Jasper County Democrat, Volume 5, Number 42, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 January 1903 — EAT POISONS AT EVERY MEAL. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

EAT POISONS AT EVERY MEAL.

The Unique Experiment Being Tried by Uncle t-azu. For the sake of science, the United States government is giving free board for six months to twenty-four young men

of Washington and incidentally is feeding them liberal quantities of poison. The boarders know that they are taking powerful poisons, but so sure are they that no harm will come to them they willingly eat all that is placed before them. The idea is to ascertain the effects iqion the di-

gestion of certain preserving substances used in food, and the boarders during the ensuing six months will eat, in addition to the poisons, nothing but the pure food furnished by Uie government. The experiments have been begun with borax and salicylic acid, which are largely used ns preservatives. Formaline and the sulphites are also employed in canned trnd other foods, both liquid and solid. Bi-sulphitc of potash is a frequent ingredient of beer, being put up in tablets for sale to brewers. This is to be tried upon the boarders, and also boric acid and benzoic acid which are popular preservatives. Salts of copper and zinc are utilized for “greening” certain vegetables, and aniline dyes are put into preserved meats, as well as into butter and jellies, to give them pretty colors. These and various other adulterants, most of them harmful because they interfere with digestion, will be contained in capsules administered to the young men ns they eat their meals. Each man when he sits down at the table finds a gelatine capsule beside his [date. He swallows it at a gulp and is then at liberty to consume the appetizing meal placed before him. Only twelve of the twenty-four young men employed in the tests are kept under observation at any one time, and but six of these eat the poisons. Things aro so managed that the boarders take turns at poison eating in squads of six. One squad has capsules three times a day for ten days, and then goes to the plain food table, being succeeded by a fresh squad.

DR. H. W. WILEY.