placed in a flat sided glass cell. This
is viewed with the spectroscope. The
oxyhemoglobin and the hemoglobin
absorb certain lines in the spectrum,
which viewed through the spectro-
scope appear as black lines, character-
istic only of hemoglobin.

Another test is the Teichman tech-
nique. It also depends on the hemin
in the red blood cells, which forms
brown rhombic crystals of a halogen
salt on treatment with glacial acetic
acid. It is sensitive and will dis-
cover 1/100 grain.

Now these tests only show that
the substance is blood, but not neces-
sarily human blood. Other tests must
be made to discover if the blood is
human or animal. Microscopic ex-
amination gives a certain amount of
information but it is far from con-
clusive. The principal method of
determining if blood is human is by
the precipitin test. This is a highly
technical method which is not easy
to explain. However, the basis of it
is as follows: When animals are in-
jected with a protein substance of
another animal, the first animal de-
velops anti-bodies to combat the in-
truder. A rabbit is injected with
human blood several times over a
short period, so that it will develop
an anti-body to human blood. The
serum of the rabbit is collected, and
applied to the sample under test. If
the blood in the sample is human,
the serum from the rabbit will react
against the human blood, and show
a white precipitate where the two
liquids meet. This test of course is
made with a number of controls, and
checked against various animals be-
sides rabbits.

If the blood is human, there is
the question of grouping. It is diffi-
cult to establish grouping with small
amounts of blood, but it can be done
if conditions are right. Where blood
has become putrified, it is very diffi-
cult to determine the group and type,
if not impossible.

In the matter of grouping, the
sample under test is subjected to the

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cas and the “‘b’’ serum or agglutinin
previously described. If the sample
under test should, say clump with
“a” serum and not with ‘‘b’’ serum,
then it follows that the sample be-
longs to group “A.’’ If both tests
clump, then it must be “AB,” but if
neither clumps, then the sample must
be “O.”’ These tests are usually re-
peated for confirmation, and the sera
tested against known blood.

In the investigation of crime, the
detective officer cannot be too observ-
ant. This applies particularly to
homicide. A cigarette butt. a few
hair fibres in an automobile, a torn
paper match may be the important
piece of evidence required to bring
the case to a successful conclusion.
Examination of the scene of a crime
cannot be described categorically.
Circumstances and location will vary
with each case, so the detective is de-
pendant on his experience and a keen
sense of observation to note the all-
important detail. Touching on blood
spots, the pattern of the spot may
give valuable information. If the spot
is a neat circle, the blood probably
dropped downwards a very short
distance, but if the spot has a serrated
edge, or ‘‘stellate’’ pattern, the drop
must have struck with considerable
force. Again if the spot shows an
elongated appearance, the indication
is that it was thrown from an angle,
and the direction will be plain. The
examination of a room where it is
suspected a homicide occurred may
require several hours of intensive
work. The floor coverings must be
removed to see if any blood seeped
through the joints. Mouldings are
removed from the baseboards. The
walls are examined inch by _ inch.
Spots on the wall may not look like
blood, but these should be tested. In
fact, a reputable authority claims
that with a golden wall-paper, the
oxide of copper in the dye will affect
blood spots so that they will appear
grey, green or even blue black. How-
ever, examining these spots by an ar-
tificial light at an angle, will show

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the characteristic glossy surface of
dried blood.

Under table tops, and chair seats
may be found blood impressions
Which the culprit has overlooked.
Door knobs and absorbent fabrics
will often be overlooked by the crim-
inal trying to cover his tracks. In
bath rooms, the drain pipe should
be disconnected from the bowl, and
the contents of the trap preserved for
examination. In one famous case,
that of Doctor “Buck’’ Ruxton
which occurred a few yeats ago in
England, the drain pipes of wash
bowl and bathtub told a gruesome
story of a double murder. “The doc-
tor had killed and dismembered both
his wife and the family maid. The
dismemberent had taken place in the
bathroom, and the fragments of
body were taken away by the doctor
wrapped in newspapers, to be tossed
over a bridge rail in Scotland, about
150 miles away. Due to phenomenal
reconstructive work by leading
medico legal experts, the persistence
of detectives, both in England and
Scotland, the murderer was brought
to justice and executed. In this case
blood played one of the important
roles in determining the place and
method of disposing of the two
bodies.

Post MORTEMS

Blood can also give considerable
information about dead bodies. For
instance, after death there comes a
gradual discoloration of the deceased.
This is called post mortem lividity
or hypostasis. The blood drains
from the upper portions of the body
towards the most dependant ones,
until local compression prevents the
blood draining any further. Thus
a dead person lies on his back, the
chest and upper portions of the limbs
will become white, while the back
and lower portions will assume a
purple color, all except the areas
which are in actual contact with the
floor, which will also be white or
of a paler discoloration. This phen-

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