The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1884-05-18

.
her daughter crying in the next room. On
going IN she found Jeanneret whipping her.
and the child begged her mother plteouslv
not TO let the nurse come near her any
more. But so great was her infatustion,
SO implicit her confidence, that even this
incident does not seem TO have shaken
Nine. Juvet's faith In Jeanneret. People
remembered afterward that It was about
this time that the nurse told the servants
and several others that Nine. Juvet was a
doomed woman, and that her son Emile
| was threatened with serious illness: "A
few DAYS later Nine. Juvet did. in effect,
fall III, ard one morning Emile, after drink
ing a cup OF coffee, felt violent pain
and vomited proIusely. Fortunately for
him, he left the maispn de sante on
the following dav, and thenceforward
experienced no further unpleasantness
either from drinking cocoa or anything
else. Meanwhile. Nine. Juvet suffered
from continual relapses, and whenever DR..
Benet, who attended her, suggested that
she was better, Jeanneret always an
swered that she did not think the improve
ment would last. And 1t did not. Poor
little Julie died on December p, 1867, and
month later her mother was laid IN the
1
terward exhumed il was too much decom-
posed TO be anayzed, but in Nine. Juvet's
body were found great quantities OF NOR.
phine, anthony, and some copper. Nor
were these two the only victims. Before
they died the lives Of three other inmates
Of the hospital. all of whom were nursed
by Jeanneret, had been quenched by the
same means.
However, Jeanneret was shortly after
ward engaged to nurse a Nine. Lenoir, a
old lady who was suffering from inhamma-
ton OF the lungs. She. too, died, and
then Jeanneret leased furnished room
from n. GrOs, retired schoOlmaster. with
whom lived Nine. Bowler. his widowed
daughter. Again Marie obtained an en-
gagement, this time to nurse Mime. BOur-
cart, a lady who lived at La BoisSiere, a
country house near Geneva. Four days
after she entered on her duties Nine.
Bourcart had "crisiS." accompanied by
delirium and vomitngs, and Jeanneret
told the servants that her mistress
would die young like her brother.
When Nine. Bourcart became little bet
ter she showed a strong repugnance to
Jesnneret, and would not have the nurse
near her. and as NJ. BOurcart had begun TO
suspect that she was playing some tricks
with the medicines, she was sent away.
He remarked one evening that Il certain
bottle OF medicine, OF which he knew his
wife had taken several doses during the
day, had not diminished in volume. He
put the bottle aside, but took no further
steps. for, though he dstrusted Jeanneret,
il had not then occurred TO him that she
was a pOisOneT. She went back TO her
lodgings, and NJ. Gros and Nine. Bowler,
whose confidence she had already gained,
invited her TO live with them en- pension
Three days later Nine. Bowler fell i'll, and
so rapidly grew worse that it was deemed
necessary to call in two physicians, Drs.
Lombard and Goudet. They took il TO be a
case OF cong stion OF the brain, albeit DR..
Lombard several times observed that it
presented symptoms the like OF which he
had never seen before. She died on May
%. 1869. Her father, after nursing her
few DAYS. had also been taken i'll. His i'll
ness followed the same course as hers, and.
like hers, ended fatally. They were killed,
as was afterwards abmdantly proved, by
atropine, morphine. and antiBony. During
their sickness one OF their relations. a
Nine. Legeret, after drinking glass OF eau
Slcr6e given to her by Jeanneret. became
so seriously indispOsed that she had TO be
taken home in cab. The doctor who was
called in recognized symptoms OF bella
donna poisoning, but thinking that Nine.
Legeret had swallowed by mistake some
atrOpine intended for external use he did
not suspect foul play. Proper remedies
were administered, and after severe strug-
gle she recovered.
Jeanneret next took up her abode at the
Do ,cin he oppnaInf-
ance of Mile. Fritzges, wbo'one day, after
drinking glass Of lemonade, given TO her
by the gdrde ndLdde. became delirious and
terribly i'll. The doctor who was called in,
recognizing symptoms OF poisoning by bel
adonna and suspecting foul play, ordered
her immediate removal to the cantona
hospital DR.. Rapin, Of the hospital,
made similar diagnosis. He had heard OF
Jelnneret before. She never went into a
house, whether as guest or nurse, that
death did not follow. lie communicated
his suspicious, together with a sketch OF
Jeanneret's career, TO the PrOcureur-
General, who forthwith had her ar
rested. A long inquiry followed; the
bodies OF her supposed victims were eX-
humed. Marie was examined az secret,
and after a prolonged inquiry she was
placed on her trial. The charge against
her was that in 1867 and 1868 she had at
tempted, in the Canton OF Geneva, the
lives OF Q) Louise Junot, o. Jeanne Gay,
i3l Jenny Julie Juvet. az Louise Henriette,
(5) Nine. Bourcart, o. Jacques Gros, q
Julie Bowler, (S) Nine. Legeret. (9) Mile.
FritzgGS. There were several other charges
that might have been brought against her,
but as the relatives OF the persons whom
sbn
foul play, the bodies were not eXhumed,
and the attempts she had made in the Can
ton Vaud did not fall within the iurisdc-
ton OF the tribunals of Geneva.
Before the trial began the Judge DIN
struction ordered the accused TO be eXaIn-
ined by three experts in mental disease,
for it was hardly conceivable that any sane
person could be guilty Of the series OF
purposeless and diSbolical crimes imputed
to Marie Jeanneret. After long inyeStiga-
ton the experts came unanimously TO the
conclusion that there was observable in
her no sign of feeble-mindedness or mental
alienation. She labOred under no halluci- |
nation, and during her long preventive
lmprisonmant and her frequent eX-
amlnations she had shown more
than usual intelligence and presence
of mind. OF the nine persons whom she
was accused OF poisoning seven bad died,
and in the bodies OF all Of them that were
not too much decomposed to be analysed |
was found enough OF atropne, morphine,
and anthony to account for their death.
Large quantities OF these drugs were found
in Jeanneret's possession, and in the bot
tie seized by NJ. Bourcart when she was
nursing his wife atropine was also de-
tected. Jeanneret herself was constrained
to admit that she had given people poison,
but pleaded that she had given IT in igno-
rance and in the hope that il would do |
them good. To this the Judge replied that |
inasmuch as she had given poison to people |
in robust health. and her patients invariably |