The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-11-13
POISON IN THE BODY.
Light on the Death Of Bartlett,
the Asylum Employe.
KILLED sY A POWERFUL DRUG.
An Oysgen Preacher Found Drowned
Malicious Arrest OF Citisens OF
Grams County, Oregon-

TAcoMA, Nov. 12-TSpseial IA power
ful poisonous drug has been discovered in
the stomach and liver Of NJ. NJ. Bartiets,
who was recently found dead here. The
police are working up the case in the light
of new developments. The coroners jury
viii meet Wednesday. In the meantime
sensational Developments are looked for.
II it can be proved that Bartlett took
poison in q beverage the mystery would
be unraveled.
Everything points to poison as the cause
OF the young mans death. Still more
important. 1t appears that q fsshlight will
be cast on the alleged Shadle-Redpath
mystery when the Bartlett case Is dis
posed Of
When Bartlett was found dead, and
slight evidence Of sdsma of the lungs
was found at the autopsy. the search for
the cause of the edema was taken mp by
the Tacoma bureau OF the Posz-IsTKLLr-
eKscKR- The next step backward was the
Investigation of the condition OF the heart.
That organ was couvulsed; that is, Bart
lett died with his heart convu!sed- Ii
failed to supply the lungs, hence the
edema
The mere fact that the heart was con-
vanced by members Of the local press. that
Bartlett died of an overdose of choral or
morphine. Had he died of morphine or
chloral poisoning the experts agree that
the heart would have been relaxed. Some
of the popular poisons that would con-
vulse the heart in death are strychnine,
atropine and other alkaioids. DR.. Dewey
and others who took part in the autopsy
ill @F -
bladder of the dead man, and tried the
physiological test for atropine on o cats
eye. The presence of atropine is mani
Tested in this test by the diletion of the
pupil of the animals eye. The cats eye
did not dilate, 50 it was decided that 1t
was not atropine that killed Bartlett.
1t will be remembered that the chemist
who. examined the stomach OF the late
accountant of the Sseiiacoom asylum,
Shade. reported that he applied a crystal
from Shades stomach to the eye of dog,
and that the eve diiated. That was one OF
his reasons for declaring the presence Of
atropine in Shades stomach, albeit he
did not make the examination until after
Shadle had been dead about Two weeks.
The physicians conducting the autopsy
found but q very small amount Of urine in
the bladder, and it was agreed that Bart
lett had micturated within an hour before
death. With these facts to work upon, it
was reasonable to suppose, from other
facts not yet made public. that Bartlett
had been poisoned with some fairly quick
acting poison. Besides. he had evidently
been poisoned with drug that convulsed
the heart in death. He therefore died
after struggle, in great agony. This Is
c. b. 80 a.
letters being scattered about him, except
that some one ransacked his pockets.
II poison had been taken, how was IL
taken? The contents of the stomach
there was between q pint and quart Of
fluid in the stomach of the dead man-in-
dictated that he had been drinking some
liquid, and it was IN the liquid that the
fatal dose was taken.
Contrary to the usual custom, Coroner
Hoska presented the stomach TO . local
chemist for analysis. Alpheus Davidson, q
graduate of the Montreal College of Phar-
macy. He was given the stomach and
liver of the dead man. The stomach was
divided. half being preserved for further
expert chemical analysis should there be
occasion to submit il to a chemist of great
reputation. Dr.. Davidson has a reputs-
ton 10 ID axe III tnis inc, anu Is MS ciIOTlS
in analytical chemistry have already DEM
onstrated. he Is painstaking and careful
to the extreme. and his report Is antici-
pated as being conservative ana accurate,
although 1t has been generally believed
among the profession" that there wasn't
a man in the city capable Of making a
chemical analysis OF this sort.
II should be borne in mind that tenth
of grain Of atropine would cause death
inside OF an hour. 1t would. therefore, be
a delicate task to locate the atropine in
Bartlett's stomach, liver and intestines.
Atropine is usually administered in doses
of hpndredth part OF a grain, sometimes
a fiftisth part of a grain. strychnins
would have killed Bartlett, probably,
quicker than atropine.
Bartlett died. as near rs can be estima ted
by the facts in hand, between an.hour and
an hour and twenty minutes after the
poison was taken.