The Sun. — 1846-10-15 (London, England)

SUICIDE WITH A POISONOUS QUACK COMPOUND. On Monday Mr. Mills held an inquest at the Rutland Arms, Rutland-street, Hampstead-road, on the body of Mr. Charles Tatham, aged 41, army accoutrementmaker, of 37, Charing-cross. Mr. Henry Tatham, gun-maker, at the same address, said deceased was his brother, and carried on his business at the same premises, and at 52, Stanhope-street, Hampstead-road. His brother died at the house lastmentioned between ten and eleven o'clock on Thursday night. From three o'clock to about five o'clock of the same day deceased had been ill and troubled with continual nausea at Charing-cross, and, not getting better, witness conveyed him to his residence in a cab. He was put to bed and attended to, and about two hours before his death he told his wife ho had taken poison, purchased at the shop of Mr. Starkie, chemist, 4, Strand. The moment the avowal was made deceased's medical adviser was sent tor. Mr. F. W. Mackenzie, surgeon, of Chester-place, HydePark-square, said that on visiting; deceased he found him in a hopeless, exhausted state from the effects of some irritating poison. He administered remedies for the space of nearly two hours, but unavailingly. Since death he had opened the body, and tested the contents of the stomach in the presence of Professor Graham, and dhcovered arsenic. tie had no doubt that was the poison which destroyed life. Deceased said that iu the course of the day he went to a chemist's in the Strand and asked for arsenic to destroy rats. The chemist said he had none, but would give him a powder that would do as well. Deceased said he took the powder about three o'clock on Thursday. A packet of the powder was here produced, labelled " Butler's Gloucestershire Vermin and Insect Killer," and stating " that it would entirely destroy them (rats); and, at the same time, would not be liable to occasion those serious accidents which constantly occur from the use of common poisons." Mr. Mackenzie said that the powder found in deceased's stomach was identical with that in the packet. Having examined a sixpenny packet of it, he was of opinion that it contained arsenic enough to kill four persons. It was a preparation of arsenic diluted with other coloured ingredients. Mr. Starkie, chemist, acknowledged selling the powder as a safe thing, thinking that it was so from an advertisement be had seen in the Pharmaceutical Journal, alleging that though the powder would kill quadrupeds it would not kill human beings. He had not analysed it, and took the statement in the advertisement for granted. Mr. Mackenzie said he knew of no powder that would kill quadrupeds and be innoxious to man. Evidence having been tendered showing that deceased's mind was sometimes unsound The CORONER said that when he bought the powder he was of more sane mind than the vendor of it, because he knew what Mr. Starkie did not know—viz., that a poison for quadrupeds must be a poison for human beings. Verdict, Temporary Insanity ; the jury appending, " That they strongly condemn the sale of poisons in open shops, without proper precautions being taken to prevent the frequent fatal consequences of such sales. They regard the present instance as one calling for severe reprehension, and trust that a public exposure of the facts will tend to prevent the mischief which they believe is frequeittly occurring from the sale of poison in druggists' houses."