728 
MISCELLANEA. 
a bottle similar to that containing the cordial. The cordial-bottle had been broken, but 
this fact having been forgotten, Mrs. Wide took the laudanum bottle by mistake,—both 
bottles having been marked “ poison.” The jury returned a verdict in accordance with 
the facts. 
Suicide by ct Battle’s Vermin Killer.” —An inquest was held, at Elton, on 
the body of Reuben Eayres, who was found dead, with the remains of a tart lying by 
his side, and a paper with the following words in the deceased’s handwriting, “ Died by 
poison.” The case is reported in the ‘ Northampton Mercury,’ in which the following 
curious statement occurs :—“An analysis of the tart disclosed the fact that a portion of 
Battle’s Vermin Killer had been put upon it. One of the component parts of that 
poison, it was stated, is nux vomica , which Mr. Southam, surgeon, .considered was the 
cause of death, there being no contortion apparent as in the case of strychnia.” A ver¬ 
dict of felo de se was returned. 
Accidental Poisoning 1 by Strychnia. —An inquest has been held at Wigan 
on the body of a man who was accidentally poisoned with strychnia. The explanation 
of the surgeon who dispensed the medicine was to the effect, that he was not aware 
that there was any strychnia in a crystalline form in his surgery, and the bottle con¬ 
taining the poison was not properly labelled. The verdict of the jury attributed death 
to censurable oversight on the part of the surgeon, and they attached great blame to 
those who placed the bottle in its position without a label. 
Accidental Poisoning by Chloride of Sine. —At a dinner given by a Cal¬ 
cutta judge several gentlemen of position were nearly poisoned ; a servant handed round 
chloride of zinc in place of liqueur. Mr. Graham, Government Standing Counsel at 
Calcutta, drank off a glass and immediately fell. Remedial measures were adopted, 
and the unfortunate gentleman is out of danger ; but, it is said, it will be years before 
he is fully restored. 
Suicide by Prussic Acid. —An inquest was held by Mr. Carter, the coroner for 
East Surrey, in Lambeth, on the body of Mr. Augustus Reeve, who died from the effects 
of prussic acid in the Albany Baths. He had requested to have a private bath, with 
the water at 100° F. The bath-attendant, hearing a noise, opened the door, and found 
the deceased vomiting. Medical assistance was called in, but death took place almost 
immediately. A bottle, labelled “ poison,” was found, which had evidently contained 
“ Scheele’s hydrocyanic acid,” and this, according to the medical evidence, was the cause 
of death. From the evidence of Mr. F. Brand, of Richmond, brother-in-law of the de¬ 
ceased, Mr. Reeve had formerly practised as a surgeon, but in July last had received 
a severe sunstroke, since which he had been very low-spirited. The jury returned a 
verdict of “Suicide while in a state of temporary derangement.” 
Accidental Poisoning by Opium. —An inquest was held at Bristol, April 9th, 
on the body of Mrs. Frances Mary Goyder, whose death was caused by an overdose of 
Battley’s solution of opium. By the advice of her brother-in-law, Dr. Goyder, of Brad¬ 
ford, she had taken a few drops of Battley’s sedative with great benefit, and on Thurs¬ 
day morning, after passing a sleepless night, she took an overdose of the mixture, and, 
although every effort was made to restore her, she died from the effects of the poison the 
following day. The evidence entirely negatived the idea of suicide. The jury accord¬ 
ingly returned a verdict of “ Died from an overdose of Battley’s solution of opium, taken 
by mistake.” 
MISCELLANEA. 
Assault upon a Chemist at Hull. —The facts of the case were as follows:— 
George Taylor went into the shop of Mr. Bell, and complained that the latter had been 
the means of his being struck off the register of chemists and druggists. Mr. Bell, who 
is the Secretary of the Chemists and Druggists’ Association, told him that he had 
nothing to do with his name being struck off the register. Taylor then struck Mr. Bell 
