POISONS OBTAINED FBOM FISH 121 



Japan, have been studied by Muir Evans (ReL 4). He 

 found that complete sections of the spine showed that 

 *' the grooves are occupied in their deepest portion by 

 alveolar connective tissue provided with blood vessels 

 and lymph channels," and separated from the more 

 superficial mass of special epithelial tissue by a pig- 

 mented capillary mesh work. This epithehal tissue 

 contains colunms of cells in an active state, the secretion 

 of which is discharged towards the lateral dentate 

 margin " (B. M. J.). That the gland is really a poison 

 organ is further confirmed by the interesting observa- 

 tions of Dr. Lo Bianco, who saw a young man faint after 

 a mere prick by a trygon which he was handling. He 

 also showed that other animals succumb, for in a tank 

 in the Zoological Station at Naples a Trygon violacea 

 attacked a loggerhead turtle. The trygon died, with 

 its sting broken off ; shortly after the tm'tle ceased to 

 feed and died on the fifth day, when the spine of the 

 trygon was found still embedded in its muscles, 

 surrounded by septic matter (Refs. 4 and 11). 



At Cherang Jelor, in Northern Kelantan, some Malays 

 with devilish ingenuity fastened a couple of spines to a 

 pole and maliciously stabbed a horse, causing two small 

 flesh wounds. The severity of the pain maddened the 

 animal, which was thought likely to die. The wounds 

 were enlarged and treated with 2 per cent, iodine 

 solution. Tlie Malay stable-boy remarked that the 

 recoveiy of the horse would not have ensued if the spines 

 had remained in the wounds. Should a portion of a 

 spine get broken off in a wouncf, it may travel about the 

 tissues by help of the small barbed serrations and 

 contraction of smTOunding muscles, until perhaps it 

 eventually causes death. Dr. Rankin, bacteriologist to 

 the Kmg Chulalongkorn Hospital at Bangkok, showed 

 me a specimen which had been accidentally swallowed 



