218 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. [September 14, 1872, 
plan for the appropriation of the generous donation of 
Mr. Thomas Hyde Hills, viz., “ That it he added to the 
existing ‘ Bell and Hills’ Fund,’ and that the discre¬ 
tionary power of granting a sum of £10 for hooks to any 
local association in towns where the Conference has met 
he continued. Further, that the principal sum of £200 
he retained until the Executive Committee decide that 
one hond of £50 he sold out, and that such scale of the 
stock he not repeated until an interval of three years 
from the last sale. The Executive Committee for the 
current year to decide upon the appropriation of such 
income from principal and interest, "by grarting sums 
in aid of original research, or for the cultivation of 
pharmaceutical science.” 
Mr. T. H. Hills : Mr. President, with your permis¬ 
sion I heg to say that it will afford me much pleasure to 
he allowed to move the resolution recommended by the 
Executive Committee. I gave the money without condi¬ 
tions more than it should he used for pharmaceutical 
education ; to give money with conditions takes away 
more than half the value of the gift, and I feel that 
which the Committee now recommend is for the purpose 
I intended. I, therefore, have great pleasure in moving 
the resolution. 
Mr. Deane : Gentlemen, I think there is little 
necessity for me to add many words on this occasion. 
We all of us know and feel the great generosity and 
warm-heartedness of Mr. Hills, and his zeal in the cause 
of pharmacy and the well-being of this association. 
Whatever i might say would he only a repetition of 
that which is in your own minds; and as we have a 
great deal of business on hand, I would simply heg to 
second the resolution so nobly put forward by our friend 
Mr. Hills. 
The following resolution was then put to the meeting 
and carried: — 
“ That the recommendation of the Executive Com¬ 
mittee relative to Mr. Hills’ donation of £200, 
having been submitted to that gentleman and ap¬ 
proved by him, he adopted by this meeting,” 
The meeting then adjourned until two o’clock. 
IfOTliawentarg anft fate ftmtogs. 
Poisoning by Laudanum. 
An inquest was held at Sunderland on Monday*, 
September 2, to inquire into the death of a Dutch 
gentleman, named Heemskirk, who had died after having 
been found insensible in bed, with a bottle that had con¬ 
tained laudanum by his side. Evidence was given that 
the deceased had suffered severely from “tic,” and had 
been in the habit, of rubbing his face with laudanum to 
ease the pain. 
William Henry Barker, assistant to Mr W. B. Har¬ 
rison, chemist, of 6, Bridge Street, said that on Thusday 
afternoon, between two and three o’clock, Mr. Heemskirk 
came into the shop and asked for some pure laudanum 
to apply to the face as a liniment for “ tic.” On witness 
inquiring how much he would require, deceased asked 
him to show him some bottles. He showed him a one 
fluid ounce bottle, but deceased said as he wanted to use 
it often, he would require a larger bottle. He then 
showed him the two ounce bottle produced, and he said 
it would do. Witness went to get a blue glass bottle, in 
which they generally put poison, when he said he would 
prefer the plain bottle, and witness labelled it poison and 
put on the name of the seller. He said he wanted to 
take the bottle home, so that it might not get into the 
hands of the servants. Witness told him repeatedly it 
was poison, and he said he knew that—he had been in 
the habit of talcing it—(witness intimated that he under¬ 
stood him to mean that he had had it before for the pur¬ 
pose of using externally). He asked him (witness) what 
dose to take to induce sleep, and witness told him he 
would not recommend that it be taken internally at all. 
He recommended something simpler, and told him it was 
not safe for any person to take laudanum unless they 
were in the habit of doing so. He, however, told deceased 
that twenty drops was the medium dose, and on nu 
account to take more; ’ and he said he had had it through 
his hands before. He told him that a larger dose ought 
not to be taken without the advice of a medical gentle¬ 
man. The two ounce bottle produced was full. He had 
known the deceased for several years, and for the last 
two years as a customer. He had not bought laudanum 
before to witness’s knowledge; the other assistant was 
away. He bought things for “tic,” and nervine, which, 
witness believed contained laudanum, although he did 
not say he was suffering from “tic.” On Thursday, 
there was nothing exceptional in his manner. Witness 
looked upon him as an intelligent, steady, and respectable 
gentleman, and would have felt confidence in giving him 
a larger quantity; although he would not sell it to one 
person in a hundred who asked for it incidentally, nor 
to any person whom they did not know. 
A Juryman: I think your confidence will be shaken 
for the future ? 
Witness: Well, yes. 
A Juryman thought that there needed some alteration 
of the law. 
The Coroner remarked that persons would then endea¬ 
vour to purchase it in smaller quantities at different 
shops. 
Mr. Dixon detailed the efforts made to restore Mr. 
Heemskirk to consciousness, and said that death had 
been caused by an overdose of laudanum, which he 
thought deceased had swallowed during temporary un¬ 
consciousness caused by excruciating pain. 
The jury returned a verdict to the effect that deceased 
died from an overdose of laudanum, obtained on the 
statement that it was to be used as a liniment for “ tic,” 
and that the laudanum was administered by his own 
hand, but that there was no evidence to show the state of 
his mind at the time of administration .—Sunderland 
Times. 
Suicide by a Vermin Killer. 
At Sheffield, an inquest has been held by the Deputy 
Coroner, Mr. Wightman, respecting the death of Mary 
Walker. Evidence was given tending to show that the 
deceased had committed suicide by taking some vermin 
killer, from motives of jealousy. 
Mary Ellen Bishop, 13 years of age, deposed that she 
bought the vermin killer for the deceased, who said it 
was to kill mice. When she gave it to her she was 
sitting in a chair, crying. 
George Corry, assistant to Dr. Robinson, had attended' 
deceased on the day named. She died in about five 
minutes after he was first called in. From the symptoms 
he judged that she had been poisoned with strychnine. 
Mr. Spurr, chemist and druggist, said that his assistant 
had sold the powder to the girl Bishop. Vermin killer# 
are not placed under the restrictions of Part 1 of Sche¬ 
dule A of the Poisons Act. 
The Coroner thought that they ought to be, for it 
was a mere farce to pass an Act of Parliament to pre^- 
vent the sale of strychnine and then allow it to be- 
bought in the form of a vermin powder. He thought it 
would be better if it were mixed with a strong emetic. 
It was a well-known fact that rats and mice could not 
be made sick, and if a human being took any with a 
felonious intent, sickness would supervene, and the evil 
would be obviated. In summing up the Coroner said 
that if the jury thought fit to append anything to their 
verdict with reference to the sale of poisons he would 
forward it to the proper authorities. 
Mr. Spurr said if it were thought well to take into* 
consideration the question of adding vermin killers to- 
the list of poisons to be registered when sold, another 
side of the question would have to be looked at. It 
