CHAPTER III.

IDENTIFICATIONS.

10. Of the living.-Ordinarily the identity of living persons may be established without any difficulty by friends and relatives. Instances have occurred, however, where even the closest relatives and friends have been deluded by impostors, as in the famous Tichborne case. Peculiarities of speech, voice, or actions; birthmarks; unusual traits; size, and similar tests may aid in identification of the living. It should be borne in mind, however, that a long lapse of time may more or less obliterate birthmarks, moles, poorly-executed tattooing, and other marks. But a large scar is permanent, although the passage of time may make it somewhat less prominent.

11. Of the dead.-Where the entire body is at hand and decomposition has not proceeded far, the same means of identification as in case of the living would be available, except, of course, the voice and actions. But where only a portion of the body is found, the difficulty is considerably increased. If the head is found, the task will probably not be very hard; but frequently only an arm, a leg, or a portion of the trunk is found, and in such case, although positive identification may not be possible, yet such a portion of the body, together with scars, deformities, and any professional stigmata (marks) present, will generally reveal to an expert the sex,

approximate age, race, and perhaps the trade or calling, and social position, of the deceased.

12. Of bones.-If an entire skeleton be had, the height may readily be found, and the sex determined without trouble except in the case of young children. The bones of the female are smaller than those of the male; and after puberty the pelvic bones exhibit marked differences: in the male the pelvis being deeper and narrower, and the bones thicker, than in the female.

Usually, too, the approximate age may readily be ascertained from the skeleton. Indeed, if but a few bones are available it is probable that the general period of life, as youth, middle or old age, may be determined. Age can probably be better ascertained from an examination of the teeth and alveolar processes (cavities in the jaw bones containing the sockets for the teeth) than from any other bones; still, from the degree of ossification (bone formation) and union of other bones a fairly approximate idea of the age may be had. When only a few bones are found, the first question, of course, will be: Are they human bones? If yes, then the further questions looking toward identity will arise.

13. Of hairs and fibres.-Here, again, the first question will be: Is the substance human hair, or not? Generally, animal hair is shorter, thicker and coarser than human hair, and can readily be distinguished therefrom. A microscopical examination will distinguish, without much trouble, hairs from fibres, and the different kinds of hair.

If the hair is found to be human, it may be neces

sary to determine the portion of the body from which it came. If only a single hair be available this will likely be difficult to decide. Hairs from the eyebrows are firm, the bulb being stout and knob-like; from the eyelashes, much the same, but with spindle-shaped roots; from the nose and ears, coarser than the eyelashes, with stout roots; from the beard, a transverse section shows them to be triangular; from the armpit, non-tapering, with conical but not sharp points, with the shape modified, frequently, by perspiration; from the pubis, oval and flattened, and in the male the roots are generally knotty, but broad in the female. The identity of hairs, as to either assailant or victim, cannot be determined unless there be present a number sufficient for thorough examination; several, at least.

14. Of bloodstains.-Once more the first question must be: Is this stain from blood, or not? If yes, then: Is it human blood? If yes, then Is it arterial, venous, or menstrual? from the living or the dead?

Whether or not the stain is blood may be determined by chemical tests. There are several of these, but no one of them is absolutely certain. In order to employ the chemical tests, there should be present more than a minute particle of the stain-there should be enough to permit portions to be used in various ways, and perhaps with different chemicals. If the stain be blood, its red coloring matter will be dissolved by cold water; and the addition of a little ammonia, much diluted, will turn this solution green. If strong solution of ammonia is used, the resulting color will be brown.

The spectroscopic test is often used when there is but a small quantity of the stain. By it, light is passed through a solution of the stain, which, if caused by blood recently oxidized, will produce dark bands (called absorption bands) characteristic of the presence of blood even in very small quantities. This test, in skilled hands, is considered very accurate. It is claimed that by its use blood has been found, after ten years, on a rusty knife-blade, although after so long exposure to air the color bands will be much less distinct, and produced only by use of chemical solutions.

The microscopic test is used for detecting blood corpuscles, and in measuring them. In this way may be distinguished the blood of birds, reptiles, fishes, and mammalians; but although tables have been worked out, from experiments and very exact measurements, showing the size of the red corpuscles of a large number of animals, yet it is not possible by this test to state positively that certain blood is from a human being rather than from any of several other animals.

The biologic or serum test has been accepted in some European countries, and in some instances in this country, although, perhaps, it is not free from reasonable doubt. By this test human blood serum (the clear, light yellow liquid that separates from the blood clot) is injected into some animal of a different species, as a rabbit; and it is claimed that after a few days that rabbit develops a serum which will precipitate human blood, but not that of any other animal. High claims are made for its accuracy, and this test

has many able advocates, but as yet it is not fully accepted.

To determine whether blood is venous, arterial, or menstrual, is impossible unless it was recently discharged. It would be seldom, if ever, that any murderous wound could be inflicted, causing much bleeding, where the venous and arterial blood would not be mixed. Menstrual blood, once thought to have no fibrin (that quality of the blood which tends to produce clotting or coagulation), and thereby distinguishable from other human blood, is now known to contain fibrin, though it seldom coagulates.