CEMENT WORKS' FATALITY

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8111, 16 May 1906, Page 2

CEMENT WORKS' FATALITY

AESENIC.iL POISONING. PEP PBEBS ASSOCIATION. Dunbdin, May 15. The inquest touching the death of Arch. McKay, one of the employees of ths Milburn Lime and Cement Company, who diod from inhaling poisonons fames, was oontinued to-day. TUb medical evidence was to the effect that the symptoms and conditions found at the post mortom corresponded to arsenureted hydrogen poisoning.

Dr Black, Professor of Chemistry, who conducted the analysis, said he found arsenic in the liver, lungs kidneys, spleen, bladder, stomach and n four different liquids. The tendenoj of Dr. Black's evidence went to show that the men, who were engaged in dipping wire in muriatic acid to remove the galvanism, had probably added, in mistake, some weed exterminator named " Havoc," which was in a drum near where they were working, and which contained a considerable quantity of arsenic, or the cask they were using had been previously used for making this weed exterminator,! and the wood in the cask had absorbed the arsenic. Assuming the latter theory was correct, the fact of the men having used the same cask ten days previously without any injury,, would probably be due to the muriatic acid not having had time to liberate the arsenic absorbed by the wood. The foreman of the cement works, in his evidence, could not say definitely whether the cask had been used previously to make up any mixture. The inquest stands adjourned till to-morrow.