The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1873-12-14
Wholesale Poisoning.
tFrom the Montreal True Witness !

The demon OF drink has caused many o
horrible tragedy, has furnished matter for
have his doings been more hideous than in
the tragedy that has just been enacted in
Montreal, and which by Friday night had
already brought about the death Of seven
persons. The following are the main facts
of the case:
Thayer, who occupies room in lot of
filthy tenements in Tabb's Yard, off Her
mine street-a place veil known to the
police. wretched beyond the power of de-
scription, and 9 blot. upon our Wanted
civilization-.made his appearance at the
that his son, . Lad Of about fourteen OF fif-
teen, had just died from the effects of o
glass of liquor given to him by one of the
neighbors. Detectives Lafon and Murphy
Immediately visited the place., whe-e q
scene of indescribabfe horror e awaited
them. In the adjoining tenements they
| found number of other persona, men and
| women, PROSTATE with voniting and purg-
ing, and many, of the we'll known eymp-
| toms of cholera. The police officers inn
mediately called in medical assistance :.
Doctors Dugdale and Major were soon Id
| as they could, to the sufferers, numbering
in all about q dozen.
Naturally the first inquiry Of the medi-
| cal men was as to the cause of this extra
ordinary outbreak of disease. Then, bit
by bit, 1t came out that o man of the name
Of Flaherty bad, on Monday night, brought
home large bottle filed with wine, az he
believed; that he had swallowed come of
the stuff, and given some Of 10 to his
neighbors that on Tuesday he and they
! had INDUCED in a regular carouse, and that
on the following day, signs of poisoning
| had displayed themselves amongst all who
had partaken of the contents Of Che bottle.
This then nrndnca6 anA a-,
nation it was foued to be labelled Yin
Cholchici,-Wine of Colcbic1m,s very
powerful irritant poison used in cases OF
govt and in inflammatory rheumatism. The
my stery of the sickness was thus solved
the next question was how came the bottle
into the possession of Flahertyf He ac-
counted for it's being in his possession by
| affirming that no had found it lying in o
| snow bank somewhere in Alexander street
on Monday night. In this statement Fla
herty persisted up to the moment of his
death. ~ 81 81 :.
On the other hand a young lad, Hawkey
one of the witnesses at the inquest, depos-
ed on oath than, on Monday night he had
accompanied Flaherty on an expedition to
pick up wood that on their way home,
they saw an Express sleigh, whose driver
was absent; that Flsherty ran up to it,
in q gateway, and afterwards came back
for and carried home with him.
This medicine or, poison is prepared by
stepping in white wine, the roets or seeds
Of plant belonging to the MeLanthaceas
order, of which most are poisonous, and
which includes the meadow saffron. From
a plant of this order, the Ooiskicuns Aatans.
male, is prepared the medicine so common
ly employed to give reliefto equity pa
tients but the dose must be small, as its
effects if taken in large quantities are very
violents and often fatal. The symptoms in
all the cases of which we are treating were
the same: Vomiting and, puFging, rapid
strength. The victim retained conscious I
ness to the last. .aa-ss "a 80 .a
With these facts and symptoms before
them, the medical men had Q solution TO
the mysteKious. diseaee which they had |
been called in to treat. They saw at once
that nothing could be done to save the |
lives ofthOse who had most freely ind1lg-
ed In the 4p0isOnOas mixtaro, and they |
warned their patients TO prepare for |
death. The Catholic priest and the |
Sister OF Charity were, ~ usual under |
sucb circumstances, quickly in attendance, |
doing all in their power TO sOOthe the last |
moments of the wretched dying creatures |
before them.
Soon the dread scene arrived; one after |
another, in terrible agonies, aud amidst |
scenes Of horror, which no tongue eau ade |
Quately describe, they yielded to the fatal |
effects of the poison, until in short time |
seven corpses were stretched out, q dread I
full warning of the consequences of yielding |
to the bcastly craving for Intoxicating |
drink.