Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-08-02
Inquiry Held Into the Death Of the
Late Sadie Tasker.
POISON sold WITHOUT A PRESCRIPTION
The Coroner's Jury Recommends
an investigation by the Grand Jury.
MAY HAVE GREAT EFFECT

In accordance with his expressed inten-
| ton of looking into the practice some drug
| gists in this city have of selling poisons
! without a physicians prescription and in
unlabeled form. DIR. Glazebrook, acting cor
oner. conducted an inquest into the death
OF Sadie Tasker, an inmate Of house of
! ill-fame, who committed suicide by taking
| morphine Friday night, this morning at
the first precinct staten house. The in
| quest was held for the purpose of bringing
out the facts as to how and where the wo-
man obtained the poison, and some inter
esting developments along this line may
| be looked for as the resule Of the action
| this morning
The inquest as a whole was one OF the
| most business-like that has taken place in
! the District for some time. and results from
| 1t may be looked for. DR.. Glazebrook en-
forced a new order with regard to smoking
| and the general air of the inquest was one
| of strict observance of the prophecies.
The jury was first taken to Harvey's
| undertaking establishment, where the mem
bers were sworn. They were o. B. Jenkins,
E. w. Macintosh. A. G. Hunter. o. L. Pei
| ney. +. &. Henderson and A. J. Comiskey
Upon their arrival at the station house
again the inquest was Immediately pro-
ceeded with.
Seated at the table with DR.. Glazebrook
were District Attorney Henry E. Davis and
| Assistant District Attorney John E. Las
key and Major Darlington, who appeared
as counsel for DR.. William p. Phelps, the
druggist at the corner of 18th and c streets
northwest, who sold the Tasker woman the
drug.
The Cause of the Girls Death.
The first witness was DR.. Sterling Ruf1n,
who made an autopsy on the body of the
suicide Saturday. He testified that he was
| sure that death had resulted from narcotic
poisoning, and that the kidneys and brain
were much congested, either condition be-
| ing sufficient to cause death.
He was followed by Della Ferguson, who
keeps the house at 1913 18th street, where
the Tasker woman was an inmate. She
| said that to her knowledge the dead wo-
man had never been in the habit of using
/ drugs of any kind, but that she drank a
great deal. She had been drinking harder
than usual for several days before her
death. Friday night she went out several
times after whisky, but not until after
witness had heard the Tasker woman and
a man had been quarreling.
She heard the former say: Don't you
dare to go. Don't you dare to leave me
like that" The Tasker woman then went
| TO bed, but came down to the second story
| about 10 o'clock, going to a back room,
whth she died in the morning. She said
that she had heard the suicide raving and
making some noise in the night, and had
looked in at her several times, but thought
| that she was under the influence of liquor
more than usual She had sent for doc
| tor three times, but he did not come until
morning, when 1t was too late.
The Druggists Record Book.
John L. Kilmartin, precinct detective,
| testified that he had made transcript Of
the entry referring to the sale Of the
| poison to Sadie Tasker from DIR. Phelps
poison record book, and had taken the
| book itself this morning, at the order of
| the coroner He said he thought the ma
| jority of the women in that sectionsof the
| city. used drugs, but he did not know
whether this one did or not.
Hattie Armstrong was the next witness
| She is an inmate of the Ferguson house,
but did not know much about Sadie Tas-
| ker. Witness saw her, Friday evening,
come into the room about O'Clock, and
| taking a goblet half full of water. pour a
white powder into it from a glass. When
asked what it was, the Tasker woman re-
| sponded that it was lemon seltzer for her
| Head. She had heard her through the
| night. but did not pay much attention, and
| was awakened in the morning after she
| was dead. She had gone to tho woman's
| room in the third story, and had found a
morphine bottle in her bureau drawer. She
| brought the bottle down stairs and set 1t
| on the table, where, later, it came into the
| officers possession.
The bottle was here produced by DR..
| Glazebrook 1t was a round bottle Of
| brown glass two or three inches high, with
only the label of a Philadelphia firm upon
| it. The druggist of whom she had pro-
| cured the drug in this city had not re-
labeled the bottle. All of the witnesses
| who had seen the bottle> on the night or
| the morning in question identified the bot
| tle
| How the Poison Was Secured.
| The next witness threw perhaps more
] light on the case than any. 1t was Nellie
| Ashland from Lolita Stanton's house at 312
| 18th street She said she had known Sadie
Tasker for seven OF eight years, and had
| never known her to be addicted to the use
of drugs. but that she was always hard
drinker. She herself was addicted to the
use of morphine and always had one or
| two bottles around her room. About
o'clock Friday afternoon she said that
| Sadie Tasker came to her and asked her
for some morphine, saying it was for wo-
| man in her house. Upon being refused she
! went away, saying she would see another
| girl. She came back later in the evening"
! however. and this time secured an empty
| bottle-the one produced in evidence-from
the Ashland woman, with which she re-
paired Immediately to the drug store kept
| by DR.. Phelps. The Ashland woman said
that Sadie Tasker was in excellent spirits
| and did not seem to be worried by any
trouble, fancied or real
Druggist Phelps ON the Stand.
After some little discussion DR.. Phelps
| was called as the next Witness DR.. Glaze
brook told him that he would like him to
answer several questions which would
throw light upon the case, but that such
answers were entirely within his own dis
erection. and that he need say nothing
should he desire to follow that course.
Upon being questioned he said that Sedie
| Tasker had come to his store about $3.50
o'clock Friday evening and had given him
| the bottle in question, saying that she
| wanted % cents worth of morphine for
| Nellie Ashland. Although he did not recog-
| nize the woman, and had never seen her
| before. he knew the Ashland woman, and
| also knew that she was addicted to the use
| of the drug, as he had sold 1t to her many
| times previously. He asked Sadie Tasker.
however, II she used the drug, aud she said
| that she did. Upon questioning DIR. Phelps
| said she had no prescription for the drug.
| and that although he is a doctor. entitled
to practice medicine in the District OF Co