vi] Liliacese 81 



alkaloid from the seeds, Farr and Wright from 0-46 to 0-96 per cent., 

 and Carr and Eeynolds 0-12 to 0-57 per cent. ; the U.S. Pharmacopoeia, 

 1905, required a Colchicine content of 0-45 per cent, in the seeds, and 

 035 per cent, in the corms (Allen). 



Symptoms. After small, but not fatal doses there is loss of appetite, 

 suppression of rumination, salivation, light colic, diarrhoea and voiding 

 of small quantities of urine. Blood has been observed in the nfiilk of 

 affected cows. Larger and fatal quantities cause total loss of appetite 

 and sensation, stupefaction, loss of consciousness, dilatation of pupils, 

 unsteady gait, and even paralysis of limbs, sweating, severe cohc, and 

 bloody diarrhoea, strangury and bloody urination; rapid, small, and 

 finally imperceptible pulse, laboured breathing; and death in from 

 one to three days. Where recovery takes place it is very slow (12 to 

 14 days according to Comevin). 



Cornevin draws attention to the fact that, as the symptoms do not 

 occur until several hours after ingestion, by which time the poison must 

 be partly distributed, the poison is very dangerous and difficult to combat, 

 attempts at vomiting or evacuation, whether spontaneous or caused 

 therapeutically, having little chance of ridding the organism of the 

 poison. Comevin's account of the symptoms shows that at first there 

 is abundant salivation, with constriction of the throat, and dysphagia; 

 then nausea with vomiting; coUc; abundant, repeated and diarrhceic 

 evacuations, which at the end become dysenteric with painful tenesmus ; 

 abundant urination; short, accelerated and difficult respiration, with 

 inco-ordination in the thoracic and abdominal movements. The cir- 

 culatory functions are modified only in fatal cases, when the pulse is 

 small and intermittent towards the' end. There is finally a notable drop 

 in temperature, shown by the coldness of the skin. Death occurs 

 in from 16 hours to 6 days after ingestion. During the last few 

 hours the animals are stretched at full length and are incapable of 

 getting up. There may be prolapsus of the rectum; the eye is 

 deeply sunk ; sensibility is deadened and death is due to stoppage of 

 respiration. 



In the horse, there are spasmodic movements of the hind-quarters 

 and excessive excitement of the urinary genital organs. In caMle there 

 is cessation of rumination, grinding of teeth, dr3niess of muzzle, ptyaHsm, 

 groaning, painful colic, dysentery, deeply sunken and watery eyes, 

 anus wide open, and evacuation of very foetid, blackish, glareous matter 

 round the excrement. In cows there may be suppression of imlk, and 

 abortion. In the pig there is abundant salivation and vomiting, and 



6 



