The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1883-04-12
The ASYLUM Cases Again.

N4AA'et
occurrence has ever yet transpired but that
some one, outside Of the range of legitimate
information, has not been able to tell eX-
actly how it occurred, and the preliminaries
which led to it. There are would-be ON
niscients in every community who are al
ways prepared to supply missing links, and
whose preconceived opinions are never in
the slightest influenced by the facts as they
are known to exist. They reach. their con-
illusions by some kind of intuition, and
whatever those conclusions may be is a
matter of little consequence and not at all
surprising.
That those, however, who have had OPP
portunities Of knowing; who have care
fully followed such an investigation as that
recently concluded in the Asylum cases,
and who have observed the searching, fear
less manner in which that investigation
was prosecuted, can entertain such atheory
as that set forth in the Vindicator OF last
week, is what we cannot understand. The
editor Of that paper says: ''Our own theory,
after hearing the whole of the evidence, is
that the druggist of the Asylum, Dr.. But
ler, did not make q mistake, and that the
author of the act was some hOmicidal
lunatic who had gotten possession of the
| fluid extract of aconite.'
In order to reach this conclusion the evil
dence taken by the jury must be entirely
disregarded, and a mere suspicion, which
the jury, whose only object was the ascer-
tainment of facts, deemed unworthy of con-
| sideration, and not tending in the least to
| throw any light on the subject, made the
basis of so grave acharge. Areference to
the testimony, we are satisfied, will con-
| vince the plainest understanding that both
| propositions of the indicator s theory are
| incorrect.
First, as to the homicidal lunatic =
| The suppressed testimony to which allusion
is made amounted to nothing, so far as the
subject matter of the investigation was
concerned. The Importance that has been
attached to it is due more to the fact that
the jury requested the reporters not to
mention it, than to any possible bearing it
could have had on the poisoning. At the
/ time the request was made, it was sug-
gested that the bare fact of suppression
would magnify its Importance hundred
| fold, but the gentlemen of the jury thought
! otherwise and it was understood that it
should be dropped. We wish it were our
privilege now to publish the statement, for
| it was not testimony, then made, and to
| follow it up with other evidence that could
| be adduced upon the same point. Itwould
be shown that the jury measured its full
worth when they decided not to cumber
the record with it.
| In his testimony, DR.. Butler stated that
the only fluid extract of aconite in the dis
pensary since he had been in charge, was n
pound bottle purchased by him in July last.
| DR.. VIM. Hamilton stated that he did not
remember of any fluid extract being there
whilst he was in charge, which was prior
to July. Of the pound purchased by DR..
| Butler three fluid ounces were taken to
compound eight ounces of the tincture,
and the remaining thirteen ounces are
|
could not therefore have gotten his fluid
extract from the dispenSary, and the testi-
mony Of the Staunton druggists proved
| that they had not even sold the tincture,
much less the fluid extract, to persons
| whom they did not know were capable of
using it. They had sold to no stranger,
and certainly would not have sold to a
lunatic. If, therefore, a llnatic used the
| fluid extract, he must have procured it
outside of the Asylum and outside of
| Staunt0n. And if he did so procure it,
it would have been just as easy to get the
alkaloid as the fluid extract, for parties
who would sell the one to stranger, would
have no hesitancy whatever in selling the
other. To maintain that a patient admin
istered fluid extract of aconite it must
either be proven that he procured the drug
outside of Staunton, OF the testimony of
DR.. Hamilton, DR.. Butler, OF the Staunton
druggists must be discredited.
Second, as to the poison: The analysis of
DR.. Mallet disclosed SAT Of grain of aeon
itine in the stomach and contents of one
of the poisoned patients (Adams). Dr..
VIM. Hamilton testified that every tissue
Of the body had absorbed some of the
poison. 1t is therefore reasonable to sup
pose that at least a grain of the alkaloid
was swallowed by the patient. The ten
dency of DR.. Mallet's testimony pointed
almost irresistibly to the alkaloid as the
deadly agent employed. He said, Il would
state that the very marked physiological
effect upon the tongue produced by the
very minute portions of residue from the
mugs, taken as an indication of the amount
OF aconitine present, and considered IN con-
nection acitb the absence Of aaay dark color IN
the resid,tes, OF any color other than that
naturally arising from the medicines them
selves, is suggestive of the more probable
use of aconitine itself, OF one Of it's salts,
rather than any Of the usual medicinal
preparations from the crude root; but on
this too much stress ought not to be laid. -
Italics ours. In his testimony, part of
which is quoted above, it was established
that the remains of the medicines placed
in the mugs by the druggist forthe patients
were distinctly observed in the analyses,
showing that the poison had been mixed
with the medicine prescribed by the physi-
clan, and dispensed by the druggist. The
evidence of Grove and other attendants
proved that the mugs when handed to the
patients had no unusual appearance, and
not one of the patients discovered any
thing amiss about the medicine until after
it bad been swallowed. 1t should be re-
membered that these doses were tonics
and had been administered regularly to
these patients. They were well acquainted
with the color, quantity and general ap-
pearance of the dose. and some of them,
OF some of the attendants, would almost
certainly have observed any change in any
of the particulars mentioned. So far as
the evidence disclosed there was no change,
the mugs presenting the same.appearance
as heretofore, being about tWo-thirds full
of the medicine, their capacity being three
fluid ounces.
Had the mug from which Adams drunk |
been filled with fluid extract Of aconite it |
would not have contained as much of the |
alkalOid as was found in his stomach and |
contents, to say nothing of that which must |