My initiation into the military came as an Intern at Naval Regional Medical Center, Great Lakes. We received recruits from the recruit center who needed hospital care. Soon after beginning my year of internship I admitted a recruit who had had the misfortune of being first in line to enter the gas chamber exercise. The instructor handed him a pill-which was to be placed on a hot plate to produce the tear gas-and instructed him to "Take this". He dutifully swallowed it! I spent some time contacting the manufacturer and searching the literature but could find no instance of this ever happening and no help in how to treat the young man. His only symptom and sign was redness of his eyes. We kept him in the hospital a few days and followed his liver and kidney status and he suffered no ill effects from being a walking, talking tear gas machine. We probably should have studied his flatulence but were negligent in not doing so. Max Dean, Boise, Idaho (This occurred in 1969)