458 BOTANY AS APPLIED TO VETERINARY SCIENCE. 
“considers that this poison may cause death—lst 5 by pro¬ 
ducing a powerfully sedative impression on the nervous 
system; 2nd, by paralysing the muscles of respiration, and 
causing asphyxia; and 3rd, by producing syncope; Dr. 
Taylor adding that the last is the most common form of 
death in man, when the case is protracted for some hours. 
Many cases of death in the human subject by this agent are 
recorded, several of which have been caused by the root of 
aconite having been partaken of in mistake for horseradish, 
an instance of which occurred at Dingwall, in Scotland, some 
few years ago. Three persons partook of what was supposed 
to be horseradish sauce with roast beef for dinner, but which 
unfortunately proved to have been made with the root of 
Aconitum napellus , and which resulted in the death of all three 
persons within four hours. Such mistakes can only occur 
through ignorance or carelessness, as the roots of the two 
plants differ materially. As it may prove of some interest, I 
have copied the following comparisons by Professor Bentley, 
from 1 Pereira’s Materia Medica 
Root of Aconite. 
Form. — Conical in form, and 
tapering perceptibly (and rapidly) 
to a point. 
Colour. — Externally, coffee - co¬ 
loured, or more or less of an earthy- 
brown colour. 
Odour .'—Merely earthy. 
Taste .—At first bitter, but after¬ 
wards producing a disagreeable 
tingling and numbness. 
Root of Horseradish. 
Form. — Slightly conical, at the 
crown; then cylindrical, or nearly 
so, and almost of the same thickness 
for many inches. 
Colour. — Externally, white, or 
with a yellow tinge. 
Odour .—Especially developed [on 
scraping, when it is very pungent 
and irritating. 
Taste .—Bitter or sweet, accord¬ 
ing to circumstances, and very pun¬ 
gent. 
On man, according to Dr. Taylor, the following symptoms 
generally follow a poisonous dose :—“ In from a few minutes 
to an hour after the poison has been taken the patient com¬ 
plains of numbness and tingling in the mouth and throat, 
which are parched; there is giddiness, with numbness and 
tingling in the limbs, a loss of power in the legs, frothing at 
the mouth, severe pain in the abdomen, followed by vomiting 
and purging. In some cases the patient is completely para¬ 
lysed, but retains his consciousness ; in others the giddiness 
is followed by dimness of sight, delirium, and other cerebral 
symptoms, but not amounting to the complete coma pro¬ 
duced by the cerebral or narcotic poisons. The pupils are 
dilated, the pulse sinks, the skin is cold and livid, and the 
breathing is difficult. Convulsions are not commonly 
