162 



THE OOLOGIST. 



ted two perfectly fresh eggs. They are of 

 a creamy-white ground color, marked 

 With confluent blotches of light reddish 

 brown. These eggs are the same size 

 at both ends. ' 



The other nest we found May 31st. 

 It was situated very near the first, and, 

 like it, was near the top of the pine tree 

 where two limbs branched off from the 

 body. 



It was similar to the first except in 

 being a little deeper, and in having a 

 slight lining of pine bark scales and a 

 few feathers. This nest contained five 

 eggs, incubation just begun. These 

 differ from the others in being decided- 

 ly pointed at one end, and in being very 

 much lighter, the markings being hard- 

 ly darker than ash-color, on an ashy- 

 white ground. 



The female bird was very bold. While 

 we were both up the tree packing the 

 eggs she flew over us so close that J 

 could have reached her with my hand, 

 one of her wings actually striking my 

 companion on the shoulder. After we 

 had descended, he succeeded in shoot- 

 ing both the birds with his rifle. 



We were particularly struck with the 

 difference in size they exhibited. 

 Harold B. Stabler, 

 Sandj- Spring, Maryland. 



Danger in Using Arsenical Soap. 



As several cases (one fatal) of poison- 

 ing by arsenical soap have come to my 

 notice, I think a few words on its dan- 

 gerous properties might not be amiss. 



The common white arsenic of com- 

 merce (Oxide of Arsenic) when mixed 

 with some animal matter as the fat in 

 soap, fat skins, or any other albumenoid 

 substance, forms one of the most, if not 

 the most dangerous poisons known, the 

 Ptomaine of Arsenic, as follows: 



All flesh and fats after a short expos - 

 eure to air begin to decay, one of the 

 products of decay is a cadaveric alka- 

 loid, called a Ptomaine, the decay suffi- 



cient to form Ptomaine might not be 

 noticable. 



Now when you make Arsenical soap 

 you probably take some cheap soap 

 that has been made out of half putrid 

 fat, mix your Arsenic with it and cork 

 it up, now this corking up 

 seems to favor the formation of the 

 Ptomaine, or keep it from evaporating, 

 as it has always been noticed that mat - 

 ter that has been exposed to the air and 

 then closed up contains more Ptomaine 

 than those just exposed to the air. 



This Ptomaine as soon as it forms 

 unites with the arsenic and forms Pto- 

 maine of Arsenic. 



The poisonous qualities of arsenic 

 and the Ptomaine of Arsenic might be 

 compared tol and 100, besides which 

 the following must be considered, that 

 there is no antidote for the Ptomaine, 

 while Per-Oxide of Iron, or iron rust is 

 one for arsenic, that it is voltile and 

 can be inhaled, while arsenic is not; 

 that it can be absorbed through the 

 pores, while the little arsenic it would 

 be possible to absorbe would act only 

 as a tonic, while the Ptomaine acts 

 only as a verulent septic poison in all 

 cases; that the lye in the soap favors 

 the entrance of the poison by softening 

 and more or less removing the epider- 

 mis of the skin. 



Many taxidermists have remarked the 

 effects of arsenical soap. I find the 

 following by Maynard: 



"It is a fact to which I can bear pain- 

 ful testimony that they are, especially 

 when applied to greasy skins, poisonous 

 to the extreme. I have been so badly 

 poisoned when working on the skins of 

 some fat water birds that had beeu pre- 

 pared with arsenical soap as to be ser- 

 iously ill." 



Cones' also makes remarks to the 

 same effect. 



It is not necessary to injure you to 

 take enough of the Ptomaine to kill 

 you, as a small might produce much 

 trouble not easily accounted for. 



