Introduction
Venom of (probably) Lachesis mutus, surukuku (see Brit. Hom. Pharm., sub voce).
Provings.
1a. HERING. Effects of 1st and 2nd trits. 2nd symptoms felt during trituration: – A kind of ecstasy, as after sublime impression or excessive joy, throughout day, he constantly wishes to talk and do much, and even more seems to be at his command (3rd d.), – next day great exhaustion of mind and body; it seems to him during day that he had dreamed everything that happens, only somewhat different; great sensibility, soothing poetry moved him to immoderate weeping, was obliged to cry for joy (for a great many d.), – after much crying, pain above eyes; in evening, with physical laxity, sleepiness with inability to sleep, without sitting up he talks a great deal, wishes to tell stories, constantly goes form one thing to another, during this, however, he recollects himself and soon knows when he has mixed and distorted anything, he then corrects himself, but repeats same mistakes, – thus he is tormented half the evening (Ist d.); great inclination to be communicative, extraordinarily vivid imagination, therewith extremely impatient at tedious and dry things; the more cause for fretfulness, the greater inclination for humour, jest, satire, and humorous fancies; so great apprehension while riding in open air that it seemed to him some evil was impending, it torments him for more than an hours (after 3 to 4 hours); mistrustful and thinking evil; towards evening very unusual almost crazy jealousy, as foolish as it was irresistible (after 6 hours); violent scornful deed, without being vexed (Ist d); very remarkable and persistent indifference and forgetfulness; increased power of originality in all mental work, increased activity o fancy, scenes and occurrences throng to him in an unusual amount; no sooner does one idea occur to him than a number of others follow in quick succession while he is writing it down, so that he is unable to finish the record. vertigo while sitting after walking (2nd d.); rush of blood to head and vertigo after a satisfactory pasty stool (3rd d.); much rush of blood to head (3rd to 7th d.) Beating roaring, m. after walking, in right ear, in very frequent attacks, it disappears on shaking finger in ear, but soon returns, especially in evening (5th d.) Sudden fluent catarrh in evening, with much crawling in tip of nose, lachrymation, and pressure in inner canthi, of short duration (Ist d.) Itching in nose when eating (3rd and following d). Very peculiar scraping – burning feeling posteriorly on palate, immediately on breathing the dust while triturating; salivation while thinking about the sensation in throat; the mouth is watery, sometimes more, sometimes less, as if it came from stomach (Ist and 2nd d.). Pinching pain deep in throat, in small spot on right side of pharynx, not aggravated by swallowing, worse on pressure (after I hours), returning from time to time (1st d.), but worse in evening, when it also affects larynx; constant pain on empty swallowing, not on swallowing food, for a month; throat is very sensitive to external pressure (immediately and later, even for a month); throat and neck are so sensitive to the slightest external pressure that everything about throat is distressing, no position is comfortable. Little appetite (Ist d.), lasting a week; all appetite in m. has disappeared (7th and following d.); the usual hunger in m. fails, otherwise very well (4th d.); remarkably little desire for smoking immediately, and Ist day; all inclination to smoke disappeared in a great smoker, though without aversion to it, for a week; thirst for beer, with complete loss of appetite, in evening (Ist d.); increased desire for wine (but the wine produced less effect than usual, in one accustomed to it) (Ist week); heartburn in evening after smoking; nausea with eructations; sudden nausea, hiccough, gulping, and eructations, at last so severe as even to amount to vomiting of air, this increased to an excessive degree, and lasted for 1/2 hours, then relieved (after drinking tea in afternoon of 4th d.); pain in pit of stomach when pressing upon it, for over a week, with diminished appetite. In m., large quantities of loud flatus, through day frequent small quantities (4th and following d.); a fasting sensation, as if hollow, in abdomen at meal time, without appetite (Ist d.). Anus feels closed; spasmodic pains in anus internally, a short time before and after stool (6th d.); long – continuing smarting and burning, after usual stool (13th d.). Diarrhoea every evening for a week, preceded by transient pain in rectum, followed by beating as with a little hammer in anus; sudden diarrhoea, with great urging, about midnight, thin, pasty, excessively offensive, ammoniacal (Ist d.); pasty diarrhoea in m. (2nd d.); scanty, smooth, clay – like stool; blood is discharged while pressing after a very copious evacuation (11th and 12th d.); stool delayed from m. till evening, after pressing there was only a scanty, unsatisfactory evacuation (Ist d.); the stool constantly close to anus, but only flatus passes (3rd d.); no stool (1st d.), – delayed, occurring only after smoking, scanty and pasty (2nd d.). Frequent and increased urging and micturition, urine dark and frothy (3rd d.), afterwards same, only lighter coloured; dribbling micturition, a few m. after he was again obliged to pass small quantity, with much pressure (for a week). Very strong erections in forenoon (2nd d.); very much increased sexual desire, without amorousness, – when controlled, it caused great inclination for mental labour (2nd week); amorousness in m. on waking, with pain in loins and much bruised feeling (6th d.); amorousness after midday nap (4th d.); emission at n. (very unusual), with extraordinary voluptuousness. Secretion of mucus in larynx is diminished, while in nose and fauces it is increased (2nd and following days); larynx painful to touch (Ist d.); after midday nap trachea seems narrowed, no mucus can be loosened as usual (Ist d.); increased hoarseness while speaking, voice will not come because something in larynx prevents it, which cannot be hawked loose, though mucus is brought up, – lasting a long time, form 5th day; constantly obliged to take deep breath from time to time for several day, especially while sitting (3rd and following days); acts somewhat upon larynx, so that it is not only very sensitive, but it seems as though it would suffocate him, it also increased the pain in back of throat, in evening (Ist d.). For several day much impediment to deep breathing form time to time, especially while sitting (3rd and following d.). Pains in loins after midday nap. Acute tearing in bones of wrist, at intervals, on side of right little finger (2nd d.); the hands, which were bent by contraction of the tendons, began to pain if she attempted to sew; constant stitches, deep internally, as if in the bones and cartilages of wrist and metacarpus, also feeling as if something were crawling in them, renewed by paroxysms (3rd and following days). thighs and knees feel bruised in e,; swelling of feet following redness of them, with fever. Great exhaustion and weariness in evening, sleepiness, with inability to fall asleep (Ist d.); restlessness drives him into open air, he desires to accomplish much, and begins many things; very great inclination to lie down, sitting is almost intolerable (6th d.); feeling of weariness drives him to sleep early; feeling of faintness; feels bruised in m. after waking, also after midday nap; feels of very much bruised, with pains in his loins, between shoulders, and in spine, after sleep (6th d.); feels beaten whole day (Ist d.). Small red points here and there on fingers, which itch very much (4th d.); a warty elevation on back of left middle finger, after some day, following itching vesicles, if afterwards disappeared, leaving a scar; a small group of flat warts appeared on outer side of left thumb (9th d.), remaining for a year, many itching vesicles on outer margin of right hand, with voluptuous burning after scratching (during 2nd week); itching in several places between fingers, where, after scratching, hard, shiny elevation appear, followed by small vesicles, with burning and tension, often lasting a week; small itch – vesicles here and there on fingers (4th and following days); small ulcers on elbow; itching, especially on thighs (3rd day |); pain as if a pimple would form between outer canthus and temple, on 5th day, disappearing 6th day; itching in face about eyes and on checks, relieved after scratching, from m. till evening; violent itching, as though an insect had pierced the flesh, in a very small point on instep. While obliged to wait for dinner he was attacked by spasmodic yawning, became pale and faint, has to sit down quietly and eat something, when he felt better; sleepiness without being able to sleep; very sleepy in forenoon, after walking in open air, sleeps for some hours, during which he dreams constantly, it seemed as though the dreams had consisted solely of very important things, though everything was forgotten on waking, – he woke refreshed (2nd d.); one e, does not think of sleep, the next evening overpowering sleepiness; very wide awake before midnight (Ist d.); after going to bed sleepy he is unable to fall asleep, becomes wider awake (Ist d.); goes to bed early on account of weariness, legs and knees seem bruised, yet is quite unable to fall asleep because he cannot get into right position, everything seems to cause pressure in neck and throat (Ist d.); wakes very early in m. after falling asleep late the previous evening (Ist d.); constant dreaming at n., frequent waking, and again dozing and dreaming, but he feels well in m. (3rd and other days); many dreams, though he woke very early (5th d.); very unusually joyous, humorous dreams, or poetic dreams full of inventions, during midday nap; dreams every n. with reflection, only somewhat diminished after two weeks (7th d.); during day he for the first time remembers his dreams, it seems to him as though he had dreamed of everything that happened to him, and more also which for the time was forgotten (7th and following days); amorous dreams; lascivious, disgusting dreams whole n. (6 d). She was obliged to lie down whole day on account of feverish coldness without thirst, heat, or sweat, in evening some small pustules on elbow which had previously existed had matured (2nd day, repeated 3rd d.); shivering over back (Ist d.); an agreeable feeling of warmth in evening, neither internal heat nor only in the skin, but a feeling as after a cold bath or as after coition (Ist d.); palms of hands, soles of feet and abdomen are very hot while evening, with sleepiness without being able to sleep, fanciful imaginings, sensitiveness of throat, cannot endure bed – covers or night – shirt (Ist d.) 1b. On another occasion, – excited mood whole m. (2nd d.); in evening very wide awake and talkative, only somewhat checked by a very troublesome and persistent pressive – shooting pain hear point of right scapula, towards spine, deep in back, as of something were sticking in it, worse by paroxysms, obliging bending backward and also taking deep breath, not affected by breathing (this continued for a week, recurring specially after long sitting); pain in small spot in throat at side of larynx, but somewhat posteriorly; increased appetite, but after eating he was obliged to lie down; sneezing and fluent catarrh late in evening (2nd d.); stool pasty, every day somewhat later, so that, occurring at first in m., if after a while occurred in evening, and then again in m., and so on (5th and following days for a week); great sexual desire and amorousness (Ist d.); dreams constant and fatiguing, with frequent waking all through n., yet he awakes early, and rises refreshed (Ist d.).
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.