The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-01-16
MADE THEM DRINK
CHARLEY HILDEBRANT TELLS OF
HIS MOTHERS CRIME

Mrs. HHdebrant Gave Her Eight Children
Poisoned Whisky Monday Night and
Sat by Them All Night, Watching, That
Her CHASTITY Work Might be EffectuaI-
On Any Sign of Resistance q Fresh Dose
WAS Administered Until All Were Be
Iieved to be Dead-She Soaked Match
Heads in the Liquor.
Kansas City, Jan ia special COT
respondent sent to investigate yester-
days terrible tragedy at Marysville,
Kansas, where Mrs. Joseph Hildebrant
killed seven of her eight children and
then con1mjbtetd suicide, reports to-
night that the boy, named Charles.
is stall alive. He will probably recover.
AN chat is known of the woman awful
preparations for death is told by this
boy Monday night, when the mother
putt her children to bed, she began dos
tng5 them with poisoned whisky. She
told them that their father was coming
home from the hospital in Kansas City
during the night, and that she wanted
THEM all TO go TO sleep. Though some
of the children demurred, she compelled
them to swallow the poison. When the
mother stepped out FROM the bedroom
the oldest child, Frank, aged Is, whis
Ipered to Charley that they had been
poisoned. When the mother returned
a moment later she sat down beside the
bed and watched. Soon the children,
all save Charley, succumbed to the pois-
on and fell asleep. Those who showed
signs Of waking were quickly dosed
with the poison. Finally Charley fell
asleep. He did not awake until 6
O'Clock Tuesday morning, when, suffer-
ing agonies untold, he opened his eyes
and found his mother stiH by the bed
side Three of the children lay dead
beside him. The mother gave him the
whisky bottle and told him TO drink.
The boy begged to live. but the woman
was obdurate. She drank deeply of the
poison herself, and then compelled the
boy to drink again. Again he was over
come by the drug.
ALL DEAD BUT HIM.
When he next opened his eyes lit was
noon, Tuesday. The lad was deadly
sick. Around him We're his brothers
and sisters, all dead. The boy, too
weak to rise, rolled from the bed, only
to be overcome with nausea After a
fainting spell he crawled out of the
house. His mother was not to be seen
and his cries were unanswered. The
lad then managed to drag himself to
the home Of a neighboring farmer, and
gave the alarm.
The neighbOrs who ran to the farm
found Mrs. Hildebrant's body suspend
ed from a rafter in the stable. The
bodies of the dead children were found
as the boy had described. Some of
the little ones had died with their arms
clasped about each other. The bodies
were placed in a. row on the floor, and
the county coroner sent for. The dead
children are Frank, aged 10; Katie,
aged 8; Luther, aged Z; Joseph, aged
&; Willie, aged 3; Emma, aged 8; and
Edfth, aged months.
There is little dOubht that the trag-
/edy was due to the womans brooding
over their poverty and the affection OF
her husband, who was suffering from
cancer in a Kansas hospital The fam
lily lived on a rented farm and had
not paid rent for four years.
Joseph HHdebrant, the father, has not
been heard from, and it Is feared that
he, too, may have taken his own life.
At the corOner's inquest today ply
sscians testified that they believed that
the whisky had been poisoned by soak /
ing 1t in the heads of Old-fashioned |
matches.
HILDEBRANT FOUND
Kansas City, Jan. 15.-JOseph Hide |
brant, husband and father Of the vic |
Tins OF the Marysville tragedy, was |
found here late tonight, and is spend !
ing the night sitting on a bench in the |
Vnion depot waiting for a train to carry
him to his stricken home. Hldebrant
IS Polander who cannot read English, /
and he does not know the full extent
of the grief that is in store for him. In
some manner he heard that his wife was
dead. He telegraphed to Marysville,
asking as TO the truth of the report
The message that came back read: |
yes, she is dead: better come home" /
Tears rolled down the mans face. |
He declared that ii was a sad blow. but
that he must bear up for his childrens /
sake. So great was his grief that no 4
one dared tell him that of his eight lit /
tie ones whom he left on the farm only |
one still lived. lit probably remains |
for his acquaintances at Marysville to /
tell him the full details of the horrible !
tragedy.
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