The Colorado statesman., 1914-05-16
HEMLOCK IS DEADLY
Water Species Most Poisonous
Plant of Temperate Zone.
However, Its Tops and Seeds in Hay
Will Not Harm Cattle, as the
Roots Contain Most of
the Poiaon.


the plant known as the water hem
lock contain a deadly poison. its
tops and seeds in hay will not harm
cattle, according to scientists of the
United States department of agricul-
ture These scientists. whose special
ty ii is to Investigate plants from
which drugs and poisons are taken,
have been compiling data on this
plant which is one of the most deadly
known in America. The department
has Just issued a bulletin (No. 69)
containing a comprehensive statement
of these experiments and entitled
"Cicuta or Water Hemlock."
Besides its scientific name "Cicuta"
and its more popular name water
hemlock," the plant is known in vari-
Gus localities as "cowbane, wild
parsley" "snakeroot' spotted hem
lock-" "snakeweed" and beaver
poison" In New Mexico it has been
known as "pecos." The plant has
also popular German names. as it is
found in Germany.
The plants grow in wet places such
as swamps and irrigating bitches in
nearly all of our northern and west
ern states. When the root of the plant
is cut open drops of an aromatic oil
are seen. These give the root a pc
culiar odor and are popularly thought
TO be the source of the poison. The
poison is indeed In the root, but is
secreted in the form of resin which
is distinct from the oil. Although the
poison is most deadly, the fact that it
is confined to the roots rather than
extending to the tops and seeds ac-
counts for the fact that it causes but
comparatively few deaths. The total
loss from such weeds as loco" and
"larkspur" is much greater.
There have been relatively few hui
man beings poisoned by this weed in
America. Most of those afflicted have
been children who have been poisoned
in the spring, when the dangerous ele-
ment in the plant seems most active.
Cases of such poison are recorded in
Maine, New Hampshire, Massachu-
sets, New York, New Jersey, Pennsyl-
vania, South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky,
Illinois, Indiana, Michigan Wisconsin,
Minnesota. Iowa. North and South
Dakota, Arizona, Nevada and Utah.
The total number is very small, five
cases for instance, having been report
ed in one year in Montana, of which
four were fatal
Cases of cattle poisoned in this
country have been noted in Washing
ton, Oregon, California, Arizona and
Ma vi Of
stock have occasionally lost very
heavily. One man in Oregon esti-
mated the loss in his immediate neigh
borhood for one year at ten per cent.
Another estimates the average annual
loss in Oregon at 100 head. The loss
of 80 head of cattle and so sheep
was reported one year in Montana.
The losses are of course inconsider-
able, compared with losses from other
causes
1t is usually assumed that a plant
containing an element having such
pronounced effect on the human or
ganism has useful medicinal proper
ties. Much attention has been given,
to the violent poison of water hem
lock. 1t has been known in Europe
since the middle of the sixteenth cen
tury and has been tried as a remedy
for various diseases with various eff
fects. In Norway it has been used
for gout 1t has even been used as
a poultice for local pains. American
Indians. when tired of life. are said
to have poisoned themselves with it.
The dangers that accompany its use
may be drawn from the following de-
scription of the results of water hem
lock poisoning: There is first a pain,
particularly in the stomach but it may
be general In character. Nausea is
sometimes followed by violent vomit-
ing or spasmodic attempts to vomit
without result. Dilated pupils, diar-
rhea, labored breathing, frothing at
the mouth and gnashing of the teeth.
are other symptoms. Commissions may
be followed by unconsciousness or
death. The symptoms In the lower
animals are like those in man, except
that they are less marked. Only a
small quantity of the poison is nee
essary to produce death with all its
attendant agonies.
Inc symptoms as described ABOVE
are quite different from those pro-
duced by the drug plant called hem
lock, with which the ancient Greeks
we're familiar. A description of the
death of Socrates from the Greek
hemlock poison is given tn great de-
tail by Plato. The Greeks used this
poison to do away with criminals; IL
was also used by suicides. The
water hemlock" of more temperate
regions was probably given its name
merely because 1t resembled the
Greek plant in being deadly poison
GUS. There is no actual relation be-
tween the two plants