The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-11-11

muscles of the face and hands stiffness
in the joints, and various abnormal SEN
| sations such numbness. tingling, and
flashes of cold and heat in the extreme
ties. There may also be drowsiness. in
tolerance of either natural or artificial
light, and, in the worst cases. insomnia,
nervous excitement, mild delirium. IL
the poison results fatally the prostration
increases, the pulse grows rapid and fee
BILE, and rapid emaciation follows. The
patient becomes extremely blue about the
lips and passes into a state OF collapse
resembling that of the last stage OF chol-
| era. In the more severe cases. il con-
valescence follows the attack. it is pro-
| longed, and the weakness of the patient
| may be fully as great as after some in
| fictitious feyers, such as cholera or yell
low fever.
DR.. Thompson says that the diagnosis is
almost always obtainable from the history
Of the case in connection with the symp-
| toms already described. When he cause OF
| the poisoning is ptomaines from canned
food. the only difficulty consists in deter
mining whether the poisoning is the result
OF eating the tainted meat or of acute me-
tallic poisoning from chloride Of zinc, tin
| or lead used in the process of soldering the
| can.
| The symptoms in poisoning by milk,
cream ice cream, and cheese are similar to
| those in the cases Of meat poisoning. The
| symptoms in fish poisoning are, according
| TO DR.. Thompson, somewhat different from
| the cases OF poisoning from meat or milk.
| The difference lies chiefly in the fact that
| in the cases Of fish poisoning the nervous
| system is more affected than the stomach
| and the intestines. For this reason the
| poison Is very much more dangerous, and
| fatal cases have been known to result two
| hours after eating. In such instances there
may be no nauseau. vomiting or fever. but
there is sudden and extreme prostration,
with numbness, faintneSs, GOODNESS Of sur
face, restlessress, nervousness. anxiety.
and feeble and very rapid pulse.
| When 1t comes to the treatment of
| ptomaine or leucomaine poisoning. all
| tine authorities are agreed that more
| knowledge on the subject would not do
| any of them a bit of harm. Generally
| speaking, the treatment involves the Civ
| ing of a powerful emetic, or powerful
| physic, or both. and that is about all that
| can be done except in special cases. 1t
| has been determined, however. that GER
| tain ptomaines have certain defensive al
| kaloids. Hankin has discovered some of
| these. If, in cases of ptomaine poison
| ing it could be determined from the
| symptoms what particular bacteria had
] been developed, it might be possible to
effect cure through the humiliation of
| those bacteria by administering one of
| the defensive alkalOids, thus treating the
| case as cases of pneumonia, for instance,
are treated where the germ and its char
acter are known. One authority on this
whole subject had this to say to Sun
| reporter the other day:
Until more is known about the germs
developed from poisonous food ptomaines.
persons must largely depend upon their
| own good judgment for immunity from
the subtle and quick acting poisons. In
general way the fad of eating gamy'
meats should be frowned down. The meat
of flesh and fowl favored by high livers
were never fit to eat and never will be.
A more careful system Of inspection of
fish and meat markets and OF diaries
should be required, and some Of us have
long been in favor of the passage of a
law which would require rigid inspec-
ton of all foods prepared in restaurants
before they are served. Fish of any kind
should never be eaten unless the person
eating it knows absolutely that it Is
fresh Further than that. the liability of
anybody to ptomaine poisoning having
been clearly demonstrated. and 1t having
also been demonstrated that persons SO
poisoned have greater powers of resist
ing the poison. if their systems have not
been debilitated by high living and dis J.
PATTON it would appear to be self evil
dent that a we'll moderated diet. both of
food AID drink, should always be main
tanned. These are about the only safe
guards with which the public can sur
round themselves and win which they
can fortify themselves agains; ptomains
poisoning until the men of science have
learned more about the whole subject
than they do know at present.