Chapter I: Front Matter

Transcriber's Note.

Variable spelling has been retained. Minor punctuation inconsistencies have been silently repaired. A list of other changes made can be found at the end of the book. Original text is printed in a two-column layout. Formatting and special characters are indicated as follows:

_italic_
=bold=
+underlined+

IN THE NECESSARY TOIL

AND

SUFFERING OF THIS LIFE

_MAN CAN INVENT NOTHING NOBLER THAN HUMANITY!_

THEN WHAT HIGHER AIM CAN MAN ATTAIN THAN CONQUEST OVER HUMAN PAIN?

ENO'S 'FRUIT SALT' prevents unnecessary suffering and removes disease only by natural laws.

READ the 20-page pamphlet given with each bottle!

ENO'S 'FRUIT SALT' rectifies the Stomach, and makes the Liver laugh with joy by natural means (Or, in other words, Gentleness does more than Violence.)

Its universal success proves the truth of the above assertion.

_MORAL FOR ALL_--

"I need not be missed if another succeed me;
To reap down those fields which in spring I have sown.
He who ploughed and who sowed is not missed by the reaper,
He is only remembered by what he has done."

The effect of Eno's 'Fruit Salt' upon any Disordered and Feverish Condition is Simply Marvellous. It is, in fact, Nature's Own Remedy, and is an Unsurpassed One.

CAUTION.--_Examine the Capsule, and see that it is marked
ENO'S 'FRUIT SALT,' otherwise you have the sincerest form of
flattery--IMITATION._

Prepared only by J. C. ENO, Ltd., 'FRUIT SALT' WORKS, LONDON, S.E., by J. C. ENO'S Patent.

POISON ROMANCE AND POISON MYSTERIES

POISON ROMANCE AND POISON MYSTERIES

BY

C. J. S. THOMPSON.

=St. James' Gazette=:--"There is indeed no more fascinating reading
... very pleasant and readable.... It is full of good reading,
with some rather creepy and _saugrenu_ dippings into the past."

=Daily Chronicle=:--"Poison is always a fascinating subject. There
is something subtle and mystic about the very word. On this
attractive theme Mr. THOMPSON has collected a great deal of
information from ancient and modern alike."

=Daily Mail=:--"People who are fond of prying into the gruesome
subject of toxicology will find some interesting chapters in Mr.
C. J. S. THOMPSON'S book."

=The Athenæum=:--"Decidedly sensible and well informed."

=Literature=:--"Mr. THOMPSON writes a sprightly chapter on
toxicology in fiction."

=The Saturday Review=:--"A great deal of curious information
concerning the history of poisons and poisonings."

=Illustrated London News=:--"The story portions will attract most
attention, and the poisoned gloves and rings of old romance
supply satisfaction to that sensational instinct which is absent
in hardly one of us."

=The Queen=:--"Will fascinate most people. Is very readably
written. Its only fault is that it is too short."

=Liverpool Courier=:--"It is a readable book as well as an able
one. The author is an eminent toxicologist and writes pleasantly
on the lore connected with the science."

=The Scotsman=:--"It is successful and interesting. Full of odd and
startling information."

=Manchester Courier=:--"The book is extremely interesting and
particularly valuable."

=Aberdeen Free Press=:--"Fascinates the majority of his readers.
One could wish that Mr. THOMPSON had written much more."

=Glasgow Citizen=:--"A book of the week."

=Glasgow Herald=:--"Light and eminently readable."

+An edition of this book in cloth boards, price 2_s._ 6_d._, is published by The Scientific Press Ltd., 28 & 29, Southampton Street, Strand, London, W.C.+

POISON ROMANCE AND POISON MYSTERIES

BY

C. J. S. THOMPSON, F.R.HIST.S.

AUTHOR OF "THE MYSTERY AND ROMANCE OF ALCHEMY AND PHARMACY" "THE CHEMIST'S COMPENDIUM" "A MANUAL OF PERSONAL HYGIENE" "PHARMACY AND DISPENSING" ETC. ETC.

LONDON

GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS, LTD
BROADWAY HOUSE, LUDGATE HILL, E.C.
1904

ROUTLEDGE'S CAXTON LIBRARY

OF

Fiction and Standard Works

_Medium 8vo. Price_ =6d.= _each_.

OVER 300 VOLUMES.

_Write to Messrs. Routledge for a complete list of the Series._

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION

IN response to the wishes of many who read this work when it appeared in serial form, it is now reproduced with much additional matter, which I hope may prove of value to those interested in the fascinating subject of poisons and the study of toxicology. It has been my endeavour to collect, in the following pages, the scattered fragments of historic and romantic lore connected with poisons from the earliest period, and to recount the stories of some notable "poison mysteries" of ancient and modern times. I am indebted to the works of Dr. Wynter Blyth for many facts concerning the poisons of antiquity.

C. J. S. T.

1899