POISONOUS PLANTS 305 



occurs chiefly in the berries, and to some extent in 

 the stem and leaves. Gohier, according to Cornevin, 

 gave 6J Ib. (3 kilos.) in the green state to a horse, 

 and found it had no serious effects. Children, how- 

 ever, have been poisoned by the berries, and suffered 

 from vertigo, dilated pupils, nausea, colic, stertorous 

 breathing, and convulsions (Henslow). 



Mention may be made here of the plant termed the 

 " Wonderberry," stated to be a hybrid between Solatium 

 guineense and 5. villosum, which are probably varieties 

 of S. nigrum. As grown in this country, the " Wonder- 

 berry " cannot be distinguished from some forms of 

 Solanum nigrum L., the cosmopolitan weed just 

 referred to, whose fruits are said to be edible in some 

 countries and poisonous in others. Fruits of the 

 " Wonderberry " were found by Dr. Greshoff, of Haar- 

 lem, to contain more Solanine than the wild English 

 S. nigrum or the Canadian form known as " Huckle- 

 berry." The fruits should certainly not be eaten. 

 See also Card. Chron., 1909, pp. 172, 204, 393, and 

 291 (October 30). 



Thorn Apple (Datura Stramonium L.), a casual weed, 

 is another poisonous plant of this order. It is an 

 escape from cultivation, being a North American 

 annual plant. The illustration (Fig. 87) is from 

 plants raised in 1909 from seed saved from a specimen 

 discovered in the author's garden in 1908. The Thorn 

 Apple, known in America as Jimson Weed, is a smooth, 

 coarsely growing bushy plant about 2 feet or more 

 high, with a strong smell, and large, broad, wavy 

 leaves with toothed margin. The flowers are white, 

 large and funnel-shaped, on an average about 3 inches 

 long, and open in June and July. The seed capsules 

 are large, like a prickly horse-chestnut, and contain 

 many rough black seeds which are somewhat kidney- 



