Note 220 — Chapter X · (continued 2)

Mrs. McElroy, when, with Lamson’s consent, taking charge of his medicines, found among other things an unmarked box of “sugar pills,” which Lamson said were either morphia or quinine, he did not know which. On this evidence the following remark is made on the accused’s behalf:—“After he (Lamson) left, and when John was taken ill, several pills were discovered on the table, which were not noticed while Lamson was there. It is believed that as John was suffering from indigestion (he had dined at one, and portions of his dinner were vomited undigested at nine) he determined to take a pill, and try with it one of the capsules just given him. John’s symptoms of poisoning did not begin till about three-quarters of an hour (really twenty-five minutes, see p. 520) after Lamson left, and he lived for about four hours after, whereas if he had taken the poison in the capsule, while Lamson was there, it is almost certain that the symptoms would have set in much earlier, especially considering the enormous quantity of poison said to have been taken. He then, unhappily, selected one containing aconitia. From the foregoing evidence of the way in which Lamson used and prescribed aconitia, taken with what Mrs. McElroy says of his ignorance as to what his own medicaments contained, it might well be that he ignorantly or insanely mixed these pills, and sent them to Percy John without any murderous intent.”