The weekly true Democrat. (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1905-1912, 1906-07-27
AN ATTEMPT
AT POISONING.
Twonty-ons Persons IN From At
tempt % Poison Futeh Family.

tempt % Poison Futch FamiIy.
ThomasviIle Times-Enterprise: The
effect Of the poison administered TO the
member Of the Futch family near
Metcalf, and number Of their friends,
has not yet worn on
The affair Is involved in much mys-
terry. In speaking Of the matter yes
terday Mr.. John Futch said he could not
imagine who the miscreant might be.
He cannot remember of any difficulty
with negroes on the place that might
have induced them thus to take venge-
snce.
The would-be murderer, whoever he
NAV be, came near catching the whole
neighborhOod and few others, 1t is a
coincidence that DIR. A. P. Taylor, a
member of the State Board of Health,
who had been called to the home to at
tend Mrs. Futch, should have been pre-
destined as one of the chief sufferers.
Mrs. Alice Futch was taken i'll very
peculiarly about the middle of last
week. DR.. Taylor attended her. On
Friday he happened to be in the house
about dinner time and accepted an invi-
tation to remain and eat with the fam
ily. Rev. T. A. White, of Thomasville,
and pastor of the Metcalf Baptist
church, was also present, as were the
two sons of Mrs. Futch, Allie and John,
and Mrs. j. G. Thomas. DR.. Taylor
left for. town soon after the meal was
finished, and he had not yet reached the
city before he was taken violently i'll
At about the same hour, all who had
been at the table were attacked in a
similar manner. The negro woman who
cooks for the family had just been en-
gagged that morning. and she, with her
three children, was as sick as anybody,
thereby plainly proving her innocence.
She was still so weak yesterday that
she could not cook breakfast.
POISON IN THE MILK.
All evidence points TO the fact that
the poison must have been put into the
milk, which Is ordinarily kept in a dairy
in the ward and is not locked up. This
theory Is sustained by the fact that two
other negro families who live on the
place sent over 70 the house in the af-
ternOon and got some milk. Nothing
more. They, too, were sick Mrs kerf
and her two children came to see Mrs.
Futch in the afternoon! While there
the children got hungry and were
given biscuit. They got sick. These
biscuit, though, were made up with
milk out of the same es that sent to
the negro families. After supper Misses
0dom and Myrtle Knapp were visiting
At the house, and they too ate of the
bread and were made sick. In all, Fl
persons suffered from the poison. to say
nothing Of the seven turkeys that were
fed milk and bread and died therefrom.
THIRD ATTEMPT.
The story runs back a month, during
which time at least three other plain
attempts at poisoning are discernible.
One morning the family made coffee out
of water taken from bucket that sat
on the back porch. The coffee was SO
bitter they could not drink it and an
other effort was made to make pal
atable drink, using water from the same
bucket. Again it was bitter. At an
other time one member Of the family
was made deathly sick by eating cold
fried chicken that had heen put away in
the safe. The symptoms are described
as a fearful swimming in the head as Il
one Is drunk, with a fainty, nauseated
feeling. It is accompanied with distinct
fever. Mrs. Futch's temperature rar
up as high as lO4.
PHOSPHORUS.
The evidence indicates that the poison
must have been phosphorus, or some
Z other substance that is cumulative In
its effect, rather than strychnine or ar.
Oenic, or any of the ordinary poisons,
Some Death on Rats" are based upor
phosphorus.
Some of the bread that proved q
poisonous was boxed up yesterday anC
sent 70 DIR. Harris. chairman Of thu
State board of health. His verdict a
TO what the poison is will be AWAITED
with the keenest interest.
It might be stated In passing that tho
effect Of the poison made DIR. Taylor
sick during the operation on Edwin
Brown for appendicitis. 1t has beer
stated by some that It was the opera
ton itself, but the Doctor is too muci
accustomed to these operations to b
....t ,,,t hty thaVa