PHYSIOLOGICAL ACTION OF VENOM OF BLACK SNAKE. 163 
I next made some observations on the number of red and white 
corpuscles in animals which had received a much larger quantity 
of venom, but in which the poison was subcutaneously introduced. 
The amount given was such that some of the animals recovered, 
while others succumbed. The experiments show the same diminu- 
tion in the number of red corpuscles. The quantity of white 
corpuscles increased almost immediately after the injection of the 
poison. The leucocytosis reached a maximum on the second or 
third day of illness, when the leucocytes were often present in 
four or five times the normal amount. The number from this 
time onward gradually decreased, but the leucocytosis persisted 
to some extent, in the single case in which observations were 
taken over so long a period, for a fortnight after the complete 
recovery of the animal. 
The number of the red cells was least, twenty-four to thirty-six 
hours after the introduction of the poison, at which time they 
were reduced to about one half their normal number. This 
decrease in red corpuscles was associated with the passage of a 
large quantity of haemoglobin into the urine. The urine often 
had the appearance of blood, but contained few or none of the 
red cells. .The bile also, in those cases which died contained 
haemoglobin. 
Series II. 
In these experiments 5 cub. m.m. of blood were taken from the 
_ ear and mixed with 995 cub. m.m. of the MgSO, solution and the 
_ Corpuscles counted as before. 
Ex. I.—Dog, weight 7:7 kilos. 
Sep. 21, 11-25 a.m., sample of blood taken. 
ae 11:30 ,, injected subcutaneously in lumbar region 
with 023 gramme venom. 
ie 12-0 ,, sample of blood taken. 
és 30 p.m., sample of blood taken (urine pare 
haemoglobin). ; 
« 50 ,, sample of blood taken (walks with difficulty). 
