IO 



SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



[July 6, I? 



sistof cubical or polyhedral cells filled with protoplasmic 1 

 matter of a solid or semi-fluid nature, and containing large 

 nuclei which may be rendered more evident by staining 

 with carmine. This is the most active part of the whole 

 structure, and must be considered the beginning of the 

 shoot rather than the end of it, as it is derived from the 

 fertilized oosphere or single cell in the ovule of the 

 mother-plant which gave rise to the present generation, 

 and from its simple and but slightly differentiated con- 

 dition has been formed all the complex structures of stem, 

 leaf, and flower, its great activity being kept up by a 

 continuous supply of nutriment from other parts of the 

 plant. By way of illustration it may be mentioned that 

 a similar mass of tissue is found close to the tip of every 

 growing root and root-filfe, but here of course there is 



(To be continued.) 



POISONOUS DYESTUFFS. 



A RECENT occurrence in Lyons has confirmed MM. 

 "^ Arloing and Cazeneuve's conclusions respecting the 

 poisonous character of some aniline dyes and the harm- 

 lessness of others. Almost an epidemic happened last 

 November with female spoolers working a particular 

 yellow cotton yarn used for gold lace making. Dr. Carry, 

 of the Lyons Medical Society, who was the first to notice 

 the accidents, on being called to attend a spooler, found 

 the patient suffering from a complication of obscure com- 

 plaints. The most apparent symtoms were weakness, 

 dyspepsia, and vomitings, coupled with a bluish-grey 

 colouration of the gums, extending to the inside of the lips. 

 As the yarn on winding emitted a considerable amount 

 of yellow dust, and other working girls were similarly 

 affected, the physician was soon on the right scent. He 

 found that, while the accidents were caused by the dye, 

 some yellows were very poisonous, others less so, and 

 some quite harmless. One sort, giving out much dust, 

 was so dangerous that one working girl had lost, within 

 a short time, two canaries and one cat. The bird's cage 

 hung near her machine, and the cat had probably 

 swallowed the deadly dust with her food. 



Next it was found that in a shop, where many girls 

 were employed, no accidents were noticed last summer 

 while the windows could be kept open, but the trouble 

 began in November and December, when they had to be 

 closed. With the new patients Dr. Carry had full 

 opportunity to observe all the symptoms. Besides those 

 already mentioned, which mostly relate to the digestive 

 functions, others pertaining to the nervous system were 

 noticed, such as persistent cephalalgia, insomnia, and an 

 analgesis of the skin so complete that pin pricks could not 

 be felt. At the same time the circulation was normal, 

 there was no fever, and no albuminuria. 



Some twelve or fifteen women were under treatment 

 for the same complaint, and the recovery was in all cases 

 very slow. But the accidents were too evidently caused 

 by some poison to be thus dismissed without further 

 investigation. Lead, the first that suggested itself, was 

 looked for by a Lyons pharmacist, but proved absent. 

 Three different specimens of dust were next given for 

 thorough analysis to a specialist — Frofessor Pouchot, of 

 the Martiniere school, who confirmed the absence of lead, 

 but found traces of antimony used as a mordant. 



The first specimen, the most poisonous, was found to 

 have been dyed with sodium binitronaphthol, generally 

 known in trade as Martius yellow ; the second, less 

 poisonous, with Poirier's light binitronaphthol ; and the 



third, quite harmless, with the sodium salt of binitronaph- 

 thol sulphonic acid. Experiments on animals confirmed 

 the chemist's report. Dr. Carry did not feel justified in 

 concluding that goods thus dyed are dangerous to the 

 wearers, but they are certainly to the weavers ; and since 

 yellows, equally good but harmless, can be obtained at 

 a slightly higher cost, he thought the poisonous dyestuffs 

 should be prohibited, or such ventilation enforced as to 

 protect the working people from the dangerous dust. — 

 Therapeutic Gazette. 



THE CULTIVATION OF THE OSIER. 



WITH reference to the judicious proposal of Mr. 

 Mattieu Williams that the waste lands of this- 

 coun^ry should be re-forested, we lay before our readers 

 some remarks on the cultivation of the osier in France, 

 which have appeared in the Echo Forestier and in La 

 Nature. The case is stronger in England than in France,, 

 for whilst France already exports osiers to a very con- 

 siderable extent, both to Britain and to America, we do 

 not produce sufficient for our own consumption. 



There are in Europe not fewer than one hundred 

 species of willows. Each of these species is well 

 characterised from a botanical point of view, but for in- 

 dustrial purposes they may be divided into two 

 sections, the respective types of which are the true osier 

 (Salix viminalis) and the goat-willow (Salix caprea), the 

 '• Saule marceau " of the French. Both classes have a 

 high importance in the art of basket-making, which is 

 now a pursuit of importance. The coarse or brittle 

 osier (Salix fragilis), sometimes known as the " crack 

 willow," is grown to a great extent in France. It is 

 planted along the streams and on the margins of marshy 

 fields, and it is cut in pollards. The young shoots are 

 reaped every year, and used for common baskets and 

 hampers. Of this kind, as already intimated, France 

 exports a large quantity. But of the fine osier used in 

 ornamental basket-work, France does not produce suffi- 

 cient for her home consumption, and imports it in large 

 quantities from Germany and Italy. 



We import this kind not so much in the twig as in 

 the shape of manufactured articles. Now, there is cer- 

 tainly no good reason why the osier should not both be 

 grown and worked up at home. Our climate is certainly 

 not less favourable to its growth than that of any Conti- 

 nental country. It does not require great heat, but 

 plenty of moisture, both in the soil and in the air. 



The osier is a tall shrub, with upright long stems 

 and very flexible branches of a greenish-grey colour, 

 less commonly yellow. It prospers in soils which are 

 too wet or too poor for most other crops, and it might, 

 we think, be very appropriately planted to take up the 

 moisture of sewage-irrigation fields. We have seen it, 

 in fact, planted for this purpose at Leyton, where it 

 seemed very flourishing. It grows rapidly, requires 

 little attention, and by the third year (thirty-six 

 months from the date of planting) it gives a net return, in 

 the most suitable situations, of from ^16 to ^20 per 

 acre; in soils of medium quality of £13 to ^15 ; and in 

 the worst and least suitable localities, £8 to ^10. An 

 osier bed, with due care, will continue productive for 

 twenty-five to thirty years. 



The expense of planting an osier bed may be as much 

 as fy or ,£10, and the annual cost £2 to ^3 per acre. But 

 it must be remembered that the land is generally suited 

 for no other purpose, and is therefore, for the most part, 

 lying waste. 



