[dymond] elevator SCREENINGS 87 



"I am sending you a sample of cleanings from flaxseed which is deadly poison. 

 It contains principally frozen blossom buds, which must contain the poison. I had 

 never heard of its being poison before using it with fatal results. Since I have 

 learned my lesson I have heard that a neighbour lost several cattle by its use a few 

 years ago. A few weeks ago, I fed about three gallons to a cow and two gallons to 

 a heifer. Both were in convulsions in less than twenty minutes. The heifer died 

 in about two hours, the cow in about eight hours." 



An analysis of the sample gave the following: Immature flax 

 bolls and chaff, 75 per cent; flaxseed, 18 per cent; wheat, 4 per cent; 

 weed seeds, 3 per cent. The weed seeds were chiefly lamb's quarters 

 and wild buckwheat, with traces of tumbling mustard. Dr. A. McGill, 

 Chief Analyst, Laboratory of the Inland Revenue. Department (now 

 of the Department of Public Health), reported on this sample of flax- 

 seed screenings: "We find considerable quantities of prussic (hydro- 

 cyanic) acid, quite sufificient to explain the toxicity of the article." 



Similar results from feeding flaxseed screenings are reported from 

 North Dakota (Special Bulletins Nos. 31 and 35, N.D. Exp. Station): 



"In one herd of nineteen, all died; while in a second of ten, five died. Analyses 

 made of several samples of flaxseed screenings showed clearly the presence of hydro- 

 cyanic acid. This poison was also found in immature seed bolls of flax analysed 

 separately. A healthy, well-fed, 2-year-old heifer which refused to eat flaxseed 

 screenings was fed by force from a bottle with an extraction obtained from 4J^ 

 pounds of screenings. Toxic symptoms developed, from which she recovered, as 

 was the case with a second feeding obtained from 4 pounds. An extraction from 

 12 pounds resulted in the death of the animal in ninety-two minutes. Quantitative 

 determinations showed that 0-9583, 1-0736 and 4-892 gms. of hydrocyanic acid, 

 respectively, were fed." 



Thus it is clearly evident that flaxseed screenings may contain 

 hydrocyanic acid in sufficient quantities to cause the death of animals, 

 even when the screenings are fed in moderate quantity. 



Pammel records the opinion of Dr. Schafi^ner that the cause of 

 death to cattle is probably due to the prussic (hydrocyanic) acid 

 evolved from the plant when wilting. 



Danger of Spreading Weeds Through Seeds in Feeding Stuffs 



Apart from the deleterious eflfects of certain seeds on the health 

 of animals, the presence of vital seeds in feeding stuffs is a menace to 

 agriculture on account of the fact that many seeds retain their vitality 

 after they have passed through the digestive tract of domestic animals. 



In an experiment at the Maryland Experimental Station 

 twenty-two kinds of seeds were fed to animals and the manure spread 

 over sterile soil. It was found that only one kind of seed, Spanish 



