The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1913-10-27
GOVERNMENT AND RADIUM.
United States Said to Be Slow in Acquil-
ing Deposits.


The supineness of the United States
government as compared with the atti-
ltude of some foreign governments IN
matters relating to the health and wei
fare of its citizens is perhaps nowhere
better illustrated than in its relation to
radium. Some time ago The Journal of
the American Medical Association called
attention to the fact that radium de-
posits of unusual value had been found
| in Colorado, but that they had already
passed to large extent into the hands
of private owners who were exporting
the most valuable ore to Europe. So far
the United States government has taken
no steps to secure to its citizens the
use of this element which, notwith-
standing the exaggerated and unwar-
ranted claims made for it by certain
commercial interests, promises to have
a unique field of usefulness in the treat
ment of disease. The difference in the
attitude of European governments on
the subject is shown by the fact that
the Austrian government Immediately
on the discovery of radium in st
Joachimsthal secured control of the
mines producing radium and arranged
for its utilization for scientific and me
dicinal purposes.
Although possessing no radium pro
ducing mines, Germany recently has pur-
chased supply of radium and placed
it at the disposal of some of its univer-
sity hospitals. The popularity of this
action has been shown by the comments
of the German press; in fact, portion
of the latter is advocating that the gov
y4s.ft faka ba ont Cf
radium used for medicinal purposes
Germany. Thus the Kolnische Vol
leitung states that "to allow the traf-
fic in this unique medicinal agent to be
controlled by private firms is to upset
all ideas of culture and humanity; a
condition of affairs in which private
gain and speculative interests are al
lowed to come into conflict with the
health of the people is not to be tol
Grated" Yet the United States is al
lowing the radium found on its public
domains to be monopolized by private
persons without so far having made any
provisions for securing to its citizens
any benefit from it.
Aside from the foregoing considera-
tions, however, a special responsibility
rests on the United States to investi-
gate, not only the occurrence. but also
the usefulness of radium and radio
activity of the waters of Hot Springs,
Arkansas. These springs are the prop
ertv OF the federal government, and The
latter for some time has been advertis-
ing that the waters owe their value to
their radio aetivity--a claim that has
never been verified; in fact, the degree
of the radio-activity of these waters
has never, to our knowledge, been made
public although it seems that the In
terror department, which has iurisdc-
tion over the springs, is in possession OF
information on this subject The late
Major Hallock. medical director of the
springs, recently called attention to the
efforts which had been made to secure
an investigation of the value of The
waters; the bill before Congress pro-
viding for such an investigation was
never reported from the committee. and
it. is said that the failure of the com
niittee to act on il was due to the op-
position of the representatives in Con-
gress of certain purely local interests at !
Hot Springs.