The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1895-04-19
ACCUSED BY A MOTHER
Mrs. Darling's Sensational Charge
Against &c r Sons Widow.
LED TO HIS DEATH BY SLOW POISON
Mrs Darling Declares That Her Sons Wife
automatically bosed Him with Fatal
Drugs Prescribed by Young DIR. spranger.
Whom She Haa Since Married.

DariinE hhht her sun WIN
systematically posed Him with Fatal
Drugs Prescribed by Young DIR. sprnnger.
Whom She Has since Married.
NEW YORK April l9.-Mrs Flora Adams
Darling, "a writer bf war letters and one Of
the founders of the Daughters of the Rev
olution, is seeking the Indictment of DR..
Francis Xavier Gpranger and his wife.
who was formerly her daughter-in-law,
Mrs, Edward Irving Darling, by the grand
Jury Of New York county. The case will
probably be presented to the grand jury
during tho coming week
Mrs. Darlings son. Edward Irving Darl-
ing, died on Feb. is, 1894, nt Mount Glenn
ems Mich, from what she oleims to have
been slow poison Edward Irving Darl.
ing was musical composer and poet
Prominent among his best productions
was book entitled Echoes OF the Lake"
Among his operatic works was 1.-The Yik-
ing" which Is to be produced in short
time. Others were "The Jolly Bachelors"
and the Gentlemen Savage"
The son met Beatrice Gay Klingle while
In Washington with his mother in 1885.
He fell in love with the girl and they were
married on Sept. 10 OF that year. At first
they came to this city, residing on Park
avenue, but later they removed to Detroit,
where Darling became manager of the
music house of Grinnell Brothers. A short
time after his engagement there he met
with an accident In falling out of win
dow and breaking several bones of his
body. DIR. Spranker, then a recent gradu-
ate of a western college, was called in to
attend him. For many weeks the young
man lay in plaster Of Paris casts, and 1t is
alleged now that during this time the doc
tor fell In love with his patients wife.
On July 4, 1892, the younger Mrs Darl-
ing received word of the death Of her father
In Washington. This left her estate val
uod at more than 81 900, 900. Mr.. and Mrs.
Darling went to Washington to attend the
funeral, and stopped at the Ebbitt House
in that city. While there the young man
became violently i'll after drinking glass
OF milk. DR.. Harrison, physician of that
city, attributed his illness to impure milk
Mrs. Darling, the mother, now claims
that the milk contained poison.
After the funeral OF Mr. Klngle Mr.. and
Mrs. Darling returned to Detroit, and
from that time on, II is said, the husband
became an invalid According to the
story told by the mother, Dr. Spranger
was in constant attendance upon her son.
When DIR. Spranger was questioned as to
the cause of the illness he said he was suf-
fering from BrlgAt's disease.
On Nov. 25, 1stE2, while In bad condi-
tion physically, Darling came to this city
and visited his aunt, Mrs. Duyal Ney EY-
erott. While stopping with her his health
continued to improve and he gained twen-
ty-five pounds. Young Mrs. Darling
Joined her husband in New York on Jan.
o., 1893, and, it is said brought with her
medicines prescribed by Dr. Spranger
After short time the son began to grow
i'll again, according to the story told by
his mother, and when his wife returned
home on March he was again In q pre-
carious condition.
Darling returned to Michigan on June
90 of that year to live with his mother at
Mt. Clemens. There ho was attended by
DIR. Richard Locbner, who said the young
man had been under tho Influence OF
violent drugs, which had destroyed the
tissue Of the body, and that his death was
only question Of a short time.
The patient died on Feb 13, 1884, but
previous to his death he made statement
| that his wife and DR.. Spranger had sys-
| tematically poisoned him and that he
would die from the effects of the drugs
given him.
| The body was ereinated without post
mortem examination, at the request Of
the patient, who maintained that he did
not want his body to fall into the hands
| of his wife.
Mrs. Darling, the mother, had realized
as she now claims, that hor son had been
murdered, and took the matter before
District Attorney Frazier, OF Detroit, who
said that the suspicious, while perhaps
well founded, were not strong enough to
warrant the arrest Of the doctor and her
daughter.in At that time Mrs. Darling
the elder had advanced the idea that her
son had been poisoned because his wife
had fallen In love with the doctor who
had attended him. Tho district attorney
is said to have announced al that time that
should tho wife ever marry the doctor the
motive would bebome plain.
The motive, according to the dead mans
mother, has now been established through
the public marriage of DIR. Spranger to
Mrs Darling at the Corpus Christi cathe
dral, at Baltimore, on March 0 Of this year
DIR. Spranger and his wife are now in
southern California, enjoying their honey
| moon.
| AS soon as the marriage was announced
John Quincy Adams, brother of the dead
mans mother, residing In this oity, took
the case before District Attorney Fellows
He submitted prpof, as he claims, that tht
poison was administered TO Darling by his
wife while they were stopping in this city
IN the early part of 1898 District Attor
ney Fellows assigned the case to Assistant
District Attorney George G. Battle, who
is making a thorough examination of al
the circumstances