1906.] 



Chloroform in the Blood of Animals. 



445 



We are inclined to attribute this to slight excess of chloroform in the 

 inhaled air. 



After anaesthesia the chloroform is eliminated with extreme rapidity. The 

 rate of elimination varies in different animals, but the rate of disappearance 

 of chloroform is far more constant than the rate of assumption. 



In the two observations quoted for dogs the results are not quite similar 

 in character to those observed in cats, for the lethal dose and the quantity 

 of chloroform required to produce various stages of anaesthesia are somewhat 

 higher. The rapidity of elimination of chloroform appears to be even greater 

 than in the case of cats. The figures we have obtained for dogs are in fair 

 agreement with those of the French observers. Especially is this the case 

 for the lethal dose, but the difference noticed for the anaesthetic dose depends 

 probably on the criterion of anaesthesia adopted. The mean value in the 

 arterial blood of dogs is given in following Table, though it must be pointed 

 out that they used much heavier animals than those at our disposal. 



Table XII. 





Tissot. 



Nicloux. 



Our experiments, 

 reflexes just gone. 



Ansesthesia 



milligrammes. 

 34—40 



59—105 



milligrammes. 

 50 



69—73 



milligrammes. 

 lG— 31 



61-69 







II. — Experiments to ascertain hovj the Chloroform distributes itself between the 



Corpuscles and the Plasma. 



In the experiments on this subject the animals were anaesthetised and the 

 samples of blood were collected in exactly the same way as in the series 

 already described. The samples were in most experiments mixed with a 

 saturated solution of sodium oxalate, in the proportion of 0"5 c.c. oxalate 

 solution to 10 c.c. of blood, to prevent clotting. They were then centri- 

 fugalised and the plasma separated from the red sediment by means of a fine 

 pipette. 



In other experiments 10 c.c. samples of blood were withdrawn from the 

 animal, mixed with the oxalate and divided into two equal volumes before 

 centrifugalisation. In a few experiments the blood was cooled by ice and 

 centrifugalised in an ice jacket without the addition of oxalate. Following 

 this plan it was found very difficult to get a satisfactory separation of the red 

 corpuscles before clotting took place. We found that this could be effected 



