As to their forming a natural order of poisons, it is evident, that if a general view be taken of their properties, they are distinguished by obvious phenomena from the three orders hitherto noticed. But if their effects on man be alone taken into account, when of course their influence on the external surface of the body must be left out of view, nothing will be discovered to distinguish them from several of the metallic irritants.
The symptoms occasioned in man by the irritant poisons of the vegetable kingdom, are chiefly those indicating inflammation of the villous coat of the stomach and intestines. When taken in large doses, they excite vomiting soon after they are swallowed; by which means the patient’s life is often saved. But sometimes, like the mineral poisons that possess emetic properties, the vegetable acrids present a singular uncertainty in this respect: they may be retained without much inconvenience for some length of time. If this should happen, or if the dose be less, in which case vomiting may not be produced at all, or if only part of a large dose be discharged at an early period by vomiting,—the other phenomena they give rise to are sometimes fully developed. The most conspicuous symptom then is diarrhœa, more or less profuse. The diarrhœa and vomiting are commonly attended by twisting pain of the belly, at first remittent, but gradually more constant, as the inflammation becomes more and more strongly marked. Tension, fulness and tenderness of the belly, are then not unfrequent. The stools may assume all the characters of the discharges in natural inflammation of the intestinal mucous membrane, but an additional character worthy of notice is the appearance of fragments of leaves or flowers belonging to the plant which has been swallowed. At the same time there is generally excessive weakness. Sometimes, too, giddiness and a tendency to delirium have been observed. But the latter symptoms are rare: if they occurred frequently, it would be necessary to transfer any poison which produced them to the class of narcotico-acrids.
The properties now mentioned have long ago attracted the attention of physicians, and led them to introduce many vegetable irritants into the materia medica. In fact they comprehended a great number of the most active, or, as they are technically called, drastic purgatives. Among others, elaterium, euphorbium, gamboge, colocynth, scammony, croton, jalap, savin, stavesacre, are of this description. The effect of most of them, however, is so violent and uncertain, that few are now much used except when combined with other milder laxatives.
The morbid appearances they leave in the dead body are the same with those noticed under the head of their mode of action,—more or less redness of the stomach, ulceration of its villous coat, redness of the intestines, and especially of the rectum and colon, which are often inflamed when the small intestines are not visibly affected.
In the following account of the particular poisons of this order, a very cursory view will be taken of their physical and chemical properties. A knowledge of these properties will be best acquired from any author on the materia medica; and an account of them would be misplaced in a work which professes to describe only the leading objects of the medical jurist’s attention.
A great number of genera might be arranged under the present head. But the following list comprehends all which require mention. Euphorbia, or spurge, the ricinus, or castor-oil tree, the jatropha, or cassava-plant, croton-oil, elaterium, or squirting cucumber, colocynth, or bitter-apple, bryony, or wild cucumber, ranunculus, or buttercup, anemone, stavesacre, celandine, marsh marigold, mezereon, spurge-laurel, savine, daffodil, jalap, manchineel, cuckow-pint.
The first plants to be noticed belong to the natural order Euphorbiaceæ, namely, the euphorbia, ricinus, jatropha, and croton.
Of Poisoning with Euphorbium.
Euphorbium is the inspissated juice of various plants of the genus euphorbia or spurge, but is principally procured from the E. officinarum, a species that abounds in Northern Africa. It contains a variety of principles; but its chief ingredient is a resin, in which its active properties reside. It has been analysed by Braconnot, Pelletier, Brandes,[[1403]] and Drs. Buchner and Herberger. According to Brandes the resin forms above 44 per cent. of the crude drug, and is so very acrid, that the eyelid is inflamed by rubbing it with the finger which has touched the resin, even although it be subsequently washed with an alkali.[[1404]] According to the most recent analysis, that of Drs. Buchner and Herberger, this resin is a compound substance, which consists of two resinous principles, one possessing in some degree the properties of an acid, and the other the properties of a base. The latter, which they have called euphorbin, is considered by them the true active principle of euphorbium.[[1405]] It will be mentioned under the head of Jalap, that they have taken the same view of the nature of other resinous poisons.
Orfila found that a large dog was killed in twenty-six hours and a half by half an ounce of powder of euphorbium introduced into the stomach, and retained there by a ligature on the gullet.