Aids to Forensic Medicine and Toxicology | Page 9

label with name of deceased, date, and contained organs, and transmit these personally to the analyst.
=Exhumation.=--A body which has been buried cannot be exhumed without an order from a coroner, fiscal, or from the Home Secretary. There is no legal limit in England as to when a body may be exhumed; in Scotland, however, if an interval of twenty years has elapsed, an accused person cannot be prosecuted (prescription of crime).

VII.--DEATH FROM AN?STHETICS, ETC.
The coroner in England and Wales and Ireland must inquire into every case of death during the administration of an an?sthetic. The an?sthetist has to appear at the inquest, and must answer a long series of questions relative to the administration of the drug.
Before, therefore, giving an an?sthetic, and so as to furnish yourself with a proper defence in the event of death occurring, you ought to examine the heart, lungs, and kidneys of the patient to see if they are healthy. Should a fatal result follow, the an?sthetist will require to prove that it was necessary to give the an?sthetic, that the one employed was the most suitable, that the patient was in a fit state of health to have it administered, that it was given skilfully and in moderate amount, that he had the usual remedies at hand in case of failure of the heart or lungs, and that he employed every means in his power to resuscitate the patient.
The condition of the lungs is of more importance than the state of the heart.
The chloroformist ought always to use the best chloroform.
An an?sthetic should never be administered except in the presence of a third person. This applies especially to dentists who give gas to females.
=Malpractice.=--In every case where a medical man attends a patient, he must give him that amount of care, skill, knowledge, or judgment, that the law expects of him. If he does not, then the charge of malpractice may be brought against him. It is most frequently alleged in connection with surgical affections--e.g., overlooking a fracture or dislocation. Before a major operation is performed, it is well to get a written agreement.

VIII.--PRESUMPTION OF DEATH; SURVIVORSHIP
=Presumption of Death.=--If a person be unheard of for seven years, the court may, on application by the nearest relative, presume death to have taken place. If, however, it can be shown that in all probability death had occurred in a certain accident or shipwreck, the decree may be made much earlier.
=Presumption of Survivorship.=--When two or more related persons perish in a common accident, it may be necessary, in order to decide questions of succession, to determine which of them died first. It is generally accepted that the stronger and more vigorous will survive longest.

IX.--ASSAULT, MURDER, MANSLAUGHTER, ETC.
=Assault.=--This is an attempt or offer to do violence to another person; it is not necessary that actual injury has been done, but evil intention must be proved. When a corporal hurt has been sustained, then assault and battery has been committed. The assault may be aggravated by the use of weapons, etc.
=Homicide= may be justifiable, as in the case of judicial execution, or excusable, as in defence of one's family or property.
Felonious homicide is murder. This means that a human being has been killed by another maliciously and deliberately or with reckless disregard of consequences.
=Manslaughter= or =Culpable Homicide= (Scotland) is the unlawful killing of a human being without malice--as homicide after great provocation; signalman who allows a train to pass, and so collide with another in front.

X.--WOUNDS AND MECHANICAL INJURIES
A wound may be defined as a 'breach of continuity in the structures of the body, whether external or internal, suddenly occasioned by mechanical violence.' The law does not define 'a wound,' but the true skin must be broken. Wounds are dangerous from shock, h?morrhage, from the supervention of crysipelas or py?mia, and from malum regimen on the part of the patient or surgeon. Is the wound dangerous to life? This question can only be answered by a full consideration of all the circumstances of the case; a guarded prognosis is wise in all cases.
=Burns= are caused by flames, highly heated solids, or very cold solids, as solid carbonic acid; scalds, by steam or hot fluids. Burns may cause death from shock, suffocation, oedema glottidis, inflammation of serous surfaces, bronchitis, pneumonia, duodenal ulcer, coma, or exhaustion. A burn of the skin inflicted during life is followed by a bleb containing serum; the edges of this blister are bright red, and the base, seen after removing the cuticle, is red and inflamed; if sustained after death, a bleb, if present, contains but little fluid, and there are no signs of vital reaction. There are six degrees of burns: (1) Superficial inflammation; (2) formation of vesicles; (3) destruction of superficial layer of skin; (4) destruction of cellular tissue; (5) deep parts charred; (6)