Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1888-06-02
CLAY eArsas or CAROLINA.
A FhysicSsa's os~dy sf . feculiss vice.
Z euFprising Dtsc0vsry.

A PAysacssa's oe~dy sf reeuliss vice.
susprisiss Dsscovsry. 9t4
A short time ago Dr.. Frank b. Getchell.
Philadelphia, went on cunning expedi.
tion 70 North Carolina. His quest Of
game led him into tho wild country back
Of Salisbury, which ID inhabited, for the
most part, BY miserable race Of beings,
with only Just enough energy TO eke out
Q wretched existence These creatures
are nearly all veritablc living skeletons,
and, with few exceptions, are addicted 10
the habit Of clay eating. While shooting
wild turkeys end other game In this Wild
region. DR.. oetchell made An incidental
study Of this peculiar habit or ~ice among
the inhabitaats. ss r5 ls.
II is mountainous country. and in the
spring little slvulets start ont from the
caps Of snow on the mountain. and - tho
days grow warmer. the little rivulets BE-
come torrents, and great washouts arc
made along the mountain side. The soil
Is Of heavy. clayey nature, but there are
strata Of clay that IL heavier than the
rest, and when the water rushes down
this clay II formed into little pellets and
rolls and accumulates In heaps In the val
Icy. These little pellets and rolls are
what the clay eaters devour with - much
svidity - . topper swallows glass Of
whisky.
Among the poor people Of this secs
tiou," said Dr.. 0stchell, ''the habit Of
eating clay 10 almost universal Even
little toddlers are confirmed In the habit,
and the appetite increases with time.
While investigating the matter. entered
. cabin occupied by one Of these poor
families, and saw . little chap tied by the
ankle to the leg Of table. on which was
placed big dish Of bread and meat and
potatoes within easy reach. The child
mother why she had tied him up. She
replied that she wanted him to eat some
food before he went out to the clay, and
he refused to do SO. The woman con-
fessed that she ate the clay herself. but
explained that the child health demanded
that It eat some substantial food before
eating any earth. Almost every one
met In this section was addicted to this
habit. They were all very thin, but their
Aesh seemed to be puffed ont. This was
particularly noticeable about the eyes.
which had sort Of reddish hue.
"A1 Of the clay eaters were excessively
lazy and indolent, and all Of these condi-
tions combined led me to the conclusion
that there must be some sedative OF slim
ulating qualities, or both, In the clay, and
i O0termlneQ 10 uuo out WnctuoE tuero
was or not. I consequently brought . lot
Of the clay homo with me, and Professor
Ternan and myself made an analysis Of
the stuff. and discovered that instead Of
clay eaters the inhabitants of central
North Carolina should more properly be
called arsenic eaters. All Of this clay
contains arsenic, but exactly In what pro.
portion We have not yet discovered.
Arsenic eating is common In many parts
Of the world, and is prscticed TO . greater
or less extent throughout the world. II
acts as sedativs and also as stimulant.
The mountaineers Of Styria, Austria, arc
habitual arsenic eaters. They give Is
their reason for eating II that they are
better able to climb the mountains after
eating the poison, and their explanation
il q perfectly reasonable one. as arsenic
acts as q sedativs to the hearts action.
II has been shown that arsenic or arson.
| ical fumes are q SURF cure for intermit-
tent fever. The Inhabitants Of . section
of Cornwall. England. at one time suf.
fered with this type of fever, but when
the copper works were established there
the fever disappeared. This was &C
| counted for by the arsenical fumes ere
| ated in the treatment of copper. As tc
whether arsenic eating shortens life l am
not prepared to say, but intend investi
| eating the matter thoroughly. The Clay
Worker