The Alaska daily empire., 1915-06-26
DEADLY GASES IN
 WAR OLD THEORY
 BUT NEW PRACTICE

The use of deadly vapors or lethai gases in war is not a new idea or new thought. but as a practice it was not known until this war. The pos sibility of overcoming an enemy by the use of stupefying gases or killing him with fumes has occurred to 8 number Of those fanciful writers who have set down their visions of the horrors of future wars. These visions were never taken seriously by practi- cal soldiers The idea of staying or paralyzing an army of the enemy by enyeloping 1t in poisonous fumes has seemed dreamy or pipe-dreamy pro iect, something akin to those noyeiis- tic war measures of blowing up bat tleships by light rays or shocking am enemy to death by electric currents drawn mysteriously out of the air and sent on their death mission from a point any number of miles distant from the enemy It was the thought of practical soldiers, that if the killing of troops were possible by means of fumes it would not be resorted to by armies. because poisoning the air. seems very much like poisoning thel wells or the water supply an offensc against military ethics.
 But gas warfare has arrived. It has been demonstrated to be practical, and as there is no secret involved in| It's application it is likely that the use of this war means will be extend ed. The use Of chlorin has begun. The Germans have employed it again The Germans have employed it against the British and the British have announced that they may em- plcy it against the Germans. and If the British take up the use of the gases 1t is probable that this deadly agency will be called by the Rus slans, French and Italians As horror is piled on horror in this war the poisonous gases may be used against the Turk and legions of soldiers in all the battling armies may be killed in this way.
 Early in the war there were some reports-they seemed vague and fan. ciful-about the employment by the French of substance called turpen. ite, which gave off gases that petri- fled men in death so that they re- mained in the attitude that was theirs in life at the moment death came upon them A good deal has been written about turpenite as an explos. i've but nothing of an authentic na- ture seems to have come into print concerning the mysterious gases gen- erated by it Tn the United States the name of the strange explosive turpenite suggested that in some way 1t was derived from turpentine, but such is not the case. the name of che new thing being derived from the name Of the inventor or discoverer M Turpen, a Frenchman.
 The first of the deadly gases known to have been used in this war Is chlo. rim A popular definition of this is "Chl0rin - greenish yellow, very poisonous liqueflable gaseous element with an offensive odor It's remark able affinity for hydroeen enables it to decomposc compounds containing th9 aiement hence it's power for the bleaehing, deodorizing. and disiniect- ing hshlorine is an element which takes .its name from ihe Greek name
 'chlorus,' meaning green and it is found in common salt and other spb. stances known as chloride
 Relpgt indicate thai on the west Tern 1igtle front chlorn has been used in wn way5o it seems to have iaen