The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-02-17
ADAMS CASE Is
STILL A MYSTERY
No NsW Developments to Point to Guilty
Parties.
DR.. HlTCHCOCK'S TESTIMONY
Mas In Direct Contradiction to That
Of Cornish and HOVey,
WHO WERE WITH MRS. ADAMS
The Attending Physician Remarked
When He Saw Mrs. Adams in Her
Flat That Diabolical Crime
Had Been Committed

New York, February 16.-Fred E. Hovey
and Dr. Edwin f. Hitchcock were the only
witnesses examined in the Adams inquest
today. DR.. Hitchcock attended Mrs. Adams
after she had taken the poison. No devel-
opments of any note were brought to light
and the mystery is as dense as ever.
The most important feature in the inquest
of the case yesterday was that of the test
mony of DR.. E. f. Hitchcock, who attended
Mrs. Adams in her last moments, and was
In direct conflict with the testimony OF
Harry S. Cornish and Frank e. Hovey, both
of whom were in Mrs. Adams fiat when
she died. DR.. Hitchcock testified that the
boy who summoned him told him that ne
was wanted Immediately, as party had
been poisoned"
The witness also stated that in the hear
ing of Cornish and Mrs. Rogers, the daugh-
ter of the murdered woman, he said that
"diabolical crime had been committed"
Cornish repeatedly stated while on the wit
ness stand that no suspicion that a crime
had been committed had been suggested to
him, and two or three days after the death
of Mrs. Adams Hovey also insisted that
no suggestion that a crime had been COM
mitted was made on the day of Mrs. Adams
death. The doctor also testified that he
asked Cornish repeatedly If he had any
enemies who had designs on his life, and
Cornish assured him that he had no enemies
and suspected nobody. Dr. Hitchcock fur
Their said that he had a talk with Dr. Pot
ter. who was also in attendance, on what
the poisoned bottle contained. While they
were talking, Cornish, Mrs. Rogers and
Hovey entered the room.
Differed on Material Points
One point on which Dr. Hitchcock contra
dicted the testimony of Hovey related to the
condition of the bottle of poison. The doc
tor stated that he saw no paraffine about
the cork or mouth of the bottle, while
Hovey In his testimony said that the cork
was covered with paraffine DR.. Hitchcock
described how Cornish was taken sick with
symptoms similar to those shown by Mrs.
Adams.
Cornish asked: "Can it be anything else
but bromo seltZer?' and the doctor repned
that it certainly could.
Mrs Bertha May Hover, the wife of the
witness who was examined yesterday, was
first placed in the stand today. The ques-
lions of the assistant district attorney
brought out the facts that Cornish mad
separated from his wife and that Mrs
Rogers was living apart from her nus
band.
When Mrs. Hover reached the Adams
flat she was admitted by policeman. She
met Assistant District Attorney Mcintyre
there. Mrs. Rogers seemed heartbroken.
She told witness that Mrs Adams had
taken Bromo Settler. but never mentioned
poison, nor did she say that her mother
was the victim of a diabolical plot The
fact that Cornish had given the Bromo
Settler to her mother was not spoken of by
Mrs. Rogers.
when was the first time you discovered
hot Mrc no xxac
asked.
81 don't know; I did not discover 1t; I
read 1t in the newspaper" was the reply.
Mrs. Hover said she remained in the
Adams house until Saturday, December 81,
the day of the funeral when she went with
Mrs. Rogers TO Hartford, where the body
was buried. (ldrs. Adams died on Wednes-
day, December 8.)
Witness said she had talked with Cor
nish about Mrs. Adams DEATH but she
could not remember that Cornish had said
to her: "What fool 1 am that l should
have received that bottle and given some
of the contents to Mrs. Adams
Due to Cyanide of Mercury
Coroner's physician Weston took the
stand.
DR.. Weston testified that he performed an
autopsy upon Mrs. Adams body. He at
first formed the impression that Mrs
Adams came to her death through taking
cyanide of potassium from the odor of the
bottle and from this diagnosis at the au-
topsy. Afterwards chemical ANALYSIS
showed that death was due to cyanide of
mercury. The bottle was three-quarters
full when he saw 1t. The policeman gave
1t to him and said he had got it from DR..
Hitchcock.
Witness talked with Hovey ON arriving at
the fiat. and Hovey told him about the case.
He smelled the contents of the bottle and
told Hovey he thought that it contained
cyanide of potassium. No one else was
present at the time, but little later he
saw Mrs. Rogers and asked about Mrs.
Adams age, ETC., SO as to fill out his re-
port. He told Mrs. Rogers that her mother
had died of poison, and that he would make
an autopsy on the following day.
Witness, was asked whether anybody could
have smelled the substance in the bottle
without putting 1t to the nose. He an
swered that he thought the odor could
have been detected, although 1t would not
have been so marked. The cork In the bot
tie protruded about three-eights of an inch
Witness asked where the box was in which
the bottle came through the mail, and was
told that 1t had been thrown away in the
Kinckerbocker club house. Cornish was not
at the fiat when witness was there. Witness
did not see the glass from which the poison
was taken, although Hovey told him it was
somewhere about the fiat. He could not
recall having said anything about who
might have sent the bottle. He was under
the impression that something was said
| about the probability of a mistake having
been made in the preparation of the bromo
seltzer.
Frederick Hovey on Stand
Frederick Hovey was recalled to the stand
and Mr.. Osborne asked him:
How soon after your conversation with
DR.. Weston did you see Cornishr'
Next morning."
"Dr. Weston told YOU two men had been
| posonedT
II have just heard him say So"
"You told US yesterday that 1t was three
| days later when you first heard of poison"
yes"
| 'Dr. Weston said he told you, and DR..
| Hitchcock says the same"
| 81 don't recall It,"
"You say all these circumstances formed
a small impression on your mindR'
| "Yes."
| "wnl you kindly tell the jury why, otter