The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1873-01-16
A INDUSTRIOUS CAREER.
THE CONFESSION OF IN UNNATURAL
WIFE AND MOTHER.

TIE CONFESSION OF IN UNNATURAL
| WIFE AND MOTHER.
Sho Is Married Three Times, and Each
Time Poisons her Husband-Eight
Murders In Twelve Years-FIrst Temp
ted by a New York Police Sergeant
The Sentence-Impriscned for Life.
| Mrs. Lydia Sherman, an account OF whose
trial and conviction for the murder OF her
third husband, Horatio N. Sherman, by
poison, has been heretofore published, was on
| Saturday brought into the Superior Court at
New Haven, Connecticut, to receive the
sentence of the court. She is described as
being the most Indifferent person of all the
assemblage that crowded the court room TO
witness the scene. The jailer conducted her
to chair In the middle OF the court room,
when Judge Sanford projected az follows TO
pronounce
THE SENTENCE.
"Mrs. Sherman, as one of the court before
whom you were recently tried and convicted
of one of the highest crimes known to the
law, am now called upon 10 pronounce upon
YOU the laws sentence. Before doing 30,
however, # you desire to say ANYTHING the
Samuel II. Gardner, Of Derby, one OF her
counsel, responded 10 her behalf that she had
noIhing to say, and was ready fol sentence.
Judge Sanford, resuming: "The indlct-
ment upon which you were tried charges you
with having, on the 9th day of May, 1871,
felonously, wiliully and with malice afore-
thought, taken the life OF your husband,
Horstlo N. Sherman, by means OF deadly
poison by you administered TO him, and 30
you were charged with having commltted the
crime of murder in the first degree. Upon
that indictment you were tried by Jury large
ly of your own selection. You were ably de.
tended by most able counsel, and alter iull,
fair and Impartial hearing were pronounced
by your triers guilty, not OF the crime as
second degree. In the opinion of the court,
as constituted at the time of your trial, the
Jury would have been fully Justified, upon the
evidence, in huding you guilty OF murder In
the first degree, the punishment for which
would have been death.
'Recent developments have fully vlndicated
the soundoess of that opinion; but the Jury,
while believing and finding you guilty of muir
der, were probably not satisfied that the
crime was established by that amount of evil
amount of evidence necessary under the
statute to conviction of capital offence,
and, therefore, as within their province, con.
yicted OF the crime OF murder in the second
degree. and 80 you escape the gsllows only to
suffer lifelong imprisonment within prison
walls. The court has no discretion as 10 the
term of your imprisonment. We can only
pronounce The sentence provided by the
statute, which Is that you, Lydia Sherman,
having been duly and legally convicted OF The
crime of murder in the second degree, be I'M
prisoned in the Connecticut State prison
during the period of your natural life."
Previous to the final act In the trial, Mrs.
Sherman made full and complete confession
of life of crime never before equalled in
the criminal annals Of this country by a
woman, In which, Within twelve years, she
confesses to have murdered three husbands,
four of her own children and step-daughter,
by poison. The following Is the confession,
devoid of those parts not relating TO her
crimes:
THE CONFESSION.
was born near the town of Burlington, N.
J, December "a, 1924. My mother died Wnen
I was nine years old, and / was sent to live
with my uncle, Mr.. John Claygay. / never
attended scheol much, being able TO 60 only
about three months in the year. At sixteen
wears OF age went TO New Brunswick with
nv TWO brothers, and aiterward 10 live with
| the Rev. Mr.. Van Amburg In Jacksonville,
| twenty-five miles from New Brunswick. l
/ lived there for three years, then returned 10
New Brunswick and learned 10 be talioress.
| worked three months without pay, aud was
then employed by Mr.. Owen. He was o
class leader in the Methodist Church, of which
I became member. II was there that met
| Edward Struck, who was devoted Chrlstian
up to few months before hs death. was
his wife eighteen years; he has been dead
ahont eight years. Our irst child we called
lydia, and alter her birth we went to New
York and resided near Elizabeth and Houston
streets. In New York we had two boys.
| Afterwards we moved to Carmansvile, where
we had four children born. At the end OF
that time Mr.. Struck obtained an appointment
on the Metropolitan Police force. Six months
later we lost daughter. aged TWENTY-FIVE
months, by the measles. About this time my
husband was transferred to Manhattanvllle,
and we moved to l26th street. Then occur
red our first trouble, which came about In this
way: -
man came up to Stratton's Hotel, on the
| Bloomiupdale road, and made q disturbance
| In the bar-room. He attacked the bar tender
| with knife, and Immediately the cry OF muir
der was sounded. just at this time the Man.
haltanville stage came along, and on 1t was q
| Q9CSCLlVe, WUO luc Clys aC luouOu iutO
| the hotel, but finding he was powerless 10 ac'
oompllsh anything he asked for the assistance
of a policeman. There was none near, and
he endeavored to quiet The man by talking to
him, but he could not succeed. The man ap
peared deranged. The detective struck Lin
| with a cane, but the man would not desist.
He struck the officer with knife, when the
latter drew pistol, and shot the man dead.
| The stage drove on and soon met Mr
| Struck, and as he was policeman, the driver
| told him the circumstances about the killing
OF the man at the hotel. Mr.. Struck started
Immediately ior the hotel, and when he
reached there he found that.
THE MAN WAS DEAD.
Word was sent to the Manhattanvile police
station, and the doctors gave 1t as their opln
| ion that the man was deranged. My husband
reported OF headquarters, and soon after q ru
| NOR prevailed that he would not arrest The
man because he had pistol. This was incor
rect, but the employees Of the hotel testified
that Mr.. Struck was at the place and wa:
| afraid to 90 In. The result was that he va!
| discharged from the police force.
Then my husband became dcwn-hearted anC
| discouraged. Captain Hart tried to get hin
back on the force, but failed, aud then Struck
who had always been good workman, die
nothing but fret all the time. Sometimes he
| would lie In bed for seven or eight week:
without allowing NE to send for doctor
One day he said he wanted to see his daughter
Gertrude, who was married 10 Mr.. William
Thompson, 80 went to New York and took