The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1914-06-16
RAD|UM As CURATIVE
Lonu Known TO Possess Great
Remedial Powers.
English Scientist Says South Amer
can Natives Heard Of II Many Years
Ago-Used. in Many Gases,
10 Heal Wounds

Its curative effects.
Radium, says Mr.. Baker, has been
thing OF extreme fascination To the
scientist, while the general public have
regarded il with mild curiosity. But
its recent effects in the treatment OF
cancer have made il thing Of abb
sorbing interest TO the whole world.
There are various sources for OBJ
tanning radum, for il occurs always
In fixed proportion with the metal
uranium. Wherever we find uranium
| We are sure to find the one-three-mli
lionth part of radium with II. Pitch
| blende is the richest mineral, but GER
tain other substances. as autunite, tor
benite and carnotite. contain small
quantities of uranium, and ii is from
| these three poorer minerals that the
| future supply of radium will very
! largely come. unless, of course, unfore-
seen fresh supplies of pitchblende are
discovered.
The chemist finds himself with one
ton of ore. and he knows by measure
ment with delicate instruments that 1t
contains about ten mllligrams, or less
than the sixth part of grain, of IA
dium! Imagine trying To extract a
grain OF something from six tons Of
solid rock! But modern chemistry, to
which the name Of radio-chemistry haS
now been given. has enabled this prob
lem to be solved with such complete
success that by the most recent meth,
DDS hardly any of this single grain is
lost during the tedious and long PROF.
ess OF extraction.
The result is that some months later
nearly the whole OF the priceless grain
of radium Is extracted In an almost
pure state, and its purity can be meas
ured against special standard sample
prepared by Nine. Curie. which is kept
jealousy guarded at the international
bureau of weights and measures at
Seyres, near Paris. This standard
sample of pure radium chloride con.
tains nearly twenty-five milligrams
sealed up in thin glass tube, and
three other international standards
are kept at the Academy of Science IN
Vienna
1t is quite a common thing when
buying large quantity of radium-bJ
this Is meant a grain or two--tO buy
It on condition that its purity be first
tested against one or other or the in
a ternational standard specimens.
Radium water is being largely tried
now in the treatment not only of can
Ger, but of various rheumatic anC
equity troubles, and this water con
sists of ordinary water charged with
G the gas given Oft by radium and known
e. as "emanation." If some radium salt
be dissolved in water and left in a
sealed vessel in about month the
"emanation" gas which it produces
reaches state of equilibrium and II
can be expelled by boiling and passed
into water, which then possesses radio
{ active qualities. This "emanation wa
: ter only retains its activity for {
short time, and in less than four days
, has become Impoverished to less thar
half it's original value.
, At the radium institute two lots O
radium are kept continually in use fol
making the water and while one II
resting, so TO speak, for It's month, The
other has produced enough water to &
on with for this month. One wa!
t of overcoming the difficulty of the les
. SEEMING effects is to increase the dos'
day by day, so that If you were tt
start today taking doses of table
spoonful on the fourth day you wOult
take two tablespoonful, and SO on
But after the fourth day the radio
5 activity diminishes so rapidly that tn,
water is Of little more use and fresl
i must be secured.
Il This Is the reason that spring wa
tiers, which may give beneficial result
, on account OF containing radio-activity
must be drunk at the spring, for /
bottled and drunk perhaps weeks aft
erward the radioactive propertie
have vanished.
Many years ago the natives in som,
South American district used to cove
their wounds with dust which they go
IS in the neighborhood made with waite
, into kind of poultice. and recently I
, was discovered that there was radun
in the locality, so that years ago, quit
ignorantly, the curative effects Of IA
dunn were already being employed
" The residues obtained after all tn
- radum has been extracted still con
S tain minute traces Of radioactive,
r and are used good deal on the con
tinent for plasters and baths. One o
the uses to which they are most likel,
to be put. however, in the future i
the acceleration OF the growth 0
crops. Thorne Baker described RI
= Gently at the Royal Society of Arts ex
periments in which he had obtained
100 per cent increase in weight in rad
ishes and the surveyor to the boar,
Of agriculture az Truro Mr.. Hender
son, repeated these experiments with
in one case, even better results.