28 BULLETIN" 800, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
AUTOPSY FINDINGS. 
As noted in the description of symptoms, bloating is noticeable 
in practically all cases. This is found to be the result of the ac- 
cumulation of gas not only in the first stomach, as is usual in most 
cases of bloating, but also in other parts of the alimentary canal. 
In the steer, Xo. 7o0. the gas occurred only in the first and second 
stomachs. Five of the 11 sheep autopsied had all 4 stomachs dis- 
tended with gas. In one the gas was confined to the first and second 
stomachs and in 2 it was in the first, second, and fourth. In 3 
there were no marked accumulations of gas in any of the stomachs, 
but the animals were bloated during their illness and the gas 
largely escaped either before death or soon after. In one case, 483, 
the gas was found in the duodenum, jejunum, ileum, and cecum, as 
well as in the stomachs. The distension of the cecum was noted in 6 
cases. The presence of an abnormal quantity of gas in the alimen- 
ary canal may be considered as a condition always present in cases 
of poisoning by Asclepias galioides. 
More or less congestion was found in the walls of the fourth 
stomach, duodenum, jejunum, ileum, and cecum. The colon was 
congested in only one case, Xo. 506, in which there was congestion 
in the second and third stomachs, as well as the fourth. 
The lungs were congested in 5 of the 11 cases. The kidneys were 
generally congested, and in some cases congestion appeared in the 
thymus and thyroids. The bladder was commonly contracted and 
empty. Petechia or hemorrhagic spots occurred on the heart in 
some cases but not often. 
There was usually congestion of the surface blood vessels of the 
brain and sometimes clots between the cerebrum and cerebellum, or 
in connection with the medulla. The blood vessels of the meninges 
of the spinal cord were unusually full, and in some cases clots were 
found in the cervical or lumbar region, or in both. The liver, so far 
as appeared in the autopsies, was normal. 
The outstanding conditions which may be considered as character- 
istic of poisoning by this plant are the abnormal quantity of gas in 
the alimentary canal and the lesions in the kidneys and the central 
nervous system. 
PATHOLOGY. 
Microscopic study of the various tissues from animals poisoned by 
Asclepias galioides confirms the autopsy findings and shows some 
changes not noted in the macroscopic examinations. The results of 
the studies made on tissues from 9 sheep, 1 steer, and 1 guinea pig 
show the lesions to be very uniform in character. 
The most prominent conditions found are marked capillary con- 
gestion and a cloudy swelling of certain tissue elements which modi- 
fier the appearance of congestion. The organs most noticeably 
