Treatment of Man Bitten by Venomous Snake. 71 



for a few drops of the solution immediately arrests the 

 action of ptyalin. 



As regards its action on pepsin, plus the necessary 

 amount of l^drochloric acid, it at first hinders the 

 digestion of fibrin, but soon fails in the presence of the 

 acid, which is the necessary accompaniment to the 

 ferment. It is further astonishing, that so small an 

 amount of free chlorine should have so powerful an 

 effect, whereas, as stated by Weir Mitchell, the strong- 

 est acids, nitric, &c., cannot destroy the activity of 

 rattle-snake venom ; neither have they any destructive 

 power, as I have myself seen, over the venom of the 

 tiger snake. 



STILLWELL AND Co., PRINTERS, 195A COLLINS STREET, MELBOURNE. 



