CRIMINAL POISONING 



163 



belonging to the natural orders Apocynacese, Loganiaceae, Euphorbi- 

 acese, Liliaceae, and Leguminosae. 



It would doubtless be more scientific to classify these poisons by 

 the natural orders to which the poisonous plants belong, but, follow- 

 ing our original proposals, we divide them as follows : — 



1. Poisons used for homicidal purposes. 



2. Poisons used for suicidal purposes. 



3. Poisons used for purposes of infanticide. 



4. Poisons used for procuring abortion. 



5. Poisons used with the intent to rob. 



6. Poisons used with the intent to cure disease. 



7. Poisons used with the intent to simulate injuries. 



8. Aphrodisiacs. 



I. Homicide. 



Animal and vegetal substances are used for this purpose, but of 

 the former the best known is viperine venom, which is said to cause 

 gastritis, gastro-intestinal haemorrhages, and even death. It is 

 known to Ceylon natives that the venom of Vipera russellii Shaw, 

 locally called the tic polonga, is supposed to be poisonous when 

 administered by the mouth, and we were informed that this was 

 usually given in toddy, an alcoholic drink prepared from the coconut 

 and from the Palmyra palm. We once met with a case in which we 

 suspected the possibility of this being used, but an experiment in 

 which the recent venom administered orally by means of toddy to a 

 monkey proving a complete failure, we were left in doubt as to the 

 possibility of such poisoning. 



The venom of the Colubridae is harmless when taken by the mouth, 

 provided that there are no cracks or abrasions. Its virulence is 

 destroyed by saliva and by pancreatic juice. 



Vegetal substances are sufficiently numerous, but unfortunately, 

 as far as we know, few are on record. The table given on p. 164 

 is an imperfect list. 



With reference to the table, a few notes, arranged in alphabetical 

 order, may with advantage be given: — ■ 



Aconite. — Aconite (Ranunculaceae) is so poisonous that in India 

 it is known as ' bish ' or ' bikh,' which means ' the poison,' which 

 generally refers to Aconitum ferox Wall (Himalayas), A. napellus 

 L. (Himalayas), A. luridume Aorte (Sikkim), A. lycoctonum L. 

 (Kashmir); whilst A. heterophyllum Wall and A. palmatum Don are 

 said to be less poisonous. 



The root is the principal source of the poison, which, however, 

 also exists in the leaves and stem. 



Aconite is used for homicidal purposes, as a cattle poison, and 

 may at times be taken accidentally. The fatal dose is said to be 

 30 grains of the root, and the fatal period usually three to six 

 hours. 



The symptoms are tingling of the lips, tongue, mouth, and fauces, 

 followed by numbness and anaesthesia, burning pains in the stomach 



