Mercury or Alcohol?

"Fine," you go on. "Mercury in the medicines -- calomel and corrosive sublimate."

"Only a pinch of it used," she says, drawing a hand across her face. "Again, hardly enough to drive fifteen men howling mad."

"Agreed," you say. "So how about liver failure? If they all were gulping down grog every day..."

She considers it. "No good," she decides. "They had reduced their daily grog ration from 1/4 to 1/8 aquavit. And liver damage takes time. These poor blokes went from perfectly fine to raving loonies in less than a month."

"Then how about delirium tremens? When heavy drinkers have to stop drinking, they get delirious."

"But they didn't have to stop. They had casks and casks of aquavit left." She stops suddenly. "Look, this is silly, right? We both know they were poisoned by the mercury that Captain Torvey used in his bath compass. What we can't suss out is how."

An Access Excellence Science Mystery sponsored by Genentech, Inc.
Copyright © 1997 Genentech, Inc.; all rights reserved.