“…An increased mechanical fragility of the circulating corpuscles through contact with plasma lead was regarded as the essential feature of the anaemia of lead poisoning. Indirect evidence which supported this view has been reported more recently, namely, raised urobilinogen excretion in lead-poisoned guinea-pigs (Baikie, 1954) and coproporphyrinuria I in severely poisoned workmen (Kench, Lane, and Varley, 1952). The data in a recent investigation (Holecek and Penickova', 1957) are unfortunately qualitative only.…”