LAEKSPUR POISONIKG OF LIVE STOCK. 43 



It is commonly believed by stockmen that the root of this plant 

 is the most poisonous, and it is generally supposed that the plant pro- 

 duces more cases of poisoning after a rain, because at that time the 

 ground is soft and the animals can pull up the plant by the roots 

 and thus get the part in which the poison is supposed to be con- 

 centrated. 



Table IV gives a summary of these experimental feedings. 



Experiments were made by feeding the roots alone, the animals 

 used being Nos. 92 and 117. Number 92 in two days ate a quantity 

 equivalent to 2.04 pounds per 1,000 pounds of weight, while No. 117 

 in one day ate 2.1 pounds per 1,000 pounds. The greatest quantity 

 fed at any time was to No. 115, which between July 10 and July 12 

 received 100.7 pounds of tops, seeds, and flowers per 1,000 pounds of 

 weight. The greatest quantity of the whole plant that was fed, in- 

 cluding not only tops but roots, was given to No. 97, which re- 

 ceived on July 25 21.2 pounds per 1,000 pounds of weight. No. 91 

 received 5 pounds on July 2 and 3, and again on July 16 received 

 21.2 pounds. In none of the cases of feeding DelpJiinium menziesii 

 was there any evidence of toxic effect, although the plant was fed 

 at different stages, part of it before flowering, part after flowering, 

 and even after seed had commenced to form, and attempts were 

 made to find out whether one part of the plant was more poisonous 

 than another. 



If it were particularly poisonous it seemed that the feeding in a 

 single day of 21.2 pounds per 1,000 pounds of weight would have 

 produced some effect. It is true, however, that animals upon the 

 range, when hungry, will sometimes eat enormous quantities of a 

 given plant and it seemed necessary to conduct further experiments 

 in order to demonstrate conclusively whether this plant can poison 

 or not. So far as the experiments of 1909 only were concerned, it 

 appeared probable that the plant was not poisonous, or if poisonous 

 at all would do harm only under exceptional circumstances. 



EXPERIMENTAL FEEDING OF DELPHINIUM MENZIESII TO CATTLE IN 1910. 



In 1910, 14 feeding experiments of Delphiniwm menziesii to cattle 

 were carried on with 11 different animals. Of these experiments 9 

 produced illness and 3 death. The result of these experiments showed 

 that the failure to produce poisoning in 1909 was not due to a lack 

 of toxicity in the plant but to feeding it in too small quantities. 

 Doubtless similar results would have been produced in 1909 had the 

 experiments been continued for a longer time. Table V gives a 

 summary of the feeding experiments with DelpMnium menziesii to 

 cattle in 1910. 



