Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-05-23
ATTEMPTED POISONING.

An Angry Servant Girl Seeks Revenge.
Mr.. Robert Mickler, living on Trout
creek, near Florence, in st. Johns county,
with his entire family, says the Jackson
vile I ines Union Of the DIST inst, had a
very narrow escape from being poisoned
last Thursday by a negro girl employed
by him as a servant. The facts, so far as
we have been able to learn, are as follows:
Some time previous to that of which we
write a man went to the house and left his
pistol, and on Thursday went back after
and asked Mrs. Mickler for it. She had
not seen it, but said that she had heard
her little son speak Of pistol which had
been left there and told him to find it.
The little boy said that he did not know
where it was, but thinking he was
not telling the truth, Mrs. Mickler gave
him whipping. While she was engaged
in Furnishing the boy the negro girl in
question looked in the well and saw it
lying at the bottom, and went and told
Mrs. Mickler where it was, when the lat
ter accused the. girl of putting it there.
This made the girl angry, but she made no
threats. Later in the day the little boy
asked for and was given some clabber to
eat, but on tasting it found that it was
bitter, and so informed his mother, who
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dogs. The boy emptied the clabber in the
yard and it was soon devOured by the two
dogs, and both died in a very few minutes
afterwards. This aroused Mrs. Mickler's
suspicious, and short while afterward,
when the girl passed by her. she saw a
piece of white paper sticking out Of her
pocket. Mrs. Mickler got hold of the
paper, and on pulling it out of the girl's
pocket ascertained that it contained some
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strychnine. The girl then left the place.
On Mr.. Mickler's return home he Nas
informed by his wife of what had hap
pened, and, fearing that other things
around the house had been poisoned, pro-
cured other provisions. Thursday night,
after the family had retired, the girl
armed herself with a can of kerosene and
went to the house. She built a pile Of
wood under one corner of the building,
poured the oil over it and set it on fire,
but for some reason or other the house did
not ignite.
On Friday Mr.. Mickler made search for
and captured the girl and forced her to 90
to the house. On arriving there he told
her that she would have to eat something
Of all kinds OF food on the premises. He
first took her to the we'll and gave her a
glass Of water to drink, which she did,
remarking at the time that the water was
all right and she was not afraid of it.
They next went into the pantry and Mr..
Mickler handed her some sugar to eat, but
she declined to do so. He then drew his
pistol and told her that if she did not eat
it he would shoot her. She still refused
to eat it, when Mr.. Mickler carried her to
st. Augustine and had her locked up for
safe keeping until the next session Of the
Circuit Court,
The supposition is that she sprinkled
-
to eat about the house, and thinking that
all the members of the family had eaten
supper as usual and of course had died
from the effects Of the poison, sought to
cover up her deed by burning the house
down and destroying their bodies with it.