The Winslow mail., 1899-03-18
POISON ON THE TOYS,
Government Chemists Investigate
Harmful Colors,
Children's Lives Endangered by the
Use of Painted Playthirgs
Foreign-Msde Toys Par
ttcularly Bed.

IcuEarIy bGd.
In one of the chemical laboratories
of the department Ct agriculture is now
being conducted a series of Interesting
tests of timely interest to those who
buy Christmas toys for young Amer
lea, Uncle Sam is anxious to discover
just how much danger threatens his
youngsters who plays with highly
painted ploythings. The chemist in
charge of the investigation has col
lected toys by the closetful apd IS en-
gagged in scraping the various kinds ot
paints from each and analyzing it &c
learn which are poisonous and which
are not. The articles in question are .!
both foreign and domestic manufac,
ture, and there is positive EVIDENCE as
to whence each one came, as well as by
whom manufactured. Needless to say
Uncle Sam looks with contempt upoI
any concern WHICH would be guilty o
such criminal negligence as colorine
with poison anything which every ma
ture person knows is as apt to go into
baby's mouth as an arm:ture is to jo1'
an attracting magnet. y result Of thi:
investigation may be the establishment
cf new laws in this country as to the
painting Of these articles of manufac
ture, and the closing of our ports q
those shipped from foreign countries
where toy painting is not strictly
looked into. As general rule, how.
ever, it is so far discovered that few
American toy manufacturers employ
poisonous paints. Many foreign con-
Germs, however, are far less corscien.
tious. Of all the classes of amusement
devices for small children which have
fallen within the scope Of the investiga-
ton, those made of tin are DISCOVERED
to be the most deadly, as a class. This
is because the paint chips eff much
more readily than from non metallic
toys. Often when applied to the new.
ly-cut teeth it falls off in great pieces
Considering the poisons commonly
used to color tin toys and the proper
tionS in which they are mixed it excited
the wonderment of those informed that
a youngster does not derive a suffice Il
venom from the average tin toy to lay
him up, granting that he bite off only
a reasonable amount Of the colorina
matter.
All sorts of creatures and objects are
represented in this odd collection of
specimens being subjected to the dis
figuring ordeal of having their ex-
teriors scraped and analyzed. 1t would
require several columns to give in full
the diagnosis of each case made by the
inquisftive chemist. One poor crea-
ture, whose predicament should be
pryed into by the apti-vivisectioniSt
threatening Uncle Sans laboratories,
will serve as an illustration of many
cases. This subject, presented to the
writer, was tin clown, prone upon his
back, who, upon the actuation CT ma
ch:nery beneath him, kicked his legs
in the direction of revolving ball sup
ported on rod, In the first place, his
entire makeup and that of other parts
of the contrvance was found to be
backed with white paint containing
poisonous zinc. His blue coat was
largely oxide of cobalt, rank poison,
while his yellow legs were of chrcmate
CT lead, also deadly. The support up
on which he lay was colored with red
lead, not the most nourishing of baby
foods, and green mixed of the chrome
and cobalt of the yellow and blue.
Further tests with many ether tin
toys showed that the principal poisons
entering into their color:ng are zinc
and leads. Some blues are copper,
while whites are either lead or zine
Arsenic was not found in a single case
In some countries there are laws for
bidding the use of arsenic for colOring
toys, yet the other poisons mentioned
are allowed. 1t appears that the manl-
facturers, especially in fore gn coun-
tries utilize the pigments which are
cheapest and most convenient. Yet
there are none of these poisonous col
ors which cannot be duplicated in alb
solutely non-poisonous compounds.
For instance, a harmless white can be
made from magnesia, chalk or sulphate
of barinm; q or-pcisonous yell9v
from one of these whites and extract
cf saffron; red from equal parts ofglue
and red chalk; green from saffron and
white, and so. on.
Many dolls with innocent faces have
suffered the removal CT their complex
ions for the noble cause of science.
Dolls, generally speaking, are not
found to be poisonous. The exposed
portions are usually of porcelain, china
or wax, and what little paint there is
over these is either harmless water
colors or some other pigment applied
so thin that it cannot go far toward
causing internal compl cations cf any
sort, or external ones either. Poison
Gus paint is found upon wooden toys,
but it is not applied so thick upon wood
as upon metal and does not chip easily
from the former. Likewise upon rub.
ber playthlngs, the c0loring matter is
thin like enamel, yet rubber toys are
much more wholesome articles of Diet
when left unpainted This new investi-
CATION, of course, is for the welfare of
the community, and will develop some
more interesting facts as it progresses.
-Chicago-Tribune.
@ -------------------~ --------~