Adverting to the statement about the stomach being put in a jar, brought up to London, and then immediately submitted to examination, in your judgment was that in an unfavourable or favourable condition for ascertaining whether the strychnia was there?—It would give a little more trouble; I do not see anything else. It is not my opinion that the analysis may be defeated or confused by the existence in the stomach of any other substance which would produce the same colours.
Supposing death to have been caused by a dose of strychnia poison sufficient, but not more than sufficient, to destroy the animal, in your judgment would it be so decomposed by the process of absorption as that you would not be able to detect it by those tests in any portion of the system?—No.
By Lord Campbell—It is a question on which toxicologists have entertained a different opinion?—I believe they have.
Examination resumed—Have you studied the question sufficiently to be able to state reasons for thinking the minimum dose, after having done its work, continues in the system?—I believe the illustration given was that as food undergoes a change on being taken into the body, these substances also do.
By Lord Campbell—It has been said that the decomposition of food affords an analogy?—It has. I believe not. The change in food takes place during digestion, consequently these elements are not found in the blood, or, if the change does not take place there, they remain unchanged in the blood. These alkaloids are absorbed without digestion, and may be obtained unchanged from the blood.
Cross-examined by the Attorney-General—About half of the experiments on the sixty animals I spoke of were made in conjunction with Mr. Morley, the gentleman who was called for the prosecution. A few of these experiments were made in connection with this case, but the great bulk certainly not.
You have not told us what may be material, the general dose given?—The general dose given in the experiments has been from half a grain to two grains. I have seen a cat and a dog die from half a grain, not always. There are varying degrees of susceptibility both in animals of different species and in individuals of the same species.
You say that the symptoms generally appear in from two to thirty minutes; Mr. Morley states two minutes to an hour; will you undertake to say there have not been cases in which the first appearances have been delayed an hour?—I do.
Have you not known instances in which you have had to repeat the doses of poison?—When the dose has not been sufficient to kill, but to produce symptoms, there is a wide difference. I have given it three times. The quantity I gave was half a grain. That in the solid state would be a small dose to kill an old strong cat; a small dose will suffice in the fluid form. Where the half-grain dose has been given three times the reason was that the cat did not swallow the doses.
T. Nunneley