PLANTS POISONOUS TO STOCK. 
433 
activity of the sweat glands and the rate of breathing was doubled. 
At 11.30 the calf had another spasm, and this was followed by 
others in rapid succession until death ensued at 11.45. Other 
observers have noted other symptoms, the most prominent of 
which are an increased flow of saliva, bloating, severe pain in 
the stomach, and widely dilated pupils. Death takes place 
within a few, sometimes within one and a half hours after the 
plant has been eaten. 
Effect of the Poison as Shown by Post-mortem. —Post-mortem 
examination nearly always reveals the characteristic musky 
odor and often pieces of the plant, especially the root, in the 
stomach. These furnish the most conclusive evidence of the 
nature of the poison, for there seems to be no very characteris¬ 
tic lesions. The lungs and brain are often highly congested, 
and one authority, Prof. L. H. Pammel, cites a correspondent 
who states that in the case of a cow killed by eating some roots 
the mucous membrane of the stomach was black and as easily 
scraped off with a stick as if it had been scalded. 
Nature of the Poison. —The American water hemlocks have 
not been carefully analyzed, but probably all of them contain 
the peculiar compound known as cicutoxin, which was first 
isolated by R. Boehm from the European plant. Two-tenths 
of 1 per cent, of the pure substance was obtained from the 
fresh root and 1 and a half per cent, from the roots which 
had been dried. As described by Boehm, it is an uncrys- 
tallizable, resinous body with an acid reaction and a disa¬ 
greeable bitter taste. It is very soluble in boiling water, and in 
dilute alcohol. This substance is not an alkaloid nor a member 
of any extensive class of poisons, but belongs to a small group 
of very poisonous compounds known as toxins. Andremedo- 
toxin is a similar substance, which is found in many well-known 
plants belonging to the heath family ( Ericacea ), some of the 
members of which, such as sheep laurel ( Kalmia angustifolid) 
and the calf kill ( Leucothoe catesbcei\ are well known along 
the Atlantic coast as poisonous to young stock. The fatal dose 
of cicutoxin for cats is 50 millegrams for each kilogram of 
