Genre:

Essay

Subjects:

Public Health, Manufactories, Disease

    Includes extracts from G Calvert Holland's Vital Statistics of Sheffield, a work describing the 'tragic history of the iron fork-grinder'. The author of the article reports that 'nearly one-third' of the fork-grinders examined suffered from an incurable lung disease caused by the inhalation of 'fine particles of stone and metal' produced in fork grinding. Punch believes these statistics might 'spoil a good man's dinner' and show that forks are 'Death's most handy weapon'.