Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-07-26
SEVEN POISONED.
DANIEL MCCARTHY AND SIX MEN,
BERS OF HIS FAMILY
By Drinking Buttermilk are
Brought to the Edge Of
the Grave.
The Sufferers Lying Weak and Pros rated
for Three Hours Alone in Their
HOme-Three Of the Family
Yet in Very Crit
ical Condition.

Yesterday forenoon rather strange case
of poisoning occurred on East Oak street,
in which Daniel McCarty and the mem
bers of his household suffered most in
tensely and came very near loOsing their
lives.
McCarty lives in the second story Of the
store building recently erected by Mr..
Israel, on the south side of Oak street be-
tween Market and Lawrence. Besides
himself and wife there are in the family
three daughters, son and bis wife. The
latter has for several days past been sick
and yesterday forenoon she wanted some
buttermilk and one of the little girls was
sent over to former nelghbors on North
Fourth To obtain it.
When she returned about 9 o'clock all
the members of tie family present as well
as Mrs HenShaw, a married daughter,
drank quite a quantity of the milk. They
were Immediately taken violently sick and
lay on the floor and on the bed in the
most intense agony. They were all
seized with gripping pains in the stomach
and also had spells of vomiting which
nothing within their reach could stop or
allay.
weakened by this that they could scarcely
move from where they lay or even reach
TO the windows or doors to call the atten-
ton of passers by to their sItferings.
For almost three hours this agony had to
be endured; when at last at II O'Clock
neighbor woman dropped in to call upon
them and was Mortified by the strange
and unusual sight she saw. She immedi-
ateiy ran to give the alarm and have physi-
clans summoned Mr. Israel, the owner
of the building was dispatched tor DR.. L.
K. Wilson, and "a boy sent from a neighbor
ing drug store for DR.. Silverman. Other
persons were sent for Drs. Purdy and
Hoffman.
When Dir. Wilson arrived he commenced
immedl ately to administer a heroic treat
ment, and was soon ait rwards joined by
the other physicians, tAo,e named above
and also Drs. ketchum and Ross. The
doctors iabored diligently to save
the lives of their patients and
were gratified to find after
about three hours hard work that all ex
cept Mr.. McCarty himself and one of. his
daughters were out of danger and in a
fair way to entirely recover The old gem
Frustrated last night and scarcely able to
speak; yet he will, it is thought, recover
though at one time it was feared he would
die The daughter, another of the most
severe sufferers, WIS last evening, too,
very low. Her lie at one time was dis
paired of but the skillful medical treat
ment given, it is thought, will save her.
When the house was visited last night
it looked veritable hospital. In the front
room lay one of the daughters and Mrs.
Henshaw very weak and pale and by their
sides We're neighbors and physicians doing
everything to help them. In another room
was Mrs. McCarty and her two little
daughters, both Frustrated and scarcely
able to move without pain. Mrs.
McCarty, .jr., was in another
room also sufferer; while in
still another was Mr.. McCarty himself
He, like the other members of the family,
was too weak to even sit up or to talk.
There was no very good statement OBJ
tainable last night from the parties on
account of their weakness and consequent
disinclination to converse. That they had
been keen sufferers their very faces and
appearance told. and that they had been
poisoned from drinking the buttermilk
they all agreed.
There appeared to be no reason, or, at
least, none was advanced, to think that
the milk had been Intentionally poisoned
and then given to them for use. The doc
tors were somewhat at loss, from the
particulars obtainable at the
time, to tell what did cause the
poison. Some thought the milk |
had been allowed to stand in |
a vessel and thus became poisoned others /
that by the decomposition of the milk a
poison called ptomaines was formed. 1t |
was afterwards learned that butter had |
been made from the milk in the morning, |
and that instead of using cream they had |
used only sour milk.
Lateral IL o'clock Drs. Wilson and |
Hoffman, who had spent the time since |
o'clock with the sufferers, reported that |
Mr.. McCarty and the daughter referred to
above are still lying in very critical con-
dition. Another of the younger daugh-
ters was also taken very i'll in the evening
and fears were too entertained for her re-
coyery.