Kidd V. Roijal Agricultural Society of England. 
657 
it done? It is notorious in the purest linseed, screen it as you will, you will 
find some elements such as dodder, darnel, Polyf/onum, Lolium te.mulentum, 
and all those various things which grow with the linseed. They come from 
Calcutta, they come from 8t. Petersburg, they come from the Black Sea. It 
is part of this article of commerce, and you cannot prevent the linseed from being 
more or less afl'ected by the presence of these foreign vegetations in the quan- 
tities of it which are imported into this country. And what is the result ? Why 
we have this proved : that there is in London an association composed partly 
of the importers, partly of those who represent the great agricultural interests 
lof the country, and partly of retailers, who have formed what is known as the 
Pure Linseed Association," and they have laid down a standard which rules 
lin this way : pure linseed is linseed which only yields a certain percentage, 
t per cent., of foreign elements, weeds, or foreign growths, which come in 
ivith the bulk of the linseed; and they say this — if when a cargo is delivered 
■;o you, you find you have got seed which has got 4i per cent, of these foreign 
'.'lements in it, then you ought to get a deduction of a half per cent., or a return 
"rem your price to that extent. But if you get a cargo which is of such purity 
.hat it only contains 3^, then you have to pay for that extra half per cent, 
lifference, because j'ou have got the benefit of a purer article. That is the test 
ind the principle upon which they rely ; and you have it proved in this case, 
"■cause Mr. Kidd produced before you the certificates of the Association, that 
m some of the very linseeds used for making this cake he had to pay and 
i to receive, showing the high class and purity of the linseed that he 
eceived. Gentlemen, I am therefore asking you, when you come to look at 
his question of the purity of the linseed, to recollect that, call the cake what you 
aay, the purest and the most absolutely unadulterated linseed that the wit of 
nan or the skill of manufacturing science can produce for the use of cattle in 
i:lngland, if put under the microscope, you will find dodder, darnel, and 
"'olygomim, and twenty other of those foreign elements which grow with its 
Towth, mature with its ripeness, and of necessitj' form a portion of the bulk 
f the seed as it is imported into this country. You will remember in the 
lass bottles which were produced yesterday, you had specimens of those 
'arious linseeds — the pure and the other qualities — for you to use your own 
yesight upon, and I hope you will not fail to exercise it for the purpose of 
iscovering that even the naked eye can detect in the purest linseed the 
resence of these foreign matters. Then in what way does their microscope 
elp you? Does it help you to the conclusion that this cake had more foreign 
lements than pure or twice screened linseed ought to have ? Is there a 
iitleman in that bo.x who will make that experiment in common justice 
■ uiy client, who will see what the niunber of these dodder, darnel, and 
'olygorMm seeds is in those indisputable samples of good honest seed ? When 
ly friend talks about jjoat hoc and propter hoc, why it is his argument, not 
line, to say that because the cattle died after eating it, therefore the cake 
lUSt have poisoned them ! I say, let us go further and see if there may not 
3 other causes which would account for the death of that one animal aud the 
^ijury to the others. What I put in this case is that, by and by, when you 
re considering the question how far chemistry and the microscope help you, 
jouwill remember that the chemical analysis supports the positive affirmative 
ji'idence of Mr. Kidd, and that you never can accept the theory that there 
mid be that proportion of flesh-giving useful nutriment in that article, with 
"le oil, and the mucilage, aud the albuminous compounds shown by the 
lemical analysis, impregnated with poisonous ingredients, unless you could 
|ive found, or unless the eyes of those Professors could have found, something 
'ore solid to rest upon than the grains or particles of grains which they weie 
lie to find under the microscope. And then I ask you further to go willi ire 
this : that all the microscope proves is that which I have adniiited, and V-X. 
VOL. VIIL— <:-.«. 2 U 
