VoLr3^Xitt. No. 4.] 



POPtlLAtl SCIEKCE KEWS. 



61 



n^ediciije arid Pljarnjacy. 



STROPHANTHUS. 



Among the numberless new medicinal 

 agents which are being daily brought to the 

 notice of the profession, strophanthus seems 

 to possess an unusual degree of merit, and is 

 not likely to fall into the deserved oblivion 

 which is the fate of the majority. 



Strophanthus is the name of a genus of 

 tropical shrubs belonging to the Apocynacece. 

 They are of a twining habit, and send out 

 long branches, which twine around the trees 

 of the forest, forming, in many cases, an 

 almost impenetrable jungle. They flower in 

 April and May, and later produce the fruit, in 

 the shape of a pod, from twelve to eighteen 

 inches long (Fig. 2, No. 2), containing from 

 two to three hinidred plumose seeds, one of 

 which is represented in Fig. i, in its natural 

 size. 



Fif^. I. Seed of Strophanthus. (\;itural size.) 



Two species are commonly met with, S. 

 hispidiis and .V. Kombc. The diflerences 

 between them are not as yet well defined, but 

 it is supposed that the one most usually found 

 in the market and used in medicine is the S. 

 Kombe. The seeds have long been used by 

 the luitives of- Africa in preparing poison for 

 their arrows. They pound them to a pulp, 

 and, after mixing it with a mucilaginous juice 

 obtained from the bark of a tree, rub it over 

 the point of the arrows for a distance of an 

 inch or two, notches being cut to retain a suf- 

 ficient quantity of the poi.son. (Fig. 2, Nos. 

 4, :;, 6, 7.) It is said that an animal wounded 

 ever so slightly by one of these arrows, dies 

 almost immediately, but that the Hash can be 

 eaten without harm. 



The active principle of the plant is a gluco- 



ride known as strophanthin. An alkaloid 

 named iticeine has also been separated, but 

 its properties have not been thoroughly inves- 

 tigated. Strophanthin is one of the most 

 powerful poisons known. A solution of one 

 part in six million of water will stop the con- 

 tractions of a frog's heart in twenty minutes. 

 The action of the poison seems to be espec- 

 ially directed to the heart, and other voluntary 

 and involuntary muscles, but does not seem 

 to effect the nerves or spinal cord. 



Such a powerful agent might naturally be 

 expected to possess valuable medicinal prop- 

 erties, and Professor Frazer of Edinburgh 

 first called attention to its value as a heart 

 tonic and diuretic. Fig. 3 is a diagram pre- 

 pared by Dr. Bucquoy of Paris, which shows 

 very clearly the increase in the quantity of 

 urine excreted, and the diminution in the 

 frequency of the pulse, in a person under the 

 influence of this medicine. The increasing 

 efl'cct from October 28th to November 13th is 

 very evident, while the rapid return to the 

 former condition after the suppression of the 

 drug on the latter date, confirms the proof of 

 its action. These cm-ves also seem to show 

 the absence of any cimiulative action, so 

 characteristic of digitalis, which it otlierwise 

 closely resembles in its physiological action. 



The reports hitherto given of the results 

 obtained from the use of this drug, are some- 

 what conflicting, but it is imdoubtedh- a 



Fijr. 2. No. 1, Root of Strophanthus, 2, Potls containing the 

 ripened seeds. 3, Bundle of pods. 4, 5, 6, 7, Arrows pois. 

 oned by Strophanthus in use by the natives of Africa. 



cardiac tonic of great value. Professor Fra- 

 zer uses it in the form of a tinctiu'c made 

 from the seeds, but the strength of this tinc- 

 ture must necessarily be somewhat uncertain, 

 owing to the diflerent species of the plant 

 offered in the market, and the \arying condi- 



tion of the seeds. This may explain the con- 

 tradictory reports of its action, but strophan- 

 thus seems, on the whole, to be .superior to 

 digitalis as a diuretic, and to have a more 

 stimulant influence on tlie heart, while it has 

 less of a permanent tonic eft'ect. The absence 

 of any cumulative action, if confirmed, is 

 also an important property. It is not likely 

 to entirely replace digitalis, but will be used 

 when a very decided temporary influence is 



y\^. .5. Graphic curves, showings the action of Strophanthus 

 upon the frequency of the pulse and tlie excretion of urine, 



required. It is said to have given excellent 

 results in renal aftections with secondary fail- 

 ure of the heart. As the diflerent prepara- 

 tions vary so greatly in strength, it should be 

 administered in minimum doses, and with the 

 utmost care, until the physician becomes fa- 

 miliar with its strength and eflects. 



The cuts illu.strating tliis article are repro- 

 duced from La Nature. 



[Orijjinal in The I'opu'ar Science NiWh.] 



TWO NOTED EXAMPLES OF QliACKERY: 

 THOMSON AND PERKINS. 



nv JOHN CROWEI.L, M. D. 



In these days, when quackery and empiricism are 

 reduced to a kind of refinement, and when the forms 

 and appliances of treatment are soinewhat divested 

 of the coarseness and brutality of a former period, it 

 maj be interesting to the younger members of the 

 medical profession to recall the roinantic history of 

 two prominent quacks of a former day — Samuel 

 Thomson and Elisha Perkins. Both were Yankee 

 born, and both of these remarkable men attained a 

 notoriety for skill and deftness in the treatment of 

 disease that seem incredible in these days of scien- 

 tific methods. The career of Thom.son was unique, 

 and even to ihis day Thomsonionisin has its vota- 

 ries, and lobelia and rum sweats are retained with 

 the tenacity of old friends, 



Thomson was a man of indomitable energy, born 

 in the wilds of New Hampshire in 1769, before the 

 days of medical schools, and when but few foreign 

 drugs were imported. With the resources of a gen- 

 uine Yankee, he betook himself to the woods, and 

 made a rude study of the roots and herbs indigenous 

 to the stubborn .soil. His theory was, that all dis- 

 ease was owing to "canker in the stomach," and, 

 rea.soning from this, it was evident that one kind 

 of canker caused measles, another kind caused scar- 

 let fever, or canker-rash, and so on through the long 

 list. These various cankers he numbered i, 2, ^, 

 etc., and gave to each number a specific remedy of a 

 corresponding number. 



Thus, canker No, i must be inet by lobelia, but if 

 the inside of the stomach was left cold, it must be 

 warmed up by No, 2, cayenne pepper. If, during 



