46 On the Poisonous Quality of 



of mercury, other parts of the same fish may be eaten, 

 with entire impunity. And from this fact, if I do 

 not mistake, we deduce an inference of considerable 

 importance, both in a physiological and in a practical 

 point of view. 



I. The physiological inference would seem to be, 

 that the poisonous quality (whatever may have been 

 its nature) of the fish had not been communicated to 

 the animal through the medium of the circulating mass 

 of fluids. If this had been the case, the deleterious 

 property would not have been confined entirely to one 

 particular part (the belly) of the animal, but would 

 have been nearly equally diffused through all the soft 

 parts. We thus seem to have an additional fact in 

 support of the ingenious experiments of Mr. Dupuy- 

 tren, and other physicians, who have, in vain, endea- 

 voured to impregnate the chyle of dogs, and other 

 animals, with certain foreign animal, vegetable, and 

 mineral substances. It seems much more probable, 

 from the above statement, that the noxious property 

 which produced the alarming symptoms in the case 

 of Mrs. M k, was communicated from the sto- 

 mach, or intestines, or both, to the subjacent parts of 

 the animal, after its death. 



II. In a practical point of view, the relation is im- 

 portant. It seems to show the necessity of removing 

 from all such suspicious species of fish, their stomach 

 and intestines, as soon as possible after they have 

 been caught ; before the noxious matter which these 

 organs contain, can have passed, by transudation, 



