The White Pine news. [volume] (Treasure City, Nev.) 1868-1906, 1873-01-25
The Connecticut Borgia.

IN ALL.
Mrs. Lydia Sherman, who has beer
sentenced in New Haven, Conn.,, for the
murder of her husband, has made a full
confession of her guilty life, of which the
following is an abstract, containing every
thing of Importance relating directly to
her numerous crimes /:
was born near the town of Burlington. N. j.,
December "a, 1924. My mother died when l WAS
nine years old, and l WAS sent to live with my
uncle, Mr.. John Claygay. l never attended
school much, being able to go about three
months in the year. At Ii years of age | went to
New Brunswick with my two brothers, and after
ward to live with Rev. Mr.. Alnburg, IN Jack.
sonville, 70 miles from New brunswick. lived
there ) years, then returned to New Brunswick,
and learned to be a tailorcss. worked ) months
without pay, and was then employed by MIR.
Owen. He was a class-leader IN the Metnottlst
Church, of which | became u lnenlber. IL was
there l met Mr.. Struck, who was Il devoted CHRIS
tian up to a few months before his death. L was
his wife IL years. Our first child We called
Lydia and after her birth we went to New York
and resided near Elizabeth and Houston streets.
In New York VT had two boys. Aftcrward We
removed to Carmansvllle, where We had four
children born. At the end OF that time Mr..
Struck obtained an appointment on the police
force. Six months later We lost u daughter, aged
z nODiHH DI h0tts $500 sAA- +aJ
husband WIS transferred to misunderstanding, and
we moved To l25th street. Then occurred our
first trouble, which came about in this way
A man come up to Stratton's Hotel, ON the
Bloomingdale road, and made n disturbance III
the bar-room. He attacked the bartender with
"a knife, and Immediately the cry Of murder was
sounded. just ut this time the ManhattansVllle
stage came along, and On 1t was a detective, VINO
heard the cry. He rushed into the hotel, but
finding he was powerless to accomplish any
thing, he asked for the assistance OF apolieeman.
There was none near. and he endeavoreu TO quiet
the man by talking to him, but he could not sue
coed. The man appeared deranged. The detee-
tive struck him with u cane, but the man did not
desist. He then struck tine officer with a knife,
when the latter drew u pictol, and shut the man
dead.
The stage drove on, and soon met Mr.. Struck.
and as he was a policeman, the driver told him
the circumstances about the killing of the man
at the hotel. Mr.. struck started Immediately
for the hotel, and when he reached there he
found the man was dead. Word Was sent to the
Manhattanville police station, and the doe
tors gave it as their opinion that the man was
deranged. My husband reported at headquart-
ers, and soon after a rumur prevailed that he
would not arrest the man because he had u pis-
tol. This was incorrect but the employees of
| the hotel testified that Mr.. Struck WAS at the
place and was afraid to go in. The result was
that he was discharged from the police force.
Then my husband became down-hearted and
discouraged. Capt. Hart tried to get him back
| ON the force, but Jailed and then Struck, who
had always been a good workman, did nothing
but fret all the time. Sometimes he would lie
In bed for seven or eight weeks, without allowing
me to send for a doctor. One day he said he
wanted to see his daughter Gertrude, who was
married to q Mr.. William Thompson 30 / went
to New York and took her to see hlm, but he said
very little to her. Gertrude sent Il doctor to see
her father, but the latter said he Was not sick.
Once he put u pistol in his mouth and threat
ened to blow his head off. On another day he
tried to get a razor to cut his throat but l took
It away from him. Tden l 8 ut Tor Ci9t. Hart
but when he came my husband Would neither
look, speak, nor have anything to do with him.
The captain said lie was out OF has mind, and I'D.
yised me To send him to an asylum.
One night after this he was acting very badly,
and [ called in Police Sergeant Nc, who lived
In the lower part of the house. The Sergeant
advised me to put him out of the way, as he
would never be any good to me or himself again,
| asked him what he meant, and he told ME to
get a certain quantity of arsenic and gave him
some OF it. 1 paid ten cents for it, put it IN
some oatmeal Cruel, and gave him some of II
during the afternoon. That night he was very
i'll, and at 3 O'Clock the next morning he died.
The following July | made up my mind that
my two little children, Mary Ann, aged d, and
Edward, two years younger, would be better of
If they were out of the way so after thinking
the matter over for several days, | made them
some of the same kind of guel their father had
eaten. They survived only a short time.
The doctor said the children died of gastric
fever. They had not the least suspicion Of tn,
truth.
1 continued to keep house. and had four chill
dren with me at the time. My son, Geo. White
field, who was then IA years of age, was living
with me. In the latter part Of August he wa,
taken sick, and l sent for DR.. Oviatt. He SAID
the boy had painters collie, and as he did moi
improve | became discouraged, and mixed somt
arsenic in his Tea. He died the next day, and thu
doctor said 1t was painters collie.
Then my little daughter Eliza Ann took the
chills and fever. and was continually sick. Thu
made me down-hearted and discouraged again
| had some arsenic in the house. which l pnr
chased in Harlem, and l put it in the medicine
bought for her to cure the chills. l gave 1t Il
her twice, then She was taken sick as the other
were, and died about noon, four days afterward
She was the happiest child | ever saw.
Nov. %, 1868, l married Mr.. Ilurlburt. About
three months after we were married MIR. Hurl
burt made his will. He was subject to fits OF
dizziness. One day he was unwell, and he att
CLAIMS and drank cider with saleratus in 1t.
Then he became worse. On one occasion HI
made me drink cider and saleratus, after which
l became very sick and dizzy, and l took to
vomiting, Finally Mr.. Hurlburt became worse
and about5 O'Clock one morning the old man
died. Now | wish to say that l never gave Mr.
Hurlburt anything that would cause sickness
though there may have been arsenic mixed with
the saleratus which he put i'll the cider.
About two months after Hurlburt died, l heard
that Horatio N. Sherman of Birmingham wanted
me to take a little baby to board. l met Mr.,
Sherman one Sunday morning. He introduced
himself to me, and said he had another object in
calling besides getting me to take care OF his ba-
by. He wanted me as his housekeeper, because
his motherin-law and daughter could not get
along well together. said l would think about
1t. Two weeks later he came again and offered
to marry me. l told him we ought to be better
acquainted. He said he was compelled to get
some one, as he could not have the old woman
in the house, as she was creating a constant dis
turbance. He then went away, and l did not see