The preliminaries were gone through. The jury viewed the body,
and John Cavendish gave evidence of identification.

Further questioned, he described his awakening in the early hours
of the morning, and the circumstances of his mother's death.

The medical evidence was next taken. There was a breathless
hush, and every eye was fixed on the famous London specialist,
who was known to be one of the greatest authorities of the day on
the subject of toxicology.

In a few brief words, he summed up the result of the post-mortem.
Shorn of its medical phraseology and technicalities, it amounted
to the fact that Mrs. Inglethorp had met her death as the result
of strychnine poisoning. Judging from the quantity recovered,
she must have taken not less than three-quarters of a grain of
strychnine, but probably one grain or slightly over.

"Is it possible that she could have swallowed the poison by
accident?" asked the Coroner.

"I should consider it very unlikely. Strychnine is not used for
domestic purposes, as some poisons are, and there are
restrictions placed on its sale."

"Does anything in your examination lead you to determine how the
poison was administered?"

"No."