MUSHROOM POISONINI 845 



leasl <>nc death and man} Berious illnesses. Significant il is that 

 heating destroys tin- greater pari of its toxic properties. 



Mr. Bloiinl (Illinois) says "One daj last month the Man "f 

 Science of our house came home w iili ;i fine Bpe( imen of large white 

 mushroom which he t « >» » k to the library and identified as 'horse 

 mushroom.'' ill you do not care to discriminate between whil 

 spored and purple-brown-spored Agarics, nrycophag} is a danger 

 mis field for you!) "So a fev were collected and prepared for 

 dinner. The Man of Science ate a small piece ra^ at 2 p. in. 

 .") p. in., feeling well, he tried another piece, raw, as larg< the 

 little finger. Ai 6 p. m. he fell generally ill and ate do Bupper. 

 In half .in hour he began to have profuse, painless water} bowel 

 movements, but blamed a dentist and his drugs for this." Dr. 

 B. took two small portions each as Large as a pea about •'> |». m. 

 The after-taste created Loathing. Discomfort was immediate, and 

 consisted of a warm heavy sensation, slight pharyngeal Bpasm and 

 difficulty of swallowing. By 7 p. m. vomiting had begun, became 

 very violent and continued every Live to ten minutes. Diarrhea 

 began and Lasted ;ill of the next day. Intense burning pain in the 

 stomach alternated with intervals of Lassitude and exhaustion. 



A i !i p. in. hypodermic medication (strychnia l 30, atropine 

 1 loo, morph. sulph. l t) and cocaine produced relief and slumber 

 came on ;it 11 i». m. Pulse \\ ;is weak and rapid; perspiration free. 

 Tin' Man of Science vomited three times and had diarrhea all 



Dight. lie fell ;ls llsiinl llie next d;l\. He ;ile niu>| :l II. I Buffered 



least. The action of the poison suggests muscarin. 



V. K. Chestnut 34 records thai the presidenl ol the Cliicago Vlycol 

 ogical Society mistook /.. morgani for L. procera. Prof. Miller i Terre 

 Haute) eats /.. morgani ami tells of six families that do bo. 

 or two members of each family are made sick, though two fnmi 

 have eaten ii repeatedly withoul trouble resulting. "The meal i^ 

 Bimply delicious. '* Galveston and Milwaukee record Beven 

 of illness ami V. K. Chestnul adds twenty beside. Detroil might a. 1.1 

 four. The symptoms are as above described, apparently also r i-. • i u 

 cooked specimens. The fatal case was that of .i t>. old child 



wlm died in convulsions in seventeen lean-, after • 

 plant. Poisoning has resulted after everj variet} of rooking 

 .liter soaking in sail water. Webster tells of .i New England 

 cophagist who removed to Missouri, identified / »i<,ni">n a« / 

 procera from pictures i!> and paid the penalty within two ho 

 lie draws the moral, "Eai "»l>i what you KNOW .'" Mcllvt 

 i p. 71 1 i reports another case from Wisconsin of » iolent illness from 



