54 JO DENAL, BOMB A 7 NA TUBAL HISTOB Y SOCIETY, Vol. IX. 



the poisonous properties of which are very similar to those of Amor- 

 phophallus campanulatus. It is the Caladium sanguineum, Vent, 

 of the West Indies, where it is called Dumb-cane from the fact that 

 its virulent juice, when applied to the tongue, causes a swelling which 

 deprives the sufferer of the power of speech. Woodman and Tidy 

 think that this species contains a large amount of prussic acid, as two 

 drams of the juice have proved fatal in a few hours. Beck mentions 

 another similar Aroid, the Caladium arborescens^ also a native of the 

 West Indies, which, on the authority of Merat, he says, is so caustic that 

 occasionally the lips of Negroes are wetted with it as a punishment 

 for slight misdemeanors. The poisonous action of both these Caladiums 

 is narcotico-acrid. The action of several other plants of the Aroid 

 family mentioned by Beck, such as Arum maculatum, L., Arum dra- 

 cunculus, L., Arum dracontium, L., and Arum triphyllum, L., is that of 

 an irritant poison. They are all acrid, and said to be dangerous. Beck 

 quotes from Orfila's Toxicology (vol. II, p. 83) a case related by 

 Bulliard, which is as follows : — " Three children ate of the leaves of 

 Arum maculatum. They were seized with horrible convulsions, and 

 with two of them all assistance was unavailing, as they could not be 

 made to swallow anything. They died — one at the expiration of twelve 

 days, and another at the expiration of sixteen. The third was saved 

 with difficulty. Its tongue was greatly swelled, and hence deglutition 

 was painful and difficult." 



Arum fornicatun (Syn. for Alocasia fornicata), the Bish Kachoo of 

 Bengal, is an equally poisonous member of the Aroid family. Warden 

 and Pedler refer to a case noted by the Chemical Examiner of Bengal 

 in which the tubers of this species produced symptoms of irritant 

 poisoning. In the experiments they made with some tubers locally 

 known as Bish Kaclioo^ which were sent to them by the Civil Surgeon 

 of Dibrugarh, and which Dr. King thought were most probably those 

 of a species of Alocasia or Colocasia, they arrived at conclusions of 

 which the following is a summary. They think that the active princi- 

 ple is non-volatile, as there was a complete absence of any irritative 

 action on the olfactory organs or conjunctivorse, though there was con- 

 siderable irritation of the hands while handling the tubers during their 

 experiments. A minute fragment of the tuber applied to the tongue 

 caused in a very short time acute lancinating pain, which continued for 

 a considerable period. In their experiments with a viscid alcoholic 



