The Indianapolis journal., 1899-01-17
BLIND TIGER" WHISKY
CAUSES NUMBER OF SUDDEN
DEATHS IN ARKANSAS.
Mysterious Poisoning Near MOuntn in
HOme-SOme People So Scared They
VIII Neither Eat Nor Drink.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark, Jan. 16.-There is
intense excitement in Baxter county over
series of sudden and mysterious deaths
which have occurred in the vicinity or
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 very short time after the at
tack. In every case there were unmistaka-
BILE symptoms of poisoning. Besides those
who have died, number of others have
suddenly become violently i'll and their lives
saved only by prompt medical attendance.
The physicians have been kept busy work
ing with stomach pumps, and the demand
at the local drug stores for poison anti
dotes has been enormous. Last week four
men died in different places in almost ex-
actly the same manner, showing the same
symptoms. One of these men was a farmer
named Hogan and the other Dr. Simpson,
a physician at Mountain Home. The names
Of the other two are not obtainable here.
On Friday E. l.. Hayes, proprietor of
hotel at Buffalo, and owner OF an extern
sive 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 Sud-
denly they grew faint their faces turned
deathly pale, the legs weakened under them
and they fell to the ground and in a few
minutes they were dead.
A strange feature of this series of mys-
terious deaths is that in every case the VIC
tim has been a male person-either man or
@ boy over sixteen years of age. This led to
the belief in the minds of some people that
systematic effort was being made in some
mysterious way to rid the community Of at
least a large portion of its male population.
and that the agency employed was some
powerful poison. Some men became so
frightened that they refused to eat or drink
anything until they were out of the neigh
borhood. Hardly day has passed for more
than a week which has failed to bring to
light it's new case Of poisoning, and the phy-
sicians have kept their horses standing
saddled in their stalls expecting emergency
calls at any hour.
An investigation revealed the fact that
Hayes and Fout as well as one or two
others who had died in 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 investiga-
ton it developed that the victims had in all
cases taken a drink of whisky shortly be-
fore the attack. This discovery seemed to
settle the fact that poisonous whisky was
the cause of the deaths, but there is no sa-
loon at Mountain Home and the source from
which the whisky comes is a mystery. 1t is
thought that blind tiger" is dispensing
poison for whisky, but whether it be through
ignorance or a murderous intent is not
known, and this doubt has added to the ex-
citement. A bottle contained a small guam
tity of the stuff has been sent to st. Louis
for an expert examination by chemist No
one seems to know where it came from, and
determined effort is being made to discover
who is responsible.