The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-12-08
AoRRI8LE AFFAIR.
n. Whole Family PoisOned-Tw0 Of Them
Dead-Others Dying, Etc.

- Mm0fo F0nmtlY YFOtBOne0-TWO Ol Ahenh
Dead-Others Dying, Etc.
Froa he Hartford Times of Thursday evening.
The poisoning case in Berlin, CT, proves to
be more horrible affair than was at first re-
ported. SIX persons have been prostrated,
and only three will recover-perhaps but two.
The family is that of Cornelius w. Peck, far
mer living in the south part of Berlin, near the
Meriden line. They were seized, nearly all OF
them, about the same time-a6out O'Clock on
Saturday morning last-with intense pain in the
stomach, burning and retching, and complete
prostration, 50 that the. were unable to help
each other.
THE VICTIMS.
The names of the persons taken are as fol-
lows;-Corneius w. Peck, the husband and
father, aged about 46; Mrs. Lucy Peck, his
wife formerly Miss Hale, OF East Hartford);
Mrs. Peck, the mother OF Mr.. Peck, aged "a;
Ellen, daughter of Mr. Peck, aged about II;
Edward, brother OF Ellen, aged l5; servant
girl Eliza, some 80 years ef age.
THEIR CONDITION.
Mrs. Peck, the old lady, died on Sunday alter
noon, in great agony. She had suffered IN
likely to die. He has failed gradually and can
get scarcely any sleep. II he lives IL will be
with shattered health, like the survivors of the
National Hotel poisoning, and the Manchester
wife, was also in very low condition this
morning at s o'clock, and was scarcely expected
to live through the day. Ellen the daughter,
was able this morning to sit up in dressing
gown, and il is thought she will recover.
Edward the son, will no doubt recover. The
servant-girl, Eliza, was dying at O'Clock this
morning. She was in spasms, and enduring eX-
treme agony. 1t was not thought she could
live half an hour.
Thus there will be three deaths-Mr. Peck,s
wife and mother, and the servant girl-and q
probability that Mr.. Peck will also be added
to the number OF victims, making four. The
scene in the house has been sad in the extreme
Such another exhibition of an entire household
stricken down and dying in agony, has rarely
haa tNVane Ak1 ,nAs,.
taken, and all nearly at the same time, that
they were unable 10 send to the neighbors for
help; and there they writhed in their agony
from o'clock to or in the morning, when an
attempt was made, but Intellectually, to arouse
the neighbors by blowing a horn. IL was not
until IL o'clock on Saturday forenoon that the
neighbors learned the state of things and came
to their assistance, when medical aid was secured
but little could be done to alleviate the suffer
ings of the unfortunate family.
THE GUILTY PARTY.
A story has been circulated that the family
were poisoned by man who came to the house
on Friday night with bottle OF cider, which
he offered to the family as extra good, and of
which all but the daughter partook; that she
owes her improvement TO the fact that she did
not drink the cider, but only some water in a
tumbler, that had had the cider in it; that the
man himself drank some of the cider, but imme-
dately went out the door and (as is conjectured)
''spit II out" 1t is also said that this man "has
been pro Wing around Mr.. Pecks house, nights; -
to come off before the Hartford courts involv-
ing considerable property; that Merden drug
gist last week sold arsenic to a man who 'he
thinks" is that man, etc.
We are assured by the family to-day that there
is no truth in this story; that the man referred
to, whose name is Childs, is harmless, simple
minded person, who would never think of such
thing as poisoning anybody; and Mr.. Peck has
such confidence that he is not the guilty party,
that he would be willing to drink the cider
under such circumstances again. On the other
hand, he knows, and the family know, certain
things which leave no doubt in their minds as
to the real source of this terrible crime. But
they prefer for The present to say nothing about
it, beyond the necessary disclosures in the TAX
ing OF the dispositions, which would be done, it
was thought, this afternoon.
! The analysis of the contents of the stomach oi
/ Mrs. Peck, so far as made in this city, showed
/ the presence of arsenic. The stomach has been
sent to Professor johnson, of Yale College, for
q full analysis. A post-mortem on Mrs. Peck
was held yesterday by Drs. Stone, of New Bri
tain, Smith, of Berlin, and Fitch, OF Meriden.