i86 



ARROW POISONS 



Philippine Islands.— The arrow-poison used by the Negritos of 

 the Philippine Islands is Rabelaisia philippinensis Planch, which 

 causes paralysis of the extremities, dyspnoea, convulsions, and 

 cessation of the heart's action. 



Australasia. — Le Dantec, quoted by Vaughan and Novy, says 

 that the poisonous arrows of the natives of the New Hebrides are 

 prepared by smearing the points, which are usually made from 

 human bones, with, first, a vegetable resin, and then with slime 

 taken from marshy places. 



America.- — -The important American arrow-poisons used in the 

 valleys of the Amazon and Orinoco belong to the Loganiacese, and 

 are Strychnos toxifera Schomb, S. crevauxii Planchon, S. castelnicBana 

 Baillon. 



The active principle is curari, and, it is said, curin. Curari, or 

 ourari, was first brought to Europe by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1595. 

 The drug paralyses the motor end-plates, and causes death from 

 failure of the respiration. 



Less important American arrow-poisons are : — 



{a) Paullinia pinnata (Linnaeus), used by native Indians of Brazil. 

 (b) Piscidia eryihvina (Linnaeus), used in Brazil and Central America. 



REFERENCES. 



Poisons used on Weapons. 



Anderson (191 i). Indian Medical Gazette, January. (Arrows and Arrow 



Wounds in Monbhum.) 

 Burton (1856). First Footsteps in East Africa. 



Chalmers (1905). A Further Report of Experiments upon. the Fra-Fra 

 Arrow-Poisons. Journal Royal Army Medical Corps, August. 



Fraser (191 4). Royal Society of Edinburgh, December 21. (Abors and 

 Mishmi Poisons.) 



Frohlich (1905). Munchi Arrow-Poison. Journal of Physiology, 319. 

 Grey (1874). British Medical Journal, August, 169. 

 Krause (1907). Archiv fiir Schiffs u. Tropenk. 



Lewin, L. (1894). Die Pfeilgifte. Histrionische u. experimentelle Unter- 



suchungen. Berlin. 

 Lewin, L. (1903). Traite de Toxicologic. Paris. 



Livingstone (about 1865). Expedition to the Zambesi, pp. 465-467. 

 Parsons (1909). British Medical Journal, January. (Arrows and Arrow 



Wounds in Northern Nigeria.) 

 Perrot and Vogt (1913). Poisons de Fleches et Poisons d'Epreuve. (This 



is an excellent book, and the most complete which we know, though it 



omits one of the arrow poisons with which we are acquainted.) Paris. 

 Rno, F. (191 4). Mense's Handbuch der Tropenkrankheiten, ii. 520-533. 



Leipzig. 



RoDRiGUES (1903). L'Uiraery, Bruxelles. 



Seligmann (1903). Action of the Kenyah Dart Poison Ipoh and its Active 

 Principle Antiarin. Journal of Physiology, xxix. 39. (Complete litera- 

 ture of Ipoh poison.) 



Smith (1905). Taylor's Medical Jurisprudence, ii. 696-698. 



Stephenson (1832). Medical Zoology. (A very interesting work.) London. 



Stockman (1898). Pharmaceutical Journal, pp. 550-585. 



Vaughan and Novy (1903). Cellular Toxins, p. 68. 



Wad DELL (1904). Lyon's Medical Jurisprudence for India, pp. 589, 617. 

 Windsor (191 2). British Medical Journal, January 6. 



