Compressed Air; (X Poisoning 721 



by inserting the thermometer into the depths of the rectum. During 

 the attacks, the respiration stops, but the heart continues to beat. 



Gradually intervals of comparative repose appear. The animal 

 begins to grind its teeth with such extraordinary force that one would 

 expect them to break. The temperature rises again; at 6 o'clock it 

 is 31°. 



6:15; now and then, the stiffness disappears; the respiration is 

 better; the tail moves. 



6:45; the animal is still lying on its side; the clonic convulsions 

 are like those of phenol, in that they almost imitate the motions of 

 walking; they follow each other in attacks separated by an interval 

 of relative repose. At each attack, violent opisthotonos, with quiv- 

 ering of the jaws, then a snapping of the teeth; from time to time, 

 general stiffening with motionlessness, the stiffening less than at the 

 beginning. The pupils are still insensitive to light. The temperature 

 is 32 degrees. The heart beats hard and fast. 



The next day, at 11 o'clock in the morning, the animal, in whose 

 trachea the cannula has been left, is lying as on the day before; it is 

 in opisthotonos with permanent contractions of the limbs; the anal 

 sphincter is closed; weak, but almost continuous quiverings. Viscous 

 salivation, as well as watering of the eyes, has continued; the pupils 

 are dilated; the cornea is sensitive, but not the conjunctiva. Respira- 

 tion quite calm; pulse 80, weak; temperature 27°. 



I administered chloroform until the cornea lost sensitivity; the 

 stiffening and quivering disappear to reappear soon. 



The animal dies during the day. 



Now here is the result of the analyses: 



A: Ordinary air, normal pressure; 100 cc. of blood contain 

 O, 15.5 cc; CO? 22.9. 3 



B: 5 atmospheres of superoxygenated air: 100 cc. of blood con- 

 tain 2 24.0; CO 63. 



C: 7 atmospheres of superoxygenated air: 100 cc. of blood con- 

 tain 2 31.5; C0 2 54.6. 



The air of the bag, after the experiment, contained per 100, O, 66; 

 CO, 5.4. The original composition was therefore about 75 per cent of 

 oxygen. 



The oxygen tension in B was about 70 x 5 = 350. 



In C, it was about 68 x 7 = 476. 



It was raised to 66 x 8 = 528, which corresponds to about 26 

 atmospheres of air. 



This experiment is particularly remarkable; here is an animal 

 which, after being exposed for three-quarters of an hour to an 

 oxygen tension corresponding to nearly 26 atmospheres of air, died 

 after about 24 hours of violent convulsions. 



Experiment CCLXXIX. November 20. Rather young dog, weigh- 

 ing about 8 kilograms. 



Tube placed in the trachea. 

 ~% After a quarter of an hour, the rectal temperature is 39.4°; pulse 



