HYDROCARBONS. 
§ 150 - 152 .] 
141 
cause there have been rather frequent toxic symptoms among the workmen. Eulen- 
berg 1 describes the symptoms as follows :—A person, after breathing an overdose 
of the vapour, becomes very pale, the bps are livid, the respiration slow, the heart’s 
action weak and scarcely to be felt. If he does not immediately go into the open 
air away from the poisonous vapour, these symptoms may pass on to insensibility, 
convulsions, and death. It often occasions a condition of the voluntary muscles 
similar to that induced by drunkenness, and on recovery the patient is troubled 
by singing in the ears and noises in the head. The smell and taste of the poison 
may remain for a long time. 
§ 150. Poisoning by taking light petroleum into the stomach is not common. In 
a case recorded by Taylor , 2 a woman, for the purpose of suicide, swallowed a pint 
of petroleum. There followed a slight pain in the stomach, and a little febrile dis¬ 
turbance, and a powerful smell of petroleum remained about the body for six days ; 
but she completely recovered. In August 1870 a sea-captain drank a quantity of 
paraffin, that is, lighting petroleum, and died in a few hours in an unconscious state. 
A child, 2 years old, was brought to King’s College Hospital within ten minutes 
after taking a teaspoonful of paraffin. It was semi-comatose and pale, with con¬ 
tracted pupils ; there was no vomiting or purging. Emetics of sulphate of zinc were 
administered, and the child recovered in twenty-four hours. In another case treated 
at the same hospital, a child had swallowed an unknown quantity of paraffin. It 
fell into a comatose state, which simulated tubercular meningitis, and lasted for 
nearly three weeks . 3 In a case recorded by Mr Robert Smith , 4 a child, 4 years of 
age, had swallowed an unknown quantity of paraffin. A few minutes afterwards 
the symptoms commenced ; they were those of suffocation, with a constant cough ; 
there was no expectoration ; the tongue, gums, and cheeks were blanched and 
swollen where the fluid touched them ; recovery followed. A woman, aged 32, 
who had taken a quarter of a pint of paraffin, was found unconscious and very cold ; 
the stomach-pump was used, and she recovered . 5 Hence it is tolerably certain, from 
the above instances, that should a case of petroleum poisoning occur, the expert will 
not have to deal with infinitesimal quantities ; but while the odour of the oil will 
probably be distinctly perceptible, there will be also a sufficient amount obtained 
either from matters vomited, or the contents of the stomach, etc., so that no diffi¬ 
culty will be experienced in identifying it. 
§ 151. In order to separate petroleum from any liquid, the substances under 
examination must be carefully distilled in the manner recommended under “ Ether” 
The lighter petroleums will distil by the aid of a water-bath ; but the heavier require 
a stronger heat; redistillation of the distillate may be necessary. The odour of the 
liquid, its inflammable character, and its other properties, will bo sufficient for 
identification. 
2. COAL-TAR-NAPHTHA—BENZENE. 
§ 152. Coal-tar-naphtha, in its crude state, is an extremely complex liquid, of a 
most disagreeable smell. Much benzene (C 6 H 6 ) is present with higher homologues of 
the benzene series. Toluene (C 7 H 8 ), naphthalene (C 10 H 8 ), hydrocarbons of the 
paraffin series, especially hexane (C„H 14 ), and hydrocarbons of the olefin series, especi¬ 
ally pentylene, hexylene, and heptylene (C 6 H 10 , C 6 H 12 , and C 7 H 14 ). Besides these, 
there are nitrogenised bases, such as aniline, picoline, and pyridine ; phenols, especi¬ 
ally carbolic acid ; ammonia, ammonium sulphide, carbon disulphide, and probably 
other sulphur compounds ; acetylene and ace to-nitrile. By distillation and fractional 
distillation are produced what are technically known as “ once run ” naphtha, 90 per 
cent, benzol, 50 and 90 per cent, benzol , 6 30 per cent, benzol, solvent naphtha, and residue 
known as “ last runnings .” 
1 Op. cit. 2 Poisons, p. 656. 
3 Brit. Med. Journ., Sept. 16, 1876, p. 365. 4 Ibid., Oct. 14, 1876. 
5 Pharm. Journ., Feb. 12, 1875 ; also for other cases seo Brit. Med. Journ., Nov. 4, 
1876 ; and Kohler’s Physiol. Therap., p. 437. 
6 Or 50/90 benzol: this indicates that 50 per cent, distils over below 100°; and 
40, making in all 90, below 120°. 
