In the neighbourhood of the Apoure, in Venezuela, a poisonous shrub
abounds--the deadly guachamaca--belonging to the family of Apocinese, or
dog-bane. The natives make a strong decoction from it, into which they
dip a number of small fish, and spread them about in the neighbourhood
of lagoons frequented by cranes, herons, and other aquatic birds, hiding
themselves near at hand. Before the bird has fairly swallowed the fish
it drops dead, when the hunter, cutting off the head and neck, carries
off the body as his prize. It is said that when meat has been roasted
on spits made of this wood, it has absorbed sufficient poison to destroy
all who ate it.