POIS.NING OF SHEEP BY SOLANUM CINEREUM. 157 
Post mortem examination was made next morning. The 
sub-cutaneous vessels and peripheral lymphatic glands were 
congested. About 100 c.c.s of blood stained, turbid liquid 
in the peritoneal cavity. The spleen showed a number of 
subcapsular hemorrhages. The liver was moderately and 
the kidneys intensely congested. The latter having a 
number of small heemorrhages in the cortex. The mucous. 
membrane of the abomasum and intestines was also greatly 
congested, with a considerable amount of mucus on the 
surface. The lungs were normal. Pericardium distended 
with a turbid, blood stained liquid. Numerous sub-endo- 
- cardial heemorrhages. 
Remarks 
On account of the difficulty of administering the dried, 
intact fruits, they were given in two lots of 4 ounces each, 
with an interval of about 6 hours. The result as noted, 
was negative. 
Six days later, the animal was given the same total 
amount of fruits, but this time they were emulsified in 
water, with the result that death took place in seven hours. 
The question arises, why should the berries when eaten in 
the dry state be apparently innocuous, whilst the same 
amount when mashed up with water causes death in such a 
short period ? The probable explanation is that when the 
fruits were given ,whole and dry, they were swallowed in 
the ordinary way, without preliminary mastication and 
passed into the rumen. Here they would become mixed 
with the other contents of that portion of the stomach. 
When rumination took place, the amount of fruits masti- 
cated, re-swallowed and passed on to the true digestive 
stomach, would not only be non-lethal, but insufficient to 
cause any visible symptoms of poisoning. On the other 
hand, when the fruits were mashed up in water, only a 
little of the mash was found in the rumen post mortem. 
