Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1882-07-17
ADOsRD DiksER
Eleven Persons Poisoned by 4
Dinner Of Their Own Cook.
ing.


ing.
The entire family of Mr.. W. B.
Weisager, including two guests, we're
taken suddenly i'll at dinner yesterday
with symptoms bearing every indica-
ton OF poison.
The dinner consisted of all the veg
etables, fried chicken, ham and corn
bread, and eleven persons sat down to
the table.
They we're Mr.. W. B. Weisager
and wife, his son, G. N. Weisager
and Misses Rosa and Ellie Ander-'
son their guests. When the meal
was about half over the little boy
Withern, rose from the table and re
treating p~recepitably To the back
yard, vomited everything he had eat.
en-. The others were disposed to
laugh at him for eating so much hut
their morriment did not last very
long. In a few moments Miss Rosa
Anderson, Mrs. Weisager, senior, and
another, became very sick and sue
ceeded in relieving their stomachs of
part Of the offending substance. In
less than half an hour afterwards all
the balance became more or less nau-
seated and with the exception of Mrs.
Weisager, one Of her daughters, the
little boy and Miss Ellie Anderson,
we're unable to stand and found it
necessary to go to bed. DR.. Henning
was sent for and questioning the
family closely found that all except
the four last named had eaten corn
bread. Mrs. WeisageF stated she
had been using arsenic to kill rats,
and to be en- the safe side DR.. Hen
ming administered an emetic all
around. His patients are all well
this morning with the exception Of
Mr., W. B. Weissger and his daugh
ter-in law, upon whom the emetic
did not operate very we'll.
Mrs. Weisager states that she
mixed arsenic with meal and spread
it on the top shelf Of the pantry,
and that the meal of which
the corn bread was made
yesterday, was taken from a paper bag
which was tied up and kept in a bar.
rel with a close cover under the bot
tom shelf, and that it was impossible
for the arsenic to have fallen into it.
The dinner yesterday was prepared by
her own hands, and she is pogitive the
barrel and sack Of meal were securely
closed after breakfast, when she used
part Of the same meal to make corn
cakes, which we're freely paEtaken o.
by the family, none ofwhom we're nau-
seated. DR.. Henning thinks it ! mpro-
bable the family we're poisoned with
arsenic, because it is not in the nature
Of that drug to pauaeate SO quickly, un-
less taken in very large doses, but can
not say positively, as he has not ana
lyzed the bread, a costly process, of
which Mr.. Weisager is not willing to
bear the expense.
DR.. HenDing thinks it more proba-
BILE the sickness was caused by the
ham which had been fresh cut for din
ner, and many have been diseased by
bachtaria, though an analysis must be
made in this case to be positive.
Another theory advanced is that
perhaps the vegetables used at the din.
ner had been sprinkled with a solution
of Paris green during the early season
when worms were SO numerous and
destructive to young plants. All of
those who suffered we're believed to be
out Of danger at noon to-day, and
several, though weak and feeling as il
they had been through a long sick
spell, were around attending to their
usual duties.