THE FAMOUS ISIBIBA CURE. 315 



is lost in South Africa, not to mention stock which have cost 

 the owner large sums, because of his faith in the efficacy of 

 these bogus cures for snake bite. 



The base of nearly all of these proprietary " cures " is 

 strychnine and ammonia. Those drugs, especially the former, 

 are occasionally of some service as heart and nerve stimulants, 

 but unless administered very carefully they are apt to do more 

 harm than good. In cases of Colubrine snake bite (Cobra family) , 

 strychnine in medicinal doses might be of some little service in 

 rousing certain nerve-centres. 



A heart stimulant is rarely, if ever, required in serious cases 

 of snake bite. Cobra venom itself acts as a powerful heart 

 stimulant. So strongly is the heart stimulated that, for several 

 minutes after the lungs have ceased to act and somatic (physical) 

 death has taken place, the heart is still beating. Cobra venom 

 tends to paralyse the nerve centres, and strychnine injected 

 under the skin, or nux vomica swallowed with a little water, 

 might prove somewhat beneficial. Electric shocks would pro- 

 bably be more efficacious. 



Adder venom, as a rule, acts largely upon the blood, 

 dissolving out the red colouring matter (haemoglobin) from the 

 red corpuscles, and relaxing the walls of the blood vessels. It 

 is, therefore, apparent that a heart stimulant in these cases 

 would result in the blood being pumped through the vessels 

 with greater force and pressure, resulting in increased haemorrhage 

 into the tissues and under the skin. This is what we should 

 seek to avoid. 



The base of one of the popular South African proprietary 

 cures is extract of Male Fern Root. This is an excellent remedy 

 for tape worm, but not for snake bite. 



The Famous Isibiba Cure — Results of Experimentation. 



Isibiba (Zulu), Mahlivinyoka (Swazi). 



In South Africa, particularly in Rhodesia, Transvaal, Swazi- 

 land, Zululand, and Natal, there is an alleged native remedy 

 for snake bite known by the native names of "Isibiba" and 

 " Mahhvinyoka." This cure is, according to the native doctors, 

 an infallible remedy for snake bite. Natives have absolute faith 

 in their doctors. These doctors claim this substance to be 



