THE CEMENT WORKS POISONING CASES.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXV, Issue 14061, 16 May 1906, Page 7

THE CEMENT WORKS POISONING CASES.

THE INQUEST. [Per Press Association.] DUNEDIN, May IS. An inquest touching the death, of Archibald M’Kay, employed in the Milbnrn lime and cement works, who died from the effects of poison, was continued to-day. Dr Evans, who had attended M’Eay, after describing the symptoms ana treatment, went on to deal with a postmortem examination. He said that blood he examined showed the destruction of the red blood cells. They were broken up. He was of opinion that death was duo to some poison circulating in the blood as a primary cause, and secondarily owing no the destruction of the red cells of the blood and the complete suppression of urine. Largo doses of carbolic acid or chloride of potash, taken by mouth, wore the only things he could think of that would produce the same effects in a healthy man. Yellow fever also would produce the effects. If, in addition to what witliess saw, he knew that in the vicinity of where the deceased man worked there were conditions which, might produce arsenuretted hydrogen, he would have nq doubt that that waa the cause of death. Dr Roberts, who conducted the postmortem examination, gave corroborative evidence. . ■ Jamas Gow Black, professor of chemistry, who conducted an analysis of different parts of the body and various liquids, said that he found arsenic in the liver; lunge, kidneys, spleen, bladder, stomach and in four different liquids. Ho found arsenic in everything; he looked for it in the samples sent. Ho visited the cement works' and took samples from the cask used, and from a drum containing weed exterminator called “Havoc,” and of the hydrochloric acid, which hh was told the man had been using. He scraped an incrustation from the cask inside, above the level of the liquid. ,He also took a sample of some damp _ white, limey substance, which was outside the cask on the floor, and looked, like _a sorb' of overflow. The sample of liquid from the cask contained ft good deal of arsenic. It also contained a common salt of zinc in solution, a little iron in solution and a trace of lime." The _ar- , genic and salt were the most conspicuous results. -They- caught his attention , because there should lie no salt found after treating galvanised iron,' and . though there might have been a trace of arsenic, there should not have been so much. Arsenic was generally present—just a trace of it. The sample taken from the drum marked “ Havoc ” yielded a large quantity of arsenic and common salt, also some caustic soda. It was an alkaline solution. He found no trace of arsenic in the sample of hydrochloric acid. The incrustation also yielded arsenic, salt and zinc—-the same as in the liquid from the cask. The ithita limey substance, too, disclosed arsenic, lime and a little salt. The “Havoc ’’ contained about sixteen or seventeen times as much arsenic per gallon as the liquid in the cask. If a small portion of the “ Havoc ” had got into the cask it would account for what he had found. He could not see any other way of accounting for it, as the addition of “Havoc” would rather retard the degalvanising process, because it was alkaline, and would use up some of the acid. ■ If tha men know wlutf the “ Havoc ” contained they would not use it in the degalvanising ..process, quite the contrary. Dr Black was cross-examined at- gresf length by Mr Solomon. He said that sup-' posing “ Havoc ’’-had been mixed in tin cask, oven years ago, tliere might bs enough arsenic on the sides of the cask to account for what ho found, that was to say, that it might account for poisoning, assuming that 1 ‘ Havoc ,} had

previously been mixed in the cask and ‘saturated tho wood, and assuming that between the two usings of the cask ■ muriatic acid had been left m the cask. It would bo reasonable to suppose that on the first occasion the acid had not had time ,to penetrate the wood far enough to reach tho ansemc. During the interval it might. penetrate far enough, and so the men might escape an the first occasion and bo poisoned on the second. To Mr Hanlon: The ordinary operation for degalvanising wire was perfectly harmless for anyone to he encaged in. It would be harmless if conducted in a room full of arsenic, provided that care was taken that no aruenic got into the mixture. Dr H. A. Dc Latour, who saw M’Kay before death,, and also assisted at tho post mortem examination, agreed with Dr Evans’s conclusions. Ho also saw Anderson, the other victirn, ami in conversation, asked him what the cask had been used for previously. Anderleh said he was not sure, but it might have been used for making weed exterminator. ' f . William Sothcran. foreman •at • the cement works, said that the cask used by M’Kay. and Anderson was taken from a stack of casks at the back of the yard. The cask had been previously ’used’ for grease or oil He did not know whether the cask had been used previously for mixing other preparations If any had been used for making “Havoc” they would go back to stock he presumed. .- The inquest was adjourned till next morning. ; ■'