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#117345 12/09/03 03:28 PM
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wwh Offline OP
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"Loco Foco" became the name of a a radical political group in the 1830s:

"Sensing defeat, the minions of Tammany Hall dimmed the gas lights, plunging the meeting into darkness. Responding to the shout "Let there be light!" the quick-thinking radicals struck a new brand of matches called "Loco Focos," and the name stuck."

Previously matches could only be lighted by striking the on a surface containing phosphorus.Apparently the loco-focos were the first strike-anywhere matches.


#117346 12/10/03 02:01 PM
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I hadn't heard of them, Dr. Bill--thank you. Here's an editorial cartoon, about
"THE DEATH OF OLD TAMMANY AND HIS WIFE LOCO FOCO."
http://www.loc.harpweek.com/LCPoliticalCartoons/IndexDisplayCartoonMedium.asp?SourceIndex=Topics&IndexText=Locofocos&UniqueID=36&Year=1837



#117347 12/10/03 09:13 PM
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oy! that link near ripped me monitor in two!




formerly known as etaoin...
#117348 12/11/03 02:00 AM
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Oh--did it make your screen go wide? I'm sorry if it did. On mine, the link splits down to the next line after asp?.


#117349 12/11/03 12:48 PM
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after asp?

Hey, leave me outta this!

Made mine go wide, too, Jackie. Maybe it's a Mac thang, huh, eta...


#117350 12/11/03 12:51 PM
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Opera 5.0 for Mac: wide
M$ Internet Exploder 6.0 for PC: not


#117351 12/11/03 01:36 PM
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Netscape 6.2 - wide
IE 6.0 - not (same computer)

#117352 12/12/03 07:10 AM
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old hand
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Previously matches could only be lighted by striking them on a surface containing phosphorus
With due respect - are you sure about that? I was always under the impression that it was the other way round: the first matches contained (white) phosphorus, and could be lighted on any surface - they often lighted spontaneously and caused poisonings. In the later safety matches, antimony sulfide and potassium chlorate is used, which ignites in contact with the red phosphorus of the matchbox.


#117353 12/12/03 02:10 PM
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Dear wsieber: The strike anywhere matches caused accidents.
I can remember newspaper stories about someone putting several of them in a pocket, and from sitting down have them ignite and cause severe burn. So safety matches were marketed that again had a special striking area on the outside of the package.



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