The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-11-15


Mrs. MIhIberger to County AttOr-
ney BigeIOw Last Night Is Said to
Implicate Mrs. Fink in Grim
inaI Operation-snys She Can
Prove an AIfbi.
Mrs. Anna Fink, a midwife living at
$40 Blair street, was arrested last evening
on charge of abortion. Mrs. Louise
Mihlberger, the woman upon whom Mrs.
Fink is alleged to have performed
criminal operation Is lying at the point
of death at the city hospital.
Should she die, as the physicians say
she undoubtedly will, the county attor-
ney will change the charge to man
slaughter.
Mrs. Mihlberger is a married woman,
forty-two years of age, living at GIG Ark
wright street. Mrs. Fink denied the &C
cusation against her when confronted by
the dying woman at the hospital last
evening, but In her ante-mortem state
ment Mrs. Mihlberger declares Mrs. Fink
is responsible for her condition and iden-
titled her in the presence of County At
torney Bigelow, the latter says.
Just when Mrs. Fink is alleged to have
performed the operation the authorities
decline to state, on the ground that MAX
ing public details of the case will weaken
the evidence to be presented against Mrs.
Fink. What induced Mrs Mihlberger to
seek Mrs. Fink is not clear. She is said
to have enjoyed domestic happiness, and
is the mother of three children, the cid
est daughter eighteen years of age and
the youngest son ten years old. Ac-
cording to the authorities, Mrs. Mill
berger called upon Mrs. Fink for advice,
when it is alleged the midwife subjected
her to an operation.
The case did not come to the attention
of the authorities until several days
after. Last Friday DR.. William Davis,
the family physician, was called to see
Mrs. Mihlberger, who informed him that
she was suffering from a severe cold.
| The physician prescribed for Mrs. Mill
berger. calling upon her again Saturday
and Sunday. On the latter visit he de-
tected alarming symptoms. He ques-
! toned Mrs. Mihlberger, when, 1t is said,
the woman informed him what had oc-
CURED. Upon a more careful examina-
ton DR.. Davis discovered positive symp-
!
! Mihlberger to consent to being removed
| to the city hospital. The woman was
taken to the institution Sunday evening.
By this time, it is alleged, she had grown
rapidly worse. Yesterday her condition
became so grave that Dr. Ancker notified
the county attorney, informing Mr.. Bige-
low that Mrs. Mihlberger would proba-
bly, not survive the day To all with
| G 10 sod oh 1A,. fniy1
1T is alleged Mrs. Mihlberger placed the
responsibility upon Mrs Fink
With this information County Attorney
| B1geiow directed the arrest Of Mrs. Fink.
! who was taken in charge at her home
shortly after o'clock last evening, by
| Capt. Lowell, Of the Rondo station In
| company with County Attorney Bigelow
Assistant County Attorney Zollman and
Capt. Lowell, Mrs. Fink was Immediately
| taken to the city hospital, where she
! was ushered into Mrs. Mihlberger's pres
ence County Attorney B!gelow says that
! the dying woman reiterated her accusa-
lions against Mrs. Fink, and positively
identified the midwife as the person who
had performed the alleged operation. Mrs.
Fink declared she had never seen Mrs
M1hlberger before, and, protesting her
| innocence, was led away to Jail, while
County Attorney Bigelow proceeded to
take Mrs Mihlberger's ante-mortem
statement. This the authorities declined
| to give out for publication, but they say.
| that 1t positively accuses Mrs Fink of
performing the operation, specifying the
| date and the methods alleged to have
| been by her employed
| When seen at the central station by a
reporter for the Globe Mrs. Fink was
In state Of nervous excitement repeat
eddy denying the charge against her. She
is nearly sixty years of age and speaks
English with difficulty. She asserted that
she had never seen Mrs Mihlberger be-
fore the visit to the hospital, and declar-
ed that she could prove that she was out
of the city last Thursday. She says she
left town at 10 o'clock in the morning
TO visit farmer out on the Dale street
road, for the purpose of borrowing mon
ey. She claims to have been absent until
o'clock at night, and says she has a
note signed in connection with the Dor
roWed money to prove her statements
Although arrested on two other occa-
slons for alleged abortion, and In connec-
ton with one of the cases charged with
manslaughter, Mrs Fink has never been
convicted. Oct. 20, 1897, Mrs Fink was
arrested for performing an alleged Grim
iLal operation upon Dorothy Johnson
She was also charged with manslaughter,
1t being alleged that she killed the young
womans child. She was indicted by the
grand jury, but after recovering from her
illness the johnson girl disappeared and
Jan. a. 1898, the case was nolled Nav
| q, 1906, Mrs. Fink was also arrested for
alleged abortion. Then, too, she was in
dicted, it is alleged, but this case was
also nolled.