N. MATERIA MEDICA, THERAPEUTICS, AD HYGIENE.585 



FAYEER ON POISONOUS SEEPENTS OF INDIA. 



An extremely important work from the pen of Dr.Fayrer, 

 upon the poisonous serpents of India, lias lately been pub- 

 lished, embracing an account of all the species that are known 

 to possess venomous characteristics. Dr. Fayrer has been 

 well known by the publication of numerous experiments 

 tending to show that the ammonia injection process of Dr. 

 Halford, of Australia, is not the certain remedy for snake bite 

 that has been claimed, and, indeed, that with serpents in In- 

 dia it has little effect. These experiments have been made 

 by injecting the ammonia immediately after the bite of a co- 

 bra, by mixing the. ammonia with the cobra-poison at once, 

 or by administering the ammonia by the mouth, and by sub- 

 cutaneous injection, with the same result in all death. The 

 experiments of Dr.Fayrer show the importance of a prompt 

 application of a tight ligature to the limb, above the bite, 

 after which excision and the actual cautery are to be used. 

 In the case of the finger or toe being bitten, amputation 

 should be performed immediately at the next joint. A fowl 

 bitten on*two occasions by cobras had amputation of the 

 wing performed each time, and survived. 



Carbonate of ammonia or spirits of ammonia may be given, 

 but with no more effect than spirits and water. Treatment, 

 to be efficacious, must prevent the entrance of the poison. 

 When the virus is once in the blood no known agent is capa- 

 ble of neutralizing it. Dr.Fayrer found that snakes have a 

 great repugnance to carbolic acid, which acts as a sudden 

 and fatal poison to them ; for which reason carbolic acid is 

 recommended for regions infested with poisonous serpents, as 

 one of the best methods of preventing their entrance into 

 building's and outhouses. 



The most poisonous snakes appear to possess a perfect im- 

 munity from the poison of their own species, and a considera- 

 ble immunity from that of other kinds. Indeed, the result 

 of most of the experiments was to show that the cobra and 

 some other serpents were unable to poison themselves or 

 each other. The rapidity of the action of the poison seems 

 to be in proportion to the warmth of the blood, birds dying 

 very quickly ; but the power of resistance, although gener- 

 ally in proportion to the size of the animal, is not invariably 



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