﻿6 THOMSON, Presence of Arsenic in the Body. 



considerable quantities of arsenic in the urine of persons 

 living in St. Helens, where glass manufacture is carried 

 on, because arsenic trioxide is used for stirring the molten 

 glass, by its vapour passing in bubbles through the molten 

 glass, and large quantities of it escape into the atmosphere. 

 I consequently communicated with Dr. Edward Casey, of 

 St. Helens, and he very kindly procured and sent to me 

 five samples, although he explained to me that the glass 

 works were not in operation at this time. The results 

 shew however that all the samples contain considerable 

 quantities of arsenic. See Plate I., Fig: 3. 



No. 1 was from a man, age 59, who had been "gassed" 

 by fumes from iron pyrites, the sample con- 

 tained 3-Joth of a grain per gallon. 



No. 2, age 37, surgeon, who lives near a glass works, 

 T Joth of a grain per gallon. 



No. 3, age 61, engaged at copper works. Never takes 

 beer, ^^th of a grain. 



No. 4, age 31, clerk, teetotaller, ^oth of a grain. 



No. 5, age 23, lives near glass and chemical works, 

 3^0 th of a grain. 



J then communicated with Dr. Ebenezer Davies, the 

 Medical Officer of Health of Swansea, where large metal- 

 lurgical operations are carried on and where presumably 

 considerable quantities of arsenic exist in the air. He and 

 his friend Dr. T. M. J. Powell very kindly obtained six 

 samples for me. The results from which are shewn in 

 Plate 1L, Fig. 1. 



No. 1, age 52, spelter furnace man. Mixture of this 

 with an equal volume of No. 6 gave T y^th of 

 a grain per gallon. 



No. 2, age 26, abstainer, ^j-th. 



No. 3, age 24, ^th. 



