428 



therefore careful to relate all the circumstances. But he now finds 

 extremely little difference in the action of the same poison, even upon 

 different animals ; and in those of the same species no difference but 

 what may be referred to difference of quantity of poison, or age, and 

 power of the animal. He consequently does not enter minutely into 

 the particulars of his late experiments, but gives a general account 

 of those which appear to be of most importance, with regard to the 

 inferences that may be drawn from them. The greatest part of them 

 relate to the action of mineral poisons ; but since, on the former oc- 

 casion, his trials of woorara had been left imperfect for want of a 

 sufficient quantity of that poison, he states the results of two expe- 

 riments made after obtaining a fresh supply, for the purpose of en- 

 deavouring to recover animals that had been apparently killed by it. 



A young cat was the subject of the first experiment. In four mi- 

 nutes after the application of woorara to a wound in her side, she 

 appeared to be dead, but the heart continued to act 140 times in a 

 minute. Mr. Brodie then inflated the lungs, and repeated the arti- 

 ficial respiration forty times in a minute. At the end of forty mi- 

 nutes the pupils of the eyes were observed to contract by an increase 

 of light upon them ; but in other respects she was motionless and 

 insensible. At the end of an hour further symptoms of life began to 

 appear, and there was an effort to breathe occasionally. There were 

 also various involuntary motions. The efforts to breathe became gra- 

 dually more frequent, and after two hours had elapsed, the sponta- 

 neous efforts were repeated as often as twenty-two times in a minute. 



The artificial respiration being then discontinued, she lay as if in 

 a profound sleep for about forty minutes, when she suddenly awoke, 

 and gradually recovered from all the effects of the woorara. 



A second experiment, of the same kind, performed on a rabbit, 

 was not so successful ; for though the action of the heart was con- 

 tinued strong and regular for more than three hours by means of ar- 

 tificial respiration, there never was the least appearance of returning 

 sensibility ; and the pulse from that time began to subside, and ulti- 

 mately ceased altogether. 



The mineral poisons here examined by Mr. Brodie, are arsenic, 

 muriate of barytes, emetic tartar, and corrosive sublimate. 



When arsenic is taken internally, it is observed that some appear- 

 ance of inflammation of the stomach is usually found after death ; 

 and the general opinion is, that this inflammation is caused by the 

 local application of the arsenic to the coats of the stomach ; and se- 

 condly, that this inflammation is the cause of death. 



To these opinions Mr. Brodie objects, that in many cases the ap- 

 pearances of inflammation are too slight to warrant such an opinion; 

 and in most instances of animals killed by arsenic, death takes place in 

 too short time for it to be considered as the result of inflammation. 



The author observes also, that the inflammation does not depend 

 on the local application ; for it has been remarked by Mr. Hunter 

 and Mr. Hume, and Mr. Brodie has confirmed the observation by 

 new experiments, which have satisfied him, that inflammation of the 



