Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-05-18
THEY FARED ON FISH.
Quite a Number Of Sharpsburg and
Etna People Ill From Eating
STURGEON WHICH WAS POISONOUS.
Many Are Frustrated, but No Serious Results
Likely to Ensue.
SOME OF 1T BOUGHT IN PITTSBURG

The people of Sharpsburg and Etna viii
avoid the nse of smoked fish as diet aftel
their experience of yesterday and Saturday
until the recollection of it dies away. Some
80 or 60 persons, including stalwart workers
and weak children, are suffering from the
effects of eating smoked sturgeon, the symp
toms being those of vegetable poisoning,
and though no case is expected to prove
fatal, all the sufferers are confined to bed.
The medical men have been kept pretty
busy and it was difficult to find any of them
at all yesterday unless happened across
while on visit.
DR.. Dinsmore's theory of the poisoning is
that the fish had advanced toward de-
composition when the curing was done,
that further decomposition was arrested by
the creosote deposited by the smoke and that
the poisonous matter thus held in solution
was liberated by being brought in contact
with the gastric juice in the stomach, bring
ing about the evil effects.
1t seems that everyone concerned with
the sale and purchase of the fish acted un-
consciously in the matter The fish is
stated to have been delivered in Sharps-
burg from Gledhill, the extensive fish
dealer, and to have been sold to the dealers
at the usual price of 10 cents pound This
is the statement of several dealers who aver
that they could not see anything wrong with
it, and sold it as legitimate food. 1t was
bought by number of people chiefly be-
cause it was the first sturgeon of the season,
and therefore an unusual diet
Some Pittsburg Sturgeon Spoiled.
A circumstance which will make citizens
cautious in buying this form of food, is that
it was not alone the fish bought in Sharps-
burg which did the mischief, but the same
variety which had been purchased in the
Pittsburg market brought about the same
serious result. Mrs. OFT, who resides on
Fifteenth street, Sharpsburg, said that her
husband and eight children were all laid up
from eating sturgeon which she had bought
at a stall in the Pittsburg market on Friday.
Across the street from Mrs. OFT, Mrs.
Shoup's children, to the number of six, were
all sick from eating sturgeon bought at
Lardin & Smiths store nearby. She
herself had been sick, but had recovered.
Doctor Silvey had about 20 cases, the
most serious of which were William Greed
and his eight children; Carl Beier and three
children, Etna, and John Duff and eight
children. The doctor said it was curious
that though the fish was eaten on Friday its
effects were only becoming visible yester-
day.
John Noe and his wife and her sister,
Mrs. Wetterstein, of Fourth street, were all
prostrated yesterday. Miss Katie Gala
CHER, a relative of theirs; took sick 'yester-
day afternoon. She had eaten a little of
the fish on Saturday night and had been
seized with nausea, accompanied by vio-
lent headache yesterday afternoon. DR..
Dinsmore attended this family and many
were mitigated by the immediate displace-
ment of the irritating matter and that this
was instrumental in averting fatal results.
A Number of Those Affected.
The names of all those affected could not
be ascertained, but Charles Abel and wife,
Mrs Burroughs and her son, Michael Hab-
herman and wife, Joseph Michael,
Miss Katie Robinson, teacher in the pub
lie school, Miss Dougherty and Miss Cham
pion, of Etna; George Frank and wife, of
and Mrs. Kemmer, of Etna,
we're all prostrated.
DR.. Silvey secured bottle of matter
vomited by patient, and he intends to an
alyze it. DR.. Graham said the poisoning
might have been caused by bichromate of
potash in the matter. used for giving fish a
certain color. None of the physicians ex-
pected fatal termination to any of their
cases.
The fact that the poisoning was caused by
The sturgeon is proved by the case of Joseph
whose wife cooked the fish for
Inner, but did not eat any of it, while her
husband who did, was taken sick
Otto Konstanzer, of 1924 Butler street, |
MS wife and three children and two en- |
ployes, Lizzie Green and Henry Appleman,
we're all i'll yesterday from eating sturgeon
.he day previous. None were in serious
langer last night.