282  Poisouing  by  Anarcadiiim  Occidentale.  {^"^'jn^ne'im"^^ 
to  the  covering  of  the  whole  surface  of  the  face  and  neck,  with  great 
prospects  of  extending  further.  The  physician,  apprehending  serious 
eifects  if  the  spreading  of  the  poison  was  not  checked,  considered  that 
vigorous  treatment  was  absolutely  necessary,  hence  the  resort  to  paint- 
ing the  face  and  neck  with  tincture  of  iodine,  the  application  of  which 
produced  excruciating  pain.  The  poison  now,  for  the  first  time, 
received  its  check,  and,  by  frequent  application,  the  swelling  gradually 
subsided,  and  the  inflammation,  together  with  the  redness  attendant  on 
it,  grew  less  until,  in  the  course  of  two  or  three  days'  treatment,  the 
injured  parts  were  restored  to  a  normal  condition,  with  the  exception  of 
the  old  skin  peeling  off  in  fragments  in  yielding  to  the  new  skin  which 
was  forming. 
The  writer  submits  the  above  with  the  hope  that  others  who  have 
not  had  any  experience  with  the  above  drug  might  profit  from  his- 
experience  and  use  the  necessary  precautions,  and  those  who  through 
misfortune  might  become  similarly  situated  might  profit  from  the- 
result  of  the  treatment  in  his  case. 
Philadelphia^  May,  1S81. 
XoTE  BY  THE  Editor. — It  is  wcll  known  that  the  dark  colored 
oily  juice  of  the  pericarp  of  the  cashew  nut  produces  a  very  painful 
and  persistent  eczematous  eruption,  due  to  cardol,  which  was  isolated 
by  Staedeler  in  1847  as  a  yellowish  oil,  having,  on  heating,  a  faint, 
agreeable  odor.  Although  cardol  is  stated  not  to  volatilize  without 
decomposition,  yet  the  vapor  arising  during  the  roasting  of  the  cashew 
nut  is  apt  to  cause  severe  and  painful  inflammation  and  eruption  unless 
great  caution  is  used.  This  would  seem  to  indicate  that  by  the  aid  of 
other  vapors  cardol  is  partly  volatilized. 
Little  is  known  concerning  the  chemical  behavior  of  cardol,  but 
since  its  solution  is  not  precipitated  by  pure  lead  acetate  this  salt  will 
probably  be  of  little  service  against  the  effects  of  cardol.  Basic  acetate 
of  lead  seems  to  promise  better  results,  at  least  in  the  earlier  stages  of 
cardol  poisoning,  since  this  compound  produces,  with  cardol,  a  white- 
precipitate  which,  on  exposure  to  the  air,  rapidly  acquires  a  reddish 
and  red-brown  color. 
It  is  worthy  of  note  that,  according  to  Buchheim,  three  or  four  drops 
of  cardol  may  be  swallowed  without  producing  any  marked  effects ; 
but  it  should  also  be  remembered  that  the  crude  oil  applied  to  the  lips 
produces,  in  a  very  short  time,  very  painful  blisters. 
