The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1875-05-13
CORRESPONDENCE.
(For the Chef)
GOSSIP FROM A PILL-BOXi OR, Pol
SONING As A FINE AhT.

Although the Italians of the middle age compared with
the rude nations the North possessed considerable skill
in Alchemy, yet it mixed up with magic meanta
tons and other nonsense that hardly deserved the
name Of a science.
In age has mankind been well provided with sub
nimcal to life the present Chemistry has
made way in the past hundred years to the position oil
rstclass science important not only to the physician
adding interest and certainty nearly every branch
of industry. The chemist is longer governed
by the empirical experiments of the aehemst he mas
discovered the key many Of the most secret
Of Nature and understanding the immutabe laws which
govern all her delicate operations, he works upon
mathematical certainty. obeying the laws Of affinity and
proportion he prepares salts and compounds as fatal and
unerrng their effects upon the human body as the dart
of Death itself: sudden the lghtnengs stroke
Posons practically divided into three general class
founded upon their modes of action These classes are
lst Iritant poisons like arsenic corrosive sublimate
the mineral acids etc They excite Inflammation in the
parts with which they in contact and give rise TO
constitutional disturbance usually attending high infam
matOry action.
Cd Narcotics. These pOisOns characterized by the
disorders they produce in the system,
pscialy the brain Opium is prominent member OF
this class. Its effects too well known to need any
comment Hydrocyanc acid is also ranked with the mar
cocs OF all posons those belonging to this class would
the purpose Of the professional poisoner Their
effects generally speaking obscure, and more
apt to simulate the effects of disease during life; while the
post noren appearances dim and uncertain, not to
say contradictory.
Sd Narcotic acids In this class are ranked beadonna
stramonium, tobacco hemlock vOmiea camphor al.
coho These easily traced both in ante and
post Inorte examination With these might be ranked
gases particularly earbonic acid the
of many tragic accidents in old wells drains etc.
mention its frequent by the suicide and muir
derer in the shape of burning charcoal.
The discovery in the past fve years. of number Of
persons in this country who apparently made business
poisoning has attracted considerable attention TO the
subject These cases. in the number of victims offered
recalls the good old days Of the Borgas. Of the three
notable cases, of the artists Marylander
one Pennsylvania, and the third hailed from mmacu.
late Massachusetts,; and-a noticeable facial
The Batmorean poisoned for money mixing her hospital
iy with ararized antmOny The daughter of Penn poi
soned her friends apparently for the fun of the thing her
favorite dope being that old stand dby-arsenic The
sanity Puritan-nOw of the curiOses of the Massa
chuses prison. and exceedn gy devOut to be
pointed joyful example of change of heart-pOi
soned eight ten members of her family using like the
last mentioned About year since in England
an old hag-a professional nurse-was arrested, and
conviction Of poisoning cOOy confessed to hav
ng poisoned ceny persons in that many She
also was lover arsenic. The most startling part of
this record lies in the fact that in single instance
experienced ply sicans employed yet suspect
ed that their patients being murdered At the very
last they did begin suspect something wrong but what
dolt would should lightning strike twenty times in
the same place, begin to inquire the reasonl
If these practically ignorant women, using common
poisOns, producing striking and wellknown symptoms
under the eye experienced physicians could on
their murderous work for years unsupported how terri
bly, easy how frighfully safe murder becomes-especia
ly moderately skilled in chemistry or pharmacy!
If hafdozen of arsenca poisoning pass right
under without exciting his suspicion,
a..
when the delicate and obscure drugs used
Suppose for instance the harmless looking pleasant
smelling hydrOcyanic acid should be used. OF all known
poisons-used medicinaly-i is probably the dead
y its concentrated form, before say, five drops taken
the mouth could reach the stomach the person
taking it would be n corpse! Acting suppose,
through tho absorbents the nervous system in an
overdose paralyzes the whole body nstananeOusy,
stopping the vital action of BRAIN heart and lungs
OF all deaths this be the easest-the least painful
Yet this fatal drug in the hands Of the physician is val
liable sedatve Once habituated to its its effects
said to be delightful relieving nearly instantly all
of fatigue physical mental 1t differs from opium
achohol in remarkable particular. Its eIhrratng
effects followed by reaction of prosraOn
irritabity of all poisons this would be the
most dangerous in the hands Of evil disposed
Imagine a The wife for instance forms apenehdnt
for her husbands clerk She bdes her time and last the
husband is unwe. The wife, with touching sOlicitude
advises dose of (sayl soothing syrup-Mrs Winslows
The husband admrng this wifey conduct consents to
take it. She goes to private cabinet fills a teaspoon
but by fatal bunder gives him. soothing syrup but
concentrated Hydrocyanic acid Death is instantaneous
giving the good time to for help-no leisure to
scOld Polly time to leave clerk blessing
How is the crime to be suspected There is contOr
tOn of face suspicious spasm unusual appearance
nothing in short distinguish death by the
usual plea heart disease doctor for and is
his guard-which is seldom the thing alone
baJD in datac tb md
very tenacious scent resembling peach blossoms What
a slight clue and how easily obliterated! The woman |
sufficiently posted to make of the drug would be
apt to be of this peculiar scent How then
in the midst of her grief pour down. after the soothing
syrup, dose of spirits of oamphOr other power
full aromatic Should circumstances excite suspicious the
crime could only be proven by immediate post Ortem
and careful analysis.
As illustration of the power of this drag and other
phenomena attending the action Of pOsons upon the hu
system, we remember a remarkable case, which
CURED in England few years since:
A few miles of London the north side in a small
suburban town lived Dr. Horton and his practcing
physicians The old doctor in the habit when ex-
hausted by fatigue of taking dilute hydrOcyanic acid Re-
turning day from long ride he went to his desk,
took down the bottle and raising it to his lips took about
the third of teaspoonul-an enormous dose of the
medicinal acid rendered possible in his by habitual
In moment he realized that he poisoned! that
in way the bottle contained concentrated acid. He
managed to give surgng cry and dropped if struck
by lightning His son in adjoining room, rushed in,
what had happened dashed pail of cold
ter his PROSTATE father, poured down his throat
dose of uphate Of zinc rapid emetic and by the
friction electricity and artificial respiration gradually
the effects of the poison The accident resulted
from the bringing from LOndOn few hours before
bottle of the concentrated acid and houghtessy placing
by the bottle containing the dilute acid Had not the
old doctor been in the daily habit Of taking the drug
nothing could have saved him. 1t illustrates how Injured
the body becomes poisons by habitaal So the OPT
will with mpunity dose that would infal
liby kill one not accustomed its effects One
ly credit the story of Pompey-or Hannibal which
attempting suicide he found himself his great disgust
poison proof We do not remember hearing a
OF murder by the Of this drug yet strikes of all
posons, the educated would Indeed
Is not the fact Of IFS apparent in itself suspicious
The drug is known to thousands outside proe ssiou
1t can be bought by the ounce for a few shngs Is it
not strange then that it has made criminal
use Of except by the sucidei We believe that many
person found dead has not died accordance with
pomousy sentenous jury verdict "Died from visitation
Oh Tod but has met reacherous doom by prussic acid
80 TOO with those powerful anResthees chlorOorm and
etner. The victim would present unnatural appear
ance none of those inable marks handed down by
uon-rapd putrefactiOn often just the reverse bleed
0nr