Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Medical jurisprudence / by Alfred Swaine Taylor. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.
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![apparent, and a suspicion of poisoning is thus often removed by an examination of the body. 3. In poisoniiic/, iciioi several partake at the same time of the same fond or medicine {mixed with j)oison) all svfl'er from similar symptoms.—This character of poisoning cannot always be pro- cured; but it furnishes good evidence of the fact when it exists. Thus, supposing that after a meal made by several persons from the same dish, only one suffers, the suspicion of poisoning is considerably weakened. The poisoned article of food may be detected by observing whether they who suffer under any symptom of poisoning, have partaken of one parti- cular solid or liquid in common. In a case of accidental poi- soning at a dinner-party, a medical man who was present observed that those who suffered had taken port wine only : the contents of the bottle were examined, and found to be a saturated solution of arsenic in wine. In general, considerable reliance may be placed upon this character, because it is very improbable that any common cause of disease should suddenly attack with violent and alai'ming symptoms many healthy persons at the same time, and within a short period after having' partaken of food together. AVe must beware of supposing that, in those cases in which poison is really present, all will be attacked with precisely similar symptoms: because, as we have seen, there are many circumstances which may modify tlieir nature and progress. In genei'al that person who has jiartaken most freely of the poisoned dish will suffer most severely; but evi-n tin's does not always follow. There is a well-known case, recorded by Bonnet, where, among several persons wlio partook of a dish ]K)isoued with arsenic, they who liad eaten little and did not vomit s])eedily died; while others who liad partaken largely of the dish, and had in consequence vomited freely, recovered. It was just now remarked, that there is no disease likely to attack several healthy persons at the same time, and in the same manner. This is undouliteiUy true as a general prineijde. hut the following case will show that mislakes may occasionally arise even under these cireunistanees. It occurred in London, during the i)revalenee of the malignant cholera in the year IS.'VJ. Four of the memhers of a family, living in a state of great do- mestic unhaiipiness. sat down to dinner in apjiarenily good liealth : some lime after the meal, the father, mother, and (laughter, were siuldenly seized with violent vomiting and purg- ing. The stools were tinged willi bloo<l. while the blueness of the skin, observed i?i cases of malignant cholera, was wanting. Two of these (tersous died. The son, who was known to liave home ill-will jigainst his falher and mother, and who snfTered no symptoms on ihis occasion, was accused of having poisoned them. At the inquest, however, it was clearly shown by the](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21935221_0030.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
