OF THE CARRIBBEE ISLANDS. 73 



N. B, These blubbers are found in great quantity at Barba- 

 does, and abound prodigiously on some of the coasts of 

 Europe, where fish are never known to be poisonous. 



u 16. What are the symptoms of fish-poison ? Do they 

 bear any resemblance to those of the poison of copper or other 

 mineral poison, or poison from the vegetable kingdom ? Is 

 there any antidote against it that can be used at table, such as 

 oil, lime-juice, vinegar, wine, spirits, or spices, and what are 

 the best Remedies and modes of treatment after the poison has 

 taken effect ?'* 



The replies from the majority of even the oldest residenters 

 in the West Indies professed total inexperience of the subject, 

 so rare it seems is the accident ; but from others of them some 

 valuable information was obtained. From the account of my 

 friend Dr Nugent of Antigua, it would appear that the yel- 

 low-billed sprat is at times the strongest native unprepared 

 poison probably in existence, Negroes having fallen down dead 

 when in the act of eating it, with part of the fish, though a ve- 

 ry small one, in their mouths ; and the same effect has been 

 produced on a dog, from giving him a single fish to eat. It is 

 even recorded by Dr Chisholm of Grenada *, that a white 

 person, having unwarily, when eating sprats, put one of the 

 yellow-billed into his mouth, and immediately spit it out 

 again, when informed of his mistake, without swallowing any 

 portion, but only masticating it, died nevertheless from the 

 effects of the poison. These accounts were confirmed by Mi- 

 Griffin, staff-surgeon of St Kitt's, who stated a remarkable 



vol. ix. p. i. k occurrence 



* In the Number for October 1808 of the Edinburgh Medical and Surgical 

 Journal. 



