POISONS — POLYPUS. 221 



mously, and the animal expresses great distress and suffering-: 

 at length he becomes affected with torpor, or, in some cases, 

 with convulsions, when death commonly ensues. But it is 

 not often that these bites are fatal, particularly when proper 

 means are resorted to to obviate the effects. These means con- 

 sist in freely rubbing the bitten part with volatile alkali, or 

 with the spirit of hartshorn mixed with oil ; giving also five, 

 six, or eight drops of the volatile alkali, or twenty drops 

 of the spirit of hartshorn, in a teaspoonful or two of sweet oil, 

 every hour, until the amendment is evident. 



The venomous stings of Hornets, Wasps, and Bees, may be 

 relieved by applying the vegetable blue used to colour linen. 

 Laudanum also, or vinegar or brandy, will, either of them , 

 often remove the pain and inflammation speedily. 



Poll/pus. 



Now and then an excrescence is found protruding itself 

 from some cavity, of an indeterminate form, but usually pen- 

 dulous and nipple shaped. 1 have seen them in the nose, 

 within the uterus and the sheath of the penis, as well as from 

 other parts also ; but by much the most usual situation in 

 which polypi are found, is within the sheath or vagina of the 



bitch. 



When the pedicle of the polypus can be reached up to its 

 origin, it may be taken off by excision : when this cannot be 

 conveniently done, still a ligature may commonly be intro- 

 duced around its base, and suffered to remain till the whole 

 drops off. I have frequently removed polypi by both these 

 methods, without future inconvenience or reproduction. 



