The Phoenix herald., 1879-07-26
About POisOns-

"Poison A substance which, when taken into the stomach, mixed with the bio, d, or applied to the skin or flesh, prov e. fatal or deletefious; any thing inf, ctious or malignant" Our scissors make the first clip out of Webster for detinition of the greater evil a5 we'll as the greatest good known in the mei- ical world. For after the fashion of the old saying " It takes a thief to catch thief" in public systems, so In the individual system if one poison has stolen away into the network of veins by fair means or foul. there Is small hope of recovering ones own, save an other poison be sent after it.
 All medicines seem to be more or less poisonous; but owing to the large doses those classed less " require to produce death or even deleteri0us ef- fleets, they are by the mass of people regarded as harmless, for arssnics strychnine, opium, chlorofOrm, msr- cury, and perhaps few other promi- nent remedies, cover all, to them, dan gerous poisons. Yet we read in daily paper of a child sud ienly attacked by severe vomiting, wnich the usual renne- dies failed to check, ends in exhaustion and death; and the cause is laid any where but at the confectioner' counter where the boy bought his candies and cakes favored with bitter almoni-
 "The bitter almond is n powerful poison." A single drop of the essen tial oil on cats tongue made dead pussy of living one in just five min utes by experiment. Some delicate or ganizations, especially among children, can bear but little of this essence, the smallest quantity producing an erup- ton like nettle rash, If nothing worse, and yet macaroons are eaten and given Go children to eat with impunity, while confectioners are often, nowadays, using, not the bitter almond but the es- sential oil for their havofirg. There le '' family connection between the bitter and sweet almond, how close Is not easily defined, but sufficient to show that on some persons the sweet nut on our tables if eaten produces m effect similar to that caused by the but ter almond
 |" Fish poison Is one of the most sin gular in all the range of tOxlcology- Certain kinds of fish in hot couutfles are looked upon as always poisonous Other kinds are only poisonous to pe- culiar constitutions, and perhaps de pending somewhat on the elm ate. The
  actually eaten WIth perfect safety oy lnanklnd ill general. are nevertheless poisonous, either at all times or oeaa- sIonally to peculiar individuals This fact is self-evident to uahy of us who nave experienced nausea after eating white fish, salmon, lobster, etc., at one time or another, and Instinct Is wise when 1t needs the hint and declines the poison in the future.
 Lead poisoning we are more familiar with, as some members of our house. hold are more susceptible than others to .he injurious effects of water run through lead pipes. But the poison in this Case, acting slowly and snOtIy, Is usually classed SC malaria" Those who work ln lead mines Or in any way with lead and absorb its fine dust into their system, except by the greatest care. sooner or later have what in general phraseology is called printers or paint ers' palsy. The habits of children 10 bite and wet their lead pencils Is often followed by serious results, which are more likely to be traced to a close school room and hard study, than 10 the lea.l pencils, slate pencils and chalk they nave munched on at short inter vaIs five days out of the seven.
 
 found in the syrup which IS a leading feature of the American breakfast tA- ble. 1.-The use of chloride of tin m glucose sYrups has been proved by numerous analysis" Think of that. oh ye who indulge in golden drip and '' maple syrup" on cold, wiutry mornings on your hot cakes. Bewers of any syrup that leaves 8 metallic taste in the mouth, lest by means of the sweet liquid your stomach gets tin lining, and you, wondering why on earth you have developed dyspepsia, it must be hot cakes disagree with you. And if the said cakes are made of the raising-easy stuff called baking -powder-very likely the dis agreement can, in part, be laid to them. for analysis has also shown that baking power contains large proportion of desiccated alum.-J0ur7l,tt of U.Itsriz MedicG.