198 
ACTIVE  CONSTITUENTS  OP  ERGOT  OF  RYE. 
Ter-chloride  of  gold,  a  drab-colored  precipitate. 
Phospho-molybdic  acid,  a  voluminous  yellowish  precipitate. 
Bichloride  of  mercury,  a  whitish  precipitate,  which  is  par- 
tially soluble  in  water. 
Infusion  of  galls,  or  tannin,  a  whitish  precipitate,  and  only  in 
concentrated  solutions*. 
On  adding  to  the  chloride  in  solution  bi-chloride  of  platinum 
and  an  excess  of  etherized  alcohol,  a  yellowish  precipitate  was 
©btained. 
Cyanide  of  potassium  occasioned  no  change. 
The  present  investigation  of  ergotina  and  its  behaviour  has 
been  less  complete  than  its  congener  ecbolina,  which  was,  in 
fact,  owing  to  an  accidental  loss  of  a  portion  of  the  alkaloids. 
Physiological  action  of  the  Alkaloids. 
The  experiments  were  made  by  comparison  with  the  powdered 
drug.  Unlike  most  authors,  who  believe  that  ergot  has  no 
obvious  action  on  the  male,  I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that 
it  has  as  powerful  an  influence  upon  the  spinal  column  of  the 
male  as  it  has  upon  the  female.  I  find  a  half  a  grain  of  ecbo- 
lina  to  possess  the  same  therapeutic  action  as  thirty  grains  of 
ergot.  From  either  the  alkaloid  or  the  powdered  ergot  in  the 
doses  mentioned,  the  following  effects  have  been  experienced 
upon  myself : 
The  functions  of  the  brain  were  excited  to  a  species  of  in- 
toxication, in  which  participated  the  muscular  system,  causing 
involuntary  contractions  of  the  muscles,  soon  followed  by 
nausea,  loss  of  appetite,  a  sense  of  weight  and  shooting  pains 
through  the  head,  stiffness  and  soreness  of  the  muscles  of  the 
neck  and  extremities,  a  creeping  sensation  along  the  course  of 
the  spine  ;  finally,  a  state  of  general  relaxation  and  debility, 
soreness  of  the  muscles,  particularly  those  of  the  extremities, 
and  a  gnawing  sensation  in  the  stomach,  with  hunger.  From 
the  beginning  to  the  end  of  the  ergotic  influence,  which  lasted 
about  three  hours,  the  pulse  was  not  materially  affected  until  the 
stage  of  debility  supervened,  when  the  pulse  fell  about  four 
beats  per  minute.  On  doubling  the  dose,  the  only  difference 
observed  was,  that  the  state  of  excitement  was  of  shorter  du- 
ration, but  was  followed  by  a  greater  amount  of  debility,  greater 
