66 NATURE'S TEACHINGS. 



tip. This is a recently invented instrument, used for the pur- 

 pose of subcutaneous injection i.e. of injecting any liquid 

 under the skin. It is mostly employed for injecting opium 

 and other drugs of similar qualities, for the purpose of obtain- 

 ing relief from local pain. The slender spike-like point is 

 hollow, and ends in a sharp tip, formed like the head of a 

 lance. Just below the head there is a little hole, communi- 

 cating with the interior of the tube. 



The mode of operating ie simple enough. The syringe is 

 filled with the drug, and the point introduced under the skin 

 at any given spot. Pressure on the piston then forces out 

 the liquid, and causes it to mix with the blood. 



NATURAL ANIMAL POISONS. 



Now, both in the animal and vegetable worlds may be found 

 several examples of an apparatus which acts in exactly the 

 same manner. 



The first is the poison-fang of the Serpent, a specimen of 

 which is given on the left hand of the illustration. This 

 fang answers in every respect to the syringe above mentioned. 

 The long and slender fang is hollow, and answers to the pipe of 

 the syringe. It communicates at the base with a reservoir of 

 liquid poison, which answers to the body of the syringe, and 

 there is a little hole, or rather slit, just above the point, which 

 allows the poison to escape. 



When the serpent makes its stroke, the base of the fang is 

 driven against the reservoir, so that the liquid is urged 

 through the hollow tube, and forced into the wound. Even in 

 large serpents these fangs are very small. I have now before 

 me some fangs of the cobra, puff-adder, rattlesnake, and viper, 

 and it is astonishing how small and slender are these most deadly 

 weapons. The figure in the illustration is much magnified, in 

 order to show the aperture at the base, where communication 

 is made with the interior of the fang. As the exit hole is on 

 the upper curve of the fang, it is not visible in the figure. 



Next to the serpent's fang is a representation of the Bee- 

 sting, the poisonous reservoir being seen at the base, and 

 having attached to it the tiny thread-like gland by which the 

 poison is secreted. 



In the centre is seen the tail of a Scorpion, with its hooked 



