370 
WHOLESALE  LEAD  POISONING. 
i 
mill.  The  cow,  having  failed  in  milk,  was  sold  and  has  been  lost 
trace  of. 
I  could  fill  two  pages  of  your  paper  with  facts  which  I  have 
obtained  here  to-day  in  i  elation  to  this  peculiar  case  of  whole- 
sale poisoning.  I  am  informed  that  a  large  quantity  of  the 
poisoned  flour  has  been  sent  to  New  York  city  to  be  made  into 
starch.  If  it  has  been  made  into  that  article,  we  are  safe  ;  but 
if  speculators  have  placed  it  in  the  market  for  sale,  we  shall 
soon  see  the  effects.  At  any  rate,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  Board 
of  Health  to  take  some  steps  to  ascertain  if  that  flour  is  in  the 
market  now.  There  are  seven  cases  of  poisoning  by  this  flour 
in  New  York  city  to-day. 
Early  in  the  morning,  I  leave  for  the  mill  to  see  the  miller 
and  obtain  additional  facts  in  relation  to  this  sad  affair.  Scores 
of  men,  who,  a  few  weeks  ago,  were  in  the  full  enjoyment  of 
health  and  strength,  are  ruined  for  life,  and  totter  to  and  fro, 
their  faces  having  the  appearance  of  dry  parchment,  their  eyes 
sunken  and  encircled  by  a  dark  ring ;  their  lips  blue,  their 
muscles  contracted  and  their  limbs  distorted  ;  for  them  to  move  is 
intense  pain  ;  relapse  follows  relapse,  till,  in  time,  they  succumb 
to  the  effects  of  this  fearful  malady. — JV.  Y.  Tribune,  June  1st. 
There  is  no  question  but  that  Mr.  Marsh  was  entirely  ignorant 
of  the  poisonous  properties  of  lead,  and  supposed  that  because 
lead  in  its  metallic  form  -did  not  always  cause  injury,  that  it 
would  not  do  so  in  any  other  form.  He  was  not  aware  that 
lead,  after  being  subjected'  to  the  process  of  fermentation  and 
baking,  was  transformed  by  chemical  action  into  carbonate  of 
lead — a  deadly  poison.  All  may  be  thankful  that  the  lead  was 
taken  into  the  system  in  such  large  quantities,  for  it  was  that 
which  brought  on  the  vomitings,  and  threw  off  very  much  of  the 
poison  before  it  had  sufficient  time  to  act  with  its  full  and  fatal 
effect. 
Having  had  a  long  interview  with  Mr.  Marsh,  our  reporter 
drove  to  Goshen,  where  in  the  short  time  allotted  to  him  before 
the  starting  of  the  train,  he  conversed  with  several  persons  who 
were  acquainted  with  the  facts  stated,  and  all  add  their  weight 
of  testimony  to  that  already  furnished,  showing  conclusively 
that  over  300  persons  in  a  radius  of  about  20  miles  have  been 
