New-York daily tribune., 1859-08-03

Whether De Quincy be right or not IN treating
Of Murder as 8 Fine Art, Poisoning Is GER
tsnly fast growing into the dignity OF one "f
the Exact Sciences When Bulwer told 'he world
in the introduction to bis novel Lucreta We
believe that was its name-that he wrote 1t t. warn
those tempted, BY unpleasant parents or uncom-
Portable yokeitllows, to remove them to another
ard better world By strychnlne or prussic acid,
pot to give way 10 the amlabe weakness, the
world was good deal startled at the news that
such sn iuterpps.ti0n YVES thought Recessary. The
rather as Sir Edward intinated that this method
of settling family difficulties and disposng Of incon-
yenient domestic obstacles was by no means ua-
common; and d.rkly hinted at cases which had
never leen aired in the Courts, but which were
currently believed on moral evidence TO have oc-
CURED among persons Of reputable condition
Whether this warning had the Effect at the priests
caution to the oster against the wlckedness OF
eres.ing the horses teeth 70 As to cheat them of
their oats, for his own advantage, whereby that
man of straw acquired a new and valuable idea, as
his reverence found the next time he went TO con-
fesson. we cannot affirm; but the cases Of poison
ing in England have multiplied very greatly since
that time 1t may be, however, that the general
attention attracted to this branch of domestic
medici1e has brought upon its practitioners the
misfortune of being more readily fourd out
1t is not great mary yesrs ago since the Judge
who pre,ided at the trial of the action brought by
Wainwright agsinst London Life Offi,e, for an
Insurance effected on the life of a healthy young
woman, who almost Immediately thereafter died
under the most suspicious or rather uDequlyoca,
circum stances and which was resisted on the
ground that she had been poisoned, rejected the
hy p0thess with such horror as an imaginable
crime, that Wainwright carried his case for that
time. This exemplary person, however, bad ex-
tended his industry in the same direction little
too far SO that, though he escaped hanging, he
spent the evening Of biz daJs ID the retirement OF
penal colony, where he died not long since, hay-
ing occupied bis latter years in teaching drawiog
10 the daughters Of the land of bis exile. We
imagine that biz Lorlship, should he have remained
on the bench down TO this time, must have changed
his ideas as to the possibilities Of poisoning. The
cas,s Of Palmer, who poisoned bis friend, and
Dove, who poisoned his wife, are fresh in the
minds of all Journal mon gers; while thst Of the
charming Madeline Smith who did her rascally
lover to death with her own fair hands, will for
ever remain one Of the Judicial romances which
neither Bulwer nor Eugene Sue could materially
better. 1t is true that a gallant jury found the
crime Not Proven" but the evidence was too
strong 10 permit the inquest Of common sense 10
fed her " Not Guilty"
Not that this particular application Of science TO
practical purposes is any thing particularly new. 1t
was not unknown in the Middle Ages, and scarce a
Pope or King could die suddenly without the impu.
tation of poisoning to somebody. Pope Alexander
VI. met with an accident which should put the
professors Of this amiable art on their guard The
story runs that this Holy Father, having observed
With pain that certain cardinals Of bis court had
accumulated an amount of riches which might haz-
ard their admission to thst OF Heaven, was deyoutly
inclined to put them out of the way of such tempt
alton BY removing them from world whose treas
ures are exposed TO the rayages Of moth ant rust
aid thieves. SO he invited them to banquet, at
which be or his excellent son, Caesar Borgia, had
craitily spiced the wine for them. But, by misad-
venture, Ike that which caused the death Of Ter
Msjesty Queen Gertrude Of Denmark, the poisoned
cbalice was commended TO the lips OF his Holiness
and bis valuable son instead OF their guests. Too
much care cannot be taken TO guard agsinst an
error which cost the Christian World its Head and
Father. The fame of the celebrated daughter of
this same unlucky Pontf, Lucreta, is fresh in the
memory Of all opera goers and haunters Of the
temple of the melodrsm.tic muse where the in.
terest Of the scene is made yet more intense by the
actual sight Of the seven cons she had ordered of
the undertaken in advance for her victims. Ariosto