DR THOMAS R. FRASER ON STROPHANTHUS HISPIDUS. 361 



but little blood. For several minutes after death, galvanic stimulation of a motor nerve 

 usually causes contractions of the muscles supplied by the nerve ; but in several experi- 

 ments it failed to do so. Almost without exception, it was found that the muscles are 

 contractile for a short time after death ; they, however, soon become non- contractile, 

 hard, and acid in reaction, and general rigor is not only established very soon after death, 

 but it persists for an unusually long period. 



Neither in frogs nor in rabbits has any distinct .effect on secretion been observed 

 after single lethal or non-lethal doses, except occasionally in frogs an increase of the 

 skin secretion. 



The details of the foregoing experiments, as well as the summary that has been 

 given of the symptoms and post-mortem conditions observed in them, render it 

 obvious that Strophanthus acts upon the heart and the skeletal muscles, and they 

 suggest, without rendering it unambiguous, that a direct action may also be exerted 

 upon respiration and upon several parts of the cerebro-spinal nervous system. In order 

 to determine whether the latter are directly affected, and to discover also the nature of 

 the action on each of the chief functions and structures that are acted upon, further 

 experiments, however, are required. 



B. Action on the Cerebro- Spinal Nervous System. 



Brain. 



In the experiments designed to exhibit the general action of Strophanthus, no 

 symptom was observed that suggested a direct action on the brain ; nor was any 

 symptom discovered when experiments were made for the special purpose of revealing 

 such an action. The two following may be quoted. 



Experiment XXXVII. — Having ligatured the right and left aorta immediately 

 above their function to form the abdominal aorta, and the right aorta close to the 

 heart, in a frog weighing 526 grains, 0*0025 grain of extract of Strophanthus was 

 injected into the left aorta. In 17 min., the reflexes were still active, and the posture 

 normal. In 30 min., opening of the mouth occurred, and was repeated several times 

 during the following 15 min. In 47 min., the reflexes and attitude were normal, and 

 the frog continued to move about well. In 1 hour 20 min., the reflexes were yet 

 normal, but the frog was on the abdomen, thorax, and head, and no longer moved 

 about. In 1 hour 50 min., the reflexes had altogether ceased. 



Experiment XXXVIII. — After the abdominal aorta and the right aorta of a frog, 

 Weighing 487 grains, had been ligatured, 0*001 grain of extract of Strophanthus 

 was injected into the left aorta. During the following 15 min., the reflexes, 

 attitude, and spontaneous movements of the frog remained normal. Another injec- 

 tion of 0*001 grain of extract of Strophanthus was now made. During the following 30 

 min., the spontaneous movements and reflexes remained normal, except that the 



