Gathering up all the fish he could save, Jordan sewed the nameplates that had been on the destroyed jars directly onto the fish.

A taxonomist who is credited with discovering “a full fifth of fish known to man in his day,” Jordan had amassed an unparalleled collection of ichthyological specimens. Miller began doing research on David Starr Jordan (1851-1931) to understand how he had managed to carry on after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake destroyed his work.

The author calls the test for arsenic that he developed “the first major advance in modern chemical toxicology.”Īn unexpected verdict and its aftermath make this a satisfying murder mystery in the grand tradition.Ī Peabody Award–winning NPR science reporter chronicles the life of a turn-of-the-century scientist and how her quest led to significant revelations about the meaning of order, chaos, and her own existence. James Marsh, an assistant to Michael Faraday, was called in as an expert witness, and he testified to the probable presence of arsenic in the remains. An inquest was held after a post-mortem examination of the body. Police were also on the lookout for packets of arsenic, which were ultimately discovered in the possession of Bodle's grandson, John, who was arrested and subsequently tried. This case became a landmark in medical jurisprudence when the doctor in the case, believing the death to be suspicious, had the victim's vomit collected for analysis. In this instance, circumstantial evidence suggested that arsenic had been mixed into Bodle’s coffee. Evidence gathering was left to parish constables who were notorious for drunken incompetence. The symptoms were similar, and chemical tests for the presence of arsenic were primitive. Textbooks on toxicology were available to medical and legal professionals, but they had a difficult time distinguishing death by arsenic poisoning from death by natural causes. As a white powder, it was “tasteless, odourless…easily dissolved…fatal in tiny doses” and readily available as a pest killer and for skin ailments. When George Bodle died from a violent stomach disorder, which also afflicted other members of the household to a lesser degree, arsenic poisoning was immediately suspected. The eccentric cast of characters includes an elderly farmer who had amassed a sizable fortune, his contentious heirs, local law enforcement, medical professionals and scientific experts. Medical journalist Hempel ( The Strange Case of the Broad Street Pump: John Snow and the Mystery of Cholera, 2007) examines a headline-grabbing murder case from 1833. A suspicious death in a quaint English village sets the stage for a real-life scientific thriller.

The Inheritor's Powder by Sandra Hempel