The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-03-24
WILL BE RELEASED
MRS. MAVERICK WILL SOON DE
FREE AGAIN.
WILL BE OUT NEXT YEAR.
BRITISH HOME OFFICE MAKES
THE ANNOUNCEMENT.

American Woman Convicted of Hax-
ing Poisoned Her Husband win
Receive C1emency-ThOugh Her
Sentence to Death Was Cora
muted to Life Servitude, She Is
to BE still Further Favored-Shc
viii he Free to Testify in Land
Cases-Her Story.
London, March 23.-Mrs. Florence
Maybrick, the American woman, who
was convicted at Liverpool in 1889, on
the charge of poisoning her husband,
James Maybrick, at Aigburts, by ar
senic, and whose sentence of death
was committed to penal servitude for
life, will be released in 1904
The announcement comes from the
Home Office, which now authorizes her
Washington lawyers to use the fact
of her release next year as a reason
for securing the postponement of the
trial of the law suits bearing on The
prisoners interest in land in Kentucky,
Virginia and West Virginia until she
is able to personally testify
Those who are in position to know
say that Home Secretary Akers-Doug-
las has shown great courtesy in con-
nection with the suits now pending in
America; that the decision to release
Mrs. Maybrick was entirely due to eff
forts on this side of the Atlantic, and
that Ambassador Herbert has never
been called upon to act in this matter.
Mrs. Maybrick, who was Miss Flor
ence Elizabeth Chandler, and a men,
Der of a well known and prosperous
Southern family, was married July 81,
1891, in st. James Church, Piccadilly,
to James Maybrick of Liverpool. She
was then Is years of age, vivacious and
beautiful and a social favorite. Her
husband was over 40 years old.
In the spring of 1889 Mr.. Maybrick
became i'll, and in a few days he died.
His brothers Investigated his death
and charged Mrs. Maybrick with the
murder of her husband. A long trial
followed, and a number of doctors
sWore Mr.. Maybrick died of arsenical
poisoning. The defense proved that for
twenty years Mr.. Maybrick had been
a confirmed arsenic eater, and that he
daily took doses that would have killed
a dozen ordinary men.
Mrs. Maybrick eventually was SEN
fenced to death by the judge, Sir Fitz-
james stephen, who spoke for two days
in charging the jury, and who said it
was impossible for them to find her
guilty in the face of the medical evil
dence. He died some time later in a
mad house.
From the time of Mrs. Maybrick's
conviction, her mother, the Baroness
E. Won Roques, has been unremitting
in her attempts to obtain the prison.
er's release, in which she has been aid
ed by influential friends on both sides
of the Atlantic. In 1900, after the death
of Lord Russell of Killowen, chief JUS
tice of England, a letter which he mad
written to Mrs. Maybrick in 1895 was
discovered. 1t showed that the emf
nent lawyer was convinced that she
ought never to. have been convicted,
and it has been generally understood
that all the recent American ambasSa-
doris to the Court of St. James have
done everything possible to obtain Mrs.
Maybrick's pardon.
The failure of Mrs. Maybrick to tes-
tify in the suits pending in the United
States would cause the loss to her and
her mother of all title and interest in
large tracts of land situated in Ken
lucky and Virginia and West Virginia.