10 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS, 
be interfered with, as Mosse? has proved that starved and nephrecto- 
mized rabbits show histological changes in the liver cells. 
On February 20, 1907, a well-fed rabbit weighing 1,403.29 grams 
was etherized for 12 minutes and then fed an extract of 50 grams 
to see if the increased toxic action of the plant was due to any inter- 
ference with the metabolism caused by the ether. On February 23 
this animal showed no symptoms, weighing 1,360.78 grams, and on 
February 25 the weight was 1,403.29 grams. The urine collected in 
60 hours was shaken with benzol, as it had previously been found that 
much, if not all, of the active principles of Delphinium camporum 
goes into the alkaline benzol shaking by the Dragendorff method. 
The residue from the benzol evaporations was then taken up with 
acetic acid water. On removing the acid by heat a few drops were 
injected into the dorsal lymph sac of a male frog (Rana clamitans) 
weighing 35 grams. This.animal soon became paralyzed and was 
unable to move, but recovered over night. The following day a few 
more drops were injected with the same result, showing that some of 
the active principle of the Delphinium was eliminated with the urine. 
From these experiments it can be seen that aqueous extracts of 
Delphinium camporum will kill rabbits on subcutaneous injection, 
and also by mouth if the dose is large, while much smaller doses 
will kill if the elimination is interfered with, as by tying off the ure- 
ters, or after starving, a condition which intensifies the action, prob- 
ably by accelerating absorption. What seems to be the cause of the 
uncertainty in the results, especially in the lack of striking results in 
the feeding experiments, is that no consideration was given to the fact 
that the poisoning in this case may be simply the resultant of the 
excretion and absorption of the plant; in other words, that very little 
of the plant may be taken up by the gastro-intestinal tract and that 
this may be eliminated by the kidneys before a poisonous dose has 
been absorbed, so that the question of poisoning becomes one of 
rapidity of absorption. This is well known to be the case with 
curare, where the administration by mouth, except in large doses, is 
not likely to prove poisonous unless the elimination is interfered with 
as by tying the ureters.” Consequently the conditions most favorable 
for poisoning cn the range would be those which aid the more thor- 
ough extraction of the poisonous principle from the plant by the 
gastro-intestinal tract, thus favoring absorption, and those which 
interfere with the elimination by the kidneys or interfere with the 
storing of the poison by the liver, as renal and hepatic disease or lack 
of salts, which normally increase diuresis. 
«Mosse, M. Ueber Leberzellenverinderungen nephrektomierter u. hungern- 
der Thiere. Zeits. f. Klin. Med., vol. 60, p. 373. 1906. 
’ Brunton, T. L. Text-Book of Pharmacology, 3d ed., London, 1893, pz 38. 
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