Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1857-08-05
TIIE POISONING 0F EHILDREN AT CINCINNATI


The Cincinnati c Commercial Of July 25th, has
the following particulars of the poisoning of a
number of children briefly mentioned in our
last:
Yesterday afternoon, between the hours of
two and four, a couplsof boys, apparently from
fourteen to sixteen years Of age, were observed
sauntering up Buckeye street, a densely popu-
lated German neighbprhood, scattering small
lozenges upon the sidewalk about the size of
peppermint drops. Ih another part Of thestreet
a rather robust LOOKING man, dressed in black
coat, white pants andSRhite hat, with box un-
der his arm, was aIsosobserved occasionally dis
tributing similar description of lozenges only
in larger quantities. As is usual in German
localities, quite number of children were play
ing upon the street, and they greedily seized
the tempting candies thus gratuitously thrown
in their way Occasionally the man would
give package to persons he met, but in these
instances the parties declined tasting, suspecting
something wrong. Nat so, however, with the
unsuspecting children,ew greedily devoured
the to them dainty waiifs, and in short time
afterwards they wereStaken with violent vomi-
ting. Theneighborhoodb became speedily alarmed,
and Drs. Smith, DAVIS and Fries were sum
moned, who speedily detected the action of poi
son. and upon chemist in the neighborhood,
Mr.. Eckel, analyzing a1ozenge, it was found to
be composed of equal parts Of arsenic, sugar and
-four. In the track which the man, or rather
monster, had taken, asfmany as one thousand
five hundred of these death-dealing drops were
found in one pile, and il another spot one-fourth
pound of arsenic was found tied in couple of
parcels.
The neighborhood become fearfully excited
for at least twenty children had more or less
partaken of the insidions poison. The first vic
tim was fine little Boy named John Shultz
aged nine years. He expired about six o'clock
in the evening. WesRere present when the
coroner held his inquest and more melanchol
ly sight it has hardly been our lot to witness
The mother Of the dead child had q few. days
previous been confined, and in the same room
her eldest babe lay stiff and rigid corpse, while
the new born infant sought in vain for nourish-
ment from the maternal breast, the fount Of
which sudden grief andagony had dried. Her
two other children had also partaken of the
poisonous drops, and lay sick in the same room,
but they were pronounced out of danger.
Immediately upon theother side of the street,
another promising child, named Henry Schwarts,
about eleven o'clock last night is said to have
breathed its last and at the time we visited the
poisoned district some four five other children,
male and female, weresupposed to be in very
critical condition. Weslieard also that several
similar cases had occurredon Fifteenth, between
Race and Elm streets. i4ss
1t is with heartfelt pain thatWe are compelled
torecord a.erimes sWh5e us q lefaFsonr
common pa ttaid as the
tor of the above atrocities might well cause us
to rather claim kindred with the brute and for
swear our relationship with the human species.
1t is to be hoped that no pains will be spared in
hunting the vampire to his lair.