200 VETEEINAEY TOXICOLOGY 



The lesions are not characteristic. 



Chemical Diagnosis. — The alkaloid cytisine is separated 

 in the routine method of search for alkaloids. It is not 

 very easily recognised, since confusion with other alkaloids 

 may arise. It gives a yellow, brown, and finally green 

 colour on solution in strong sulphuric acid, with nitric 

 or chromic acids. Van der Moer's reaction is characteristic, 

 but difficult to apply, since the substances ought to be in 

 fairly definite proportions (one molecule of each), and free 

 acid absent. It consists in the production by ferric chloride 

 of a blood- red colour, destroyed by adding hydrogen peroxide, 

 and then passing on warming to blue. 



Brooms. 



Spartium junceum, Spanish broom, and Cytisus Sco- 

 parius, common broom, merit mention as a precaution, 

 for they contain the volatile alkaloid sparteine, allied 

 chemically to conine, and showing almost identical physio- 

 logical effects, causing central nervous paralysis. The 

 therapeutic dose of sparteine sulphate for the horse is 15 to 

 75 grains (Kaufmann), and the plant yields about 0"3 per 

 cent, of active principle, whence it appears that from about 

 25 pounds of the plant about 1 ounce would result, and this 

 would probably be an average poisonous dose (ten times the 

 average therapeutic). Poisoning by spartium is therefore 

 only likely in exceptional cases. 



Lupines. 



Of the lupines, only Lupinus luteus, or the yellow 

 lupine, appears to be very dangerous, and has been 

 responsible for poisoning of sheep on the Continent, especi- 

 ally in Germany, but in Montana L. leucophyllus has 

 caused the deaths of many sheep. Other animals are 

 susceptible, but do not receive so much ordinarily as do 

 sheep. According to the German authorities, a daily ration 

 of 1 pound of the whole plant, | pound of empty pods, or 



