LURKING DEATH IN POISON BOTTLES

Rotorua Morning Post, 28 August 1931, Page 6

LURKING DEATH IN POISON BOTTLES

SAFEGUARDS NEEDED. RECENT DEATH CALLS FOR REVISION OR ACT. "It is a wonder >to chemists that such sad happenings are not. more frequent. The trouble is that the Act governing the sale of poisons was framed in 1874, a,nd except for very minor alterations has remained the same ever since. Several attempt? have been made to obtain a new Act, hut each time the Government is approached the plea of 'no time' is made." So said Mr R. Farnham, memher of t'he New Zealand Phar-. macy Board, commenting upon the death of a little boy after drinking from a bottle labelled "Ant and woodlice death." Anornalles in Act. Under the present Act, said Mr Parnham, there were many anomalies. Before a chemist could sell poison he had.to get t'he purchaser to sign a document, a copy of which was sent to the iocal registrar of poisons. Yet a person could buy as much strychnine and other poisons as he liked wholesale. In country stores it was no uncommon sight to see stryohnine openly displayed. Rahbiters and farmers were able to buy it as tlicy liked. Under the Act, too, a chemist was cpmpelled to retail poisons in hexagonal ■ hlue bottles clearly marked "Poison"; yet seedsmen and other retailers dealing with borticultufU work were able to retail poisonous mixtures in plain hottles. "Until the Act is amended, such sad happenings as that of Thursday will occur," said Mr Parnham. "Begrettahle tliough tliey are, one can only hope that they will serve to awaken the \ Government to the seriousness of the position. "We have a new Act drafted, but when it will be considered we do not know. For 20 years we have been urging the Government to look into the question, but every time there is a possibility of that heing done there is an outcry from orchardists, farmers, apiarists, and other persons who use poisons. They -appear to think we chemists desire to obtain a monopoly of the poison trade. That is quite wrong; we desire only to protect the puhlic. The Same Conditions. "Our object is to subject all relailers of poisons to the same conditions as chemists are subject to now. We do "not wisli to conifne the trade to chemists, but we do wis'h to see that only reliable persons are allowed to handle such dangerous goods, and that poisons are not sold except in their original containers." Mr Parnham instanced the beneficial results that had attended the inlroduction of the Dangerous Drugs Act. Under its conditions . every grain of such drugs that entered the country was accounted for. Each chemist handling them had to balance his books half-yearly, showing to what destination his supplies had gone. Such conditions might not he possible for Ihe sale of poisons, hut some approximating them closely could he enforced.