(SO-CALLED) SNAKE-BITE. By Vincent Richards, Goalundo. On the night of the 12th September I was called to see a man named Hernloll, who was supposed to have been bitten by The Native Doctor a snake, about hnlf-an-hour previously. of the E. B. R. Co. had arrived before me, and applied an Esrnareh's elastic band as a ligature, and had incised, what he believed to be, the fang punctures. On arrival I found the man lying on a maichan, his right arm, which had been ligatured above the elbow, was tense and bleeding at the incised part. He was apparently drowsy and only partially sensible, but when told to protrude the tongue, did so in a hesitating manner: saliva was running from his mouth at intervals, but he could swallow perfectly well; he had entire command over the lips, and spoke in a low, whispering, nasal tone, but distinctly. His pulse was slightly accelerated, but the respiration was normal. The eyelids were generally kept quite closed, or when half open there was nictitation ; he could open and shut the lids it was evident. While making these observations the Native Doctor said, " He ia going to do something, he knows a little about snakes." The patient then flexed his thigh upon his abdomen and forcibly extended it, at the same time making a grunting noise, but he soon after became profoundly comatose ; no shouting could rouse him. I had all along suspected he was shamming, and I was now pretty well convinced of it. I, however, proceeded to enlarge the wound, and to examine the areolar tissue, which I found perfectly normal. The operation appeared to have a most revising A CASE OF

effect, for I had to

yell

I had

no sooner

commenced than the patient began

lustily, " Owr nahin baba! Owr nahin baba." quite satisfied myself that no snake-poison had been

most

now

injected into his arm. From this time he never shewed any signs of feeling unwell, and the next morning as I passed his hut smilingly made his salaam. Whatever this man's object may have been?whether for the mere purpose of exciting the sympathy of his friends, of whom there was a perfect crowd around, or to establish a reputation of being impervious to snake-poison?it is absolutely certain that he was shamming so far as the symptoms are concerned, hence they cannot be attributed to either fear or intoxication, and they are most emphatically not those of snake-poisoning. The voice was very suggestive; it at once reminded me of a police case" in which the unfortunate patient is "seriously injured," but exhibiting no marks of violence, and who immediately finds his senses and his legs when severe measures torevive him are suggested. In fact, there is not a single symptom that could deceive anyone possessing the slightest knowledge of snake-poisoning, though I have seen cases very much resembling this placed on record as cases of snake-poisoning. Thus it is that we hear of the thousand-and-one remedies for this utterly "

incurable disease.

A Case of (So-Called) Snake-Bite.

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