The Glowing Jaw

ISBN-13: 9783565202676 / Angielski / Miękka / 136 str.

Emily Strike

Opis

"The Glowing Jaw - The deadly price of the first instant fire" tells the horrific story of the Victorian matchstick industry. In the 19th century, the invention of the "lucifer" match brought instant fire to the masses. But the active ingredient, white phosphorus, was a slow-acting poison. The women and girls who dipped the matches in factories developed "Phossy Jaw"-a condition where the jawbone would rot, glow green in the dark, and eventually kill them.Historian Emily Strike chronicles the suffering of these workers and the historic Matchgirls' Strike of 1888. Led by teenage girls, this strike challenged the powerful Bryant & May corporation and eventually forced the banning of white phosphorus."The Glowing Jaw" is a micro-history of labor and chemistry. It reveals the gruesome human cost of a household convenience we take for granted and the courage of the women who fought for the right not to be poisoned at work.

The tragic true story of the factory girls who rotted alive to make matches and their fight to change labor laws.