AN OLD POISONING CASE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1381, 27 October 1886, Page 3

AN OLD POISONING CASE.

The incidents of the Ttmaru case recall the facts of ihe tiials of Capt*in Jarvey in Dunedin many years ago on the charge of poisoning his wife. Thic is especially the case i Ti regard to the scientific evidence; Captain Jarvey was a well known and popular skipper of steamers plying between Dunedin and the Bluff-the Titania and William Mishin. He was very much liked, especially by the luiy pr.sse : gers. His w.fe and family resided at Caveisham, near Dunedin, where her death occurei Nothing ould exceed t e artonirhmeiit which was caused by u a charge of poisoning her. Now Zealand at that tuns h a d n .-i‘Universities and few (■dentists, Mrs Jarvey’s viscera was forwarded to Melbourne for analysis by Professor Mfocadtm. the Goveinmeut Analyst there. He found ample proofs of the presence of strychnia, and ho came down to Dunedin to give evidence. Ihe defence was entrusted to Mr James Smith, who knew something of chemistry, and epeedny learned more. Professor Macadam w«s an eidereiy and rather infirm man. he was quite sure of his facts, but under the terribly merciless scieutitic and technical cross-examination of Mr Smith he got confused, hesitated, contradicted himself, and caused in the minds of jory a doubt suggested rather by his mann r than the matter of his cross-examination —a doubt kb to the perfect reUabi.uy of his evidence in chief • an expert, o ie presence of the poison in the remains analysed. The result w<*B that the ]Ui} di-aureed. Jarvey >?«■ remand, d, and the Prcfcseo- went back to Melbourne He was on his way to Dune Jin to attend the second trial when ho died on ha steamer. He had never recovers from the severity of his cross examtnati. n His death rendetei his evidence on the first trial admisaab e as proof. Read from the Judge’s notes the facts were so clear that, not hiving witnessed the effects of the cross-ex'imination and the manner of the witness, the jury had no hesitation in accepting the accuracy of his analysis, and Captain Jarvey was duly convicted and executed —Post