MUSEUM LECTURES

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XLIX, Issue 12547, 10 July 1905, Page 5

MUSEUM LECTURES

PROFESSOR EASTERFIELD ON "POISONS. 5

The second of the series of winter lectures was given at the Museum Lecture Hall on Friday evening to a largeaudience, and was evidently well appreciated. The lecturer gave a brief outline of the history of poisons and poisoning from the earliest times to the Middle Ages, when the practice of getting rid of people not wanted was easily effected by a dose of poison, a method perfectly safe, in the absence of coroner's inquests and of all means of detecting poison by chemical analysis after death. Ho quoted a regular tariff of fees for thus disposing of human lives which was adopted by the Venetians, and showed that the business was highly profitable and popular. Coming down to more recent times, he explained how the analyst could not only detect the presence of poison after death in the different organs of the body, but. also how he could distinguish one poisoi from another, and isolate it from all other bodies. For criminal cases, the analyst had a serious responsibility cast upon him, as any carelessness might lead to mistakes: it was usual, therefore, to verify one test by another, and even to test the tests themselves. He mentioned one instance, in which a miscarriage of justice was only averted by the cleverness of counsel in challenging the accuracy-of the tests, and when on further investigation it was found that the tests thenisslves contained the poison sought for in considerable ..quantity- Thife'pait of the lecture was brightened by a quaint, dry humour which was much enjoyed by the audience. The lecturer then produced a bottle containing "soup," which ho suspected contained poison, and gave a practical demonstration of how, from tho same fluid, different poisons could be extracted and identified by chemical process. He described the different systems of classification of poisons, that of the analyst for purposes of identification being into volatile, non-volatile, and metallic; each class having its subdivisions. The lecturer then extracted from the soup prussic acid, carbolic acid, strychnine, and arsenic. Professor Easterfield was successful in each experiment, and that with great rapidtiy. In a chatty and amusing way, he explained the different stages of the chemical processes, and displayed the results. Mr. Bridge presided over the meeting, and in introducing the lecturer made a strong appeal for more generous public support of and institution which was of great educational value. He thought that much greater use ought to be made of it, and that children should be taken there and have the numerous exhibits explained to them. A vote of thanks was proposed by Mr. W. Gray, and carried by acclamation.