Poisonous Hats.

Evening Star, Issue 8717, 8 January 1892, Page 3

Poisonous Hats.

The ‘British Medical Journal’ says:— “ There seema at the present day to be death not only in the pot, but in everything which the higher civilisation deems necessary for man’s bodily comfort. Our boots and shoes were long ago denounced as the cause of unnumbered woes to the human race ; now our hats are brought up for judgment. Wo knew before that our modern headpiece was a paragon of ugliness; now we are told that It is a frequent cause of lead-poisoning. Dr J. F. Geisler, a well-known chemist in New York, some time ago bought ahat i in that city which caused him more than the averse amount of discomfort. After a time the hat was accidentally exposed to an atmosphere containing sulphuretted hydrogen, and rdiscoloration of the sweat-band was noticed, which on examination was found to “ 0 due to the formation of sulphide of lead, ile discoloration was darker u places ihera the perspiration had. accumulated fnd dried. Careful analysis of the sweat-band showed it to contain no less than 0.8585 grain of lead per square it. 7 548 grains for the whole land Thfoompound used was apparently white lead, of which the quantity of lead named indicates 1.068 grain per souare inch, or 46.992 grains for the entire band. D Geisler gives ns the discomforting assurance that white lead and litharge are frequently used in connection with boiled oil to give leather a glossy finish. Some sweat-bands contain more of the lead compound than others and also in dlfierent combinations, ~hr The nrinoipal ill-effects of wearing such a hat 6 are "usually noticed during the first few weeK that t h e hat is worn before the sweat-band is more or less protected by the accumulation of grease from the hair and neraSratiou. The moral of this would seem to be that there is safety in hats w h, ch h av ae;n better days, whije those Jaitre of their >ken virginity afc.to-bp looked upon with suspicion.. The best ph* however, would be to forswear leather sweat-bands, which have an elective affinity for the olpagmoqs expqatjonß fii the human hair and P .kln, and wear hats with bands made of some absorbent material. These are cleanly and non-poiaonous, and do nop phill one’s head when put op after pr£fh9| jiarspiratiop. re-.