Report of the Committee appointed by the Westminster Medical Society, to investigate the subject of adulterating candles with arsenic; and to ascertain the probable effect of the use of such candles upon health and life ... / transcribed and reprinted by James Scott.

  • Westminster Medical Society (London, England)
Date:
1838
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Committee appointed by the Westminster Medical Society, to investigate the subject of adulterating candles with arsenic; and to ascertain the probable effect of the use of such candles upon health and life ... / transcribed and reprinted by James Scott. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    main on the perch; and the other became equally affected by one o’clock p.m. The register of obser¬ vations at this part of the experiments states, u that the respiration of the two birds was difficult, and that a convulsive action of the whole body, back¬ wards and forwards, was noticed, with the head drawn on one side, the eyes closed, and the beaks open and pointed upwards.” On being stirred, one of them strove to gain another perch, but failed and fell to the bottom of the cage, where it made various struggles to fly upwards and re¬ gain its station, without success. It, at last, after various crawling attempts, reached the edge of the water-cup, on which it balanced itself in a state of evident convulsion, breathing with diffi¬ culty, its beak wide open, and the eyes closed. Its sufferings increased in the course of the next three hours, and at eleven o’clock p.m. it was dead. Its companion presented at the same time similar symptoms of distress, which termi¬ nated likewise in death, as before stated, in the course of that night. As for the two greenfinches, exposed, some¬ times to three, and at other times to two arseni- cated candles only, in chamber C,—being much stronger and larger than the rest, they seemed to resist a longer time without exhibiting signs of uneasiness; but they began, at last, to do so to¬ wards the end of the third day, particularly with regard to respiration, and the presence of perpe¬ tual thirst. They also died, at length, on the night of Monday the 4th instant, having been exposed (but at intervals only) for the space of 49 hours, B