May 17, 1888.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



827 



into the canoe, how another rushed down stream with a 

 line of one hundred yards and was again made fast, 

 S-entle reader, the writer also heard other stories far more 

 wonderful, hut lie will not rehearse them as he wishes to 

 gain confidence and esteem, and fears to provoke such 

 criticism as he once overheard of a hrother angler: "How , 

 Btrange that men who in other relatious of life are truth- 

 ful in speech and trustworthy in character, will lie with 

 audacious hardihood about fish." 



With a sigh of regret the salmon tackle was put away 

 and the ^beautiful trout rod is got ready. What a toy- 

 liike thirjg it seemed after the ponderous sixteen-foot sal- 

 mon rod. We took a long lingering look behind at the 

 brown backs in Falls' Pool, and regretting for their sake 

 jand our own that the power is denied them of accompany- 

 ing us in our progress through the upper river, we bade 

 ithem a sad adieu. Our various packages have been skill- 

 fully atowed in the canoe, that surprised us by its capa- 

 ciousness; the canvas tent is spread as a covering over 

 the cargo; the senior Indian Joe takes his station at the 

 stern; gun in band I recline as comfortable as circum- 

 stances admit on the baggage; two pairs of muscular 

 arms are impelling us up the swift current. Onward! 

 I Each turn of the river is to open up to us a new wonder- 

 land! With enthusiasm thought flies ahead to the upper 

 Teaches before us to the fabulous trout that haunt the 

 lupper pools ; to the bears and moose and caribou. Heaven 

 help them that may wander within reach of our rifle. 



Without one sigh of regret we reflect that we are 

 rapidly leaving civilization and its cares behind us. In 

 exchange, nature is steeping our whole being in her 

 gladness and freshness. The west wind is wafting to us 

 from the woodB the resinous scents and odors of wild 

 flowers. The glorious sun is touching all things with 

 heavenly alchemv. 



Can we dream of wars and carnage, 

 Craft and madness, Inst and spite; 



Roaring London, raving Paris, 



' In this poiut of peaceful light? 



Good-bye to cities! My only society for the next few 

 weeks is to be found in two or three favorite volumes, 

 the companionship of my two men, and most of all in 

 the open book of Nature that I have turned at such an 

 inviting page. 



Let me take this opportunity of pausing to sketch my 

 henchman Joe. The other man is nothing more than a 

 muscular piece of mechanism without any traits worth 

 mention. But Joe is interesting. After the day's toils 

 and excitements are over, and as he is enjoying his pipe 

 before the glowing coals of a hardwood fire, how fittingly 

 his stories of Indian superstitions, of the habits of the 

 denizens of our forests, of hardships endured in the chase, 

 chime in with the surroundings. Give me an Indian for 

 a guide on such an expedition as this; with all his faults 

 there is a lovable simplicity about him ani a sympathy 

 with the wild creatures that I heartily admire. 



Do not judge him as you see him in the town street. 

 He is a creature out of his element there. But see him 

 on the trail of a wounded caribou; go with him up the 

 rugged hills to surprise an unwary bear; mark his 

 dilating nostril and flashing eye, when with his birch 

 bark horn he has called up within reach of your rifle the 

 monarch of the forest, the stag moose; watch the energy, 

 patience and skill he displays in the construction of his 

 traps and deadfalls; see the masterful manner in which 

 he proudly guides his frail vessel among the seething 

 waters — and it must be confessed that he is the right 

 man in the right place on a trip through the Miramichi 

 forest. 



While sitting round the camp-fire one evening I noted 

 that Joe had lost a large part of his right great toe. On 

 questioning him I got the explanation: "You remember 

 that cold Friday, sir, about twenty-eight years ago? 

 Plenty people froze to death; plenty more lose toes, fing- 

 ers, nose, on that day, I tell you. Me and my brother 

 Peter were in the woods that day, far from home. Six 

 miles from our camp we had killed two moose the even- 

 ing before. By the time we dressed them it came on 

 dark, very dark, sir, and snow began to fall. We could 

 not find our way about, so we dug down through the 

 snow." "How deep, Joe?" "About four feet, sir, to the 

 ground; then we laid down for the night." "Had you 

 any fire?" "Oh, yes, sir! but it got so cold before morn- 

 ing; we sat there quiet, waiting for daylight, and neither 

 spoke. At last we saw the sky grow brighter; so slow, 

 though, it seemed like a year getting daylight ; our teeth 

 chattered; we looked at each other, but neither said any- 

 thing. We rose to try and make our tent, where we had 

 blankets, flour and pork. But now there was a fearful 

 driving snowstorm; we could not see five yards ahead; 

 we missed our tent, and then tried to get to a lumber 

 camp we knew was five miles away. We wandered 

 about, and at last struck a lumber road that we knew led 

 to the camp. Taking off our snowshoes, because the lum- 

 bermen do not like snowshoe tracks on their roads— it 

 packs the snow and makes it difficult for the horses — we 

 made for the camp, some eight miles off. We got about 

 four miles; then I felt like dropping. My brother reeled 

 like a drunken man, and staggered and sometimes fell, 

 but at once jumped on his feet again. When I began to 

 freeze I felt very warm, as if going to sweat, and took off 

 my mits and opened my coat. 



At last I got to camp, but could not speak for a long 

 time. When I could speak I told them about Peter and 

 they went and got him. They put my feet for two hours 

 in salt water and snow; then put me to bed. There was 

 a big fire in the middle of the camp on the ground that 

 was the floor. It seemed to me like coming from hell to 

 heaven. But when I woke my feet were burning in a 

 slow fire. I made them strip off the skin that rose in 

 blisters, so that it would heal quicker. They kept me 

 three days. I tell you, sir, a lumber camp in winter is 

 comfort. It looks rough outside, but once get in — plenty 

 good grub, plenty warm, plenty good yarns. I got a free 

 ride into Bathurst, but could not walk till planting time, 

 and feet tender ever since; part of big toe clean gone, as 

 you see, sir." 



Such was Joe's terrible experience of that cold wave 

 which swept over eastern Canada in February of 1858, 

 when the thermometer touched 60° below zero. Well 

 does this painful narrative illustrate the dangers and 

 hardships faced by the hardy hunter in the winter 

 months; vividly did it remind us of the severely stern 

 aspect which this smiling scenery, now bathed in the 

 midsummer sun. can assume in midwinter. 



Arthur P. Silver. 



Halifax, N. S. • , 



SNAKE BITE AND ITS ANTIDOTE— II. 



Experiments With Crotalus Venom and Reputed 

 Antidotes, with Notes on the Saliva of 

 Heloderma ("Gila Monster"). 



BY H. C. YARROW, M.D. 

 Curator Department Reptiles, TJ. S. National Museum. 



AFTER reading de Lacerda's views regarding the an- 

 tidotal effect of the permanganate of potassa in 

 cases of serpent bite, the writer was so firmly convinced 

 of its merits that, during his travels in the Western 

 States and Territories, he invariably carried with him, 

 with a blind and unquestioning faith, a hypodermic 

 syringe and some permanganate of potassa, prepared in 

 case of serpent bite to promptly administer according to 

 de Lacerda's directions, but his confidence was weakened 

 to a certain extent by the results of the experiments of 

 Vincent Richards, Fayrer and others, and, to verify if 

 possible the different statements, he determined to experi- 

 ment himself with the permanganate, and as will be 

 seen from the recorded notes below, was forced to the 

 conclusion that this salt was of little or no value, at 

 least in poisoning from Crotalus venom, if de Lacerda's 

 suggestions only are followed. It was not intended at first 

 to take up the subject of other so-called antidotes, but a 

 good supply of serpents having been obtained by the Na- 

 tional Museum, by whose co-operation the experiments 

 were performed, it was thought advisable to continue the 

 investigation still further. In addition to this reason, 

 quite a number of persons, hearing of the experiments, 

 have from time to time sent various reputed antidotes or 

 have suggested certain methods of cure. 



The venom used was obtained from several healthy 

 specimens of the northern rattlesnake (Crotalus hor- 

 ridus) in the manner recommended by Weir Mitchell. 



The snake is seized a short distance behind the head by 

 means of a staff, having at its end a thong of leather 

 passing over the end and through a staple, and this is 

 tightened or loosened, as occasion may require, by means 

 of a string extending up the handle. The cut copied from 

 nature clearly shows tins simple instrument. It has been 

 found necessary not to confine the snake's head too 

 tightly, as otherwise it cannot be induced to strike. 

 The head being secured, a stick having its end covered 

 with absorbent cotton is pressed against the snake's 

 mouth, and it is teased until sufficiently irritated to 

 strike its fangs into the cotton, which receives the venom 

 and obviates any danger to the fangs, as it has been 

 found in allowing snakes to strike against a saucer the 

 fangs are frequently broken off. Generally a snake will 

 strike three or four times very viciously, and then relapse 

 into sullen apathy. We have in vain endeavored to pro- 

 cure venom from our snakes by pressing over the poison 

 glands, but this has been unsuccessful except in one in- 

 stance unless the snake was chloroformed, and if this is 

 done the reptile generally succumbs within a few days. 

 This fact is mentioned as it has been learned through the 

 public prints that some experimenters in a neighboring 

 city have succeeded in squeezing out the venom while 

 the snake was active. 



The quantity of venom obtained from different indi- 

 viduals varies greatly. From a large rattler weighing 

 perhaps three or four pounds, our first attempt resulted 

 m securing about fifteen drops of venom after the reptile 

 had struck three times; but if the process is repeated 

 every day or two but a very small quantity is obtained. 

 The smaller snakes gave a much smaller quantity. The cot- 

 ton after having received its charge of venom was removed 

 from the stick and washed out carefully in glycerine, 

 and by measuring the quantity of this substance first, 

 and then after the venom had been added, we were able 

 to tell accurately the strength of the solution, which con- 

 sisted of eight drams of chemically pure glycerine and 

 one dram of the venom. This is the preparation which 

 was used in all the experiments, and is called glycerine- 

 venom. One fact should be stated as bearing upon the 

 popular belief that snakes, if kept from water, are not 

 poisonous. It was found that by keeping the rattlers 



without water for a week or two the quantity of venom 

 was materially smaller than when we allowed them free 

 access to water, and that the color of the venom, which 

 was yellowish-green when no fluid was supplied, became 

 much lighter in color when they had freely drunken. 

 We have never been able to induce our rattlesnakes to 

 eat, although they have been tempted with a variety of 

 food, but water they consume largely. 



When the present supply of rattlers was first received, 

 it was a very easy matter to grasp any one of them be- 

 hind the neck with the snake staff; but experience has 

 taught them that they must do something against 

 their will, and now it is quite difficult to secure them, 

 and even when seemed it is difficult to make them strike; 

 in fact, one specimen is now so tame that it may be 

 handled with impunity, and it is the writer's belief that a 

 rattler, if carefully and tenderly handled, will not. bite 

 the hand that grasps it. It is believed the Moqui Indians 

 are aware of this, and it enables them to handle with im- 

 punity the venomous snakes used in their fearful dance, 

 so well described by Capt. John G. Bourke, U. S. A. 

 Many persons suppose that the fangs of a rattler once 

 removed, the reptde is harmless for all time, or that at 

 least a year is required to replace the fangs. This is an 

 error, for the writer has in his possession a rattler in 

 which the fangs were twice replaced after an interval of 

 three weeks only. As the rattler doubtless knows when 

 the contents of the poison gland is exhausted, as is evi- 

 lenced by his refusal to bite after two or three efforts, 

 he probably also knows that it is useless to show fight 

 when the fangs have been removed, and this has been 

 practically tried on one of our snakes. She continued to 

 coil and rattle, but no matter how much teased and irri- 

 tated, makes no attempt to bite. 



An interesting fact has been noticed during the course 

 of our experiments, and one which it seems important 

 to record. It is, that the rattler does not invariably 

 use both fangs in striking, the muscular movements of 

 either side of the jaw being quite independent of the 

 other, and quite at the will of the reptile. The practical 

 bearing of this point is that, occasionally in snake bite, 

 but one puncture will be found, and some doubt might 

 exist if this was really due to the serpent's fangs or not. 

 Another point of interest lies in the fact that if only one 

 fang is plunged into the tissues, the patient will not 

 have received so large a dose of the venom as if both 

 teeth had been used, and a more favorable prognosis can 

 be made. 



Experiments with Permanganate of Potassa. 

 This was the first substance used in the experiments, 

 and de Lacerda's directions were carefully followed with 

 the exception that chemically pure glycerine was used 

 as a menstruum to preserve the venom, instead of dis- 

 tilled water. The writer is aware that deLacerda claims 

 that if glycerine is used to hold the venom in solution, 

 the permanganate is rendered inert, but this is not the 

 case, as in our experiments it has been found that a 5 

 per cent, solution of the salt if added to the glycerine 

 and venom solution neutralizes its poisonous effects; 

 moreover, if a ligature is placed around the leg of an 

 animal and a certain quantity of glycerine- venom is in- 

 jected below the ligature, followed by a solution of the 

 permanganate, no poisonous effect is produced by the 

 venom. This effectually disproves de Lacerda's state- 

 ment. It should be mentioned that in all the experiments 

 tried with the various reputed antidotes, different quan- 

 tities of these were always first injected into the animals 

 on the day preceding the test with the poison, in order 

 to ascertain if the remedy itself was capable of produc- 

 ing mischief or death. 



„ f . In order to ascertain the amount of gly- 



cerine venom required to destroy a pigeon , 

 the following experiment was made Oct. 

 21, 1887. 



Oct. 21, 1887—11:45 A. M.— Injected pigeon 

 in the lower part of left breast with 

 3 minims of glycerine-venom solu- 

 i> tion. 



11:48 A. M. — Pigeon commenced to trem- 

 ble and had difficulty in opening the 

 eyelids. 



11:55 A. M. — All voluntary motion ceased. 

 12 M. — A good deal of tumefaction was 

 noticed around the part injected. 

 12:05 P. M. — The pigeon has recovered partial muscular 



movement and the eyes appear brighter. 

 12:15 P. M. — The pigeon has again lost muscular power. 

 12:35 P. M. — The pigeon gave two slight flutters, a few 

 gasps and was dead. A post mortem was made 

 before rigor mortis set in, and it was found that 

 the whole of the left breast was ecchymosed and 

 congested with dark blood, and the heart was tilled 

 with venous blood. 

 It was thus discovered that three minims of the venom 

 solution was sufficient to destroy a large healthy blue 

 rock pigeon in less than one hour, the strength of the 

 solution being eight drams of glycerine to one dram of 

 the Croiaius poison, 



Oct. 11:43 A. M.— Injected pigeon with 5 minims of 

 venom solution in the left breast. 

 11:45 A. M. — Injected 17 minims of 1 per cent, solution 



of potassa permanganate in left breast. 

 11:54 A.M. — Convulsive movements of the pigeon's 



head was noticed. 

 11:55 A. M.— Injected 17 minims more of the perman- 

 ganate solution, as the bird was getting very f e eble. 

 Opisthotonotic spasms took place. 

 12:15 P. M.— The pigeon died without a straggle. 

 In this experiment the permanganate solution was in- 

 jected twice in the immediate vicinity of the venom in- 

 jection. It should not be forgot' eu that the 1 per cent, 

 solution of the permanganate is the one recommended by 

 de Lacerda. 



Oct. 2,5—12:45 P. M.— Injected a large healthy English 

 rabbit in the left thigh with 5 minims of the venom- 

 solution, followed at once, without removing the 

 hypodermic needle, with an injection of 25 min 

 ims of the 1 per cent, permanganate solution. 



12:50. P. M.— Rabbit began to show the effects of the 

 venom ; respiration very much quickened ; heart beats 

 fast and is weak; animal indisposed to movement. 



1 P. M. — Rabbit drank a little water, but was breathing 

 short and fast. 



1:10 P. M. — Part injected quite swollen and ecchymos- 

 ed, but otherwise the animal seemed to be better, 



1:40 P. M.— Rabbit was eating, and appeared to be 

 doing very well. 



