meant practi-
cally inevitable death. The announcement that
certain has apparently been at last discovered
is sure, therefore to arouse great interest Such an
nouncement Is pretty confidently made tx
perlments upon animals and upon men have seemed
to demonstrate the efficacy of the treatment, and
there is the prospect Of the bite of cobra being one
of these days regarded scarcely serious than
that OF mosquito. Indeed. 1t may be deemed less
serious If It be true Investigations indicate.
that the mosquito is the great dissemination of ma
larIa.
Credit for the discovery OF for snake poison
Is doubtless to be given ultimately to the late
Louis Pasteur. 1t he who began, in another
field, the scientific Investigations which have led to
this result among many others of similar beneh-
cence mankind. The working out OF this specific
remedy has been chiefly accomplished by Professor
Thomas r. Fraser, OF the University OF Edinburgh
and he would doubtless be generally regarded as the
actual discoverer. For than twenty-five years
he has given close and almost incessant attention
to the subject, until he has perfected what
a real remedy for the bites of even the
deadlies. serpens He began his work in 1869 adopt
Ing the theory that he Of snakes contains
within itself it's aEtidote. This theory, save In
the particular form OF application, was not original
with him. On the contrary 1t Is old and Widespread
AS Professor Fraser himself reminds us. innumer-
able old legends indicate that from remote period
OF time the belief has existed that power may be
acquired by man of freely handling venomous ser
penis and of successfully resisting the poison
ous effects OF their bites The Psyn OF Africa. the
Marsi Of Italy. the Gouni OF India and other an
Gent tribes and sects were said TO have been I'M
mune against scrpents bites because serpents'
blood was present in their veins. In more modern
times the same belief is expressed in the writings
OF many travellers We told that the negroes
of Guinea have great reverence ana respect Tor
snakes and worship them gods. They declare
that II Is good be bitten by these snakes. upon
the plea that one Is thereby secured and protected
from the bite OF any poisonous snake. In Southern
Africa It is a common practice for the Hottentots
to catch Gnakes, squeeze out the poison from their
teeth and drink IT, They say IL makes them only
a little gddy and that IL preserves them aterwari
| from receiving any injury from the bite Of such
serpent.
In Western Barbary there Is n sect Of snake
| charmers who freely handle and allow themselves
| TO be bitten by venomous serpents. These people
claim to have obtained their immunity In the fol-
| lowing manner: The founder Of the sect. Seedna
| Elser, was being followed through the desert OF
soos by a great multitude. who. becoming hungry.
clamored for bread on this. he became enraged.
and turning upon them uttered a common Arabic
curse Eat poison" So great their faith in
the teaching OF this saint that they acted upon the
literal Interpretation OF his words and thereafter
ate venomous snakes and reptiles; and from that
time they and their descendants have been immune
against serpents bites. 1t is we'll known that the
faklrS or lnuld OltrH DlNN'H ny INV NN"'''NT'
serpents without injury
THE FIRST EXPERIMENTS.
These facts and other evidence pointing to the
existence OF protection against veno~ originated
wish to investigate the matter. 1t was obviously
suggested says Professor Fraser. that II protection
occurs It must be caused by some dlreet result
OF the absorption of venom and therefore it's exist
ence could be proved or dispr0yed by experiment.
The general plan 10 be followed in the first stages
.,.I h. . .ha
statements already made. for they indicate that
individuals might become accustomed TO or pro-
tected against the effects OF serpents bites by the
introduction into their bodies Of succession Of
doses OF venom. consideration also of he facts
proving the immunity OF venomous serpents them
selves indicated the same plan Of procedure; for II
is obvious that these serpents from early period
of their existence must absorb venom from their
own gradually developing poison glands until in
the course OF time they acquire sufficient protection
to remain unaffected by the larger quantities which
the now fully developed glands would introduce
into their bodies by means of bite.
Professor Fraser got his first supply OF cobra
poison from India in 1869 1t not sufficient for
any extended experiments. Yet he succeeded in
demonstrating to his satisfaction that the re-
peated administration of very small doses rendered
animals immune against larger and even ordinarily
fatal doses His next undertaking was TO accumu-
late an ample supply of snake poison. and in this
he was. thanks TO the cooperation OF scientific
men In other parts Of the world at length success
full He got quantities Of rattlesnake and copper
head poison from the United States. cobra poison
from India, puf-adder poison from Africa and the
venom of the dreaded brown snake from Australia.
He had therefore, the venom of the most deadly
OF the snakes of America. ASIA Africa and Aus
tralia the representatives OF al the Classes Of
snake poison in the world
Meantime other Investigators took up the work
on their own account Sewali IN 1885, undertook
an investigation with rattlesnake poison and found
that by repeated incubation with small doses
pigeons could be rendered immune against seven
times the ordinary lethal dose. Kanthack made
similar experiments In 1891 upon rabbits with cobra
poison with the result Kaufman, In 1871.
and Phisalix and Bertrand, In 1898. did the same
with the venom OF vipers. In 1894 Calmette con,