428 
Editorial. 
f  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
\       Aug.,  1877. 
Editor  A}nerican  Journal  Pharmacy  : 
In  the  light  of  the  recent  terrible  explosion  occurring  in  our  city  and  resulting  in  the  loss  of  two  lives 
through  the  ignorance  of  the  inflammable  nature  of  benzin,  is  it  not  well  in  the  common  interest  of 
humanity  that  the  attention  of  the  drug  trade  should  be  called  to  the  precautions  to  be  observed  in  dis- 
pensing this  substance  in  common  with  all  other  light  hydrocarbons?  Not  to  dwell  too  long  on  the  case 
in  point,  the  facts  are  these  :  A  gentleman  living  in  the  upper  section  of  our  city  purchased  five  gallons 
of  benzin,  and  taking  it  home,  emptied  it  into  a  watering  pot,  such  as  is  used  for  horticultural  purposes, 
and  carefully  (?)  sprinkled  the  carpets,  furniture,  etc  ,  of  the  parlor,  the  object  being  to  prevent  or  destroy 
the  moth.i  Can  we  conceive  of  anything  more  hazardous  ?  A  draft  of  air  carrying  the  vapor  of  the 
volatile  liquid  through  the  doorways  left  open  by  the  servant,  communicated  it  with  the  fire  of  the 
kitchen,  and  the  result  is  the  death  of  two  persons  in  the  most  intense  agony.  It  is  obviously  a  case 
of  "  no  one  to  blame." 
Let  it  not  be  thought  that  this  is  an  exception.  A  few  weeks  ago  we  remember  a  similar  accident  in 
a  neighboring  city,  where  several  gallons  of  this  liquid  was  sprinkled  about  the  room  by  gas  light. 
Need  we  chronicle  the  result,  or  say  that  the  woman  whose  interest  in  the  ravages  of  the  pestilent  moth, 
occasioned  her  death,  should  have  been  more  careful  !  Let  any  one  of  our  pharmacists  inquire  of  his 
friends  and  acquaintances,  or  his  customers,  and  he  will  be  astounded  at  the  prevalence  of  this  custom, 
and  the  small  number  of  accidents,  considering  the  most  utter  indifference  to  and  ignorance  of  the 
inflammab'e  and  explosive  character  of  benzin,  naphtha  and  similar  liquids. 
If  there  is  a  remedy  for  this,  it  becomes  us,  as  professional  men,  conservators  of  the  public  health,  as  in 
a  measure  we  are,  to  provide  it ;  and  we  would  therefore  strongly  suggest  that  whenever  a  liquid  of  this 
nature  is  dispensed  or  sold,  a  label  shall  invariably  accompany  it,  printed  in  plain,  bold  type,  warning 
all  purchasers  distinctly  and  imperatively  0/  the  danger  incident  to  its  use. 
We  may  in  this  connection  note  a  practice  becoming  very  prevalent  of  late,  which  is  that  of  young 
women  purchasing  a  pint  or  more  of  benzin  or  naphtha  for  the  purpose  of  cleaning  kid  gloves.  We  may 
add  that  this  practice  is  more  frequent  among  the  poorer  classes,  and  that  their  custom  is,  of  necessity, 
very  generally  to  do  work  of  this  kind  in  the  evenings  after  their  return  from  their  daily  employment. 
How  many  poor  girls  passing  unscathed  through  the  mills  and  factories  and  laboratories  covet  death 
innocently  and  ignorantly  through  the  necessity  of  "  making  both  ends  meet "  on  a  starvation  salary,  we 
can  never  know  ;  but  we  repeat  that  it  is  only  our  duty — nothing  more  nor  less — that  we  should  guard 
them  and  the  public  in  so  far  as  possible  against  the  occurrence  of  similar  accidents. 
Since  writing  the  above  we  have  heard  of  a  case  illustrating  the  same,  which,  not  to  trespass  longer 
than  the  importance  of  the  subject  deserves,  we  will  narrate  :  A  young  woman  employed  in  an  Eighth 
street  store  was  a  few  evenings  since  cleaning  her  gloves  with  naphtha,  by  gas  light.  Having  them  on 
her  hands,  the  naphtha  caught  fire,  and  the  result  was  that  her  hands  were  so  severely  burned  as  to  pre- 
clude the  use  of  them  for  several  weeks,  with  a  possibility  of  crippling  them  for  life.  Do  we  need  more 
warning?  Rich.  V.  Mattison. 
Philadelphia,  June  9,  1877. 
The  sale  of  arsenic  is  restricted  in  most  States  in  the  Union,  only  in  so  far  as  it 
must  be  made  to  known  adults,  and  properly  registered  in  the  poison  book ;  if  the 
package  is  also  labeled  with  the  name  of  the  article  and  the  word  "  poison,"  the 
legal  responsibility  of  the  dealer  ceases.  Recently  a  case  of  fatal  poisoning 
occurred  in  this  city,  a  young  lady  taking  a  quantity  of  arsenic  instead  of  magnesia, 
which  was  done  up  in  a  similar  paper  and  properly  labeled.  Although  such  cases 
of  carelessness  are  of  rare  occurrence,  yet  even  these  might  be  avoided  if  the  arsenic 
was  colored,  so  that  it  could  not  be  mistaken  for  sugar  or  other  harmless  substances. 
The  custom  of  many  pharmacists  to  add  to  rat's  bane  a  small  quantity  of  charcoal 
is  a  good  one,  but  a  more  striking  color  is  produced  by  the  addition  to  arsenic  of 
one  per  cent,  each  of  ferrous  sulphate  and  potassium  ferrocyanide,  both  in  the  state 
of  fine  powder,  as  recommended  in  our  last  volume,  page  217. 
1  At  the  Coroner's  investigation  it  was  testified  that  the  benzin  was  purchased  at  the  store  of  a  dealer 
in  spirits  aud  oils  (not  from  a  druggist),  and  that  the  can  was  labeled  parlor  oil,  non-explosive.  The 
jury  appended  to  their  verdict  a  "  desire  to  call  the  attention  of  the  proper  authorities  to  the  sale  of  the 
dangerous  explosive  which  is  sold  as  safe  and  harmless ;"  but  they  did  not  state  whether  they  considered 
anybody  to  blame. — Editor. 
