Contents
“The murderers with imagination turned to new poisons or to unusual methods of administering old ones, hoping that they would avoid the punishing hand of justice”, writes Linda Stratmann in the book “The Centenary of the Poisoners”. As it turns out, the most inventive were … unfaithful husbands who wanted to get rid of their wives.
- “Keep in mind that poisons can be administered in many other ways than by mixing them with food or drinks, or substituting them for drugs. They can be inserted into the anus; they were inserted into the vagina; they were also inhaled in the form of steam and it is not a problem to pass them through wounds “- we read in” The Century of Poisoners “
- The author describes the case of a Finnish farmer who ingeniously poisoned his wife to marry a maid. The method turned out to be so effective that he used it twice more
- In the nineteenth century, an alarming trend was to add poison not to food, but to drugs. “The secret poisoner, pretending to be a caring man and helping to recover, administered poison to a helpless and trusting victim who did not protest, getting something unpleasant to taste”, writes Linda Stratmann in “The Poisoners’ Century”, published by RM Publishing House
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage.
(…) In 1855 and 1856 newspapers frequently and willingly described murder trials – from mysterious to sensational. For this reason, the public got the impression that there was another poisoning epidemic in the country (or a continuation of an untamed epidemic) that needed parliamentary attention. This time the accused were middle-class men – a new breed of sophisticated, learned poisoners who read and learned from the papers in the papers and even studied toxicology. There were alarming signs that imaginative murderers were turning to new poisons or unusual methods of administering old ones, hoping to avoid the punishing hand of justice.
Which way was the poison administered? There was no end to ideas
In 1829, Robert Christison wrote:
“Keep in mind that poisons can be administered in many other ways than by mixing them with food or drinks, or substituting them for drugs. They can be inserted into the anus; they were inserted into the vagina; they were also inhaled in the form of vapor and it is not a problem to administer them through wounds ”.
Author Treatise reported the case of a woman from Toulouse who died suddenly after receiving medication for a minor ailment. Her maid did not give you arsenic in the traditional way (by dissolving it in soup), but added it to the enemas as part of the treatment. Christison wrote that when administered by enema, arsenic produces “all the usual effects” of poisoning, and unless the victim dies shortly after its administration, it is unlikely to be detected in the body after death as a result of the victim’s defecation.
He added arsenic to the coffee. Then he introduced him into the vagina
Another case described by Christison took place in France in 1799. The woman was seriously ill: she had vomiting, diarrhea, swollen genitals and was incontinent. Before she died she told two neighbors that her husband once tried to poison her by sprinkling arsenic in his coffee, and recently introduced the powder into her vagina “while exercising his marital rights”.
In Finland, on the other hand, a farmer aroused suspicion when he married his maid six weeks after his wife’s sudden death. A few years later he got into an affair with a new maid, whom he persuaded to help poison his second wife. When the conventional methods of crime have failed, one morning after intercourse he introduced a mixture of arsenic and flour at the tip of his finger into her vagina. At noon, the wife fell ill and died the next morning. The farmer was free again and the co-conspirator could become his third wife. A few years later, he also got bored of her and gave her arsenic using the same method as his other wife. When she realized that she had the same symptoms as her predecessor, she demanded an explanation from her husband. She got them. Despite repeating vaginal washes, it was too late to save her. After pain and vomiting, delirium followed and 21 hours later she died.
Arsenic has the ability to stick to mucous membranes, as evidenced by the fact that despite the constant rinses after death, arsenic particles were still visible in her vagina. “The labia were swollen and red, the vagina is open and flaccid, the opening of the urethra is gangrenous, the duodenum is inflamed.” Only the stomach remained unchanged. Doctor Manger, a medical inspector from Copenhagen, wishing to dispel all doubts that the administration of arsenic into the vagina could be fatal, conducted several experiments on mares, which resulted in “acute, local inflammation and fatal disruption of the body’s work.”6.
Other poisonings reported by Christison, involving the administration of arsenic into skin wounds, ulcers, nasal mucosa, or inhaled smoke, were accidents, as were two deaths from sulfuric acid enemas.
- The first serial killer in history. The victims died in agony
Poison in drugs
The new problem was that of respectable middle-class men becoming poisoners. Since poisoning has so far been the domain of uneducated people, especially women, the public did not want to believe that a man of a certain social status could be a silent criminal (…).
Another alarming trend was adding poison not to food but to drugs. The secret poisoner, pretending to be a caring man and helping to recover, administered poison to a defenseless and trusting victim who did not protest, getting something unpleasant to taste. Such a distortion of the respected medical profession caused particular embarrassment to a nineteenth-century sensitive society. In 1840, the “Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal” began to be published (in 1857 the title was changed to “British Medical Journal”), which was not only to disseminate knowledge among doctors, but also to “maintain honor and respect for the profession of physician”7. Doctors were more than medical caregivers – they were to occupy a special social position because of “their intellectual qualities …, general morality … and the importance of the duties entrusted to them.” (…)
Joseph Snaith Wooler, the son of a landowner, was born in 1810, and in 1836 he married Jane Brecknell, a surgeon’s daughter five years his junior. The couple spent some time in India, and in 1855 they settled on the Haughton-le-Skerne estate in Great Burdon, near Darlington. They lived there for about seven years and were well known to the local population. They had no children but looked like a happy, loving couple. They have never been seen arguing. Wooler was “a gentleman with independent means”11 from the lease of farms. His wife was entitled to a small annuity. In 1855, the only member of the household was the 27-year-old maid Ann Taylor. In 1848, Ann worked for the Woolers for six months and left the service for a while. She returned to work with them in 1854.
The Woolers took a lot of medicine with them on their journeys. Returning from the trip, they also brought with them a large selection of medicines. They stored them in two baskets.
Medicine from India and a maid
From the beginning of May 1855, Mrs. Wooler complained of feeling weak and vomited. On May 21, her husband summoned Dr. Thomas Hayes Jackson, who had been practicing in their ward for XNUMX years. Jackson stated that the patient had shallow breathing, dry throat, coughing, increased heart rate and red eyes. Internal symptoms included sharp abdominal pain, painful pressure, and flaking of the intestinal mucosa. He recommended bed rest and treated her for the flu for the first week, but her condition worsened. Vomiting and diarrhea had worsened, and the intestinal mucosa was stained with blood. In addition, the patient had hiccups, a dry throat and difficulty swallowing. (…)
Mrs. Wooler did not get out of bed anymore and the nurses were called to look after her: teachers Elizabeth Lanchester and Middleton, who looked after her alternately day and night. Ann Taylor also assisted in caring for the patient.
Dr. Jackson, taking care of Mrs. Wooler, he needed some medication and Mr. Wooler brought him a round Indian basket full of bottles. The doctor checked their contents and found several poisonous remedies, including a one-ounce bottle of liquid arsenic, Fowler’s liquid. About a teaspoon of liquid remained in the bottle. Wooler explained that they traveled twice to India by boat for six months, and that he was in the habit of taking medicines with him. Jackson had the impression that Wooler was more familiar with drugs and their properties than most people.
- She served the family chocolate. The mother-in-law died after a few hours
Mrs. Wooler switched to the typical bedridden diet of the time, consisting of milk, ararut flour (starch), rice and barley, and occasionally beef broth or broth. Dr. Jackson also provided a bottle of tonic, but the vomiting and diarrhea intensified. Since the patient’s body was unable to keep any food, it was decided to feed her with enemas (called “injections” in contemporary sources). There are no digestive enzymes in the rectum so very little nutrients are absorbed this way, but at that time this was not known. Mrs. Wooler’s enema consisted of a fortifying potion, two eggs, a tablespoon of cod liver oil, and a tablespoon of milk. The liquid was prepared by Ann, and Mr. Wooler added a portion of laudanum to it to make it easier for his wife to rest. The enemas were done by Wooler with Ann’s help.
George Harle Henzell, a 23-year-old pharmacist who was Dr. Jackson’s assistant, was also summoned to see Mrs. Wooler. He made his first visit on May 16. When he visited the patient again on June 4, he found her in a much worse condition. It occurred to him that her symptoms matched those of the irritating poison, but at the time he did not think anyone in the house would realize it. He did not mention this inconvenient assumption to anyone, but two days later Dr. Jackson revealed that he was thinking the same. However, he decided not to tell the household members about his suspicions:
“If it turned out to be untrue, I would be exposed to trial and damages. They had a lawyer in the family and that would suit them perfectly.
Wooler became dissatisfied with Dr. Jackson’s services as his wife’s condition deteriorated. On June 8, Dr. Devey came to see the patient. He said it would be “a tedious business, but he did not see the danger.” However, on June XNUMX, Dr. Jackson told Wooler that his wife had tuberculosis and did not think she would ever recover. Wooler understandably got upset that he had not been told this earlier. Dr. Jackson later claimed her husband’s reaction to the news was “very indifferent”15but, according to Ann, her employer often stood by her wife’s bedside sobbing.
On June 18, Dr. William Haslewood, a physician with XNUMX years of experience, was summoned. He found out that Dr. Jackson suspects consumption. (…)
Mysterious urine samples
Dr. Haslewood has ruled that Mrs. Wooler suffers from gastrointestinal irritation from the mouth downwards, as well as from hiccups and pain in the colon. Her skin, including the mucosa of her eyes and nose, was red and rough. Dr. Haslewood told Wooler that he thought the lungs were not involved, modified Dr. Jackson’s recommendations and visited the patient daily. Despite several remissions, Mrs. Wooler felt worse and worse. Her body sometimes held back small amounts of food and medication for two to three hours, but she usually returned them immediately.
After all, doctors limited themselves almost exclusively to enemas to nourish the woman. Wooler persuaded his wife to eat as little as possible normally in order to “keep her alive until her stomach is strong.” As a result, the sick woman practically did not receive any food, which neither the doctors nor the family were aware of. (…)
Henzell examined Mrs. Wooler’s vomit and urine. The vomit analysis showed nothing, but he tested the urine with a Reinsch test and got a metallic precipitate that made him suspect the presence of arsenic. On June 17, Dr. Haslewood also began to suspect poisoning and prepared an antidote to add to the enema. Two days later they discussed the matter with Dr. Jackson, and it turned out they all shared the same opinion.
- A torn head of a newborn, head scarves – what mistakes do Polish doctors make?
Mr. Wooler was absent on June 20 because he had gone to visit his father and Mrs. Wooler was looked after by Dr. Haslewood and Mr. Henzell. When they gave the patient the antidote, her condition improved so much that she was able to eat something and not throw up. From then on, the antidote was given daily, but after a short improvement, the condition deteriorated again.
The patient’s urine samples were stored in bottles kept in the Wooler coach house. On June 22, Henzell, wanting to test some, went to the coach house but found none. He asked for some urine for testing, and then Ann Taylor gave a bottle of urine to Mr. Wooler, who sent it to Henzell. However, while doing the standard tests, Henzell noticed that the sample was so different in nature to the previous one that it was most likely from a different person. He mentioned it to Wooler, who asked Ann where she got the bottle from, and she replied that she was in the coach house as usual.
Haslewood began looking for other symptoms that would indicate arsenic poisoning, particularly cramps and tingling in the limbs. On June 23, Wooler reported that the wife’s hand tingled for only one day. However, Mrs. Wooler said it did not stop for two or three days and she asked her husband to tell the doctor about it, but he forgot. There were also the first signs of impending contractions – stiffness and numbness of the arms: “There may not be a complete chain of arsenic poisoning symptoms.”17Dr. Haslewood later commented. Dr. Jackson also believed that Mrs. Wooler had all the symptoms of slow arsenic poisoning.
None of the doctors still told the patient, her family, friends, nurses or the authorities about their suspicions. It later became clear that they cared more for the reputation of their profession than for the life of a woman.