Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1874-02-26
SuffocatiOn by Coal Gas.

At this season Of the year it Is usual
for many persons who have not had sad
experience Of the fatal effects of coal-g
upon the human system TO sleep in rooms
in which the doors and windows are
tightly closed, and in which there are
gas or coal stoves. The fear Of taking
cold seems to possess young and old
alike.
Within the past two months many cases
Of partial or actual sufiocation have oc-
Cured in different parts of the country.
In the beginning Of December the resi-
dents of Oakland, Penn, but for the
strong physical organization of teacher
In the public school, would have been
compelled to mourn the loss of q score or
more of their children. Through q de
feet In the stove-pipes the gas escaped
into the schoolroom. The doors and
windows were tightly closed and there
were no ventilators. Under such circum-
stances, Of course 1t was only question
of time as TO effect. Very soon the
teacher was startled by seeing several OF
her pupils drop from their desks to the
floor; others attempted TO reach the door,
but fell insensible before doing so. The
teacher in moment seemed to under
stand the state of affairs. She immedi-
ately threw open the windows and doors,
called to man just passing for assist
ance, and then fell into stupor. by this
time as many as twenty-five children had
fallen insensible. The man had the pres
ence of mind TO carry them all into the
open air, and then to run for a doctor.
BY prompt application Of restoratives
every life was saved. Now If it had SO
happened that the teacher had been so
physically weak such is the case
very often--as her pupils, and that she
had become insensible before gaining the
door, 1t is quite clear that all would have
been smothered. The man who went TO
the rescue might possibly have noticed
the stiffness which prevailed in the school
as he passed, but il is more than likely
that he would have attributed ii to an
other than the real cause.
Shortly after we had heard Of the fore
going case, gentleman took the trouble
to send us an account Of the death of u
lady in the upper part Of this city from
the effects of gas stove. She had gone
to sleep leaving 1t at full pressure. The
windows and doors Of her room were air
tight, so that there was nothing whatever
to carry off the product Of the gas COM
bustion and the vitiated air. A post NOR
tenn examination revealed the fact that she
had been smothercd In the manner de-
scribed. On the night of the ID of JAN
uary, five seamen lost their lives by suffo-
cation on board the German bark Adolph
Won Barth, ut Wilmington, N. G. They
slept in close forecastle. During the
night the damper of the stove got so
turned by the action Of the heat that it
threw out all the gas. Before morning
two had already died, and during the fol
lowing day the remaining three sue
cumbed. On the 18th Of the same month
a father and his five-year-old son were
suffocated at Boston, under circumstances
almost similar; and now we hear of q
case of the same kind which occurred at
Philadelphia on the 9th inst A man and
wife named Wieland were found dead in
an alright room, from which consider
able quantity Of gas came forth as soon as
the door was opened.
Surely with 30 many evidences of the
danger of sleeping In improperly venti-
lated rooms, with coal and gas stoves, II
ought not to be very difficult TO impress
upon persons of average intelligence the
necessity of being more careful We
should not advise anybody to sleep, or
rather to freeze, in an excessively cold
room; but we advise all those who can
afford the luxury of fire in their bed
rooms, lacking other means of ventlla-
ton, never to go TO sleep without lift
ing the windows an inch or two. The
cold air from outside will be heated the
moment II enters the rooms, the atmos-
phere will DO rendered healthfnl, and the
slumbers Of the occupants freed from
horrible dreams. --Nsp York Times.