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Q Did you use a poison in this syringe?
A Yes, sir
Q What did you use?
M LATOUR hesitated and shifted helplessly about as if he dreaded to go farther into these particulars, and fondly hoped soaze see able to disentangle itself from that of M Godin He remained silent and the question was repeated
Q What did you use?
Again the witness hesitated while everyone, save only Maitland and Godin, leaned eagerly forward to catch his reply At length it came in a voice scarcely above a whisper
A Anhydrous hydrocyanic acid
A long-drawn "Huhtest indication of surprise It was quite evident to us all that the astute Frenchman had acquired complete control of the case before he had arrested the assassin At this juncture the Court said, addressing Maitland: "This substance is extremely poisonous, I take it"
"Your Honour," Maitland replied, "it is the most fatal of all poisons known to chemists It is also called cyanhydric, and, nificant aht into contact with the skin, causes ilass rod and brought toward the nose of a live rabbit he will be dead before it reaches him"
A profound silence--the death-like quiet which acconed in the court-rooain to Latour
Q I understand you to say you used anhydrous hydrocyanic or cyanhydric acid
A Yes, sir
Q Do you sufficiently understand cheht you not have used potassiuood chely Potassium cyanide, KCN, is a white, crystalline coe save in solution, in which condition it would not have been sufficiently poisonous to have served ed approving glances They believed M Latour had shown hi easily into what they regarded as a neat little trap which had been set to prove his lack of chee They attributed Maitland's failure to further interrogate Latour upon his understanding of chemistry as evidence that he had met an equal To be sure, they were not quite clear in their own minds why Latour's counsel should be at such pains to carefully examine a man who had already confessed, but they believed they knehen a lawyer had met his match, and felt sure that this was one such instance Clinton Broho sat in one of the front seats, seemed to find a deal more to amuse him in this incident than was apparent to me Some men have such a wonderful sense of humour!