Cook, John Parsons, -1855; Palmer, William, 1824-1856 -- Trials, litigation, etc.; Trials (Murder) -- England -- London
Being so universally proficient in the science of your profession, do
you know of any single recorded case of consciousness at the time of
death?--I do not from my own knowledge. I have heard what Sir Benjamin
Brodie said on this subject.
You mean deliberately to state that you believe this to have been from
epilepsy?--I do state so.
Without being able to refer to any cause whatever as producing the
disease?--When I have told you before that deaths often take place in
idiopathic tetanus without leaving any trace behind, I think I may
say----
That is idiopathic tetanus?--They are all of the same class. I think all
forms of convulsions arise from a decomposition of the blood, and, if a
person has probably an incipient tendency to disease of the brain, that
it always may be affected, and that the decomposition of the blood might
set up the diseased action.
Do I understand you that mental excitement had anything to do with
this?--I do not say it had. I said it might have caused it.
Do you find any excitement in this case?--I find at Shrewsbury he was
excited, and wherever you have excitement you have a consequent
depression.
Do you find he was depressed?--When you find a man in bed sick, he must
be depressed.
I was speaking of the depression consequent on these symptoms. Where do
you find any symptom of illness until he begins to vomit?--If I have
much excitement, if I am up all night, it upsets me the next day, and I
generally vomit the food I take. Cook was overjoyed at winning his race.
And you think he vomited in consequence?--He might.
Do you mean to swear that you think the excitement of the three minutes
on the course on the Tuesday accounts for the vomiting?--I do not mean
to say anything of the kind.
Do you find any excitement or depression from that time till the time he
died?--There is nothing reported that I can recollect just now.
On the contrary, do you not recollect that the man, when he was not
vomiting, on that very night, was joking and laughing; was that
sufficient to make him vomit?--That may well be where a man is subject
to bilious fits.
We are talking of excitement--of epilepsy with tetanic complications; I
want to know on what you can put your hand in the way of excitement or
depression which will account for the remarkable symptoms?--I have told
you that almost any one of them is sufficient.
[Sidenote: W. M‘Donnell]
Where is there one which you say might have occasioned death?--These
white spots in the stomach might have caused death by an inflammatory
condition of the stomach.
But there was no inflammation of the stomach, was there?--I have given
you my opinion.
If there had been any, would not the gentlemen who examined it have seen
it?--If those white spots were present you would have had inflammation.
They say there was none?--I do not believe them.
Sensual excitement is a cause of epilepsy with tetanic complications; is
that what you say?--Yes, it might be.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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