POISONS IN THE HOME.

Hokitika Guardian, 6 March 1926, Page 4

POISONS IN THE HOME.

Ai.ENTS ui- IH. AT; i iX r.Y 111! Y i A .Mil.'. 'i'oanks m the new lav which name into toree. recently t-,ay- to. i. eat hereout. C.1J.t... ami president of l in..- Pharmaceutical -Society of Great Britain) no preparation lonlaining poison may i;-* sold by a chemist unless its contents are clearly stated on the label. This is a usetui measure, but it will not be suHicienl t(. salcguard ihe ptihlie entirely against the perils ol I gnnra lice and carelessness. According to the Registrar-General s annual rejjorls. tile yearly expectation ol deaths in Great Britain from poisoning (through misadventure, negligence, i.r intent) is about I ,(!0(l. That more fatal accidents, .suicides, and murders by poison do not occur is regarded as almost miraculous by those who know the appalling ignorance, carelessness; and negligence of the ordinary user id poisonous substances and the conditions under which certain poisons are stored and employed. As the annual returns give only the deaths. tl:e fatal accidents alone are specified, anti no account is taken of mishaps and injuries not immediately fatal. A inuuient's relh-etioa will convince any thinking peisuu tmu these accidents must rcacn The II dial .1 gents of death ate eat belie a: id (im lulling lys >1 and .similar disiid is fa u I - i : mineral or corrosive acids Is|■i i; s oi -alt), omi i mil. .it : i -1. and nitre- acid) ; cyanide ol pota-num. arsenic, and lariulis kinds of vermin killers. At, least lenly-liic )>• • r cent ol tint fatal accidents and ahold tody pi r cent . f H." suicide’s are credited to catholic acid and disinteet ing liuids containing varying proportions of tile same relative chemical structure. Lysol. a vahtab.le antiseptic. eontsiiuing fitly per ecu l "I eresols. appears to In a favourite with the careless and with the despairing. The explanation is not Ini 10.-. ok, lor almost -■very In.usehold in the kingdom contains a bottle ol i ... , I H e num roils brands of disinfectant. deodorant, or germicidal fluids on the market. If. ellietive for the purposes for which they are sold, all of the u are t indent poisons inpabTo ui causing an agonising death. dancer to children. The handiness ol this material is favourable alike to mishaps and to desperate resolves, and it may lie added t ton tin- - entaiuco s ol - one of tlisee lupin! disinfectants are not too distinctive in their shape and character, lienee the danger to imptisitive children and careless adults. -Spirits of salt and oilier mineral acids are largely used in industry as well as in many domestic operations, ranging from cleansing lavatory fillings to maintaining the etlieieney el the accumulator batteries of a wireless set. Several members ol Barliametd and public ((.rollers lime, on tnor-- ihnu one occasion, called attention I > the indiscriminate sale of poisons, specially mentioning; spirits of salt. Ox,-die acid, auoiher popular cleanser. with its near ile.-miial relali'.e. '• salts of lemon,'' lakes a fair 101 l of lives eat It year. Possibly some c-t the

aecidi-nts due to " sails of lemon,” result from its very misleading name. There is a well known story that when a chemist asked a woman customer why sin- wanted "salts of lemon.'' she replied : " To llavour cakes " I

('vanills? uT potassium is a cb largely used in photography. ai:<l jiiisjileiirs seem In possess a peculiar loudness |'or this poison. In the hands of an enthusiastic. unsuspecting schoolboy, making :i lirst attempt in the ml of pnidiii'iiuj; pis turcs. the intsocciitInuking lillie white slicks ■ f cyanide lies'une a source of iv-.-sihit? calamity t" himself ami I n oi hers. The camera provides a laudable hobby. hut tlinse who follow it should avoid the processes which introduce into the Imme such ham-lul chemicals as cyanide. It is safer to let your local chemist deal with all dangerous photographic soluI ims. PKHII.S KIIDM VKIiMIX KfI.I.KHS. Arsenic requires almost a volume In itself. It is probably the widest-used jioisuii in industry, in agriculture, and in art. Peril lurks in the possession of this practically indestructible p.iisoit as tt part: of garden e(|tiipinent. ("Hie could quote numerous instances of the homo tragedies wrought by arsenical weed-killer (luring the last few years. At one time a chemical fly-paper containing arsenic was largely sold and used in the home. These pointed the means for the murders commit ted by .Mrs Mayhriek and by SVddon. ami in each cit.se the murderer thought to escape detection owing to no record of the poison being in existence. Arsenleal fly-papers are still obtainable, though other means of fly destruction are available !

Mention of vermin killers leads one to phosphorus. .Many of the preparations designed to rid the home of rodents are [tastes containing free phosphorus, and it must not be forgotten that vermin killers can be purchased by anyone from provision dealers and from oilmen. Strychnine forms one of the ingredients of some vermin killers. lit the Poisons and Pharmacy Act of IHOjL a fourth schedule teas provided ot what may he termed " household poisons "—namely, ammonia liquid containing more than five per cent of free ammonia ( it was assumed every housewife would know what hat meant It : hydrochloric, nitric, and sulphuric acids, " salts of lemon." and liquid disinfectants containing less that three jK?r cent of phenols (again assumed to be clearly understandable by the average housekeeper!). XO'i; FOOI.-PTCOOF.

The new law will at least make clear the contents of a poison bottle, but. however drastic our poison regulations, they will never he fool-proof. Look round your home to-day. and the chances are you will discover tit least one of the ‘'household poisons" mentioned in this article. Perhaps, pushed into

a dark corner, in proximity lo a number of other bottles, there is a bottle of disinfectant, the contents of which may Ire taken in error hy a member of the household.

Another loophole in poisons regulations is the freedom of supply for “ industrial ” uses. While elaborate regulations surround the retail sales of a few grains by a pharmacist, yet, lor commercial or industrial purposes (considered “wholesale” supplies), a few hundred-weights are readily and lreely obtainable.

f atn satisfied that the public interest a ltd welfare would host be served by confining the supply of such dangerous domestic articles to pharmacists, who, it should be remembered, tire n specialised body, called into being by the State in ISOS to deal in poisons, and whose particular education, training, ami examination equip them with a full knowledge of the terrible potentialities of these commodities. A seller steeped in knowledge of the virulence of such household poisons is the surest safeguard of the public weal. His professional responsibility causes him to lake care that there is no indiscriminate distribution of these articles to the public.