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The inheritor's powder : a tale of arsenic, murder, and the new forensic science / Sandra Hempel.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York, N.Y. : W.W. Norton & Company, 2013Edition: First American editionDescription: viii, 278 pages ; 25 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 0393239713 (hardcover)
  • 9780393239713 (hardcover) :
Subject(s):
Contents:
The fell spirit of the Borgias -- The big square house in the village -- A great chain and dependency of things -- Death by toad or insect -- That good and pious man -- There's not much in dying -- A great degree of inquietude -- Corroborative proof as to the deleterious article -- Those low incompetent persons -- A very active constable -- The introduction of irritating matter -- I never saw two things in nature more alike -- She would not risk her soul into danger -- Oh my poor mother -- From the very brink of eternity -- The sequel of these proceedings -- What if the chymist should be mistaken? -- The freezing influence of official neglect -- I went with a lie in my mouth.
Summary: Explores how an infamous murder case led to the birth of modern toxicology.
Fiction notes: Click to open in new window
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library NonFiction 364.1523 H491 Available 33111005193756
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In the first half of the nineteenth century, an epidemic swept Europe: arsenic poisoning. Available at any corner shop for a few pence, arsenic was so frequently used by potential beneficiaries of wills that it was nicknamed "the inheritor's powder." But it was difficult to prove that a victim had been poisoned, let alone to identify the contaminated food or drink since arsenic was tasteless.

Then came a riveting case. On the morning of Saturday, November 2, 1833, the Bodle household sat down to their morning breakfast. That evening, the local doctor John Butler received an urgent summons: the family and their servants had collapsed and were seriously ill. Three days later, after lingering in agony, wealthy George Bodle died in his bed at his farmhouse in Plumstead, leaving behind several heirs, including a son and grandson--both of whom were not on the best of terms with the family patriarch.

The investigation, which gained international attention, brought together a colorful cast of characters: bickering relatives; a drunken, bumbling policeman; and James Marsh, an unknown but brilliant chemist who, assigned the Bodle case, attempted to create a test that could accurately pinpoint the presence of arsenic. In doing so, however, he would cause as many problems as he solved. Were innocent men and women now going to the gallows? And would George Bodle's killer be found?

Incisive and wryly entertaining, science writer Sandra Hempel brings to life a gripping story of domestic infighting, wayward police behavior, a slice of Victorian history, stories of poisonings, and an unforgettable foray into the origins of forensic science.

First published in London in 2013 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson with subtitle: A cautionary tale of poison, betrayal and greed.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 249-267) and index.

The fell spirit of the Borgias -- The big square house in the village -- A great chain and dependency of things -- Death by toad or insect -- That good and pious man -- There's not much in dying -- A great degree of inquietude -- Corroborative proof as to the deleterious article -- Those low incompetent persons -- A very active constable -- The introduction of irritating matter -- I never saw two things in nature more alike -- She would not risk her soul into danger -- Oh my poor mother -- From the very brink of eternity -- The sequel of these proceedings -- What if the chymist should be mistaken? -- The freezing influence of official neglect -- I went with a lie in my mouth.

Explores how an infamous murder case led to the birth of modern toxicology.

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