Bacteria in Daily Life

by Grace C. Frankland

The idea of a poison, as the old proverb above tells us, being a corrective for itself is no new idea, for we read how in ancient times, for example, the Ophiogenes of the Hellespont were renowned for their immunity to snake poison, and one account of them states particularly that they fed upon serpents, and that to this diet they probably owed their reputed magical art in withstanding the action of serpent venom. Again, a traveller in Egypt, Hasselquist, tells us how the serpent-charmers there eat serpents, making them into a kind of broth, and that invariably before starting off to catch these reptiles they partake of some of it.

In a paper by Mr. T. R. Rao on the Yánádés tribe of the Nellore district, Madras Presidency, the author mentions that these strange people have, amongst other characteristics, absolutely no fear in catching cobras, which they draw out of their holes without any alarm as to their fangs, and that they appear to protect themselves against the effects of snake-bites by swallowing the poison-sacs of snakes.

Bruce describes how he saw a serpent-charmer in Cairo who allowed himself to be bitten by a viper between the forefinger and the thumb, and made no endeavour whatever to apply remedies, neither did he exhibit the slightest anxiety as to the consequences. That this was no trick, and that the viper was really possessed of all its deadly faculties at the time it bit the man, was proved by the fact that a pelican subsequently bitten by the same animal died in thirteen minutes. Bruce also tells of a man who "with his naked hand took a viper from a number of others lying at the bottom of a tub. He put it on his head, then in his breast, and tied it about his neck like a necklace. Next it was made to bite a hen, which died in a few minutes; and, to complete the experiment, the man took it by the neck, and, beginning at the tail, ate it as one does a carrot or a stick of celery, without any seeming repugnance."

A most interesting account of snake-charmers is given by Drummond Hay, in his book on Western Barbary, in which he relates his experiences with some of these wonderful individuals belonging to the sect called Eisowy. Members of this sect, he mentions, frequently handled scorpions and poisonous reptiles without fear or hesitation, and they were never attacked by them. He was present at one of their exhibitions of feats with snakes in which they both allowed themselves to be bitten and provoked the snake to bite them. The charmer thus bitten then in his turn ate or chewed the reptile, which, he remarks, writhing with pain, bit him in the neck and hands till it was actually destroyed by the Eisowy's teeth.

In South Africa snake poison is actually taken as a protection against snake-bites, and if we turn to the Lancet of the year 1886, we shall find a letter from Mr. Alfred Bolton stating that his curiosity had been aroused by the fact that while in South Africa cattle and horses frequently died from the effect of snake-bites, the natives themselves seldom or never appeared to suffer any inconvenience from such injuries other than would follow any accident which would set up local inflammation. On inquiry he found that they were in the habit of extracting the poison gland from the snake immediately it is killed, squeezing it into their mouths and drinking the secretion, thereby apparently acquiring absolute immunity from snake-bites. So impressed was Mr. Bolton by what he observed that he adds: "I can no longer refuse to believe in the efficacy of the snake virus itself as a remedy against snake poison."

Savage tribes have learnt from bitter experience how to protect themselves from snake-bites, and it is well known that they have a method of inoculation which they employ with success. The Creoles of Surinam use an ointment as a protection against snake-bites, which is regarded as highly efficacious. It is reputed to consist principally of the pounded head of a rattlesnake, which concoction would therefore include the contents of the venom glands. This is then mixed with the juices of a certain plant, which addition probably mitigates the intensity of the venom by acting as a diluent. This substance is generally applied by making an incision in the wrist or forearm and rubbing it in, after which individuals thus treated appear to enjoy security from the venom of snake-bites.

What applies to serpent venom would also appear to hold good in regard to other poisons, such as that contained in the sting of a bee. This poison is extraordinarily tenacious of its irritant properties, and, unlike eel poison, retains its virulence even when exposed to high temperatures.

An interesting memoir on the immunity of the bee-keeper from the effects of bee poison was published a short time ago by Dr. Langer in a German scientific journal. He issued a number of circulars with questions to be answered, and sent these to more than a hundred bee-keepers in different parts of the country, with the result that a hundred and forty-four stated that they were now immune to bee poison, nine having been fortunately endowed with a natural immunity to this irritant, whilst only twenty-six out of the whole number applied to stated that they were still susceptible.

This condition of immunity to bee poison is obtained after a varying number of stings have been inflicted; in some cases thirty, at the rate of from three to four a day, are sufficient to ensure freedom from further discomfort, but the inoculations may have to be prolonged up to one hundred stings to secure complete immunity.

In experiments carried out on animals this immunity to bee poison has been also induced by repeated application of the irritant. It was formerly generally supposed that the irritant nature of a bee's sting was due to the presence of formic acid; but inasmuch as bee poison can retain its poisonous character in spite of being submitted to heat, which would effectually volatilise the formic acid present, this assumption must be abandoned, and opinion is more inclined now to regard this irritant substance as partaking of the nature of an alkaloid.