New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-12-14

Professor Doremus said that he resided at No. %
West fty-seventh-st.. that he was by profession
an analytical chemist; that he had been practising
his profession since 1888: that he a professor
OF chemistry and toxicoogy in Bellevue Hospital
the American Veterinary College and the College Of
the City Of New-York: that he was a member Of
the American, the German and the French chemists
societies; that 1t his frequent duty to examine
dead bodies for organic and Inorganic posons; that
he had been frequently called as witness in cases
In court involving some form Of poisoning; that he
was familiar with arsenical and antimonial pol
sons and their operations the human system.
and that July G. 1892, he had been present at
the autopsy performed on the body Of the man
said to be Joseph Baum. He described the manner
In which the body opened and the organs
removed He had brought with him seven
new ard clean jars he had bought them and
.cleansed them. The brain Of the subject had been
placed In one jar by itself. the heart in another
by itself, the unopened stomach In another by
ITSELF the unopened intestines in another by them
selves the kidneys in another by themselves a
piece OF muscle taken from the left leg in still
another, and the liver and spleen and some fluid
taken from the body with a sponge In the seventh.
and sealed them himself. He took them to the
Carnegie Laboratory, placed them sealed in the
days later he removed the seal Of the refrgerator
opensd the jars and pre-, sf to examine ter
,as s asy hs psf
Drs. O'Hare and McAlpin have already testified,
describing the organs as In fair state of preser
walton. There not much decompcston The
heart contained blood; the stomach was
empty. and there was nothing in the ntestines but
some mucsginous material. The brain had be-
a PUPPY that took the form of the
Gar In which 1t was being preserved. The examina-
ton which developed these facts having occurred,
Dr. Doremus replaced the organs In the Jars that
had been again cleansed, and sealed them. His
examination occurred on August l6, when ne took
portions of the stomach. Of the intesnes. OF the
liver and of the fluid ard subjected them to the
operation OF alcohol and carbonc acid to prepare
them for examination for the discovery Of organic
poisonsng-the function OF the alcohol and acid
being to take up and dissolve all organic SUBJ
stances.
TESTS FOR POlsONS.
On December Is ne made the tests with this OBJ
5ect. DR.. Doremus mentioned the kinds of poisons
the volatile poisons. such chloroform and prus-
sic acid; the organic or vegetable poIsons. such as
morphine and strychnine, and the mineral or in
organic poisons such mercury, lead. copper.
arsenic and antimony. He said that there
poisonous substances that combinations of the
mineral and vegetable posons. such as corrosive
sublimate which mercury combined with
chloride. such sugar of lead. oxide Of arsenic
and chloride OF anthony. He examined with great
portions Of the organs In his possession taken
from Baums body first for the discovery Of vegetable
poisons. but he found none Then he entered upon
of that process was the destruction OF the tissue
hydrochloric acid. To this he added chloride OF
potash and exposed the mass to heat.
The chemicals acted to consume the tissue and
leave the mineral posons, IL there were any, in