|
Arsenic poisoning. |
In the
early 1800’s and during the reign of Queen
White
arsenic or arsenic trioxide (As2O3) is a metallic oxide that
was widely used in the 19th century as a pesticide to kill vermin and insects
and also as a herbicide, tonic and as a component in
medicines, agriculture as a dip for sheep, and wallpaper. It was very cheap, freely available up to
1851 (see below) odourless, soluble in water and largely tasteless.
When taken
in food the symptoms produced included vomiting, diarrhoea and severe stomach
cramps which were not at all dissimilar to English Cholera and
gastro-enteritis. Cholera epidemics were
not uncommon at this time with major outbreaks in 1831/2, 1848/9, 1853/4 and
1866 which killed in total some 140,000 people.
When taken in small quantities arsenic is not lethal but its effects are
cumulative, i.e. it builds up in the body.
In large quantities it is lethal although not quick, death usually
taking several hours. Where death
occurred and there were no obvious suspicious circumstances doctors often
certified the cause as Cholera and did not order an autopsy. Thus arsenic became the “weapon of choice” particularly
among women who for two old pence (1p) could obtain enough of the substance to
get rid of unwanted children, husbands and other relatives and often get away
with it. It is impossible to know how
many cases of arsenic poisoning went undetected.
Up to 1836 there was no reliable means of detecting arsenic. In this year James Marsh who was a chemist at
the Royal Arsenal in Woolwich published a paper giving a detailed methodology
for testing for traces of arsenic and for measuring the actual quantity
found. He had been involved with the
case of James Boodle in 1832 and Boodle was acquitted due to lack of good
forensic evidence, although he later admitted poisoning his grandfather’s
coffee. There had been previous test
methods, the earliest invented in 1775 by Carl Scheele and others devised by
Johann Metzger, Valentin Rose and Samuel Harnemann, but these were not
ideal. The Marsh Test soon became the
standard forensic procedure and samples of food, drink, stomach contents and
tissue were examined using it. The
process was very sensitive and could detect as little as a fiftieth of a
milligram of the substance.
In 1841 a German chemist named Hugo Reinsch published a description of a
second method whereby metallic arsenic was deposited on copper foil from
hydrochloric acid solution. The test was easier to perform than Marsh's, since
it could be applied to a liquid containing organic matter.
Expertise at carrying out these tests built up in the newly opened
teaching hospitals and there were soon a number of expert witnesses available
to prosecutors. As often seems to be the
case detection was more of a deterrent than punishment and the instances of
arsenic poisoning began to diminish.
In the
decade from 1843 to 1852, 22 women were hanged in
|
Date hanged |
Name |
Age |
Place |
Crime for which executed.
Other probable victims |
|
10/08/1835 |
46 |
|
Murders of Harriet Southgate and Robert Frary. |
|
|
06/05/1843 |
Betty Eccles |
38 |
|
Murder of her stepson,
William. Two daughters, Alice aged 10
and |
|
05/08/1843 |
24 |
|
Murder of her husband Previous
husband and her son. |
|
|
13/01/1844 |
42 |
|
Murder of her husband. None |
|
|
02/08/1844 |
31 |
|
Murder of her stepson,
William. Stepdaughter Emma and
daughter Ann. |
|
|
28/12/1844 |
Mary Gallop |
20 |
|
Murder of her father. None. |
|
11/01/1845 |
Mary Sheming |
51 |
|
Murder of her infant
grandson. None |
|
23/04/1845 |
28 |
|
Murder of her brother,
Charles. Husband Henry, son James
& mother, Mary |
|
|
17/04/1847 |
18 |
Bury St Edmunds |
Murder of her husband,
John. None. |
|
|
30/07/1847 |
27 |
|
Murder of sister in
law. She confessed to poisoning three
other relatives. |
|
|
14/08/1848 |
Mary May |
38 |
|
Murder of her half brother,
William Constable. None proven. |
|
09/08/1849 |
31 |
|
Murder of her husband. None |
|
|
21/08/1849 |
Mary Ann Geering |
49 |
Lewes |
Murder of her husband. 2
adult sons. |
|
23/08/1849 |
44 |
Devizes |
Murder of her infant
son. She confessed to poisoning seven
of her children. |
|
|
13/04/1850 |
20 |
|
Murder of sister, Susan
Lucas. None. |
|
|
25/03/1851 |
42 |
|
Attempted murder of
husband. Possibly two sons and another
child. |
|
|
19/08/1851 |
Mary Cage |
40 |
|
Murder of her husband. None proven. |
|
10/04/1852 |
27 |
Lewes |
Murder of her husband. None. |
Note: Mary
Milner hanged herself on the eve of her execution but is included as no
reprieve was forthcoming and all the preparations had been made for her
execution.
Including
Mary Milner there were 97 executions in
The activities of “Sally Arsenic” as Sarah Chesham was dubbed by the
media together with other female poisoners, finally reached the notice of
parliament. After sustained pressure in
the press, the Earl of Carlisle introduced the Sale of Arsenic Regulation Bill
in early 1851. This required the
supplier to keep a register showing the name of the person making the purchase,
the amount bought and the reason for buying it.
The purchaser had to sign the register.
The seller could only sell to persons they knew or if they didn’t know
them to persons accompanied by a witness who could verify their identity and
who had also to sign the register. From
now on arsenic had to be coloured for normal sized purchases so that the
defence that the poisoner had simply added it to food by mistake could not be
used. Uncoloured (white) arsenic could only be bought in commercial amounts, a
minimum quantity of 10 lbs being specified. The Bill received the approval of
the House of Lords on the day before Sarah Chesham was hanged and was
originally to have contained a clause banning women from purchasing the
substance although this was later dropped.