Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1891-06-05
A FAIR DEFENDANT.
Trial of the Richland Center Poison
ing Case Begun at
Lancaster.
Noted Attorneys ON Both Sides. Among
Whom is H. W. ChynOweth.
of Madison.
Outline of Probable Eyidence-Re-
sumo of the Crime-Other
C0njectureS.

LANCASTER. Wis. June with the
opening of special term of the Grant
county circuit court at noon today, Judge
ClementSon on the bench. began one Of
the most notable and deepy interesting
murder trials that has been docketed
in the annals of Wisconsin crime
for many year. There being no other
business to dispose Of, the preimina-
ries were brief and tde work of EN-
pauelling a jury TO try the case of Rose
Zoldoski, the pretty RiChland Center null
liner, for the murder Of Miss Ella Maly.
was proceeded with without loss of time
The task of empanelng a jury, it Is
thought, may be finished without ex-
hausting the first venire Of thirty-six
There is no certainty about this, however,
and in any event the attorneys in the case
anticipate a long trial About eighty
witnesses have been subpoenaed-
tifty-twO b. the prosecution and nearly
thirty by the defense Nearly all of the
Richland Center people who were guests
at the party gwen by Miss ZoIdoski last
January when sne is alleged to have given
Miss Maly the poisoned candy. will be wit
neSSes. The trial will last fully fort
night. Miss Xo'doski'S attorneys not only
claim that there is no direct evidence
against their client, but they do not admit
that Miss Maly died of strychnine poison
ing, and it is understood that they will in
troducs expert testimony to prove that the
experts Subp9naed by the prosecution are
all wrong. 1t Is claimed, however, that
the candy found II Miss L)ldOski's room
after the party at which Miss Maly Is said
TO have been poisoned. has been auall zed
and that one chocolate cream was found
to contain strychnine. There Will be
fight between the attorneys over the intro
duction of evidence regarding the
death of DR.. Mitchell's wife. The
defense claims that no relevancy can be
established between her death and that
of Miss Maly, and also claims that Mrs.
Mitchell died from natural causes, and
that if strychnine was found in her
stomach, il is accounted for by the fact
that her husband, who is a physician OF
the homeopathic school, had been giving
her nux vOmica, preparation of Strych
nine. as remedy for COnvulSiCns.
District Attorney Burnham, Of Rich.
land county, arrived this morning. He Is
assisted in conducting the case on behalf
of the state by John D. Wilson, of Bosco-
bel. Miss Zoldoski's attorneys are H.
Bancroft, of Richland Center, and H. w.
Chynoweth, of Madison. Attorney Viii
son thinks that jury may be secured
within twenty-four hours.
story of the Crime.
Though the story of the notable Rich
land Center poisoning case is familiar to
all newspaper readers, brief resume will
not by cut of place. Rose Zoldoski had
been for a long time a boarder in The fam
lily of Or. G. R. Mitchell, of Richland Cen
ter. On the evening Of January 8th, with
the doctors permission, she gave party at
his house to a few young ladies. Ella
Maly was one of the party. Just as
they were starting home Rose gave
some candy to Ella. On the way home
the latter complained to her sisters that
she had peculiar pains. At the gate near
her home she was thrown to the ground
in convulsion. Shs was carried into the
house and doctors were called in Con-
vulsions were repeated, and after 6
o'clock the next morning she died.
Suspicion that she was poisoned led to
the arrest of Rose January II. The
stomach of the deceased was sent to Prof.
Haines, of Rush Medical College, Chi
cago, and an analysis showed the pres
ence of strychnine. 1t was remembered
then that the death of Mrs. Dr.. Mitchell
was similar to that of Ella Maly. The
body was exhumed and viscera sent to
Prof Haines, and strychnine found as be-
fore The belief that Rose gave the
poison became universal IN the county, and
when the case was called in April a
change of venue was asked for.