VETERINARY MEDICINE. 79 



which must be considered. This heated meal is much more palatable than the 

 raw kernels and animals eat considerably more of it. Animals make better 

 gains on this meal than on the kernels, though they die as soon, or even sooner, 

 than animals on the raw kernels. 



" The heating to which the kernels are subjected in the oil mill is probably 

 sufficient in most cases to reduce the toxicity to some extent, though this retluc- 

 tion is usually not enough to remove all danger from feeding susceptible 

 animals. 



" The careful fermentation of the kernels or meal seems to reduce the toxicity 

 to a considerable extent. 



"All the cotton varieties that were tested that were grown on the same plat 

 of ground during the same season, showe<l no difference in the toxicity. 



" Sea Island seed obtained from Porto Rico was extremely toxic. 



" We have no evidence whatever to show that pyrophosphoric acid has any- 

 thing to do with cotton-seed meal poisoning." 



Reference is made to the investigations of Crawfoi'd, ]»reviously noted (E. S. 

 R., 22, p. rAXl). 



On the action of Senecio alkaloids and the causation of hepatic cirrhosis 

 in cattle, A. R. Cushny (Proc. Roy. Soc. [London], Ser. B, 8-'/ (1911), No. 

 B 570, pp. 1S8-190). — This is a preliminary report of experiments with the 2 

 alkaloids found in Senecio latifoliuH, made chiefly upon cats. 



"The symptoms induced are of 2 kinds, acute, and subacute. The acute 

 symptoms connuonce with nausea and salivation, extremely accelerated respira- 

 tion, and, somewhat later, violent clonic convulsions under large doses. These 

 acute symptoms generally pass off in the cour.se of 2 or 3 hours, and the 

 animal appears perfectly well very often for the next 2 or 3 days or longer. 

 Some loss of weight may occur during this time, and then the subacute symp- 

 toms are introduced by a stool of rather loose consistency, loss of appetite, and 

 in some cases vomiting. The animal then becomes weak and dlsincline<l to 

 move, and passes into a condition of apathy, stupor and coma, death following 

 by failure of the respiration. These later symptoms succeed each other rapidly, 

 death occurring within 24 to 4S hours after the first subacute symptoms. . . . 



"Post-mortem appearances varied a good deal in different jinimals. There 

 was often found an unusual amount of fluid in the abdominal cavity, sometimes 

 of a bright yellow color. Small ecchymoses were sometimes found in the omen- 

 tum, and fat deposits in the abdomen. The stomach contained black masses of 

 half-digested blood, and the duodenum also contained some effused blood mixed 

 with mucus. The liver was swollen and congested, and the gall bladder was 

 generally distended with very dark colored viscous bile, which could only be 

 expressed from it with ditficulty. Small hemorrhages were often found in the 

 lungs, pancreas, kidney, and some other organs. ... In chronic poisoning no 

 symptoms, except loss of weight, were elicited until the drug had been given for 

 over a month. . . . The animal then died with the same appearances as in sub- 

 acute poisoning. . . . The 2 alkaloids sent to me induced the same symptoms 

 and the same changes, and seem to be equally toxic." 



A study of the renal epithelium in various types of acute experimental 

 nephritis and of the relation which exists between the epithelial changes 

 and the total output of urine, W. de B. MacNidee {Jour. Med. Research. 

 26 {1912), No. 1, pp. 79-126, pis. 4). — "From the experimental data presental 

 In this investigation the following conclusions appear allowable: 



" Cantharidin, potassium dichromate, uranium nitrate, and sodium arsenate 

 produce in the dog an acute nephritis in which both the vascular and the 

 epithelial elements of the kidney are involved. The histological study shows 

 that the vascular element of the kidney is first affected and that the rabidity 



