The Washington herald., 1913-11-08
ny FRANCEs sHAFFER.

With almost an epidemic of fatal mis-
takes In the rse Of bichloride Of mer-
curry tablets, and while we are waiting
for 2 practical regulation Of the sale
of this deadly drug. IT Is interesting to
note the neat little device one woman
has adopted as q warning. so inastent
that none but the deaf can fail to hear
It.
She holds the post of superintendent
OF the Kansas City Hospital. and. of
course, along with the rest of US, she
has followed rather closely the tragic
details attendant upon the accidental
use OF this insidious poison in several
pathetic cases of late. Fearing that one
of the forty-odd nurses, some OF them
only probationers, might stumble upon
the wrong medicine, particularly at
night. and administer to patient dose
OF the poison from which there seems
to be no appeal, she tied a little tinkling
and, not satisfied with that proceeded
to bell" every bottle Of poison or other
dangerous medicine.
And. bearing in mind all the sugges-
tons that have been made for the pur-
pose OF establishing some safeguard
about the use Of this particularly viru-
lent poison, II seems rather timely to
call attention toIher manner Of attacking
the problem.
All Sorts OF Suggestion.
An sorts Of suggestions have been ad-
vanced to make the bottles distinctive.
Some have advised a uniform bottle of
dark color, with a warning skull blown
In the glass and the word poison en-
piazoned in big, raised letters. But
when a sleepy-headed mortal searches
In the dark for a particular medicine.
enc little tinkle Of a bell would do more
to arouse him to the presence Of poison
than all the skulls and signs that
bottle might carry.
And Of all the formal safeguards that
have been brought forward, none has
appealed with quite the directness and
effectiveness that mark the little bell.
II Is easy enough to theorize that poisons
should be kept by themselves, away
from all possible chance of being mis-
taken for something harmless. but In
the best regulated hospitals and homes
blunders will creep in once In a while.
And one smiles as she reads about
II, because>it seems a bit typical of the
way a woman often treats her problems.
1t Is well enough TO call upon Con-
gress for a uniform bill to regulate the
sale, the bottles and all, but meanwhile
IT is safer to go right to the point and
attach a bell that will warn in the
darkness OF night, without waiting to
examine the label the skull and the
crossbones.
And 1t is well enough to say that
poisonous drugs should not be mixed In
with everyday medicines, but while
men, with their practical theories, are
arguing It out. a woman goes to work
and makes a blunder well-nigh impos-
sible.
Perhaps it was intuition that whispered
the way.
Women Have Inventive Genius.
It is often said that women have no
inventive genius at all, and that they ac-
cept their working tools Just as they
find them; but as one peeps into kitch-
ems and pantries where household work
Is going on, one finds many an ingenious
contrivance that ! IL patented. might
make a stir in the world Of smaller in
ventions.
And one suspects that more than one
invention came about from noting an
original scheme devised by a woman all
in the work of the day. unsung and un-
heard OF until It blossomed forth as
patented something to simplify work in
the home.
But, no matter who thinks out and
works out the little and the great de-
vices for simplifying work and for safe
guarding lives, and no matter what hos
pitals and other institutions may do to
lessen the danger Of fatal mistakes in
the use OF drugs, one would like to
commend the adoption Of the little warn
ing bell in homes where poisons stand
around.
One may forget the shape. the size
or the color Of a bottle, may fail to