The evening world., 1894-05-02
PURSUED BY A B0RCIA
An Army Officers Wife Goes to
Byrnes for Protection.
She Accuses a Society Woman Of
Trying to Kill Her.
Thinks Her Cook and Butler Were
Mixed Up in the Plot.

A handsome. richly attired woman
drove UP to Police Headquarters yes
terday afternoon in a cab and was ush-
cred into supt. Byrnes's private office.
She was accompanied by a boy of about
ten years. who was said to be ner son.
After being in consultat ton with the SUI
perintendent for an hour the woman
was driven to the Astor House.
This strange visitor is the wife of a
well-known army officer, who as. until
recently. in command of a garrison rot
far from New York. She says many at
tempts have been made to poison her
and she believes a woman high in army
society Is responsible.
Supt. Byrues told the visitor she
would have to place the matter in the
hands o fthe authorities of an adjoin-
ing county, as the alleged crimes were
committed outside his county.
To an Evening World' reporter the
woman told the same story she had
told to Supt. Byrnes.
Exhibiting several bottles and phials,
she declared hat they contained guam
titles OF poison Naich had been ad-
ministered to her n her food. For a
year or more. she said, poison had been
put in her food in small quantities. but
her suspicious were not aroused until
last November. when she was obliged
to take to her bed. The cook, a negress,
had prepared all the dishes and served
them in person. When the condition
OF the army oficer's wife became so
serious that she feared for her life,
sician be called in.
The negress got into a passion. de-
claring that there was no occasion for
Of taking care OF her and nursing her
back to health and strength.
Then, the mistress says, she realized
eonsu Il Ta . 6 pbHsie Pels0n ae ana nsy, secretly III,
to bottle and seal in the presence OF
or more members of the family some
OF the chicken broth and beef tea tina,
nurse. She followed the advice and took
a sample to a chemist for analysis.
IN the mean time she refused to taste
seo ffny and be pasPaf i%pf Sg ssFvf ia BY 81.
She visited the chemists laboratory and
ssaw The he : sp mnIs Of poison developed
little phial." she says the chemist said,
ito. poison your whole family. 1t is ar.
senic, and you were lucky you didn't
p pihaee !"e peer tea in which 1t was
The beef tea had been prepared, the
woman says. after she had announced
her intention Of calling a doctor. She
believes II was the intention OF the ne
gress to murder her with a single dose.
The cook, the woman says, supposing
that detection was inevitable. left the
famiiy's employ. But a solored butler
remained. No suspicion was entertained
OF him until December. when the mis-
t%ress's health began to fail again. Sew
eral bottles of lager beer that had a
peculiar taste, when taken to a New
York chemist, analysed and found them
to contain poison, but not in sufficient
quantity to kill.
The army officers wife says she ac-
cused the butler Of attempting to muir
der her and he disappeared.
lieves. were merely tools of one OF her
enemies, who fears exposure. having
been concerned in a crime. Exposure,
the army %oficer's wife says. would be
worse than death to this person. who is
well known in society.
The army officers wife's brother IL
we'll known In this city. She has gained
an env!able reputation in the literary
world, and Is the author Of several
meritorious works. 1t was only on the
reporters pledge Of not mentioning her
name that she told her story.