8. A woman bitten in left foot just above heel. Vomiting commenced immediately, and within 15 m. there was pain in whole head; great anxiety and uneasiness; violent thirst and diarrhoea; oppression of chest, and violent burning pain in trunk, especially lower part, increased by touch. Violent burning pain in whole left leg, and great swelling; also above bandage tied above knee. The swelling spread over whole body, and not until some day afterwards had it begun to decrease, leaving marble-like green, yellow, and bluish spots.(DETWILLER, in HERING, op.cit.)
9. A woman stepping on her doorstep with bare foot on a rainy night in October, was bitten on great toe of right foot. She imagined she had been scratched by a young cat, so that terror and fear could not in this case have such influence as is usual in cases of snake-bite, and could not therefore increase the danger. Immediately she had walked five or six steps she fell down as if fainting. She had violent burning pain in leg of bitten side, and great swelling and burning sensation as far as this. after 5 morning there were violent pains in front part of head. After 10 morning violent vomiting of food (this lasted for several day, following each meal). After 1 hour there was dryness in throat, with violent thirst and red, watery, tearful eyes. After 8 hours, much oedematous swelling of whole body. After 10 hours whole head, and especially face, much swollen; also burning pains in trunk, lasting several day, with great sensibility, increased by touch. Great oppression of chest, with evident inflammation of lungs and of bowels. Great languor and delirium. After 10 hours swelling gradually decreased; marble-like green, yellow, and bluish spots remained, and only departed after entire disappearance of swelling. Swelling and discoloration extended to loins of bitten side. ( Ibid.)
10. PATRICK BURNE, a young man, was bitten near second joint of left index finger, about 6 a. m., on August 9th, 1851. When seen about 4 p. m. – 10 hour after bite – he was partially delirious; pulse very much exhausted, and ranging from 115 to 130; respiration difficult and hurried; skin hot and dry; eyes red and fiery; hand, arm, and should swollen to a great degree, and pain of limb almost insufferable. Bled, cupped, and pelletized; ammonia and ether internally. 10th. – No better; still delirious; pulse about same; had not slept any during night, and had suffered excruciating pain every moment; still nausea; no abatement of swelling of limb; arm, shoulder, and upper portion of left side were thickly covered with small blisters filled with fluid of yellowish colour. IN addition to former treatment, he had now whiskey ad libitum until system was under its influence. 11th. – Slight improvement was recognisable; pulse 100; swelling of arm and shoulder a little diminished; still delirious, anxious and uneasy and very restless, but dozes occasionally; sin still hot and dry. Same treatment continued, with the addition of some opium. 12th. – Really better; pulse less frequent; less restless, and but little pain; still delirious; occasionally slept a few morning. Same treatment continued, with addition of capsicum to whiskey, and administering it without regard to quantity until the patient was fully under its influence; with morphia when necessary. 13th. – Decided improvement; skin moist and quite natural; swelling of arm and shoulder subsided; delirium had ceased, and he talked rationally; and he speedily recovered his usual health. ( Boston Medorrhinum and Surg. Journ., vol. xlix, 506).
11. a. Mr. BRIENTAL, writing out his own case, says he was bitten or right hand, February 10th, 1746, and that he then ran to his quarters, sucking wound and spitting out saliva. This appeared to keep hand easy; but his tongue and lips became stiff and numb, as if they had been poisoned. The first thing done was to apply a fowl; its belly was ripped up and it was placed on the wound alive like a poultice, and there tied fast. This must have drawn out some of the venom, for the fowl immediately swelled up and grew black and stank. He kept elbow bent and fingers up; to keep poison from arm a band was tied round arm, and thus he walked about. There was not much pain or swelling up to midnight. About midnight hand grew cold and numb, and suddenly puffed up. He now grew desperate and furious, and slit up his fingers with a razor; this gave him some ease. he also slit up his hand on the back and cupped it, and drew cold and numb, and suddenly puffed up. He now grew desperate and furious, and slit up his fingers with a razor; this gave him some ease. He also slit up his hand on the back and cupped it, and drew out a quart or more of ugly poisonous slimy stuff. But his arm swelled notwithstanding all thy did; he then got it tied quite tight, that all communication with the body might be interrupted, and it became almost void of feeling; yet it worked, jumped, writhed, and twisted like a snake; changed colours and became spotted, and grew painful in the bone. His tongue and lips swelled the first night, but were not very painful; occasioned only, he supposed, by his sucking the wound. The swelling of the arm having diminished to about half, they untied the band; but in 2 hours all his right side was turned black, hough only a little swelled or painful. He bled at mouth soon after became feverish, and continued feverish and spitting blood for 4 day. The pain continued to rage in arm, and fever to be violent, and by turns he was delirious for an hour or two; this happened three or four times. After 9 days fever abated, and he began to mend, but his hand and arm were spotted like a snake, and continued so all summer. In autumn his arm swelled, gathered, and burst, and then away went poison, spots and all.
11 b. The most surprising and tormenting were his dreams; for in all sicknesses before if he could but sleep and dreams he was happy, being ever in some pleasant scenes of heaven and earth and air. But now, on the contrary, if he slept he was sure to dream of horrid places, and on earth only, and very often of rolling amongst old rocks; sometimes he was a white hawk cut into pieces, and frequently his feet would grow into two hickories. To find his sleeping hours so disturbed by the operation of the horrid poison, cast, as it were, a damp sheet over his waking thoughts. (Philosophical Transactions, ix, 229).
12. Mr. R-, aet.48, of vigorous constitution, was bitten, July 10th, by a small black rattlesnake, on second joint of left ring finger, Within 1/2 hour he drank a pint and a half of brandy; this produced only slight intoxication, though he was previously very little used to alcohol, and it passed off within a few hour 11th. – Hand and arm up to shoulder were greatly swollen, otherwise he appeared not much affected. He continued much the same for 4 days, with addition of some cerebral pain and malaise. 14th. – He complained of feeling of soreness in flesh of right hip, and on examination jet-black spot some in diameter was discovered, having an elevation or thickening of skin to extent of about a line, and having well – defined edges. During next 4 days this discoloration extended up to level of umbilicus, completely round body and down to extremities. During convalescence it disappeared gradually from above downwards, leaving toes last. With this strange discoloration, which was at all times jet black and solid (not spotted as is sometimes the case in these toxaemia), came on a great prostration, and death- like sickness, so great that syncope would occur on assuming the upright position. Result, recovery apparently without reactive inflammation. (J. S. RICHARDSON, M. D., Philad. Medorrhinum Times, i, 306).
13. DANIEL STEEL, bitten below and on metacarpal joint of left index finger about 4 p. m., September 13th, 1835. Blood flowed immediately from both fang punctures, and parts in immediate vicinity became tumid and livid, notwithstanding his efforts at suction with mouth, which, however, faintness obliged him soon to relinquish. Within first 1/ 2 hour fainted several times, and became very pale, and whole back of hand had become puffy and tumid with effused blood in cellular tissue, and forearm had begun to swell. Flow of blood continued profuse, blood appearing to have no disposition to coagulate. Faintness was extreme. After 5 hours, haemorrhage continuing extensive, he appeared to be dying. Tumefaction had extended up to arm, inner and inferior portions of which were discolored by the effused blood. He vomited incessantly, and complained of unsuitable thirst, drinking cold water every few morning. He had pain and stricture at lower part of chest or pit of stomach; great restlessness and anxiety; cold skin, except on wounded arm; arm was very painful. In addition there existed delirium, singultus, and difficult breathing. Pulse was scarcely perceptible. Back of hand was blackish and more swollen, and skin of forearm hot and tense. The haemorrhage appeared to be endangering life. By next morning pulse was improved; thirst and irritability of stomach allayed, and reaction appeared to have set in; but tumefaction had extended to shoulder, with blue – black streaks up to axilla, and there still existed constriction of chest and great local pain. Swelling of hand and haemorrhage were diminished. These symptoms gradually subsided during day, but still he had a tendency to sinking, and the system appeared to have to struggle with the poison. On 3rd day reaction appeared to be more established; but, notwithstanding careful nursing, suppuration supervened, and the patient was unable to leave his bed for about a week. ( Lancet, 1835-6, ii, 574.)
Hughes was a great writer and a scholar. He actively cooperated with Dr. T.F. Allen to compile his 'Encyclopedia' and rendered immeasurable aid to Dr. Dudgeon in translating Hahnemann's 'Materia Medica Pura' into English. In 1889 he was appointed an Editor of the 'British Homoeopathic Journal' and continued in that capacity until his demise. In 1876, Dr. Hughes was appointed as the Permanent Secretary of the Organization of the International Congress of Homoeopathy Physicians in Philadelphia. He also presided over the International Congress in London.