The Wilmington daily Republican., 1895-05-13
THE DEATH or DARLING.
An Ante-Mortem Statement of the
Dead Man Presented.
CHARGES OF POISONING RENEWED.

u q Statement Written by q Dying Man
Being "Dosed" by His wife and Her
Present Husband.
New YORK, May 13--The dying declara-
tion of Edward Irving Darling, the
musical composer, was filed with other
documents In the district attorneys office
In tle case in which Mrs Flora Adams
Darling, mother Of Edward Irving Darl-
Ing accuses DIR. Spranger Of having pois-
oned her son. Soon after the death OF
Darling, DR.. Spranger married his widow.
They are now In California.
Tho affidavit made by Edward Irving
Darling was written partly by himself in
ehe presence Of witnesses few hours be-
fore his death. In the statement he tells
how in December, 1890, he met with an 40
,ident when attempting to save property
for firm he was with In Detroit. He re-
recovered rapidly and returned to business
on March /, 1891. DIR. Oleetz was the sur
geon AND Or. Sprenger the physician who
attended him. He declared that the inti-
macy between Dir. Spranger and Mrs.
Darling, his wife, began during his Ill
ness. Concerning this intimacy the letter
alleged:
prior to her acquaintance with DR..
6pranger we had lived happily. From
that date she was different woman.
Where she had been amiable, agreeable
and cheerful, she was now petulant, vim
dictive and arbitrary j seemed to be the
object of her antipathy. She would accuse
me Of the most absurd actions, rnd espec.
cially delighted to pour her tale Of imag-
tnary woes into the ears Of any one who
would listen F"
The statement then recounts his grad
ual decline in health when with his wife
and DR.. Spranger, substantially as given
In the statement Of his mother, published
recently.
Darling said that he fought against sick
ness and tried to keep up, but 1t was i'm
possible. His wife, he said, spent much of
her time gossiplng at DIR. Spranger's Of
fee or with his friends. Darling stated
that he became worse and DIR. Spranger
came to him with drug which he (Dr.
Spranger) said he had received from Paris.
A hypodermic injection OF this drug drove
him crazy. He said that he talked for
nineteen hours without ceasing.
The statement continues with the asser-
tion that Darling found his wife had a
private letter box. He also discovered that
his wife and DR.. Spranger were circulat-
Ing report that he was drinking himself
to death. 1t dawned ON him that he was
not being properly treated and refused to
take any more medicine He began to re-
cover after that. In November he left for
New York.
Concluding the statement declared:
I'm November / was improved but II
any man ever suffered the torments of the
damned, was crushed, hurt, humiliAted
and orucifed, was at that time b. Mrs.
Darling She decided to close the house.
My mother went to Mount Clemens
left for New York. She with the children
were to go to Washington, She did not
go. As soon as left, Dec. 8, she filed a
bill for absolute divorce for drunkenness,
non-support, cruelty and desertion,' which
she expected to obtain with money through
default-a suppressed case.
'On Jan. 26 she Joined me In New York,
came to my rooms Of her own volition,
and lived with me as a devoted wife until
March /. had improved in health, gained
twenty-five pounds, and was at work ON
Viking The day she left was taken
seriously ILL., and have failed slowly but
surely. am dying without hope or
hurry"
John Quincy Adams, the brother of Mrs
Floria Adams Darling, of this city, said
that the declaration Of Darling had been
placed in the hands Of Assistant District
Attorney Battle He also said that under
the direction Of the district attorneys Office
| analyses were being made of the medicines
taken from phials used in administering
drugs to Darling. The result of these an
alysis will be submitted to the district at
torpey.