The Indianapolis journal., 1899-02-23
WIFE TELLS HER STORY
MRS. NANCY RIGGS SAYS HER HUs-
BAND TRIED TO POISON HER.
Sensational Divorce Case on Trial in
Circuit Notwithstanding Order Is
sued-The Higher Court.

Judge Allen. of the Circuit Court, spent
yesterday hearing evidence in a sensational
divorce suit in which the wife charges that
her husband tried to poison her. The case
is that of Nancy S. Riggs against Lucius
H. Riggs. They were married in 1887. Mrs.
Riggs is fifteen years older than her hus-
band She is sixty and he is forty-dye.
They have been living in Haughville.
The plaintiff was on the witness stand
yesterday morning and testified as to her
husbands alleged cruelty. She said she had
earned 500 by working as a seamstress,
paying this amount on their home Her
husband bas been very cruel to her in the
last year, she said From October to Feo-
ruary he had not spoken to her. She testi-
fed that Riggs tried to poison her while she
was i'll in bed last September. For two or
three days she said, he had been unusually
kind to her, and one night he offered to pre-
pare some bread and butter for her If she
would eat it. While getting the bread she
noticed that he went to his trunk, and her
daughter told her that Riggs put something
on the bread from the trunk The plaintiff
accepted the bread WHEN it was brought to
her. but did not eat it. She preserved it,
however, and a few days ago showed it TO
her attorney. She testified that few days
after the bread episode she went to her hus-
bands trunk and found paper Of arsenic
and some dog buttons" Mrs Riggs fur
ther testified that Riggs gave her some
salve to apply to a sore on her ankle. She
used it, and her leg swelled so badly that
she discontinued the use of the salve
Yesterday afternoon the plaintiffs attor-
ney called DR.. L. M. Eisenbeiss to the wit
ness stand. The physician had made an
examination of the piece of bread which
Mrs. Riggs gave to her attorney, Cady, and
testified that the bread appeared to have
arsenic on it. Attorney John f. Carson put
Riggs on the witness stand and asked him
about the charges made by the plaintiff.
Riggs admitted that he and his wife had
not lived happily together, but denied haV-
ing tried to poison the woman Il bought
some arsenic," he said, land brought it
home TO use on the rats in the house. My
wife told me 1t might be dangerous. She
said she once heard of a case where a rat
got mold OF some arsenic and then bit q
child. The child died from the effects of
the poison. / remarked that / might be the
cause or some ones death in the same way,
and concluded | would not use the arsenic
1 laid 1t away In my trunk, and / supposed
IT was still there until to-day. l also bought
some dog buttons once to give to the dogs
that were bothering us. Before had time
TO use the buttons man told rue that If 1
could see how dog suffered when given
this poison | would never use it, / did not
use the buttons and also put them in the
trunk. That is the way the poison came to
incident" He said he bought the salve to
apply to his eye, and when his wife COM
pla1ned Of her ankle he advised her to use
some Of 1t, thinking 1t might do her good.
Judge Allen was unable to conclude the
viii be continued TODAY