gering about
the house. We could not control ourselves from the elbows to the finger
tips, nor our legs from the knee to the ends of our toes. In other
words, we were drunk on mushrooms. The mushrooms grew within the shade
of Norway spruce and other ornamental trees on the lawn in front of our
house. They were pure white inside and out; smooth shiny tops that
easily peeled off. The caps were about two or three inches in diameter,
and had a stem of the same length. On the day before, my wife and a
friend ate some of these mushrooms raw and experienced no bad effects.
The next day at noon we ate them cooked in milk with a little butter,
and they were very good. About two o'clock our food did not seem to
digest well, and soon my daughter, sixteen years of age, vomited all her
dinner. Then my wife began to feel the effects, and took hot water
freely, sweet oil, currant wine, and at last an overdose of
tartar-emetic. Of course, she was the sickest of all. I was cool and
happy and amused at the situation, and drunk from my head down. I did
not vomit, and my mushrooms remained with me for at least 48 hours. I
took nothing but hot water and sweet oil. A friend of my daughter's of
her own age partook of the mess and had not a single bad symptom."

A physician from West Grove, Pennsylvania, writes: "I determined to risk
a test of the Amanita muscaria. Accordingly, two good-sized specimens
were steamed in butter. I ate one, and another member of my family ate
the other, feeling that the consequences could not be serious from so
small an amount. About an hour after eating, a sensation of nausea and
faintness was experienced in both cases, followed by nervous tingling,
some cold perspiration and accelerated and weakened action of the heart.
Considerable prostration ensued within two hours. Knowing that sulphate
of atropin has proved the most successful remedy for the active
principle of the Fly agaric, Amanita muscaria, a small dose,
one-sixtieth of a grain, was taken by each. Considerable relief was
experienced within 30 minutes, and all unpleasant symptoms had
disappeared within 6 hours, without repeating the medicine."

Another case, wherein the antagonism of atropin for muscarin was
demonstrated, was brought to our notice during the month of September of
the past year. An entire party of people were badly poisoned by eating
mushrooms, and, although a doctor was called in very late, most of them
were saved by the use of sulphate