Something a Little Unusual Summary and Analysis

On a tobacco farm in Tennessee lived the owners, Mr. and Mrs. Mason and their relatives and co-workers, Mr and Mrs. Smart and their son. In October, 1963, they sat down to a noon meal as usual. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Mason and Mrs. Smart became quite ill, an episode characterized by impaired vision, dizziness, nausea, and hallucinations. By the time all five reached the hospital, Mrs. Mason, Mr. Smart, and the Smarts' son were also exhibiting symptoms, but at a far less severe level. Botulism, the initial diagnosis, was ruled out, when one of the men mentioned something about eating Jimson weed. Originating in Asia, this plant is a distant cousin to the tomato, but all parts of it contain a poisonous alkaloid called hycosamine. It is believed to have been introduced to America by European...