The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1907-05-03

AeNf
hardened Chinese can smoke In
fortnight and can wash meal down
with as much prussic acid as would
kill a regiment Of soldiers. 1t is ca
pable Of swallowing arsenic with just
as much relish as 1t eats cockroaches.
II is quite immune to the venom Of the
snake, though the prickly hedgehog
has little need to fear the approach Of
such reptile. It has even been stated
that 1t can swallow corrosive subli-
mate, and vet this Is virulent poison
which human beings must handle with
caution, for even solution Of 1t exter-
nally applied has been known 10 cause
death.
Cyanide Of potassium is another
deadly substance Of which the hedge
hog need have no fear, and yet the
merest trace Of the poison Is sufficient
to cause full grown man to foam at
the mouth and lose the power Of bis
limbs. Truly the hedgehog is strange
freak, and yet not so inexpiicable as
the polsons by which he refuses to be
poisoned.
Man is said to resemble the monkey
In more ways than one: but whatever
characteristics they may have In COM
mon, the ape differs from the human
being I'M this respect--he can take with
Impunlty as much strychnine as would
kill two men instantly. The monkey,
curiously enough, shares the immunity
to strychnine poisoning with inyerte-
brate animals, Another phenomenon is
the rat The number Of rat poisons
sold BY druggists is legion. but there IS
one poison which never enters into
their composition-na digitalin,
the active principle OF the foxgloye.
One-half grain Of thin poisonous prin-
ciple suffices to kin man within three
quarters Of an hour, bpt the rat abso-
lutely refuses TO let 1t kill him.
When 1t Is discovered that a human
being has swallowed oxalic acid, the
first thing the doctor does is to give his
unfortunate patient good dose Of
chalk, technically known as calcium
carbonate. Strange to relate, chickens
are not poisoned by oxalic acid, for the
simple reason that their intestines con
tain the antidote In the form Of quan-
titles OF calcium. which combine with
the poison and render it quite harm
less. It is interesting. however, tC
mention that If oxalic acid is injected
Into the blood Of fowl II would bs
poisoned. 1t is only when given By ths
mouth that the acid comes In contact
with the antidote However. as chick
ems are not provided with hypodermi,
syringes. they are not likely to run any
danger
II China were inhabited by pigeons
Instead OF by people who speak pigeor
English, a costly war and no end oi
controversy might have been ayerted
for pigeons are not demoralized By
opium. You cannot put a pigeon t,
sleep with the "drowsy giant. simpl.
because there is something In the bird'i
interior which resisss the narcotic in
fiuence OF the morphine to whicl
opium owes its actIvity.
There Is little to connect the Russian
peasant with a goat-unless ii Is bearl
yet nevertheless both have one trai
IN eommon--neither Is harmed by hem
lock. It was the Juice of the hemlock
80 we have been told until we are tires
OK hearing II. that killed Socrates. Eve
since then It has been on the poison lis
as far as civilized beings are concern
ed; but, al the same, roots Of hemlocl
are eaten ns food by the Russian peas
ants-and by goats.
In one respect the peasant OF tn
Austrian Tyrol resembles the hedge
hog, because he can take in one dos
as much arsenic as would kill severa
Americans. This is not because III
peasant Is provided ~ifh any specIs
means OF combating the effects Of III
drug, but because he hahituates hin
self to it. The T,rolean finds that al
aenlc Increases his power Of endurance
He commences by taking an eight
part Of a grain for a dose which
gradually increased until he can tax
without any III effect FIVE or NOR
grains at time.
experts have not been able to max
up their minds why these people b.
come tolerant to the drug. The mos
plausible theory put forward up to II
present Is that an aDtitoxin Is forme
By the administration Of the pciso
which immunizes the subject, Just 4
ealf lymph ni.nunlzes as againl
smallpox baltimore Sun.