ACCIDENTAL POISONING 



173 



West Indies and South America, will cause a painful swelling of 

 the tongue if chewed. 



The emanations from the flowers of Arum dracunculus cause 

 dizziness, headache, and vomiting in some people. 



Blighia. — -The succulent aril of the akee tree, which belongs to 

 the genus Blighia Koenig, synonym Cupania Plumer (Sapindacese), 

 and called B. sapida, is used as an article of food in the West Indies. 



It is, however, known that if eaten in an unsound condition it 

 is poisonous, and recently Scott has shown that this is the cause 

 of the vomiting sickness of Jamaica, as will be detailed in 

 Chapter LXXIL, p. 1695 of this book. 



Capsicums {C. annum Linnaeus, 1775 — Solanaceae), if taken in 

 large quantities, may cause burning in the mouth and throat, 

 vomiting, colic, diarrhoea, and even death. C. frutescens Linnaeus, 

 1753, may also be mentioned. 



Cinn^monum zeylanicuml^lees . — -Lewin states that cinnamon-bark 

 may be poisonous, while nutmegs [Myristica fragrans Houtt) are 

 well known to be poisonous if taken in large doses. 



Calotropis gigantea R. Brown (Asclepiadaceae)^ has been knovv^n 

 to cause fatal effects by administration non-maliciously of two 

 dessertspoonfuls of its milk in a quantity of cow's milk. This 

 plant is variously named ' mudar ' in Bengal, ' yercumby ' by 

 Tamils, and ' warra ' by the Sinhalese. 



Chailletia toxicaria Don (Chailletiaceae; native name ' magberi' or 

 'manuch'), the powdered fruit of which is used for killing rats, 

 has been described by Renner in Sierra Leone as the cause of 

 poisoning in a Mendi carrier. 



The symptoms were mainly vomiting, diarrhoea, trembling, 

 general weakness, and inability to walk because the legs were 

 paralyzed, the tendon reflexes having disappeared. Hypercesthesia 

 was present over the inner side of the thighs and legs, and pressure 

 on the calf muscle gave severe pain. The bladder, rectum, and 

 pupils were normal. The man recovered in about two months. 



Renner remarks that this case is probably the clue to attacks 

 of sudden paralysis of the lower limbs in young persons (twenty 

 to forty years) of both sexes in Sierra Leone. When death ensues, 

 it is from paralysis of the muscles of respiration. 



Dioscorea. — Guerreras and de la Paz say that this genus, as 

 well as Jatropha, Anamista, Strychnos, and Datura are the cause of 

 poisoning in the Philippine Islands. 



Fungi. — -The presence of poisonous as well as edible fungi should 

 be remembered in the tropics; although there is no literature 

 known to us on the subject, still we have had the matter forcibly 

 brought to our notice. 



The fruit of Hippomane niancinella Linnaeus (Euphorbiaceae), the 

 mancjiineel tree of the Grenadine Islands, which has a delicious 

 fragrance, is said to have been the cause of many sailors meeting 

 their deaths, for it looks like an apple. The active principle is 

 not known. 



