Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1893-12-14
NOT FAR FETCHED AFTER A.,
An Effective Dramatic Episode g..
Ecsted by nm Actual Occurrana.s

An Effective Dramatic Episode sru
Eesfed by m Actual Occurrence
An ambitious young piar writor =.
outlining the plot Of a new melodro,a.
the other day, in which he nrono..,
to make use of a novel and nowo~
full incident. He described it az -,
lows:
"The villain Of this piece" he said
lis such a desperate, bloodtb,rs,,
wretch that his death by any such !.
derby, decent methods as SHOOTING !,
hanging would amount almost 70 a.
anti-climax. / can't have him ILL.,
by the hero or the heroine. for ILL
have married and gone away ON tbn;s,
wedding tour, and are due to arrive on
the just after the villain bas
died. After much thought / have da
cided that the wretch shall die tbo
cowardly death of a suicide. He is can
tured unawares and locked in prison
but not until his person, his clothina
and the cell in which he is to be CON
fined have been subjected to a rigid
and repeated search for weapons or
other implements Of destruction. After
being imprisoned he is carefully watch.
ed, and is permitted to have no com.
munication with the world outside
las the day for his execution an
proaches and the chances of escono
grow less and less, the vigilance of the
guards is increased. There must be mo
cheating the law; the murderer m,,s,
pay the penalty of his crimes. Ru,
one evening the prisoner suddenly picks
up the little stool in his cell. placnO
it near the grated door, and just as be
says to the guard, You fellows think
you've got me this time, but he
falls over dead!
In the second act he was seen IN
take a quantity of strichnine, with
which he had intended to poison the
heroine, and dissolve it in a vessel Of
water. With this solution he saturated
his collar and crayat, and then when
they were dry he put them on and was
wearing them when cast into prison
No suspicion attached to them and he
was allowed to retain them. When
the desperate end came all he had to
was to dip his collar and cravat into
a cup of water, wiring them out and
he had enough poison at hand TO kill /,
d toLth iich. liz luta 10 IL uONGl one, i
isn't it,"
II agree with you that it is novel," !
replied a friend who had listened to /
the recital, but it is improbable, alb \
surd and far-fetched. 1t is too ingenl /
Gus to be b~elievable."
THAT is just where you are all 1
wrong" interrupted the young dramat. 4
list. AS a matter of fact the incident \
Is not original, but was suggested by /
something that happened right here in /
New York only a few days ago. The \
newspapers published accounts Of
victim Of the morphine habit. who had !
in his possession n large quantity Of
that drug in sulphate form. He was
afraid il would be stolen or taken from <
him, and to prevent its loss he dissolved
il into a solution and then placed in
the fluid a new undershirt. The gar 4
ment completely absorbed the solution,
and after it had dried the man put ID
on and wore it. When he wanted to
use the drug he merely cut a piece
from the undershirt and soaked it in
a little water, and thus quickly procured
the opiate he craved. This is a true
story. From the miserable fellow with
the morphine undershirt 1t is but AM
easy flight OF fancy to the villain with
the strychnine cravat." r