664 ARSENICAL AND LEAD PIGMENTS IN PAPER-HANGINGS. 
use of green papers be correct, and if they are really injurious, 
in the first place, I ought to be very ill, suffering from some 
of the effects of either lead or arsenical poisoning; and secondly, 
I ought (which would be a serious sacrifice) to get rid forth¬ 
with of the greater part of the furniture contained in the room 
which I habitually occupy. 
Again, since nearly &\\yeUoiv worsted and cotton goods are 
dyed with chromate of lead, theseought likewise to be discarded. 
It thus becomes evident that the subject possesses extensive 
bearings, sanitary and commercial; and it is therefore of ex¬ 
treme importance that the public, on the one hand, should 
know whether these pigments are injurious, and, on the 
other, that the manufacturer should likewise be thoroughly 
well informed on this point. 
I will now make a few’ remarks, which will serve to show 
whether, and under what circumstances, these green papers 
are injurious, and these remarks will apply equally to the 
papers coloured with either the arsenical or lead pigment. 
All green papers may be divided into the unsized, sized, 
and flock. In the first, the colouring matter is spread over 
the surface of the paper, and is not secured by a layer of 
varnish or size ; in the second, the attachment of the pigment 
is ensured by this coating; while the flock papers are thus 
made—the flock consists of a layer of dyed wool, the colouring 
matter being enclosed in the hairs of the wool forming the 
flock. 
Now, danger to health from the use of green papers can 
only arise in two ways, either by the volatilization of the 
poisonous pigments contained in them, or by their mechanical 
detachment and dispersion through the air of the room, when 
they fall on the eyes, or become inhaled. No apprehension 
need be entertained as to the first-named cause, for chromate 
of lead and arsenite of copper are not volatilised at ordinary 
temperatures. There remains, then, for consideration only 
the danger arising from the detachment of the poisons. It 
is obvious that this is greatest in the case of the unsized, and 
least in the flock papers—those, in fact, the use of which 
has of late been so strongly denounced—least in those, because 
the colouring matters are enclosed in the hairs of the wool, 
and for the further reason that these hairs are so strong and 
elastic that they are not easily broken and detached. In fact, 
these flock papers resemble precisely woollen and cotton goods 
dyed green or yellow 7 ; and if their use is to be condemned, 
then, as 1 have before remarked, so ought that of most other 
green and yellow articles of wearing apparel and furniture— 
a somew hat serious conclusion at which to arrive. 
