PuystoLoGicaL AcTION OF NITROBENZENE VAPOR ON ANIMALS 413 
REVIEW OF LITERATURE 
According to Letheby (1865), the ancient Greeks were apparently 
familiar with a substance the physiological action of which is similar to 
that of nitrobenzene. He states as follows: 
It is said that Thrasyas, the father of botany, was so skilled in the preparation of drugs, 
that he knew how to compound a poison which would ....... kill by a lingering illness. 
Theophrastus speaks of this poison, and says its force could be so modified as to occasion 
death in two, three, or six months, or even at the end of a year or two years; and the 
writings of Plutarch, Tacitus, Quintilian and Livy are full of instances of what seem to be 
the same kind of slow and occult poisoning. 
However, nitrobenzene itself was unknown to modern chemistry until 
its discovery by Mitscherlich in 1834. 
Most of the literature relating to the toxic properties of nitrobenzene 
consists of clinical reports of accidental cases of poisoning, and, from the 
standpoint of obtaining data on the physiological action of the drug, is 
unreliable for the reason that important information regarding the patient’s 
‘normal’? condition is entirely lacking. Also, in the few experiments 
recorded dealing with its physiological action on animals, the drug was 
administered in the liquid form by either intravenous injections or intro- 
duction into the stomach by means of a tube, and very seldom by vapor 
inhalation. However, a review of some of these cases, both clinical and 
experimental, may serve to help interpret the results of the present experi- 
ments. Short abstracts of a few of these are therefore given. 
CLINICAL CASES OF POISONING 
Probably the most interesting clinical record is the case reported by 
Grafe and Homberger (1914) of a man who worked in a nitrobenzene 
factory filling containers with nitrobenzene. After working in this capacity 
for a period of fourteen days the man began to show symptoms of poisoning. 
These symptoms were a blue-gray color of the skin, headache, backache, 
stomach-ache, and vomiting. He continued to work for a few days after 
the onset of the symptoms. On Friday, October 27, 1905, he filled a 
double number of containers (ordinarily he handled 1600 liters), and on 
Saturday it was with difficulty that he continued to work. On Sunday 
he felt better, went into a saloon, drank two glasses of beer, and started 
to play cards, when he suddenly became ill. He went to see his father, 
but felt so ill indoors that he went outside for fresh air; immediately on 
coming into the air, however, he fell to the ground unconscious and was 
