CROTALUS DURISSUS. 63 



healthy. The vessels of the brain were turgid, and water effused 

 in it. Such is the account of Sir E. Home's case ; but in ordi- 

 nary cases, where the bite is inflicted by a healthy snake, the local 

 irritation is so sudden and so violent, and its effect on the general 

 system so great, that a person will die in a few hours. 



Dr. Brickell mentions, that he saw a fight between a dog and a 

 Rattle-snake, in which, after two bites, the dog died in less than 

 half an hour, as did also the snake, which had bitten itself in the 

 second encounter. Capt. Hall, in the Philosophical Transactions, 

 relates that a dog which was exposed to the bite of a Rattle-snake 

 died in fifteen seconds ; a second dog was destroyed in two hours ; 

 and a third died after three hours. After four days he had a dog 

 bitten by the same snake, and it died in thirty seconds; another was 

 destroyed in four minutes. Three days after, a frog was killed by the 

 same snake in two, and a fowl in three minutes. And some time 

 after, the animal having bitten itself died in twelve minutes. 



In the treatment of poisoning by the Rattle-snake, and other 

 venomous serpents, the first object is, if the case has been seen 

 at a sufficiently early period, to prevent the passage of the virus 

 from the wounded part towards the centre of circulation. For 

 this purpose, a ligature should be applied between the situation of 

 the injury and the heart ; but the most certain mode of removing 

 the poison consists in the excision of the bitten part. The wound 

 should be immediately sucked with all the power the mouth is 

 capable of exerting ; and the suction should be persisted in for a 

 considerable length of time, together with scarification to the full 

 depth of the wound. The practice of sucking out poisons is of 

 great antiquity, and if it be done very early will, in many cases, be 

 attended with the most beneficial results. The Psylli of Africa, 

 and the Mersi of Italy, were celebrated for curing the bites of 

 poisonous animals, by sucking the wounds ; and we are informed 

 that the Indians of North America practice the same treatment at 

 this day. If the bite be inflicted on a part upon which a ligature 

 cannot be applied, the wounded portion should be destroyed with 

 caustic or the actual cautery. The caustic which Fontana recom- 

 mends, was potass ; but the liquid caustics are commonly preferred, 

 especially the mineral acids, because their action is quicker, and 



