The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-08-12
The Deadly Toy Pistol.

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London NGlOS.
The Deadly Toy Pistol.
There have been sixteen deaths in Cook
! County since the Fourth of July from
| lockiaw resulting from wounds inflicted
by toy pistols. A large number of deaths
from the same cause have occurred in
other parts of the country. 1t is prob
ably within bounds to estimate the whole
number for the United States since the
Fourth at POO This is costly sacrifice
to offer up to the tutelary deity of Nation
al independence. 1t is especially dis
tressing because it is unnecessary. The
toy pistol is by no means essential to the
proper celebration of the Fourth. Many
National anniversaries have been OBJ
served without it; and we fancy that if
it had never been invented or come into
the possession of the small boy the ex-
preston of National eXultation and graf
itude on the last holiday would have
been not less, but more decorous than it
was.
There are two kinds of toy pistols.
One uses a small cartridge charged with
pure rifle powder, and similar in all re-
spects except size, to the ordinary pistol
cartridge. The other explodes a deto-
mating wafer charged with Illuminating
compound. The latter is supposed to be
the dangerous weapon. The illuminate
of mercury with which the wafer is
charged is known to be nerve-poison
when taken into the circulation. 1t can
be administered internally without Sc
rous danger. But if it passes into the
system from the outside through an
abrasion OF cut, it will almost surely pro-
duce lockjaw and ultimately cause
death. The toy pistols are clumsy in
struments. The waters seldom explode
promptly, and, even when they do, throw
of sparks and fragments that may break
the skin of the pistol hand. If through
these wounds the illuminate of mercury
gets into the blood, lockjaw is a natural
result.
A Chicago physician speaking on this
subject to reporter says: II should
say that the waters contain a mercurial
salt. Such salts are poisonous, and q
very small quantity will do the mischief.
TO induce tetanus two things are re-
HtllCNt' lllClC IllloJ NC Il COuulllOIl Vi
nervous irritability, and wound. Many
have said that tetanus can be produced
without a wound, but this is not so. We
recognize two forms of the disease, toxic
and traumatic tetanus. The first refers
simply to poison. People who have
taken Strychnine in overdose die of
tetanus traumatic. Tetanus means lock-
jaw resulting from a wound, and a | say
it cannot occur unless there is wound.
1t may be on a scratch or a cut which
you would never notice, but it must be
there. In cases of strychnine poisoning
the hands are always involved, and are
rigid. In traumatic tetanus the hands
are flexible even up to the moment of
death Tell me whether the hands were
flexible or not in these cases and will
tell you whether or not death resulted
from toxic tetanus. That is, will tell
you whether or not it was a poison which
caused lockjaw. A rusty nail (poison-
ous), piece of glass, even a scratch
from brass pin, may induce tetanus
where the condition of nervous irritable
ity exists. That condition is aggravated
in hot and damp weather. Tetanus is
far more prevalent in the tropics than in
this latitude"
There is the best explanation of the
many deaths indirectly caused by the toy
pistol that we have been able to find.
Whether it is the correct one or not. pa
rents will be wise to keep that dangerous
toy, without reference to its construction
or the manner in which it is charged,
away from their children. The world
will get on as prOsperously and peace
ably as everif the toy pistol shall be wholly
suppressed and its sale forbidden by law
The prohibition of the sale of all eXplo-
sive compounds to miners on the Fourth
or any other day would be still more
useful regulation. If the toy pistol
should accomplish this it might be for
given some of the price which the people
OF the United States have had to pay for
their experience of it.
None of the medical books or mapa-
zines contains any record of any of these
cases, which have been steadily increas-
ing in number since the invention of the
accused toy, and it would seem that
none of the physicians who had been
called in to attend the cases have thought
1t worth while to give them searching
investigation. Even had they done so
and were unable to arrive at any conclu-
sion, yet comparison of notes might
make some of the points clearer and add
just 50 much more to the world know
ledge of practical medicine. 1t is, how
ever, not improbable that some steps
will be taken in the near future to solve
the problem by experiment. NO with the
cartridges and waters on the lower ami
mails. Chicago Tribune.