576  Standardisation  of  Piscidia  erythrina.  {Am'sJe°putr^grm' 
The  similarity  between  the  actions  of  Jamaica  dogwood  and 
cannabis  suggested  the  possibility  of  employing  similar  methods  of 
standardization. 
A  fluid  extract  of  the  drug  was  accordingly  administered  in  cap- 
sules to  dogs  and  found  to  produce  incoordination  and  ataxia  similar 
to  that  produced  by  cannabis. 
The  hypnotic  effect  of  Jamaica  dogwood,  however,  was  found  to 
be  less  than  that  of  cannabis,  as  it  required  approximately  17  times 
as  much  Jamaica  dogwood  to  produce  the  same  degree  of  inco- 
ordination in  dogs  as  that  produced  by  cannabis. 
Fig.  1.    Normal  Dog. 
For  standardization  purposes  the  end  reaction  to  be  observed  is 
one  just  sufficient  to  produce  muscular  incoordination  in  a  dog. 
The  details  of  the  method  employed  follow: 
Animals. — Short-haired  dogs  of  medium  size  (6  to  12  Kilos) 
are  well  adapted  for  this  work.  They  show  the  different  stages  of 
the  drug's  action  because  of  their  comparative  high  cerebral  de- 
velopment. 
Animals  for  assay  purposes  should  be  selected  with  great  care, 
'it  being  necessary  to  pick  out  those  that  are  healthy,  intelligent, 
quiet,  and  which  have  shown  by  previous  tests  that  they  are  easily 
susceptible  to  the  action  of  the  drug. 
After  several  dogs  have  been  selected,  the  operator,  before  using 
them  for  actual  work,  should  study  each  animal  in  order  to  familiar- 
