Document pBxDQw0p6Y8YdzmkGVzzrr6wj

(To ScrWar.Lrt Vauohan) Qtar F-riend, Phil!1 July 31. 1736 I recollect that when I had the great Pleasure of seeing you at Southampton, now a 12 month since, we had some Conversation on the bad Effects cl Lead taken inwardly; and that at your Request I promis'd to 4end you in utritinq a particular Account of several Facts I thzn mention'd to you, ol which you thought seme good Use might be made. I now hit down to fulfil that Promise.-- Thz first Thing 1 amember ol this kind, was a general Discourse in Bosten when I was a Boy, ol a Complaint from North CanoLina against New England Rum, that it poison'd their PzopLz, giving them thz Dry Bellyach, with a Loaa ol thz Uaz ol theirUmbA, Thz Distilleries being examin'd on thz Occasion, it woa (^oand that acvvial ol them uAzd leaden Still-heads and Worms, and thz PhyAicianA we-te cf Opinion that the Mischief wai occasion'd by that Use of Lead. Thz Legislature ol thz Mass echos etc thereupon pass'd an Act prohibiting under severe Penalties thz Use cl such Still-hcac S Worms therealter. Inelos'd I send you a Copy ol thz Act, taken from my printed Lok book. In 1724, being Li London, I went to work in the Printing-House ol Palmer, Bartholomew Close as a Compositor. I there lound a Practice I had never seen before, ol drying a Case ol Types, (which are wet in Vistribution) bu placing it sloping be fore the Fire. I lound this had the additional Advantage, when the Types were noj^. only dry'd but heated, ol being comlortable to the Hands working over them in codIP weather. I tkerelore sometimes heated mu Case when the Types did not want drying. But an old Workman observing it, advis'd me no^ to do so, telling me I might lose the Use ol my Hands by it, as two ol our Companions had nearly done, one ol whom that us'd to earn his Guinea a Week could not then make more than terr Shilling a and the other, who had the Dangles, but Seven 6 sixpznsz. This, with a kind ol obscure Pain that I had sometimes Izlt as it were in thz Bones ol my Hand when working over thz Types made very hot, induc'd me to omit the Practice. But talking afterwards with M* James, a Letter-lounder in the same Close, and asking him il his Peoole, who work'd over thz little Furnaces ol melted Metal, were not subject to that disorder; he made light ol any Danger Irom the Effluvia, but ascrib'd it to Parti cl ci o{ thz Metal swallow'd with their Food by slovenly Workmen, who went to their ".eats after handling thz Metal, without well-washing their Fingers, so that some of the metalline Particles were takzn oil by thesr Bread and eaten with it. This aopear'd to have some Reason in it. But the Pain I had experiznc'd made me still afraid of those Effluvia. Being in Derbishire at some, of the Furnaces for Smelting of Lead Ore. I was told Smoke of tips ; Fw^nacjU tact* -j>igu$icicuA to ->thc neighboring Grass and-other , Wegelablel.-But l do hot recollect heard any thing of the Effect of such Vegetables eaten by Animals. It-may b&wetl to make the Enquiru.-- In America I have often observ'd that on the Roofs of our shingled Houses where .Voss is apt to grow in northern Exposures, if there be any thing on the. Roof painj^L with white Lead, such as Balusters, or Frames of dormant Windows, 6c. there ii <n N 3625 z constantly a stAeak on the Shingles ^Kom such Paint down to the. Eaves, on which no Moss will gt-ow, but the Wood Kemalns constantly clean 6 6nee facrm it.--We seldom dnlnk Pain WateA that iaULh on oua Houses; and ih we did, peAhaps the small Quantity oh Lead descending nom such Paint, might not be suhhicient to pKoduce any sensible ill Eii&ct on oua Bodies. But I have been told oh a Case in EuAope, I hongot the Place, wheAe a whole Family was ahhlicted with what we call the VKy-Bellyach, ok Colica Pictonum, by dAlnklng Rain WateA. It was at a CountAy Seat, which being situated too high to have the Advantage oh a Well, was supply'd with WateA h^om a Tank which necelv'd the WateA h^am the leaded Roahs. This had been dAank several Yeans without Mischleh; bat some young TKees planted neaA the House, gKotuing up above the Rooht and shedding theiA Leaves upon it, it was suppos'd that an Acid in those Leaves had coKAoded the Lead they coveA'd, and huAnlsh'd the WateA oh that Yean, with its banehul PoAtlcles 6 Qualities. When I was in Pauls with SiA John PKlngle in 1767, he visited La ChoAlte, a ' Hospital paAtlculoAly hwnous h* The CuAe oh that Malady, and bKought h^om thence a Pamphlet, containing a List oh the Names oh PeASons, speclhying theiA Pkohessians ok Trades, who had been cjuked theAe. I had the CuAlosity to examine that List, and hound that all the Patients weAe oh TKades that some way ok otheA use ok woKk in Leads such as PlumbeAS, GiasieAS, PainteAS, 6c. excepting only two kinds, StonecutteKS and Soldiens. These I could not Keconolle to my Notion that Lead was the Cause oh that VisoKdeA. But on my mentioning this Vlhhiculty to a Physician oh that Hospital, he inho*m'd me that the StonecutteAS ate continually using melted Lead to hi* The Ends oh iKon BalustKades in Stones and that the SoldleKS had been employ'd by PainteAs ajt \ iabouAeKS in Grinding oh ColouAS. This, my deaA Fnlend, is all I can at pKesent Kecollect on the Subject. You will see by It, that the Opinion oh this mischievous Ehhtct hKam Lead, is at least above Sixty YeaKs olds and you will obseKve with ConceKn how long a usehul Tnuth may be known, and exist, behoAe it is genenally Kecelv'd and pnactls'd on. I am, evtK, Youas most ahheciionately 8. FKankiln ,%VistAlbuted byi Philadelphia VepaKtment o($ Public Health Accident ContAol Section ` * CHILWOOV LEAP POISONING PREVENTION PROJECT (Benjamin Vaugftan was a youthful admirer and close friend of Franklin, who was 80 years old when he wrote to Vau^ian. The letter press copy of Franklin's conmnication is in the Library of Congress, the holograph not having survived. The letter is reproduced here with the original capitalization and spelling.) H:75 31