IPECACUANHA, LIQUOR POTASS^, CAUSTICS. 331 



would have been regarded as an enemy of mankind, especially 

 so if he made his opinions public. The faith in this supposed 

 cure waned as the years went by. Dr. Fayrer, the great experi- 

 menter with Indian snakes, made full and complete experiments 

 with this eau-de-luce, and found it to be quite worthless. It did 

 not delay death in the slightest degree. Experiments which I 

 have made with South African snakes showed that it was of no 

 antidotal value. The animals died just as quickly as when no 

 so-called cure was given. If you have eau-de-luce in your house, 

 use it as smelling salts, or put it in your private collection of 

 curiosities, but do not rely upon it to cure cases of snake bite. 



A European boy named J. Jackson was bitten on the calf 

 of the leg by a Black Mamba at Umgeni, near Pietermaritzburg. 

 A. E. Gayer, Esq., who was present, gives me the details which 

 are as follows : " The boy ran a little way after being bitten. 

 Two bottles of eau-de-luce were administered to him according 

 to directions. He suffered agony at first until mortification 

 started to set in. He died peacefully the evening of the day he 

 was bitten." 



Ipecacuanha, Liquor Potass^, Caustics. 



Ipecacuanha has long been considered an excellent remedy 

 for snake bite. It has been carefully tested and found to have 

 no antidotal value. It may possibly be of some slight service in 

 secondary treatment, owing to its stimulating effects upon the 

 liver, bowels, and kidneys. It, however, exerts a depressing 

 influence upon the heart, which causes a slowing down of the 

 circulation. When administered to animals into which snake 

 venom has been injected, it seems to hasten death somewhat. 



Ipecacuanha is the dried root of Psychoiria ipecacuanha. 

 The active principle is in the bark; the inner or woody part 

 contains but little. It is obtained from South America. 



Liquor potassae is a solution of potash. This substance has 

 long been believed to have a curative influence in cases of snake 

 bite. It has in the past been very extensively used in India 

 and elsewhere. Applied to the incised wounds it was supposed 

 to destroy the vitality of the part, and kill the snake venom. 

 Dr. Fayrer tested liquor potassae as a curative agent against 

 the bites of Indian venomous snakes. After a long series of 

 experiments he pronounced it to be of no value. In all cases 



