The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-11-07
A STRANGE POISON CASE
THE FAMILY OF DIR. J.. 8. WHITE
WAS MADE VIOLENTLY ILL.,.
Child Of . Servant I'm the Household
Dead-AH Had Eaten of .
Baked Chicken.

A case OF apparent poisoning that Is baf-
fling physicians occurred at the residence
of DR.. James S.. White. Thursday, from the
effect of which Matte Harden, aged nine
teen months, the child of the colored serv-
ant at the house. died yesterday morning
about 4 o'clock. Mrs White and her two
little children and Mrs. Harden, the COL
ored servant. were all Frustrated yesterday.
but are recovering. They were very sick
from nausea, and almost delirious for a
time. The natural gas had been burning
very strongly and the house had been kept
closed all day. and the physicians are now
trying to determine whether they were
poisoned by the fumes of the burned and
escaping gas or by something they had
eaten.
The family Of DR.. White moved here from
Finley, KY, Oct. /, n yesterday DIR.
White was In Kentucky. where he had re-
turned on some business at the old home.
Wednesday Mrs. White received two baked
chickens from him by express. They had
been cooked in Kentucky, at the Old home,
and sent to the wife by the husband as a
reminder Of the home cooking of the Blue
grass State. Mrs. White had one of the
chickens served at super Wednesday night,
and she and her two children and the serv-
ant and her child partook of it. Thursday
the other chicken was eaten in the morn
ing, and soon after the servant. Mrs. Har-
den, complained of feeling i'll and lay down
on a cot in the kitchen. AS Mrs. White has
never had experience with natural gas pre-
vious to moving to this city, the regula-
tion Of the gas In the stoves was left en-
tirely to Mrs. Harden. VIII claimed to
know something about 1t. Before lying
down on the cot in the kitchen she turned
on the gas in the cook stove full force, and
closed the room VI, as she had symptoms
of a chill. AS the afternoon went on she
felt worse and remained on the cot, while
Mrs. White took the running of domestic
affairs into her own hands. The colored
woman's little chilli laid dow on the cot
by her mothers side. By night Mrs. White
b egan to experience peculiar feelings and
soon had to take to her bed In a room near
the kitchen. The door to the kitchen was
left open. Soon after Mrs. White was
taken III. her two little children began to
complain
TIKI COLORED CHILD WAS DEAD.
At Z o'clock yesterday morning DR.. Haynes
was called in and found a bad state of af-
fairs In the White household. On going
into the kitchen he found the stove red hot,
with the gas narfng cut al openings. lie
could hardly breathe in the room, so full
was II of escaped and burning gas. The
colored woman was almost unconscious,
and by her side lay her little girl. dead.
AS near as can be ascertained the child
died about 4 o'clock in the morning.
The doctor at once turned down the fire
and threw open the windows and doors,
ventilating the house. and then turned his
attention to Mrs. White. She was suffering
intense pain, as were her two children. but
none OF the three were in as bad condition
as the servant. DIR. Haynes then went
back TO the servant and gave her some
medicine which rallied her. After consid-
cradle work he succeeded In restoring all
the sufferers to full consciousness He
then called In DIR. Noble. and Mrs. White
was questioned as 10 the probable cause OF
illness. 1T must have been those. chick
ems we ate," said she: She then told OF the
reception Of tho two baked chickens from
her husband and the two subsequent meals.