St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-05-13
DARLING's LAST STATEMENT
A STRONG ACCUSATION THAT HE
WAS BEING SLOWLY POL
SONED.
CHARGES AGAINST THE PAIR
That Go to Convict Them of MUIR
der-Fresh Evidence Is
Hinted AT.

ling, the composer, WAS lieu WiStA
other documents in the district at
torney's Office in the case in Whlcn
Mrs. Flora Adams Darling, mother
of Edward Irving Darling, accuses
DIR. Spranger of having poisoned her
son. Soon after the death OF Daring
DIR. Spranger married her niece. They
are now in California. The affidavit
made by Edward Irving Darling was
written partly by himself in the pres
ence of witnesses few hours before
his death. In the statement he teAs
how, in December, $780, he met with
an accident when attempting to save
property for firm he was with in
Detroit. He recovered rapidly and re-
turned to business on March l, 1881.
DR.. Obetz was the surgeon and DR..
Spranger the physician who attended
him. He declared that intimacy be-
tween DR.. .Spranger and Mrs. Dar-
ling, his wife, began during his ILL
ness. Concerning
THIS INTIMACY, -
Darling alleges: .Prior to her ae-
quaintance with. DR.. Spranger, we had
lived happily. From that date she was
different woman. Where she had
been amiable, agreeable and cheerful,
she was now petulent, vindictive and
arbitrary. i seemed to be the object
of her antipathy. She would accuse
me of the most absurd actions, and
especially delighted to talk of imagfn-
ary woes into the ears of any one who
would listen" Darling said that this
was in the spring of 1892, and up to
that time his health was perfect
Early in March he had a severe at
tack of what was called cholera NOR
bus. He did not recover, but kept at
tending to business. DR.. Spranger, he
said, frequently gave him medicines
which seemed to afford temporary re-
lief, but ultimate left him in worse
condition. In a few weeks his weight
from 14S pounds went down to ninety
five pounds. He was sick without
being able to find out what was the
matter, and continues. tune l, 1892.
Miss Clayton came to my house to
write The Viking.'"-We continued al
the work until July 4, when my wife
came into absolute possession of an
estate yielding an income of about
$4,000 annually. We left for Washing
ton July 5, went to the Ebbitt house: !:
the second day after our arrival had
a most
VIOLENT ATTACK
nearly dying. We returned to De-
ltroit July Is. was too il to sit up,
had to lie in my sleeping apartment
all the way and have been regarded
as dying man ever since. During
the time we were in Washington, Mrs.
Darling developed new phase of
character. She did not wish me to sec
any of our friends" Darling declared
that his wife continued to grow vim
dict1ve and abusive without the Slight
est provocation. This treatment con,
tinued after their return to Detroit,
where he grew worse. DR.. Spranger
attended him. The statement con-
tinues as follows: "The variety and
quantity of drugs he CDR. Spranger}
poured into me, was sufficient to justi-
fy CHASING me as an annex to his
laboratory. He gave no prescriptionS
only medicines. 1 failed rapidly. The
effect produced was a constant state
of irritation of the stomach; almost
ceaSeless nausea, then utter collapse
No matter. what I took in my
stomach, / would almost Immediately
begin to yomit until in my weakened
conditional a cold sweat would start
all over me. My mother and aunts
came to me. They were not welcomed
g or desired by Mrs. Darling. Drt
Spranger told them that had Bright s
disease of the kidneys. They did not
accept his opinion. DIR. Spranger
called in two of his friends. DR.. Obetz
and DR.. Long. They at that time did
not concur with him. DR.. Spranger
told me to continue taking whisky, al
though my stomach refused to con-
tain that as it did everything else.
I had some of the whisky that was
given me at the time analyzed and it
was found to :
CONTAIN ANTIMONY. - &
"My mother is a witness that she
saw my wife pour the contents of a
small vial Of a yellow powder into the
decantor used by me at my bedside" !
Darling says that he fought against
sickness and tried to keep up, but 1t
was impossible His wife, he said,
spent much of her time gossiping at
DR.. Spranger's office or with his
friends. Darling stated that he bet
came worse and DR.. Spranger came to
him with a drug which he CDR. Sprang-
err said he had received from Paris
A hypodermic injection of this drug
drove him crazy. He said that he
talked for nineteen hours without ceas-
ing. The statement continues with
the assertion that Darling found his
wife had a private letter box. He also
discovered that his wife and DIR.
Spranger were circulating report rhat
he was drinking himself to death. 1t
properly treated and refused to take
cover after that. In November he left
for New York.
Concluding, the statement declares:
''In November was improved, but if
any man ever suffered the torments
of the damned, was crushed, hurt, hui
inflated and crucif1ed, I was at that
time by-Alrs. Darling. She decided to
close the house. My mother went to
Mount Clemens. l left for New York.
She, with the children, were to go to
{ washington. She did not Soon
as I-left, Dec. s, she filed bin fos
absolute divorce for drunkenness nom
support, cruelty and desertion, which
she expected to obtain with money
through default, suppressed case
In January, the 26th, she joined me ia
New York, came to my rooms, and
came of her own volition and lived
with me devoted wife until March /.
I had improved in health, gained twep-
ty-five pounds. We were atWork on
"Viking.." The day she leftAI was
taken seriously i'll and hayea failed
slowlyssbut surely. am dying witf-
out hope or hurry t.
John Quincy Adams, the brother Of