102 The Post-Mortem Imbibition of Poisons. (February, 
would reveal the presence of the suspected poison. The subject 
is not of very recent date as many are led to suppose from the 
meagre account given, if given at all, in some of the standard 
text-books on toxicology of the present day. As far back as the 
time of Orfila, when he swayed as chief of the toxicologists, was 
the subject known, and indeed it appears that almost cotempora- 
neous with the birth of toxicology, already an account of the 
subject appeared. 
In order to see in what light the subject was regarded in 
former times, extracts from the writings of a few authors will be 
here made, as to go over them all would involve a great amount 
of unnecessary labor. How eloquent is the language of Orfila 
on the subject, and in what an exceedingly small number of 
words does he illustrate the whole subject (Orfila on Poisons). 
He writes: “ Suppose some wretch, with the design of accusing 
an innocent person of the crime of poisoning, should introduce 
into the digestive canal of a dead body a poisonous solution, 
which would afterwards penetrate by imbibition even to the 
remotest organ from which it would be subsequently extracted 
by the experts, and would lead them to the conclusion that they 
were dealing with a veritable case of poisoning.” From the fol- 
lowing it will be readily seen that the celebrated chemist, Sir 
Robert Christison, although not in possession of any evidence of 
crime having been practiced, yet was fully aware of the circum- 
stances under which it might perchance be committed. Says 
Christison: “ Although I have never been able to find any 
authentic instance of so horrible an act of ingenuity having been 
perpetrated, it must nevertheless be allowed to be quite possible.” 
The realization of the greatness of the crime does not seem to 
be apparent to the wretch who is meditating the commission of 
it, brooding over the insults of another, and holding malice 
against a fellow-man or especially (as it affords a better chance 
. for the full performance of his crime), against one of his relatives, 
and ravenously seeking retaliation; for if it was realized, how is 
it possible that an individual, capable of the perception of right 
and wrong, living in society, constituting a part thereof, mutually 
dependent on and cooperative with his neighbor, could use such 
means for the wicked fugtherance of his ends? 
That there have existed in times past among the communities 
of the civilized nations of the world, individuals who haye har- 
