St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-06-21
AN INSANE MURDERER
Mary Ulmer, Of Chicago, Oonfesses That
She Has Poisoned Her Father,
Mother and Sister.
John R Mckee, Living at Logtown, Pa.
Murders His Wife and Then
Commits Suicide.
The Dignity of Fort Worth Court
Demoralized by General
Knockdown.
A Young Wife Taken from Bed at
Elkhart, Tex, and Murdered
in a Field.
Her Many Crimes.

in a Field.
Her Many Crimes.
CHICAGO, June 20.-Mary Ullmer, girl
in Jail here who has heretofore persistently
avowed her innocence of the crime with
which she is charged, that of administering
poison to the family of Mrs. Michael Freres,
her sister, with whom she has made her
home for a short time at Rose
Hill, has confessed that she is
guilty, not only of the attempt upon their
lives, but OF causing the deaths of her
mother, father and another sister in Du-
buque, Ia Her mother died in July of last
year; her sister Lena, in August and her
father, Michael, in March of this year. She
assigns no motive for her crimes, other than
that she was impelled to kill them,
and is evidently insane. She is
less than % years old, slender,
rather pretty, prepossessing in manner and
an invalid, having but partial use of her
lower limbs and feet. She has an inno-
cent expression, and looks even more youth
full than she is. Her eyes have the strange,
bright, fixed look, so often seen with a
diseased mind. For the past two months
she has lived with her sister at
Rose Hill, to whom she came after the
burial of her father in Dubuque.
SEVERAL TIMES
since she has lived with her sister she has
prepared the meats, and on nearly every
occasion when she did so the family,
consisting of Michael Freres, his
wife and two small children, have
been taken with vomiting Immediately
af&r. Michael Freres found package Of
grayish-colored powder in the yard week
ago. When he ate his soup at noon, he
was seized with vomiting, and observed a
sediment in his soup plate corresponding in
appearance to the powder found.
Upon examination, more of the
same substance was found in
his wife's and the children's
plates. He carried both the powder found
in the yard and that in the plates to Evans
ton for an analysis. The result showed that
the powder was poison, and Mary Ulmar
was accordingly arrested. She has wept
continuously till the last day or two,
since her incarceration, and asserted
that her sister has preferred a false
charge against her for the purpose of OBJ
tanning small amount of money ($100)
which she claimed she had. When her
lawyer went to Rose Hill to take possession
of her effects, her money could not be
found. The Frere family attribute the
girls act to insanity. She has always been
willful girl they say, and has spent her
money capriciously.
Frac as i'm Court.
FORT WORTH, June 20.-A fight occurred
n the district court room last night which
came near resulting fatally. The trial of
young Stevens, charged with the murder of
DR.. Wallace, at Mansfield, this county, had
just opened. The entire day had been
spent in impanelinga jury. The attorneys
were tired and petulent. Henry Farman,
the leading attorney for the defense, be-
come engaged in a controversy with County
Attorney Bowlin. They finally came to
blows and everyone expected to see a
double tragedy. The court room was
quickly emptied. Both men were un-
doubtedly armed, and each one only
waiting for the other to draw. In the
midst of this consusiOn, Judge Breckman
leaped from the bench into the arena. AS
he did so Lawyer Weare, who is associated
with Bowlin in the prosecution. eXcitedly
struck the judge very severe blow under
the ear. The court was dazed for an
instant, but being powerful man, instantly
recovered his balance and let fall a sledge
hammer blow that prostrated Lawyer
Weare. Turning his attention to the prin-
cipal combatants, who by this time had
clinched and were committing mayhem
upon one another's ears and cheeks, the
Judge commanded the jury to arise and
quell the riot At the same time the court
seized one of the combatants, and two
jurymen the other, thus separating them.
Farman and Bowlin were fined $50 each for
contempt, after which the court immedi-
ately adjourned, as all were bleeding pro-
fusely. The court did not fine Lawyer
Weare. 1t is feared the feeling engendered
will yet result in a tragedy.