8 T. P. ANDERSON STUART. 



Spicer's account is really that written by Mr. Stephens, Inspector 

 of Schools, and whom I know as an extremely intelligent man. 

 Mr. A. Simson was the victim. Here are Mr. Stephens' words: — 



"After an exciting chase platypus was recaptured; but this time he 

 revenged himself by giving my friend a severe wound on the hand, one 

 spur slightly tearing the palm, and the other the back of the hand, 

 making a deep puncture between the knuckles of (I think) the first and 

 second fingers. The pain from this was intense and almost paralysing. 

 But for the administration of small doses of brandy, he would have 

 fainted on the spot : as it was, it was half an hour before he could stand 

 without support : by that time the arm was swollen to the shoulder, and 

 .quite useless, and the pain in the hand very severe. No ammonia was 

 to be had ; no medical assistance was available ; and the only treatment 

 that could be adopted was to keep the whole arm for a night and day in 

 wet bandages, which seemed to alleviate the pain a little, and to reduce 

 the inflammation. A week later I was informed by letter that the 

 swelling had subsided, the hand was still very tender, with a sensation 

 as of a severe bruise. From this time there was a slow but gradual 

 improvement." 



As regards the convalescence, the victim himself writes : — 



" There must be some kind of poison in them I fancy, as, though the 

 wounds healed up quickly, I still have a queer feeling in the hand and 

 fore-arm, and cannot bear any pressure on the hand ; the flesh, especially 

 in the morning when I wash, feels as if it were with the skin grazed off, 

 quite sore, and the hand is still rather cramped, and incapable of grasp- 

 ing anything, though I can use the fingers now again. The foregoing 

 sensations extended right up the arm at first, which was everywhere 

 tender to the touch, and all the joints and bones of the fingers also. 

 Some natives told me they would rather lay hold of a snake than a 

 platypus." 



Spicer goes on to say : — 



" I may mention that on Mr. Stephens attempting to seize the animal, 

 it attacked him in a similar manner ; fortunately his hand was protected 

 by a glove, and the spurs only left a deep indentation without piercing 

 the covering. And Mr. Stephens himself wrote, ' The mode of attack is 

 not by scratching, but (as I know from experience) by a powerful lateral 

 and inward movement of the hind legs, the spurs being brought together 

 like the points of a pair of calipers/ It is worth noticing that the 

 animal was in a state of considerable irritation when recaptured ; and 

 also that the object of his attack was a strong man, in the prime of life 

 and in perfect health." 



Mr. Spicer did not know of Jamison's description nor of any 

 account whatever of the symptoms of the poison, other than the 



