Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-08-18
THE PRISONERS CUNNING.
THE SOMEEViLLE WOMAN AND
HER MURDEROUS WORK.

Other CAuses-The PhYe1clan's Sus-
picioDs Always AIIayed.
The MORNING NEWS has given full
accounts of the wholesale poisoning OF
relatives and church festival people by
the Somerville Mass.) widow, Mrs.
Robinson. The following special from
Boston to the New York sun shows her
cunning: The marvellous cunning of
Mrs. Robinson, the SOmerville Borgia, is
illustrated by the fact that in no case was
poison administered when the victim was
In perfect health. She usually waited
until he or she had some little sickness,
and then her process of slow poisoning
would begin. Her son, VINO died
on Wednesday, met with an
accident, and it was neces-
sary to have doctor. She then began
her work upon him, but in his case she
administered heavier doses of arsenic
than to any Of her other victims.
She must have given the others, in
the opinion of the doctors who attended
them, small doses. Mild doses of arsenic
| given occasionally cannot be detected on
a patient, and in its effects cannot be dis
tinguished from a case of cholera morbus,
| but they would in time use the patient
up. She always introduced poison at the
| latter end of some sickness of her several
victims. Thisis probably the explanation
| OF her success In decelving a dozen or
more physicians until her victims num-
bered half score. In each case the
| patient manifested some symptoms which
could not possibly be attributed to poison;
hence the sickness aud death could only
be described as battling and mysterious,
| with the ground for suspicion so slight as
| not TO warrant the basing thereon OF a
charge OF murder. Then, by employing
new physician in each case, the coin
cidence OF more than one death with the
| same suspicious features in common was
avoided. Thus she was able, with some
| few symptoms Of natural disease in COM
| plication with the effects of the poison, TO
deceive several really skillful physicians.
| She might have succeeded in the case of
| her son William had she not FASTENED the
murderOus process by giving larger
doses.
DIR. Emery L. White, the attending ply
| stefan in the last case, described to-day
| how he detected and caused the arrest of
Mrs. Robinson and her friend, Smith. He
had two ends in view-the welfare of his
patient and protection OF the insurance
| society, OF which he is medical director
and his patient was an insured member.
81 was not without Suspicion" he said,
'when | entered upon the case. When
| Lizzie died l was appointed on commit
tee by the order to investigate the cause
OF death, as it had been reported that there
| were suspicious circumstances attending
it. saw DR.. Stevens, who attended the
daughter, and he said he was puzzled
over the symptoms of the case, but it was
| his opinion that she died OF Brights
| disease. The investigation of this case
went no further, as far as L was con-
cerned. Then followed the death of
| Thomas Arthur Freeman, whose father
had been insured in the order, and the
81, 900 was left in the hands of Mrs. Robin
son. My suspicious were quite naturally
aroused on Thursday afternoon of last
week, when Mr.. Thomas K. Smith, who is
| now under arrest, called at my office and
said that VIII Robinson was not feeling
well; that the day before he had box
fall and strike him IN the back OF the head
while at work at his place of business in
Boston; that he had bad headache, and
Mrs. Robinson thought the doctor had
better come and see him or send some
thing. While on the way Smith asked
where the Governor of the colony lived to
! which VIII belonged, as he thought ne
ought 10 be notified of WHIPS sickness.
thought this little strange so early in
the case, but did not say anything. l
found my patient partially dressed, lying
on the sofa, complaining of pain in the
|
his accident, which was that soap box
fell and struck him in the middle of the
back between the shoulders; that he came
home at noon, had his dinner and vOm-
tied, but went back 30 work again. He
came home in the evening, vOmited sew
eral times during the night, and TWO or
three times during the forenoon OF that
day Thursday, and had severe frontal
headache. found the eyes suffused. face
OF nirot of
beats, and heart weak. prescribed, and
left him. Saw him again on Friday, the
day following, and found him better. But
| was not satisfied. | saw him again on
Saturday night. and found him much
worse. he complaining that he had vom-
tied much more. The emitted matter
having been thrown away, l was unable
to get any for examination. On Monday
morning at o'clock | was called again,
and found him feverish, frequent signing
respiration, face flushed, eruptions on
body more marked, liver and spleen some,
what swollen, feet clammy, but no head.
ache. While | was present the sick man
vomited again, and this gave me an op.
portunity to secure some of the emitted
matter"
DR.. White saws he sent the specimens
to Prof Wood of Harvard University
When he called on the patient again thai
afternoon Smith, who was present, as he
was frequently before, and the mother
followed him into the hall and asked re-
gardng the specimens. The doctor
shrewdly answered that he found slight
evidence Of cOngested kidneys. On Tues
day morning the patient was looking q
, | little better. In the afternoon DIR. w hite
having heard from the Professor that Sc.
! rious business was being done, called or
! DR.. n. Il. Morse, the Supreme Governor
of the United Order Of the Pilgrim Faith
ers. The two went to DIR. Nichols Of
2 Cambridge, who had treated the
Freeman boy who died at Mrs
RObinson's house twenty-five DAYS
: ago. After an interview with DR.. Mich
OILS it was thought best to call a council
Of physicians, The medical examiners OF
Somerville and Cambridge, and to invite
Chief OF Police Parkhurst to be present
The conference was held and resulted III
turning the case over 10 the police. Drs
White and Nichols then went to visit the
parent. and soon after Sergt. Cavanaugh
walked in and announced himself as a
nurse tor the sick man. Mrs. Robinson
IMAGINED that the Sergeant had been sent
by DR.. White from the colony Of the
United Order Of Pilgrim Fathers as
watcher. Sergt. Cayanaugf examined
the medicine. read the directions on the
bottle, and told Mrs. Robinson that he
, would relieve her, Ind that abe
had better lie down and get some
rest. She retired to the lounge. Her sus.