Chap. XXIII. THE 'XGA POISON. 4G7 



which had been in a pocket containing a little of the poison, 

 he noticed a bitter taste, but attributed it to his having 

 sometimes used the handle in taking quinine. Though 

 the quantity was small, it immediately showed its power 

 by lowering his pulse which at the time had been raised by 

 a cold, and next day he was perfectly restored. Not much 

 can be inferred from a single case of this kind, but it is pos- 

 sible that the kombi may turn out a valuable remedy ; and, 

 as Professor Sharpey has conducted a series of experiments 

 with this substance, we look with interest for the results. 

 An alkaloid has been obtained from it similar to strychnine. 

 There is no doubt that all kinds of wild animals die from 

 the effects of poisoned arrows, except the elephant and hip- 

 popotamus. The amount of poison that this little weapon 

 can convey into their systems being too small to kill those 

 huge beasts, the hunters resort to the beam trap instead. 



Another kind of poison was met with on Lake Nyassa, winch 

 was said to be used exclusively for killing men. It was put 

 on small wooden arrow-heads, and carefully protected by a 

 piece of maize-leaf tied round it. It caused numbness of the 

 tongue when the smallest particle was tasted. The Bushmen 

 of the northern part of the Kalahari were seen applying 

 the entrails of a small caterpillar which they termed 'Nga to 

 their arrows. This venom was declared to be so powerful in 

 producing delirium, that a man in dying returned in imagi- 

 nation to a state of infancy, and would call for his mother's 

 breast. Lions when shot with it are said to perish in agonies. 

 The poisonous ingredient in this case may be derived from 

 the plant on which the caterpillar feeds. It is difficult to 

 conceive by what sort of experiments the properties of these 

 poisons, known for generations, were proved. Probably the 

 animal instincts, which have become so obtuse by civiliza- 

 tion, that children in England eat the berries of the deadly 



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