144 BOTANY AS APfLIED TO VETERINARY SCIENCE. 
or less possess narcotic principles, and in some these are 
associated with an essential oil. 
Solanum dulcamara {woodj/ nightshade^ or hitter-sweet). 
Stem woody, of a bluish colour, without thorns, twining 
in hedges, and attaining a height of from three to twelve 
feet, emitting when bruised a disagreeable odour; leaves 
somewhat ovate, smooth, and entire at the margins; flowers 
of a beautiful violet or purple colour; calyx five-parted, per¬ 
manent ; corolla five-parted, rotate, purple, with two green 
spots at the base of each segment. Fruit or berry, oblong- 
oval, red in colour and juicy, many-seeded.” 
This, one of the most beautiful of our native plants, is 
found growing in woods and moist places in most parts of 
the country. It flowers through June and July, and ripens 
its berries in August. The leaves are narcotic, producing 
nausea and giddiness when eaten, and the fruit is equally 
deleterious. The young branches and root are employed in 
medicine as a sudorific.” There is another variety, viz., the 
Solanum nigrum (the hlach or garden nightshade), found grow¬ 
ing in waste places, and differs from the Solanum dulcamara^ 
bv havino; white flowers, and the fruit being a black instead 
of a red berry. Both owe their activity as a poison to an 
alkaloid named Solania, which has been described as a “ nar- 
cotico-acrid (cerebro-spinal) poison.” 
The following tests are copied from Dr. Taylor’s work on 
poisons, a work which none of us should be with.out. 
‘‘ Chromic acid gives a sky-blue colour, passing to a green ;— 
concentrated sulphuric acid produces an orange-red colour, 
passing through a yellow to a violet. Nitric acid, with the 
vapour of ammonia, produces a rose-red colour. The solu¬ 
tion is not precipitated by chloride of platina or iodide of 
potassium. 
The following case of poisoning of two heifers by the 
Solanum dulcamara came under my own observation during 
last summer. The animals in question were red and white 
coloured, about a year and a half old, belonging to Mr. 
Wrighton of this town; and which, with two other white 
coloured animals a little older, from another part of the farm, 
were on the same day turned into a fresh pasture. The 
herbage was somewhat scanty, but all the animals appeared 
to go on well for the first few days. In a short time, how¬ 
ever, the owner noticed one of the red and white beasts to 
appear dull and unwell. He gave half a pound of the sul¬ 
phate of soda, but the animal appearing no better he repeated 
it the next day. On the following day he found the other 
red and white beast to be attacked in the same way; and on 
