Excerpt from Treatise on Poisons: In Relation to Medical Jurisprudence, Physiology, and the Practice of Physic I shall discuss this subject by considering first the mode in which poisons act, and secondly, the causes by which their action is liable to be modified. Section I. - On the Mode of Action of Poisons. On attending to the effects which follow the application of a poison to the body, we perceive that they are sometimes confined to the part where it is applied, and at other times extend to distant organs. Hence the action of poisons may be naturally considered as local and remote. The local effects of poisons are of three kinds. Some decompose chemically or corrode the part to which they are applied. Others, without immediately injuring its organization, inflame or irritate it. Others neither corrode nor irritate, but make a peculiar impression on the sentient extremities of the nerves, unaccompanied by any visible change of structure. We have examples of local corrosion or chemical decomposition in the effects of the concentrated mineral acids or alkalis on the skin, and in the effects of strong oxalic acid, lunar caustic, or corrosive sublimate on the stomach. In all of these instances the part to which the poison is applied undergoes chemical changes, and the poison itself sometimes undergoes chemical changes also. Thus oxalic acid dissolves the gelatin of the animal textures; and in the instance of corrosive sublimate, the elements of the poison unite with the albumen, fibrin, and other principles of the tissues. Of local irritation and its various consequences we have many examples, from redness, its slightest, to ulceration and gangrene, its most severe effect. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

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In this revised and expanded edition, leading forensic scientist John Trestrail offers a pioneering survey of all that is known about the use of poison as a weapon in murder. Topics range from the use of poisons in history and literature to convicting the poisoner in court, and include a review of the different types of poisons, techniques for crime scene investigation, and the critical essentials of the forensic autopsy. The author updates what is currently known about poisoners in general and their victims. The Appendix has been updated to include the more commonly used poisons, as well as the use of antifreeze as a poison.

Open access edition: DOI 10.6069/9780295749013 At first glance, medicine and poison might seem to be opposites. But in China’s formative era of pharmacy (200–800 CE), poisons were strategically employed as healing agents to cure everything from abdominal pain to epidemic disease. Healing with Poisons explores the ways physicians, religious figures, court officials, and laypersons used toxic substances to both relieve acute illnesses and enhance life. It illustrates how the Chinese concept of du—a word carrying a core meaning of “potency”—led practitioners to devise a variety of methods to transform dangerous poisons into effective medicines. Recounting scandals and controversies involving poisons from the Era of Division to the Tang, historian Yan Liu considers how the concept of du was central to how the people of medieval China perceived both their bodies and the body politic. He also examines the wide range of toxic minerals, plants, and animal products used in classical Chinese pharmacy, including everything from the herb aconite to the popular recreational drug Five-Stone Powder. By recovering alternative modes of understanding wellness and the body’s interaction with foreign substances, this study cautions against arbitrary classifications and exemplifies the importance of paying attention to the technical, political, and cultural conditions in which substances become truly meaningful. Healing with Poisons is freely available in an open access edition thanks to TOME (Toward an Open Monograph Ecosystem) and the generous support of the University of Buffalo.