Futility Closet

In 1891, a mysterious figure appeared on the streets of London, dispensing pills to poor young women who then died in agony. Suspicion came to center on a Scottish-Canadian doctor with a dark past in North America. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll describe the career of the Lambeth Poisoner, whose victims remain uncounted. We'll also consider a Hungarian Jules Verne and puzzle over an ambiguous sentence. Intro: How can an investor responsibly divest herself of stock in a company that she feels has acted immorally? Lightning can vitrify sand into rootlike tubes. Sources for our feature on Thomas Neill Cream: Dean Jobb, The Case of the Murderous Dr. Cream: The Hunt for a Victorian Era Serial Killer, 2021. Lee Mellor, Cold North Killers: Canadian Serial Murder, 2012. Joshua A. Perper and Stephen J. Cina, When Doctors Kill: Who, Why, and How, 2010. John H. Trestrail III, Criminal Poisoning: Investigational Guide for Law Enforcement, Toxicologists, Forensic Scientists, and Attorneys, 2