The following extracts, from a very interesting communication made by W. Boag, Esq. to the Asiatic Society, will set this matter in a proper form, and qualify any person to judge of the danger, from the several symptoms prevalent, in ordinary cases, when the venom takes effect. It may be proper to premise, that many who have been bitten by snakes of the worst description have not been affected; merely owing to the thickness of their cloathing, by which the noxious fluid has been absorbed.
Mr. Boag informs us, that ‘The symptoms which arise from the bite of a serpent, are, commonly, pain, swelling, and redness in the part bitten; great faintness, with sickness at stomach, and sometimes vomiting, succeed; the breath becomes short and laborious; the pulse low, quick, and interrupted: the wound, which was at first red, becomes livid, black, and gangrenous; the skin of the wounded limb, and sometimes of the whole body, assumes a yellowish hue; cold sweats and convulsions come on, and the patient sinks, sometimes in a few hours, but commonly at the end of two, three, or four days.
‘This is the usual progress when the disease terminates fatally; but, happily, the patient will most commonly recover; a reflection which should moderate the fears of those who happen to be bitten by snakes, and which, at any rate, should, as much as possible, be resisted; as the depressing passion of fear will, in all cases, assist the operation of the poison.
‘The volatile alkali is the remedy mostly employed by physicians, both in India and in Europe; but the belief which formerly prevailed, that it possessed some specific power, which corrected the poison, seems to be now very generally relinquished; and it is now acknowledged to have no other action than that ascribed to it by Mr. Williams, (of Benares,) of stimulating the vascular system to a more vigorous exertion.
‘The calces, or, as they are more properly called, the oxyds of some metals, as arsenic, mercury, and silver, have been made use of; the efficacy of which, as remedies in this disease, merit a more attentive consideration.
‘We are indebted to Fontaua for any knowledge we possess regarding the use of the lunar-caustic; which is a preparation of silver in the nitrous acid; and, considering the length of time that has elapsed since his publication, and the advantages resulting from its use, it is wonderful it has not excited more general attention.
‘He first mixed the venom with the lunar-caustic, applied this mixture to a wound, and found that the venom was rendered entirely innocent, while the corroding power of the caustic was diminished. He next wounded a variety of animals, with venomous teeth, scarified the wounds, and washed them with a solution of lunar-caustic in water: by this means, the lives of the greatest number of the animals were saved, though they were such as he knew to be most easily killed by the poison, and the death of others was retarded. He also tried a weak solution, of the same remedy, internally, with remarkable success, and, upon the whole, he congratulates himself in seeing his labors at length rewarded, by the discovery of a true specific remedy for the bites of serpents.
‘A ligature should, as soon as possible, be made above the part bitten, so as to impede, but not entirely to stop, the circulation of the blood; for the bite of a serpent is, for the most part, superficial, and the poison is carried into circulation by the smaller vessels on the surface; the wound should then be scarified, and washed in a solution (rather weak) of the lunar-caustic in water.’
Mr. Boag recommends a warm bath for the limb bitten, and thinks the addition of a small quantity of nitrous acid would produce excellent effects. He speaks of it only as a suggestion, and, where time may admit, and the means be at hand, there certainly ought to be a fair trial made of so promising a theory: the misfortune is, that, owing to the great heat of the climate, and the dread ever entertained of the result, all the symptoms proceed with rapidity. That gentleman speaks of several hours elapsing between the accident, and the fatal termination; but my own experience satisfies me, that not one in ten of those bitten during the hot months, and especially when at work, or heated with travelling, &c., survive more than one hour: I have, indeed, seen various cases, in which half that time was the utmost; and could adduce some instances of persons dying within the quarter of an hour.
Though snakes certainly, for the most part, endeavor to avoid the human race, they have been known to come very fiercely to the attack. No doubt, when this has happened, some previous irritation has occurred, or they have been pursued by the ichneumon; (i.e. the benjy, bissy, or neoule,) which is to be seen wild in every part of India, and may, at times, be found contending with snakes of great bulk. This active little animal, the natural enemy of all serpents, as well as of the smaller kinds of vermin, worries his opponent by incessant feints, as though he were about to seize its throat, and, in time, so fatigues, as to render it unable to resist with its primary celerity and caution. When the snake is in that state, the ichneumon rushes forward, and, by seizing its throat, or the back of its head, soon lays the envenomed reptile lifeless at its command. It sometimes happens that the ichneumon receives a bite, when he immediately relinquishes his object, and seeks among the neighbouring verdure for some root, of which he eats, and, after rolling himself in the soil, returns to the charge with unabated keenness. Should the snake have retired, the little quadruped speedily scents him out, and rarely fails to revenge himself for his past danger. What it is the animal has recourse to, never has been ascertained; of course, remains among our other important desiderata. The ichneumon is not only domesticated with facility, if obtained at an early age, but becomes extremely affectionate. Neither rats nor snakes will enter a house in which a tame ichneumon is retained, and allowed, as is usual, to range about at pleasure. The Saumpareahs, or snake-men, keep one, or more, for the purpose of exhibiting their feats in the attack of snakes.