The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1908-02-28
Story Told BY a Friend OF the
Dead Mrs. Len Axtell.
Husband SWears Did Not Tell
Wife TO Take Poison.
Woman Had Said She Would
Kill Herself in Week.

Died from the effects of poison,
administered by her own hands"
This was the verdict returned by the
jury at the inquest over Nettie Ak
tell held yesterday afternoon at Eagle
Lake where the tragedy occurred Mon
day afternoon at 4:30 o'clock, as re-
lated in The Free Press last even
ing.
Coroner Z. r. Kennedy officiated at
the inquest, assisted by c. l.. Kennedy
and by County Attorney Plymat, who
examined the witnesses.
The jurors were A. Fl. Pressnall, b.
p Robertson, George Macbeth, n. b
Foote, Ira b. Reynolds and J. L. Bur.
CESS, all residents of the village.
Testimony at the coroner's inquest
showed that Mrs. AXtell had contem,
plated suicide for two or three days
at least.
What Her Friend Said.
Mrs. Nellie Corbin a friend of Mrs.
Axtell, testified that the unfortunate
woman, while at the Corbin home late
Saturday, afternoon, said she could
stand about so much trouble and
sometime might have to end it. She
began crying and when Mrs. Corbin
asked what the matter was, she re-
piled: "What amt the matter? We
have nothing to eat or burn. Len is
on drunk again, l wish | was dead
Il will be dead within a week, for
will take poison and kill myself
Story of the Husband.
The story of C. L. Axtell, the hus.
band, as told at the inquest, follows:
Monday afternoon about three
o'clock my wife said she was going up
town. / asked her to get the mail
She said she would and / said, Would
you please stop and tell Mrs. Heath
| don't think it will be possible to
get her shoes done She also agreed
to attend to that. She came back and
handed me the mail-two papers
about four o'clock. l made the re-
mark that she had made a quick trip
took the papers and laid on the bed
and she came and said she wanted to
lie on my arm. l went out and when
I came back she still lay on the bed
and 1 laid down in the position l had
been in. She said, Hold me, dearie
you won't have long to hold me-
asked her why and she said she was
tired. She said there was cup out
in the water barrel and not to use it
asked my mother what she had done.
Nettie said she had taken enough. She
|called for drink of water and went
out in the Kitchen and fell and then
told me she had taken strychnine. /
examined the cup and inquired what
was an antidote. / had no mustard
and went over to Mynards' and got
some and sent his little boy to tele-
phone. / saw Mr.. Alvord and beck
oned to him and he came over with
his wife and Mrs. Wells came in a
little while. Ellis Presnall came over
and | think Matt Presnall came.
81 gave her lard and she swallowed
the white of one egg and she drank
some mustard and water. | had not
been drinking yesterday and was not
drunk and we had had no trouble. We
had little spat Saturday but we
smoothed it over in five minutes. | never
told her to take poison and we did
not give her poison yesterday. Did
not see the little poison vial but did
bring in the. cup and tasted it.
don't know where she got the, strych-
nine. She seemed rather excited when
she got back from the postoffice. The
barrel the cup was in was an empty
barrel in the kitchen"
What the Mother Said.
Mrs. Mary Axtell. mother in-law OF
the deceased, testified that Mrs. AK
tell and her husband "got along peace
fully most of the time" She told how
the woman seemed to regret taking
the poison and said that she took all
the antidotes offered.
Other witnesses examined were
aaron Miller, Henry Alvord, Clifford
INWARD. Ellis Presnall. Emma Swan
son and NJ. B. Cook. The last named
person is the druggist at Eagle Lake
who sold Mrs. Hastings strychnine
with which to kill rats couple oil
months ago.
The tragedy created much excite
ment at Eagle Lake and a large num-
Der of people attended the inquest.