The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-07-06

I
| Stedman, and from her private CONVEX
sations with me. I am prepared 10 sa
! that she had a motive. monstrous, aJmos
unbelievable in each case.
"As one can only skirt around tn
edge of these things. I viii say that Il
some respects her crimes resemble tn
| famous Whitechspel murders in Lon
don
Miss Toppan told me that from tn
time she was twelve years old she hat
been a criminal and for years had beer
a resembles poisoner. She said that
normally she had no impulse to kill PEG
| pie but that when the impulse cams
upon her she was seized with a paroxysm
that it was impossible TO resist The
/ poisons she used were the most dificuli
to detect. morphine and atropine which
she frequently gave in mineral water OF
whiskey.
She declared that at these times she
derived exquisite delight from founding
the bodies OF her victims, feeling their
breath grow faint the pulse flicker
lower and lower and then stop. til all
warmth had departed.
Sometimes. however .remorse would
come upon her in the midst OF her
crimes that she would realize that she
was doing. Then she would Try ineffect-
uaIly 10 save her victims.
Did Miss Toppan give me a list Of
thjrty-one persons she had murdered %
The judge shrugged his shoulders.
After all. is there much difference
between numbering eleven and thirty
one2 You have eleven names and IL
would be a violation OF professional Ell
quette~ for me to make public that list,
admitting that I have it
Miss Toppan Judge Bixby continued,
is not an old woman. and there may
be a marked change in her condition
when she approaches the middle period of
life. One Of the sisters. now the inmate
of q Massachusetts insane asylum, Is an
idiot.
IN appearance. YOU know Miss Top
pan is Il very orisa.ry person Ap-
parently she il about forty years OF
aee. She would never be called attrac
tive The adjective that would best
describe her is a companionable- In her
best moods she was jolly and talkative.
though even in this respect not remark
able.
Jane Toppan showed marked fond
ness for children and Developed a gen
uine liking for Mrs. Cashs little grand
daughter. She was very fond OF read
ing. especially love stories-the more sen
timental the better. Her favorite novel
was Audrey" which she read in the
Barnstable jail. She talked to me fire.
quently OF the impression it made or.
her"
This assertion, which shed an inter
esting and unexpected light on the char
acter of the murderess. was confirmed
by Mrs. Cash. who showed The World
little library OF books
in the parlor Of her home in Barn
stable. each OF which had been read
by Jane Toppan Mrs. Cash selected
from the bookcase Booker T. Washing
tons Up From Slavery" and then from.
the centre table a keepsake edition Of
Mrs Browning's poems.
She liked those very much" Mrs.
Cash said. "She read all the series OF
Little Masterpieces and these six vol
umes OF Kipling. She liked to read stor-
les in which people are killed. but She
preferred love stories. for she was very
sentimental"
The moment [ laid eyes on that wo-
man I thought she was guilty. contin-
led the jailor's wife. The evening she
arrived-it was last August took her
up to her room and locked her in Be
fore the next morning I had made up
ny mind that she was a murderess. Why.
she said TO me even before she con
fessed
Il never said that I didn't do it. did +
Then she laughed. Sometimes she spoke
as though she had murdered people I
from an impulse she could not control /
Then again she would boast Of her
,rimes.
Barnstable jail. where Jane Toppan |
was imprisoned for over ten months. is
small gloony-looking structure. Yet
turing her residence there. while await |
ng trial the murderess gained fifty |
pounds in flesh and maintained a de- |
neanor Of never-failing jocularity.
Jane To3pan will rise early with tn, !,
)ther inmates She Will sew She viii 1
perform such simple household tasks as
ire allotted In the evening she will (
lttend the dances at theatrical enter. (
Lt-At itthpS% AiSltiF LoE tne I
musement Of the less violent inmates 4
When those periodic impulses sudden I
lot 70 be resisted. come upon Jane Top /
lan. VIII the impossibility OF crafty /
ng them under the strict watch kept /
" the guards destroy the last remnant i
Z her reason2 VIII il send the poisone.
o the company Of the hapiess creatures
p wards S and 2. fierce mauiacs whom
0ut few visitors to the asylum are al
owed to see.
II is remarkable fact that Of the four
'reat women prisoners Of history. Lu-
retia Borgia. Catherine Dc Medici. Nine.
e Brinvlliers. and Jane Toppan great
st OF them al. only one The French
met death asthe result OF her
rime.