2 BULLETIN" 947, IT. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



suffered from a disease commonly known as " spewing sickness." 

 The symptoms, as described, seemed to correspond fairly well with 

 those caused by Zygadenus (death camas), and the men were told 

 that this plant was the probable cause. A picture of the plant was 

 shown, and some of them recognized it as growing on the ranges 

 where the trouble occurred. 



A botanical examination of the ranges in question was made by 

 W. W. Eggleston in the following summer, and two visits were made 

 by Dr. Hadleigh Marsh to see the sick animals. On the first visit, 

 from July 25 to August 7, 1914, a number of spewing cases were seen 

 and some autopsies made. The "sneezeweed," Helenium lioopesii, 

 was seen where some of the sheep were grazing, and one of the herders 

 expressed his belief that this plant was the cause of the trouble. 

 It was found, however, that quite generally Zygadenus grew near 

 where cases of poisoning occurred, and it was concluded that this 

 plant was the probable cause of the trouble, although it was noted 

 that the cases were not typical of Zygadenus poisoning, and that 

 Zygadenus was not found in some of the localities. It was also found 

 that many cases occurred in September, which was rather late for 

 Zygadenus. The second visit was made by Dr. Hadleigh Marsh, from 

 September 12 to 21. This was just after the sheep had left the 

 summer range. The localities where sheep had been reported poi- 

 soned were examined carefully. Dried leaves and seed of Zygadenus 

 were found in many places. It was thought that the Zygadenus was 

 abundant enough to account for some of the losses, but not for all. 

 The fact, too, that most of the herders believed in the sneezeweed as 

 the poisonous agent was not to be ignored, and it was felt that definite 

 experimental work should be undertaken which would verify or elim- 

 inate the sneezeweed theory. 



This experimental work was commenced when the Salina Experi- 

 ment Station was established on the Fishlake National Forest in 1915, 

 and has been continued for five years. The installation of a station 

 on a range where the spewing sickness was common, with the oppor- 

 tunit}^ of observing the field cases, together with feeding experiments 

 with the fresh plant, soon established proof that the spewing sickness 

 was not caused by Zygadenus, but was the result of eating sneezeweed 

 (Helenium lioopesii). A preliminary publication, Circular A-9, 

 United States Department of Agriculture, was issued concerning 

 this work in 1916. The effects of the plant were of such a character, 

 however, as to make the detailed experimental work very slow and 

 tedious, and in the course of the work many perplexing questions 

 arose, so that it was only after several seasons' work that it was 

 possible to make a fairly complete report on the subject. 



