364 VENOMS 
in the shoulder when in the act of placing her head on the pillow. 
With a start of surprise she half rose and then lay down again. 
It was only on being bitten for the third time that she made up 
her mind to seek for the cause ; passing her hand beneath the pillow 
in the darkness she touched the body of a snake and cried out. 
Directly afterwards she pointed out to her husband, who had at 
once hastened to her, the snake coiled up against the wall; the man 
killed the reptile and burnt it on the spot. According to him the 
snake was about a metre in length, and as thick as all five fingers 
put together. The woman had barely time to tell her husband 
what had happened, for she speedily became unconscious, and was 
in this condition when brought to the hospital. 
‘On admission the following symptoms were observed: The 
patient did not reply to questions put to her, the eyelids remained 
closed, and the teeth clenched. On the right shoulder, a little on 
the inner side of the deltoid prominence, two or three punctures 
were distinguishable, marked by a small spot of coagulated blood. 
The respiration was normal, but the pulse was feeble and thready. 
When a pledget impregnated with ammonia was held under her 
nose the woman reacted, but immediately relapsed into the soporose 
condition. 
“Two doses of antivenomous serum were at once injected, one 
in each flank: the patient seemed scarcely to feel the insertion of 
the needle. The wound on the shoulder was then washed with 
a fresh solution of hypochlorite of calcium, 1 in 60, and six in- 
jections, each of 1 gramme, of the same solution were given 
round the wound. The latter was covered with a pad of cotton- 
wool saturated with the solution, and two more doses of serum 
were injected into the flanks. As the result of this treatment, 
which altogetber took nearly half an hour, the woman began to 
unclench her teeth, and to respond to her name. She was made 
to swallow a few mouthfuls of very hot black coffee. A little later 
she resisted when a fresh injection of serum was about to be given 
her. After having taken a second cup of coffee she sat up, opened 
