COMMON THORNAPPLE.

863

^'ich ]^ n an ^ ma ^ generally. — Its influence on herbivorous animals isl'ors e CSS ^ lan 011 man- ^‘i ye ounces of the expressed juice given to theVft Cailses merely slight drowsiness and gaping (Moiroud, Pharm.!i 0|| '^^0)- Two pounds and a half of the seeds killed a horse in 52lV° r ^ y^iborg, in Wibmer’s Wir/c. d. Arzneim. it. Gifte. B. ii. S. 292).ap, )e ^ r fila’s experiments with it on dogs ( Toxicol. Gen.) it does notto tp r act powerfully as a local irritant. Its effects were very similar( e ? s ® caused, by belladonna.

'^ n man -—The symptoms produced on man closely resemble those0 i s p C( by belladonna. In small but gradually increased doses it dirni-U S(1 *j. s Se nsibility, and thereby frequently alleviates pain. It does notl^^y affect the pulse ; it slightly and temporarily dilates the pupil, anda]] a ° tendency to cause constipation, but rather relaxation. Though itUp r ^ s Pain it does not usually produce sleep. In larger doses it causestati 0 ’ clr y ness of the throat, nausea, giddiness, nervous agitation, dila-l)f a ] a °f pupil, obscurity of vision, headache, disturbance of the cere-fiojjj Ullc tions, perspiration, occasionally relaxation of bowels, and inh eil ? ases diuresis. It has no direct tendency to induce sleep, and^t cannot be called soporific. But indirectly, by alleviating pain,oreby producing serenity and ease, it often disposes to sleep. In( Us .“ 0s es the leading symptoms are flushed countenance, deliriumtoi^ynmniacal),dilatation of the pupil, dryness of the throat, loss ofv er e > difficulty of deglutition, convulsions, and, in some cases, palsy. AV’^eresting fatal case of poisoning by 100 seeds, is related by Mr.' f as 1 ° Med. Gaz. vol. xv. p. 194). The patient (his own child)

to^,years and a quarter old. In addition to the preceding symp-irr^ 1 >ere were a hot, perspiring skin, flushed, slightly swollen face, pulsefof{^ rce Ptible, but natural in regard to frequency, and coldness of the in-r ex t r emities. The anterior fontanelle was neither tense, hot, nor in theSee test degree raised by the cerebral pulsations ; so that there did notc 0n j! to be any active determination of blood to the brain. During theo Cc lnuance of the coma the pulse became extremely rapid. Deathy^ed twenty-four hours after swallowing the seeds.ti n (Pharmakodyn. Bd. i. S. 164) says, stramonium is probably dis-

ls hed from belladonna by the following peculiarities:—

2. n S e Aects are more similar to those of acrid vegetables, especially of Helleborus.

°perates more strongly, but more in the manner of the acrid substances, on the® e rvous system, especially on the central organs, viz. the ganglia, spinal cord,

3. j ant > brain.

? secondary effects on the irritable system are not so marked; for most observers* 1:, ve failed" to detect any alteration of pulse, and a slow pulse is more frequently4; j Mentioned than a quick one.

1 "Perates on the organic life more strongly. It more strongly and directly pro-3. J« 0 ‘es all the secretions, especially the secretion of the skin.

arcet ( Med.-Chir. Trans, vols. vii. and viii.)and Begbie (Trans, of the Med. Soc.■bdinb. t. i.) have inferred, from numerous observations, that it possesses ananodyne property, which it frequently evinces where opium and belladonna failto do so.

Us —A more extended experience of this plant is requisite to enable

it s .3 )ea h with much confidence of its employment. The similarity ofOf/ects with those of belladonna would lead us to expect a similarityto ( j Ses ; Like the last-mentioned plant it has been successfully employedffiiinish sensibility, and thereby to relieve external pain. Some of