The San Francisco call., 1899-01-29

rests on suspicion, to interrogate the ao-
cused parties and force on self-incrimina-
ton, the police Of Continental Europe
cases are ''classed." as it is officially
called in Paris, put by, pigeonholed for
ever and day, wanting sufficient proofs
for trial, In the utter absence, indeed, OF
any suspected person to try. In every
country and at all times, past and present,
there have been crimes that defed de-
lection.
Secret Poisoning.
1t Is generally held that secret poison
ing has much diminished in these later
days, and. no doubt the law, assisted by
science, affords better protection to the
closely safeguarded by the regulations
that govern the sale of poisons; science
has a deeper insight into the properties
of lethal drugs and better aids detection
by improved methods of analysis and a
reader, more positive recognition of the
traces and effects of poison. Again, the
stringent and precise rules in force as to
death certificates, the law that the cause
of death must be in all cases attested by
a properly qualified medical practitioner,
shall see, its value may be diminished
under new conditions of interment.
A chief obstacle no doubt to free, un-
lawful use of poison is the difficulty Of
access to the person threatened. Now
and again the reckless homicide, who kills
poisonous net over a whole circle, some
family. some gathering of people, by the
casual distribution OF Of = poisoned fc food,
effect as it may. But if there is a definite,
deliberate intention to murder a particu-
lar victim; facility OF access Is first,
consequence the use of poison Is very
largely limited to particular agents, who
place, to women and doctors, in short,
whose ways of life bring them into daily
contact with those they. have marked
q ba
poisoners of modern time have been mem
bers of the medical profession chemists
and females, whether wives, nurses. COM
panions, cooks or servants, intimately as
sociated with others by natural, family
or domestic ties. American statistics show
that some f1ve-eighths Of female homi-
in personal service-housewives house
keepers, servants, washerwomen and
nurses.
Does Science Aid the CriminalsP
An uncomfortable feeling prevails that
modern science is not altogether on the
side of defense. 1t may assist detection,
yet it has multiplied the methods of pois-
ontng by many chemical and other dis
coVeries. Some Of the newer processes IA
vor the criminal; many products, animal,
vegetable and mineral, are available
which leave little or no trace. If eau
tiously administered. Improved knowl-
edge, again, has developed the practice
of chronic or gradual poisoning, of sap
ping life by small deleterious doses that
~
Stimulating the symptoms of natural dis
ease.
Sir Henry Thompson. in the spring of
last year, when engaged in a controversy
as regards cremation and it's possible ef-
fects in encouraging crime, strongly
urged the appointment of a special expert
medical officer to examine all bodies be-
fore they are disposed of for cremation.
He believed that in the future easily
decomposed compounds are likely to be
used, the existence of which it is difficult
If not impossible to verify after two or
three days" Can it be that the present
infrequency of criminal poisoning, as
evinced by the daily records, is
due to the employment of these safer
lethal substances to which Sir Henry
Thompson refers? An uncomfortable
feeling has been aroused by the out
spoken evidence of another eminent med
ical man. Sir ]. Crichton Brown at a
public lecture stated explicitly there were
organic poisons we'll known to experts
which could be used with impunity with
out the slightest fear Of detection. "a
connoisseur in poisons could, by keeping
microbes" he explained. slaughter hun
dreds of innocent persons without the
slightest fear of his crime coming to
light" He, however qualified this
sweeping assertion by stating his belief
that these poisons, in his wide experience,
were rarely, If ever, illegitimately used.