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246 C. J. MARTIN AND J. McGARVIE SMITH. 
Armstrong, and still earlier Dumas, had previously made 
ultimate analyses of the poison with somewhat similar results. 
Dr. Armstrong’s analysis was appended to the Snake Commission 
Report, 1874. 
In 1883 Wall* published his interesting book “ Indian Snake- 
poisons their nature and effect,” which contains two facts of 
especial importance from a chemical point of view, viz., 
(1) That the whole of the poisonous properties reside in the 
coagulum by absolute alcohol, and that if the alcohol be 
absolute, the filtrate is quite innocuous. 
(2) That the poisonous principle is taken up by distilled water 
from the precipitate by alcohol, and that the solution so 
obtained possesses all the toxic properties of Cobra poison. 
Dr. Wolfenden’s} valuable contributions to the subject appeared 
in 1886. In these papers the author establishes the proteid nature 
of the poison, and excludes the possibility of alkaloids, ptomaines, 
germs, and any body of the nature of Blyth’s “‘Cobric acid.” He 
claims to have separated an albumen, an albuminate, and a 
globulin, to all of which he ascribes poisonous properties. This 
author does not appear to have been aware of Wall’s results, for 
all of these bodies, would be rendered insoluble by absolute alcohol. 
When Wolfenden’s work is read by the light of recent develop- 
ments in proteid chemistry his conclusions do not by any means 
necessarily follow. 
In the last number of the Journal of Physiology for May of 
this year, is a paper by Kanthack,} in which he shows that Cobra 
poison contains a proto-albumose which is capable of producing all | 
the symptoms of the fresh venom. This paper is especially inter- 
esting as the methods used were similar to those employed by us, 
and his results as far as they go point to a close analogy between 
the composition of the venom of the Cobra and that of Australian 
snakes. 
* « Indian Snake Poisons, their nature and effect.” 
+ “On the nature and action of the Venom of ,Poisonous Snakes ”— 
Journ. Physiol., Vol. vir. a | 
{ The nature of Cobra Poison—Journ. Physiol., Vol. x111., Nos. 3 and 4. j 
