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    "localId": "75725826",
    "label": "Letters Received to H.H. Barker, November 3, 1930",
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    "id": "75725826",
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    "title": "Letters Received to H.H. Barker, November 3, 1930",
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    "collections": [
        "Safety Light Collection",
        "Records Related to Radium Dial Painters"
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    "seq": 2,
    "pageIndex": 0,
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    "ocrText": "UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI\nCOLUMBIA\nDEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY\nMr. Barker - 2\nNov. 3, 1930\nall events I was asked about your visit upon my return to Columbia\nin the fall. As you well realize we cannot decline to give out\nsome information when visitors and reporters drop in. President\nWilliams is probably encouraging these ambitious young men to get\na start in their careers, but in addition I surmise that he has a\nmore far-reaching plan to hold before the people of the State the\nvaried activities in which the University is engaged. This article\nwas, in faot, compiled by a representative from the President's\noffice.\nYour own experiments in radium production here in\n1920-122 is an important link in the chain of activities. May\nnot the clock companies look upon the laboratory here as a sub-\nstation of the United States Radium Corporation, where the ques-\ntions of dangers and hazards in radium refining are receiving\nserious, scientific study. I may add that we now have ready for\npublication a paper tentatively given the title: Is Mesothorium\nor Radium Refining a Dangerous Ocoupation? The closing paragraph\nof this paper it seems to me constitutes a good reason for trans-\nferring for a time at least your laboratory operations to an edu-\ncational institution. The paragraph runs a 3 follows:\n\"It was finally concluded that the emanations pre-\nsent in the air cannot be expected to harm workers, a conclusion\nfurther necessitated by the continued perfect health of persons\nengaged in the laboratory. None of the workers (5) has experienced\nany debilitating effects. All were fully aware of the possible\ndangers and hazards in handling carelessly high grade radioactive\nmaterials In the beginning the young men evidently had confidence\nin the directors of the work, who had both refined mesothorium on\na commeroial scale for a period of two to three years, fully ton\nyears ago, at a stage in the development of the technique when a\nnumber of the precautions and protective means here described\nwere not heard of . As the work has progressed the early tension\nmanifest at times among the workers and their folks has gradually\ngiven place to a peaceful feeling of confidence and safety.\"\nSo in closing, I wish to express the hope that the\narticle in the Times will not cause you embarrassment with the\nclock companies. Please recognize that the call for a story comes\nstrong and frequently to us. The responsibility for the release\nof the story rests largely with me."
}