VEGETABLE POISONS. 95 



they are brought into contaft with wounds 

 of the mufcles, death is the confequence. 

 *Eut they differ very effentially in this refpedt. 

 When the poifon called ticunas is injeded 

 into the large veins, it foon proves fatal ; 

 whereas the water of lauro-cerafus, mixt 

 with the blood in the fame manner, produces 

 no diforder, or any apparent effedt. 



The Abbe Fontana having detached the 

 fciatic nerve of a large rabbit more than an 

 inch and a half, introduced under it a wrap- 

 per of very fine linen, fixteen times doubled, 

 that the parts below it might not be pene- 

 trated by the water of the lauro-cerafus. He 

 then wounded the nerve with many ftrokes 

 of the lancet, in a longitudinal diredion, 

 and covered all this wounded part, which 

 extended above eight lines in length, with 

 a roll of cotton three lin^s in thicknefs, well 

 fteeped in laurel water. More than fifteen 

 drops were neceffary to moiften the cotton^ 

 and the fluid communicated itfelf diredly by 

 the wounds, to the medullary fubftance of 

 the fciatic nerve. The whole was covered 

 over about a minute after with new rags, fo 

 that it was impoffible for the laurel water to 



touch 



