Forty of these reptiles arrived alive, and several were at once sacrificed to secure their venom glands. Each gland, resembling both in size and shape a shelled almond, contains about thirty drops of venom, and in this transparent limpid liquid is embodied a toxin of extraordinary strength. It was, of course, necessary in the first instance to ascertain, within as narrow a limit as possible, the exact degree of toxic power inherent in the venom, and to determine, if possible, the precise lethal dose in respect of each variety of animal experimented upon. A correct calculation of the quantity of venom required in every case was, however, found to be quite impossible, for so virulent is the poison that a single drop of an emulsion produced by pounding up eight glands in 300 grammes of distilled water is sufficient, when introduced into the vein of a rabbit's ear, to kill it in five minutes. All the mammals to which Calmette administered this cobra venom, such as monkeys, dogs, rabbits, guinea-pigs, rats, succumbed more or less quickly, according to the size of the dose. Small birds and pigeons die very rapidly, but the domestic fowl is more fortunate, being somewhat less susceptible. Frogs also fall a prey to the venom, but they are far more refractory than rabbits, for it takes thirty hours to kill a frog with a dose of venom which would infallibly destroy a rabbit in ten minutes. Toads, curiously, do not enjoy to the same extent this power of resisting its toxic action, for they die more quickly than frogs, whilst it makes short work of lizards and chameleons. Fish form no exception to the rule, and even invertebrates, such as leeches, are killed by minute traces of venom.