A complete report of the trial of Dr. E. W. Pritchard, for the alleged poisoning of his wife and mother-in-law. Reprinted, by special permission, from the 'Scotsman' / Carefully revised by an eminent lawyer.
- Eminent lawyer
- Date:
- 1865
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: A complete report of the trial of Dr. E. W. Pritchard, for the alleged poisoning of his wife and mother-in-law. Reprinted, by special permission, from the 'Scotsman' / Carefully revised by an eminent lawyer. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.
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![ing the earlier part of the period, and prior to the 16th February, Catherine Lattinier, Mary M'Leod, the children, and two more, besides the prisoner and his ■wife. After the 16th there is this alteration, that Catherine Lattimer goes away^ and is succeeded by Mary Patterson. And then on the 10th February, six days before Catherine Lattimer went away, Mrs Taylor came. Now, keeping these things in ■view, let us attend to some of the prominent occurrences during this period; and I think here, as in other cases, it conduces to clearness to take events precisely in the order of time. You will recollect that Mrs Pritchard went to visit her friends in Edinburgh in the month of November—the pre- cise day is not fixed. She had been ailing before that, and according to the account of Catherine Lattimer, her ailment was just a little less severe. Afterwards it increased in intensity, and accompanied her down to her last moments. It was sickness, depression, vomiting, and purging. She got better while she was in Edinburgh ; but she returned a few days before Christmas, towards the end of December. She returned home, and after that she got ■gradually worse. There was a return of the sickness and depression, and the vomiting and the purging seemed to be more violent. On the 1st of February there was a severe and alarming attack—so much so, that Catherine Lattimer, who was to have left the service next day. Candlemas-day, was •obliged to return, in order to make herself useful to Mrs Pritchard. Now, I wish to call your attention to Catherine Lattimer's account of this attack on the 1st February. I think that is the first event of particular importance in the history of these last two months of I'ebruary and March. [His Lord- ship read at length the evidence of Catherine Lattimer, as to the attack which Mrs Pritchard had suffered on tlie 1st February, and in the course of which, after she had got to her bed-room, cramp had seized her, and she was afflicted with sickness and vomiting. It Also appeared from this evidence that klrs Pritchard had said to the witness that she was generally sick after slops and after tea. Having read this evidence, his Lordship jn’oceeded]—Now, gentlemen, that W'as the first very serious and violent attack which Mrs Pritchard had, and we may be sure that it ■was such as Lattimer described it, for she has airparently been very accurate and judicious in her observations. She appears to have observed everything minutely, and gave her evidence in such a way as to command re- tspect. We then come to inquire at the medical gentlemen whose opinions ■we have before us, whether these symptoms are or are not reconcilable with the opinion which they formed upon the post-mortem and chemical examination, and they say they correspond exactly — that they are just the symptoms they would expect from a person to whom antimony was being admi- nistered. Now, in the course of that week, Dr Cowan makes his appear- ■ance upon the scene. He comes on the 7th, and visits Mrs Pritchard, con- doles with her, sees that she is very unwell, and makes some little suggestions as to the way in which she should be treated, which are not very material to the question into which we have at this stage to inquire. He remains there till next day, leaving upon the 8th, and during the time that he was there Mrs Pritchard had no serious attack of any kind ; but, strangely enough, a second attack, and a serious one, does come on on the evening after he left—the 8th. You have the description of that attack by Cathei’ine Lattimer again ; and you have also, as applicable to that, the evidence of Dr Gairdner— the first appearance of any medical man upon the scene other than the prisoner himself. Now, attend if you please to what these two witnesses say about this attack on the evening of the 8th. Catherine Lattimer had made a little mistake](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b28407258_0132.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
