9. A boy, aet. 8, took 1 gr. of sant. at intervals of 3 hours. After the 2nd dose he had trembling of limbs, slight convulsive twitching of facial muscles and fingers, inclination to vomit, yellow vision, delirium, quick pulse, urine orange coloured with a greenish hue. All symptoms gone after 8 – 10 hours. (GRIMM, Schweizer Zeitsch. f. Medorrhinum Chir. u. Geburtsh., 1852, 493.)
10. A delicate but healthy child, aet. 5.1/2, got six 1 gr. doses of sant. at intervals of 3 hours. After the 2nd dose at 7 p. m. restlessness, violent convulsions, trembling of whole body. Convulsions with trismus, general sweat, pale face, dilated pupils, quickened pulse and respiration. abdomen distended and tender to touch, inclination to vomit, loss of consciousness, orange urine discharged involuntarily. This state continued till 3 a. m.; exhausted, quiet. At 8 a. m. still unconscious, lying on back, will not answer. Face pale, eyes sunken, pupils dilated, pulse slow, weak. Two clysters were given, and he died. (Ibid.)
11. A child, aet. 3, healthy and strong, got from its mother in the course of 1/2 hour, 5 santonine lozenges. After 1/4 hour unwell, vomiting, convulsions, face blue-red, head hot, eyes convulsively distorted, pupils dilated, insensible to light, frothing at mouth, rattling respirations. After 2 hours the symptoms declined. In another hour consciousness returned, the spasm in jaws gave way, the child drank water. Slept a little at night next morning well. (LOHRMANN, Medorrhinum Wurtemb. Correspondenz., xxx, 3, 20.).
Experiments on animals
1. a. Frogs become so apathetic after large doses of santonine (over 10 centigrammes), that they remain on their backs when placed there, and after a time spasmodic movements of the trunk and limbs, spontaneous and from contact, occur.
1 b. In warm-blooded animals there is first a period of depression, but this is followed by excitement. The animal begins to tremble, it pricks up its ears and grinds its teeth. Spasms affect one side of its face, the eyes roll in their sockets, the head shakes, the neck stiffens, then the convulsions become general and invade the limbs and trunk. (BINZ, quoted by Labbee, Ioc. cit.).
2. Dr. Mann, under direction of Prof. Falk, made a series of experiments on dogs with sant. and natr. sant. His account chiefly refers to the chemical reactions of the medicine in the body. The only points interesting to us are these:- The effects of sant. on the brain and eye are the production of incoherency and chromatopsy. Convulsions usually precede death in poisoning by sant. (Deutsche Klinik, 1860, 27 and 28).
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.