Letters Received to H.H. Barker, December 22, 1930

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI COLUMBIA DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY December 22, 1930 Mr. H. H. Barker United States Radium Corporation 535 Pearl Street DEC 261930 New York City, New York My dear Barker: Enclosed is an inventory of feces and urine residues received to date. You state in your letter of December 17, that three sets of specimens should have been received. The third set is probably in Dr. Turner' hands still. So far I have made only alpha ray comparisons on the specimens. A portion of composited residues was spread on a metal plate so as to secure a film of the specimen about 05 mm. deep. In case there is a decided increase in elimination of radium fol- lowing the first administration of parathormone the second series of specimens should show a marked increase in activity by this quali- tative method of testing. No uniform increase was observed. Feces ash of Miss Freyer showed an increased activity, but the feces ash of Mrs. Hussman and Mrs. La Rice showed a decrease. The measurements of Miss Schaub's samples have not been completed. The net drifts of this series are of the same order of magnitude as the values obtained with the feces ash and urine residues collected in February, 1929, at the Marseilles Hotel. So I assume that the radium content will come out about the same, when we make the determinations by the emanation method. The urine residues range in weight from 18 to 32 grams. The activity is low. Perhaps a half or a third of the urine sample will be enough for a determination of radium by emanation method, but the radium content is so low, that the increase in drift will be small for all urine samples. In making radium determinations on feces ash I shall di- vide the specimen, thus getting duplicate values. The weight of the samples permits this. Their weights range from 3.5 to 7.5 grams. I expect to follow the method of de-emanating by dissolving in nitrio acid, or fusing with bisulfate, and thems separation of emanation accumulated during a definite period of storage. In the former series of determination (1929) where the emanation was collected directly as the sample was put in solution the values ran somewhat lower by storage. (than) It seems to me that the elimination of a few micrograms of radium during a period of several weeks, should show a decided in- crease in alpha ray activity of feces ash; and surely by the emanation method, for, even a millimicrocurie of radon produces a distinct in- crease in drift.