CO129-249 - Governor Des Voeus Acting Governor Barker - 1891 [1-5] — Page 128

consideration all poisonous substances

other than those herein after mentioned which have been the cause of death or harm to individuals by

misadventure, as many cases have

been and

as not

to justify

are

of

Justify

so rare occurrence

my

opinion.

recourse to legislation. Opium, the

drug

suicides

usually employ,

is

also excluded for the reason that

its almost

general employment by

the Chinese would seem to render it

a

well nigh impossible task to

devise means to prevent its

use by

intending suicides. Moreover I am

unable to point to a single case

of murder or attempted murder in which opium has been employed.

My remarks will therefore be confined to those substances which are used as

agents in criminal

poisoning in its strictest sense,

of

which the experience of past years

would

appear to limit to parts or preparations of the following:

Arsenic

Sahura Alba

Gelsemium Elegans

Of these three poisons

Arsenic is

known to

require more than

passing

notice. The Chinese are not only

acquainted with the tersulphide of Arsenium – the white Arsenic of English commerce_ but also with the yellow (Orpiment) and red

(Realgar) sulphides. There is,

moreover, a native mineral

named hung-

sin which consists,

according to Stanbury of the red

sulphide and white oxide of arsenium. I have had no experience in this Colony of

a

case

of arsenical

poisoning. My predecessor, Mr.

Callum, has placed on record

a

case the particulars of which

will