The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1877-06-21
sIlisFeAa'rtuns.
TRIAL OF ELDER M'GHEE,
MurderOus Result of PASTORS
ScandalOuS Attachment.
RICH FARMERS DAUGHTER INFATUATED
WITH A PREACHER-THE PDEACHERS WIFE
POISONED TO DEATH WITH STRYOlNlNE-
A COOL CRIMINAL.

murder. The case is that of Rev. Samuel
H. M'Ghee, indicted for the murder of
his wife, About year ago the congrega-
ton of the Christian church at Ashton,
a town about fifteen miles from Dixon,
and containing some 200 inhabitants,
listened to the "test" sermons-that is,
sermons delivered as a sample of what
he could preach-delivered by MGhee.
He was natty little man, scurpulously
neat, and more than trife dandyish in
his attire; had smooth voice, did not
advance any dangerous heresies, and, all
in all, made favorable impression, es-
pecially upon the female portion Of the
congregation. The result was that he
received call, and shortly removed from
Huntington, Ind, to Ashton, and entered
upon the ministry at theChristian church.
M'Ghee, who is somewhere about forty
years of age-he looks younger-was &C.
Companied by his wife and daughter,
about 16 years of age. The latter was
introduced in the neighborhood as Mrs.
Jenny Morris. She had an infant child,
and her husband, never seen at Ashton,
was understood to be somewhere East.
During the few days of his stay at Ash
ton, while doing the "test" preaching,
M'Ghee stopped at the house of we'll
to-do-farmer named Paddock. Paddock's g
daughter, Rilla, fresh, handsome girl of
49, and a member of the church, It was
observed, seemed deeply impressed with
the new minister. And M'Ghee, it was
noted, seemed especially impressed with
the farmers handsome daughter. When,
after M'Ghee returned to Ashton, there
sprang up an intimacy between them
that was rapidly developing into scan
dal of the first magnitude The girl, ev-
erybody in the congregation could see,
was madly in love with the minister. |
And the minister, with his pastoral pre-
negatives and privileges used to that end, |
was making love to Rilla in way that |
the old folks all said must sooner or later
lead to mischief But after the manner
of churches, the more the matter was ag-
itated the more Jealous were the parti-
sans of the parson in sustaining him, and
as prosecuted individual, he enleared
himself the more to the female portion
of the flock, and, Of course, was more
than ever an object of interest to Miss
Rilla.
On the 9TH of February last, M'Ghee's
wife was seized with violent spasms, at
tended with terrible pains and vomiting.
In about forty-eight hours she recovered.
On the 10th she was again seized with
frightful convulsions lasting about three
days. The third week she began to con-
valesce. But on the evening of February
10Th the spasms recurred with unusual
violence. MGhee was at the time at
church, conducting revival services His
forte seems to be as a revivalist. He was
sent for, as also was the doctor. The lat
ter compounded simple prescription
calomel and bismuth-which he divided
into four doses, administering one him
self, and leaving directions that one OF
the powders should be given every four
hours, Two hours passed, and a neigh
bora woman who had come in to sit
up with Mrs. M'Ghee-gave the second a
powder. The patient, though suffering G
extreme pain, complained of the bitter r
taste of the powder. Another two hours
passed, and the third powder was given s
her. "Why,thi is like the one the doctor O
gave" said Mrs. M'Ghee, as she swallow 2
ed it. The exclamation leads to the in a
terence that the poor woman half sus- Il
pected she was being foully dealt with. d
Another two hours passed, and the last
OF the four powders was given her by an t
other OF the neighbor women who was p
attending her, and Mrs. M'Ghee, with u
her worst suspicious evidently returning, n
said, "This is like the second" A few r.
hours later she expired in great agony, @
her symptoms being those Of poisoning a
by stryChnine. d
The charge was at once made that NJ
Ghee had poisoned his wife in order that a
he might marry Rilla Paddock. This, 81
in some modified form, even invaded fC
MCGhee's own house while he stood be- n
fore the lifeless remains of his wife, and u
he responded something to the effect u
that the dead woman had not been with b
out cause for jealousy. A post-mortem a
examination was had, and the con- %
tents of the stomach, and the spoon v
with which the medicine had been ad- Il
ministered, were forwarded to Professor n
Haines, of Rush Medical College for ex- II
animation and analysis. Styrchnine was o
at once discovered in the stomach, and p
adhering to the spoon from which the v
bitter medicine had been administered II
to Mrs. M'Ghee Then it was discovered .
that M'Ghee, about week before his u
wife's illness, had bought arsenic at the rt
town of Capron, Boone county, while VI
holding protracted meeting there. All -
the symptoms of Mrs. M'Ghee's illness u
in the beginning were those of arsenic u
poison. Subsequently he purchased ~
of a druggist at Ashton. The ~
theory is that an overdose of the arsenic 81
was administered and the stomach re- q
jeCted it, C
Then strychnine was administered. -
M'Ghee was arrested and committed to =
Jail. Then came another phase Of the
case. The daughter, Jennie, was per-
mitted to visit her father in Jail. After
she had made him several visits he COM NJ
municated to friend, and so the story H
got out that Jenny had made written OF
confession that she had poisoned her til
mother in revenge for the latter's finding 81
fault with her Jenny for keeping com hi
pany with some young fellow. Jenny. ri
who is half-witted sort of creature tu
then told how, in his cell, M'Ghee had tie
written out the confession, and wanted nj
her to copy and sign it, saying to her that fl
It could do no harm. Such, in hasty out. ht
line, is the case for prosecution which of
opened yesterday. M'Ghee sits at desk Ci
beside his counsel, with his hands folded al
in true clerical style, save when caressing gr
his flowing black beard, and wears quite th
the air OF the parson in the pulpit wait
ing for the voluntary" to conclude be-
fore he opens the service with PRAYER. A
dapper little fellow, of unmistakable cler-
ical cut, clerical coat and collar, clerical
smoothness ahd sickness all over. cler- TO
ical pulpy white hands; dark hair, show. tW
ed back carelessly from narrow fore ar
head, clear eye with a clerical benip. va
nancy of look in IL. straight. nrorninant de