1876 Thk Zoologist — October, 1869. 



The first dose is said to almost invariably cause vomiting, when a 

 dark green substance is thrown up, followed by instant relief. I have 

 already said that I have never tried this remedy myself, but my in- 

 formant expresses himself so confidently as to the result, that I have 

 determined to do so on the first opportunity which offers; and I am 

 very glad now in being able to draw the attention of one to the sub- 

 ject who will doubtless give it a fair trial. It must, however, be 

 remembered that there are substances which will produce violent 

 effects on animals but not on man, and vice versd. For instance, the 

 Areca (betel nut), pounded and boiled in milk, acts violently, and will 

 expel worms from a dog, but it has not the slightest effect on 

 man. 



" With regard to the experiments and conclusions drawn by Dr. 

 Shortt, I beg to offer a few remarks. 



" 1st. For the bite of the cobra to prove effective, dc. — Those 

 natives who pretend to a knowledge of small bites and their cures 

 go further than the doctor, and insist that no bite can be fatal unless 

 the reptile turns upon its back in the act of inflicting the wound ; 

 in fact, whilst the jaws are closed on the part grasped. There is some 

 superstitious idea attached to this movement on the part of the snake, 

 but, setting that apart as absurd, the fact itself is quite possible for 

 such a wound to be more rapidly fatal than a mere bile. In the 

 spasmodic endeavour to relieve its fangs, the higher the wound the 

 greater the effort; consequently the body is twisted round, and there- 

 fore the bags which contain the venom, and which are placed at the 

 root of the fangs, are more forcibly pressed on, and thus a larger 

 quantity is ejected into the orifices. 



" These remarks include conclusion the 2nd ; and I fully agree with 

 Dr. Shortt that it is this class of partially inflicted wounds only which 

 have been successfully treated by the application of snake-stones, 

 indigo, &c., and which are not bondjide poisoned wounds. 



" 3rd. The poison very soon becomes exhausted bi/ frequent biting. — 

 There is no doubt but that this is the case. A dog bitten by a snake 

 in a state of freedom will, as 1 have seen it, die in a few minutes, i. <?., 

 from ten to twenty. The snakes with which the experiments were 

 made by Dr. Shortt were brought from a distance, and if brought in 

 together had every opportunity of fighting with each other, and thus 

 expending their venom. But even were this not the case, and they 

 had been kept separate, in securing them they most likely bit at any- 

 thing wiihiu their reach ; and if the substance were soft, such as cloth, 



