The morning news., 1899-01-17
A SERIES OF QUEER DEATHS.
MYSTERY HAS DEEPLY STIRRED AN
ARKANSAS COMMUNITY.

Six Men suddenly Stricken Down
Within Few Days-AIl Were APP
pnrently In Robust Health-Others
Showed symptoms of Poisoning.
In Each Case the Victim Had Pre-
viousIy Taken n Drink of whisky.
Little Rock, Ark, Jan. 16-There is in
tense excitement in Baxter county over
a series of a sudden and mysterious
deaths which have occurred in the vicin-
ity of Mountain Home the county seat,
within the last few days.
No less than six men all of whom were
apparently in robust health have been
suddenly stricken and died within a very
short time after the attack. In every case
there were unmistakable symptoms of poi
soning.
Besides those who have died, a number
OF others have suddenly become violently
i'll, and their lives were saved only by
prompt medical attendance. The physi-
clans have been kept busy working with
stomach pumps. and the demand at the
local drug store for poison .antidotes has
been enormous.
Last week four men died in different
places in almost exactly the same manner,
showing the same symptoms. One of these
men was farmer named Hogan, and the
other DR.. Simpson, a physician at Noun
tain Home. The names of the other two
are not obtainable here.
Turned Pale and Died.
On Friday E. L. Hayes, proprietor of
an extensive zinc mine, died in the same
sudden and mysterious manner. A few
miles away John Fout another prominent
citizen, passed away at almost the same
time under exactly similar circumstances.
Both men were apparently in the best of
health, suddenly they grew faint their
faces turned deathly pale, the legs weak
ened under them. and they fell to the
ground and in few minutes they were
dead.
A strange feature of this series of mys-
terious deaths is that in every case the
victim has been a male person-either a
man or a boy over 16 years old. This led
to the belief in the minds of some people
thai a systematic effort was being made
IN some mysterious way TO rid the cOmmu-
nifty Of at least a large portion of its male
population, and that the agency employed
was some powerful poison. Some men be
came so frightened that they refused to
eat or drink anything until they were out
Of the neighborhood.
Hardly a day has passed for more than
a week which has failed to bring to light
It's new cases of poisoning, and the phyei-
clans have kept their horses standing sad
died in their stables expecting emergency
calls at any hour.
Poison in the whisky,
An investigation revealed the fact that
Hayes and Fout, as well as one or two
others who had died in a similar manner.
had been attacked shortly after visiting
Mountain Home. Other victims had also
been seen in Mountain Home Just prior to
their sudden Illness
On further investigation it developed that
the victims had in all cases taken a drink
of whisky shortly before the attack. This
discovery seemed 10 settle the fact that
poisonous whisky was the cause of the
death, but there is no saloons a Noun
tain Home and the source from which he
whisky comes is a mystery.
1t is thought that blind tiger" is dis
pensing poison for whisky, but whether it
be through ignorance or a murderous in
tent is not known, and this doubt has
added to the excitement. A bottle con
tanning small quantity of the stuff has
been sent to St. Louis for an expert exam
ination by a chemist. No one seems 10
know where it came from, and deter
mined effort is being made to discover who
is responsible