Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1904-10-12
WHISKY PROVED A
DEADLY BEVERAGE
Many Persons Are Poisoned In
New York City.
TWENTY-FIVE REPORTED DEAD.

Police Discover that Whisky, Sold
at Barrel House," Has Caused
Many Deaths and 1t Is Believed
Contained Deadly Poison.
| New York, Oct. 11.-Acting under
| instruction from the coroner the po-
lice have taken into custody Rudolph
Fftsche, who keeps little saloon at
723 Tenth avenue. Fritsche is charged
only with being a suspicious person,
but the police say that in his saloon,
1T is suspected, whisky was sold which
contained poison, and this whisky is
responsible for the many deaths that
| have occurred in the neighborhood
recently. Fritsche only recently
bought the place, which is of a va
riety generally described as a barrel
house.
Investigation of the numerous
deaths in the neighborhood during the
! past few weeks showed that nearly all
those who had died suddenly were
customers of the barrel house"
Fritsche, after being taken to the
station house was admitted to bail. He
returned to the saloon but the police
followed, closely questioned the pro-
| prietor and closed the doors.
Symptoms Identical.
twenty-five persons living in the
neighborhood, all of them middle age,
have died during the past two weeks
| The symptoms were in the main iden-
tical. They were characterized by
the attendant physicians in all cases
IS those of alcoholism. In the past
| "A hours one death, that of Robert
Smith, has been reported, while the
! following awaited burial: William
McAuliffe, aged As, died Saturday.
Charles McLeavy, aged so, died
| Sunday.
William Delain, died Friday, aged
48.
| Adolpe Lehman, died Sunday.
Nora McGinness, died Sunday.
All these persons resided in q pre-
scribed territory. Lehman's stom.
aoh and bottle Of whisky purchased
in the neighborhood were taken to
the health department for analysis,
the result of which has not yet been
made public.
| A doctor living in West Forty-eighth
street, who was called to attend sew
eral of the persons mentioned, said
that while the cases he had seen were
plainly enough alcoholism, there was
yet something peculiar in such an
outbreak of the ailment in so cir
cumscribed territory.
Physicians Statement.
81 was called" said he, "to see Nc.
Leavy. McAuliffe lay dead of the
same disease in room just across
the hall when 1 got there, and Nc.
Leavy was already dead when | ar.
rived. 1t would appear as though
the form of alcoholic beverage they
had been taking had a powerful eff.
feet in arresting the hearts action.
! have found that in the case of several
who died they had been In the habit
| VI OuJAhS WAAohy at luS IdLC OI III
cents pint and that in some in.
stances they drank great quantities,
pouring it into ordinary drinking tum.
blers full and pouring IL down as
though it were water. It is barely
possible the whisky was made of
wood alcohol"
Coroner Orders investigation.
Coroner Scholer has ordered the
chief statistician of the department
of health to furnish him list of all
persons who have died during the
past three months in the district ly-
ing between Forty-sfHth and Fifty
third streets, Ninth avenue and the
North river. All will be investigated,
and if it is thought advisable in any
instance, the bodies will be exNumed.
A report submitted later to Police
Captain Hussey by the department of
health analist, alleges that wood al
cohol was found in Lehman's stom.
ach and it is further alleged that a
| bottle of whisky purchased by q de-
tective also contained large percent
age of wood alcohol.
Determined that no mistake should
be made, Coroner Scholer at once or.
dered that the funerals of McAuliffe
and McLeavy be postponed and their
! stOmachs analyZed