The year was 1902. With funding and consent from Congress, Harvey Washington Wiley was about to embark on an experiment he dubbed the “hygienic table trials,” but the Washington news media called his volunteers "the Poison Squad." Wiley’s staff would put borax in their butter, milk, or coffee. Formaldehyde would lurk in their meats, copper sulfate and saltpeter in their fruit pies. Jeff and Anthony wonder why anyone would sign up for this.

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Today’s story was sent in by Susanna H. French: http://mentalfloss.com/article/92217/men-who-volunteered-be-poisoned-government

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