Dec. 1899.] BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBUKGH 265 



(A. Mariana), which bears the significant name of ' Stagger- 

 bush ' in America. He had been led to take an interest 

 in this matter because of a paper by Dr. Thresh (of Buxton) 

 and Dr. Stockman (of Edinburgh) on tlie poisonous honey 

 of Trebizonde, read before the rharmaceutical Society a few 

 years ago. An extract prepared from this honey was 

 found to produce the characteristic symptoms of andromedo- 

 toxin poisoning. This was attributed to bees having 

 visited plants of Azalea pontica and Rliododendron ponticum, 

 which grew abundantly in the neighbourhood, but nothing 

 definite was known as to the poisonous properties of 

 either plant until the researches of Plugge and Zaayer 

 pointed to R. ponticum as the probable source. This honey 

 was interesting, as it was believed to be identical with the 

 famous honey which proved so disastrous to Xenophon's 

 army, and the symptoms recorded of that instance corre- 

 spond closely with those produced by andromedotoxin. 

 As showing the toxic effects of R. ponticum, it was stated 

 that at Syndall Park, Laversham, eight sheep which ate the 

 leaves of the plant were found dead next morning. 



" riugge and Zaayer did not seem to have examined 

 Pieris fiorihunda {A. Jlorihiinda), but the general conclusion 

 to which they came was that andromedotoxin was the 

 poisonous constituent of all narcotic ericaceous plants." 



It is certain that andromedotoxin is found in the young 

 twigs of A. polifolia, and this discovery of Professor P. C. 

 Plugge is described by him in his paper in " Archives der 

 Pharmacie," Nov. 1883, pp. 813-819. 



From the remarks made by Dr. Cleghorn it seems 

 probable that the leaves are most poisonous when still in 

 the bud. 



It is quite evident therefore that whenever A. polifolia 

 grows in situations where cattle, sheep, or horses can get at 

 it, there is much danger of the animals being poisoned, and 

 the deaths of many animals that have died from some 

 mysterious cause may probably be accounted for by this 

 plant having been eaten. 



In the "Veterinary Journal," vol. xliii. p. 14, there is 

 an interesting paper by Dr. K. Stewart MacDougall, on 

 " Poisonous Plants of the Heath Family." In that com- 

 munication he mentions that the leaves and young twigs of 



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