76 THE POISONOUS 



symptoms, but, as in malignant fevers, a disposition to 

 gangrene. Christison describes the effects of its prolonged 

 use, as weariness and formication. "!N A FEW DAYS fever 

 sets in, with a hemorrhagic tendency, rending pains of the 

 limbs, and at length, dry gangrene of the fingers, toes, or 

 even legs, which drop off by the joints." In some cases, 

 the author just quoted reports contraction of the spleen* 

 and enlargement of the liver, as among the effects of 

 ergot. 



Dodart, who acted under a commission of the French 

 Academy of Medicine, reported to that body, that ergot 

 occasioned "nervous phenomena and malignant fever, 

 with stupor." 



In 1826, Dr. Westerhoff saw two children who had 

 been poisoned by mouldy bread ; their faces were red and 

 swollen, excited and haggard, tongue dry, inextinguishable 

 thirst, feeble and frequent pulse, abdominal pain, vomiting 

 and purging, vertigo, headache, great depression of mind 

 and body, mental indifference, and somnolency. 



On the 10th of June, 1839, at a musical festival 'at 

 Aldenfingen, about six hundred people ate various kinds 

 of meat, which, after being cooked, had been kept in a 

 badly ventilated cellar for nearly three days. Upwards 

 of four hundred of them were, within ten days, attacked 

 by nausea, vomiting, some mental disturbance, colic pains, 

 tenderness of the epigastrium and diarrhoea. In the pro- 

 gress of the cases, disturbed circulation, constipation, fetid 

 evacuations and tympanitis allied the cases to typhoid 

 fever, and nine died of this fever. An autopsy revealed 

 inflammation or ulceration in the lower part of the ileum. 

 Those who did not go to the festival, but partook of these 

 cold meats at home, suffered in a similar manner; whilst 



* The spleen is sometimes lessened. Art. Typhus, Die. de Mededne. 



