Peter & Harriet: "Strong Poison" Pt. 1-The Trial Quiz

Answer: Judge's summation of the evidence

British jurisprudence of that era, ca. 1929, called for the presiding judge to completely recap the case as presented by both the Crown Prosecutor and the barrister representing the defendant. In this instance, it is apparent to some spectators, including Lord Peter, that the judge is demonstrating a certain bias in favor of the Crown's version of what happened, and rather expects the jury to return with a guilty verdict.

Answer: Philip Boyes

Philip Boyes was Harriet's ex-lover. Like her, he is an author, but he considers his writings in literature and poetry far more important than Harriet's mystery novels. Her work, though, is what brings in a steady income. His published works are of narrow appeal to the intellectual set and sell far fewer copies.

Answer: Harriet was angry because Philip had lied about not believing in the institution of marriage.

Harriet had very reluctantly agreed to live with Philip Boyes without benefit of marriage because he insisted he did not believe in 'old-school' morality and religious claptrap (even though his father was actually a vicar). Then, after several months, he did an about face and proposed marriage. Harriet felt he had made a complete fool of her, and that he had somehow been testing her to see if her devotion was "abject enough," before making an offer of marriage.

Answer: Three

There were three women on the jury, including a certain Miss Climpson who coincidentally happened to be employed by Lord Peter to manage what was ostensibly a typing bureau, but was, in fact, a unique sort of detective agency. According to Dr. Kevin Crosby, a lecturer in Law at Newcastle University, women had the right, in theory, to serve on juries after passage of the Representation of the People Act of 1918, but for some years, women were still excluded in certain parts of the nation.

Answer: All three poisons

The judge at Harriet's trial reminds the jury during his summary of the case, that Harriet had bought several types of poison, on different dates, each time using a false name. Harriet contended that she was carrying out research to discover how easily a would-be murderer could obtain deadly poison.

Answer: his mother, the Dowager Duchess of Denver

Lord Peter had asked his mother, Honoria, to attend the trial with him because he wanted her to see Harriet, the woman who so fascinated and intrigued him. Honoria was someone whose wisdom and judgment he valued, even if she seemed a bit 'dithery' at times.

She became the Dowager Duchess when her husband passed away and her eldest son, Gerald, assumed the estate and title. Gerald's wife, Helen, became the current Duchess of Denver.

Answer: Holloway Gaol

According to entries on Wikipedia, Holloway Gaol, where Harriet Vane was remanded during trial, was built in 1852, and became an all women's gaol in 1902 due to the increasing number of women charged with crimes. Quite a few quite vocal suffragettes were imprisoned at Holloway, which was staffed only by female guards until 1991. The prison was finally closed in 2016.

Answer: Philip was so despondent over losing Harriet that he took arsenic himself.

Philip had written a letter that might be construed as expressing the intention of ending his life because Harriet had rejected him. It contained a reference to "going west," which was a British euphemism for dying. Harriet's defender, Sir Impey Biggs, made the most of that letter with his usual dramatic style of argument.

Answer: Other people partook of all the food that was served.

The judge meticulously reviewed the dinner Philip shared with his cousin the evening he collapsed. All the dishes served, including soup, fish, casseroled chicken, and dessert omelette, were also consumed by at least one other person. The soup, fish, and chicken were finished off in the kitchen by the housekeeper and cook, while the omelette prepared at the table, was shared between Philip and his cousin.

The newly opened bottle of wine, from which only Philip had drunk, was tested, and contained no traces of arsenic.

Answer: The jury could not agree on a unanimous verdict.

The jury could not reach a verdict. Miss Climpson honestly was not convinced of Harriet Vane's guilt and refused to be bullied by the jury foreman into going along with the rest of them. Eventually, his tactics backfired, as one of the other women, and a gentleman who was an artist and said he understood 'artistic' people, ended up siding with Miss Climpson.

After two bouts of deliberation over six and a half hours, the foreman told the judge there was no hope of agreement. The judge was forced to dismiss the jury, and order 'a fresh trial.'