74 THE CONNECTICUT AGRICULTURAL 



POISONS. 



Poison Mittens. 



A leather mitten believed to have caused a painful eruption on 

 the wrist and arm of the wearer, was sent to the Station from Dr. 

 J. R. Sanford, of West Cornwall, through Dr. C, W. Chamberlain, 

 Secretary of the State Board of Health. The back of the mitten 

 was apparently sheepskin, dressed with the wool on, the wool was 

 mostly dyed black, but numbers of the fibers were yellow, as if a 

 yellow die had been first applied and afterwards a black. The 

 palm of the mitten was lined with similar skin with the wool dyed 

 yellow. The yellow dye is readily dissolved to some extent, both 

 from the yellow and black wool-lining, by warm water, and is 

 more freely taken up by dilute alkalies and acids. A careful 

 examination makes very probable that the yellow dye is Martius' 

 Yellow (Dinitronaplitol) a coal-tar product that is known to have 

 an irritating action on the skin. 



Cattle Poisoned by Blue ok Meroueial Ointment. 



A resident of this State has brought the following interesting- 

 case to the notice of the Station : 



In Decembei', 1880, the owner of some 30 head of cattle applied 

 "blue ointment" to his animals for the destruction of lice. The 

 ointment was purchased of a druggist and was mixed, melted and 

 well worked together with more than an equal weight of unsalted 

 lard or tallow. The diluted ointment was applied with the fingers 

 to places least liable to be reached with the tongue and but once 

 to each animal. The application was made by the proprietor him- 

 self who had in previous years repeatedly used blue ointment of 

 full strength and without any bad results. The animals were, 

 with exception of two milch cows, store cattle, steers and heifers 

 coming 2 years old. Some of the heifers were with calf. 



Seventeen head (Durham grades and common stock, except 

 two Jersey grades^ were to all appearance uninjured by the 

 application. Thirteen animals, including eight Jersey grades, 

 were more or less seriously afi:ected in consequence of using the 

 ointment. 



