The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1882-04-11

TIE sURRY-COUNTY TRAGEDY-SOME ADD
TIONAL PARIICULARS-A NOTORIOUS CHAR
ACTER IN COURT-A LARGE NUMBER OF BAP-
TIsMs-EHsTER SERVICES.
ICorlespondence Of the Richmond Dispatch.l
APRIL 10, 1882.
The latest information relative to the re-
cent poisoning case i'm Surry county, by
which Mrs. II. G.. Gray and Mr.. Travis L.
Jones lost their lives, is that the poison
used was arsenic, and that the supposed
murderer is a colorcd girl named Booth,
aged only about fourteen or fifteen years,
who was employed as an assistant in the
family. Ms. Gray usually did most Of her
own cooking, the family being a small one,
and on Friday morning she attended to
everything about the breakfast except the
making OF the coffee, which was entrusted
to the girl. The arsenic was taken from
bottle kept in an clubhouse, which Mr..
GRAY was in the habit OF using TO poison
crows. An examination Of the bottle
showed that some Of the contents had just
been taken out. A pOSt-mOrtem OF the bodies
of Mrs. GRAY and Mr.. Jones showed the
presence of arsenic in the stomach, clearly
establishing the cause OF their death. II is
believed that the only thing that saved Mr..
GRAY himself was the fact that he was sick
i'm bed Friday morning, and did not drink
any OF the coffee in which the poison had
been placed. 1t is stated that Mrs. Gray
fell and died upon the floor Of the cham
Der in which her husband was sick. Her
body will be brought up to this city this
afternoon and forwarded direct by train
to Port Jeryis, n. j., her place Of nativity.
The girl Booth is under arrest and held
for examination. II is suspected that she
may have had accOmplces in this terrible
crime, and that the object may have been
robbery. A few days ago a sum OF money
was sent down to Mr.. Gray from this city
by his commission merchant, and it Is
thought that the poisoning was done to get
possession of this.
IAN Associated Press dispatch from Pc
teisburg last night gives the following adj
ditional particulars I" Intelligence has Just
been received here OF the arrest of the sup
posed murderers OF Mrs. II. G.. Gray and
/ Travis Jones, Of Surry county, who were
killed last week by drinking coffee in which
strichnine had been placed. One Of the
accused is a girl fourteen years old, named
Mary Booth, and the other a colored woman
named Martha Jones. Both have been COM
mitted to jail to await trial AT the next term
Of the County Court. The girl avows her
innocence, and claims that she saw Martha
Jones put the poison in the coffee while
carrying it from the kitchen TO the family
tables. The stomachs Of the victims were
shipped to Richmond this morning for
analysis. Mrs. Gray was former resident
OF Chicago, and, in company with her hus-
band, came TO Virginia only short time
ago."l
In the Mayors Court this morning Moses
Medley. the negro who recently tried 20
kill an officer Of the police who was endea-
voring to arrest him, by first striking at
his head with stick OF wood and then
shooting at him, was arraigned for exam
nation. He was first sent on to the Hust-
ings Court to be tried for escaping from
Jail, and was then fined SIS and required to
give bond in the sum OF $3.50 to keep the
peace and be OF good behavior for commit
ting an assault on the police officer. Medley
Is said TO be very expert chicken-tbief,
and ii is reported that he can so exactly
initiate the crow OF chanticleer that by that
means he is often enabled to trace the
whereabout OF fowls at night.
At the Harrison-Street Baptist church
yesterday the pastor baptized lO2 candi-
dates, who have recently bGcn converted at
the revival meetings at that church. Rev.
Henry Dickerson, OF the Third (colored)