74 THE LAND-MARKS OF 



Fontana's Fontaiia at first originated the theory that 



theory of the i i i t 



deatruction of death WBS causeQ by the direct destruction of 



muscular '' 



initabiiitj«. jjjg irritability of the muscles ; his reasons for 

 abandoning this theory will be referred to sub- 

 sequently. He was of opinion that opium acted 

 in a similar manner. He disputed the fact that 

 snake-poison in any way acted, on the nervous 

 system, but even, supposing him "to be of 

 another opinion, his discovery of the proximate 

 cause of death would lose no part of its import- 

 ance, for whether the poison operates imme- 

 diately on the nervous fluid, or on the muscular 

 fibres, it is not less true that it kills by depriv- 

 ing the animal of all motion, and the muscles 

 of the power of contracting." He maintained 

 that the irritability of the muscular fibres was 

 destroyed, not only during life; but after death. 



M. Sage on ^^ *^® y^^ 1777, M. Sage, of the Academy 

 ""^tidot^ *" of Sciences at Paris, published a pamphlet on 

 advantages of the volatile alkali (ammonia) as 

 an antidote in cases of snake-poisoning which 

 was first recommended to the faculty by Jussieu. 

 This mode of treatment appears to have been 

 founded on Mead's theory that the active prin- 

 ciple of the venom was an acid salt. Fontana 

 had already condemned the treatment, but he 



