The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-12-18
NOTHING in IT.
Richards Investigation Will
Undoubtedly Be Dropped.
No Indication Whatever of Foul
Play.
CORONER KEITH TALKS
People Died From Gas Without
Doubt He Says.
DIR. Van Horn Also Convinced
That This Is a Fact.

There is little probability that the
bodies of the three Richards, or any
one of them, will be exhumed for the
purpose of an autopsy.
when any one shows me that there
is reason to believe that a crime has
been committed, then I am ready to
act" said Coroner H. H. Keith today,
but until some one does / stand con-
vinced that there is no reason for ex-
huming the bodies and decline to make
such an order incurring needless ex-
pense to the taxpayers of the county.
L have had many complaints from
certain busy people but there has been
no satisfactory theory of any possible
crime to warrant an autopsy. l was at
the residence within ten minutes after
Mrs. Thomas Richards found the bodies
and 1 stayed there until 10 O'Clock and
found nothing tangible except that the
deaths were caused from the gas fumes.
THE family had eaten breakfast
younger Mrs. Richards, Mr.. E. H.
Hewin. had then come in buggy to
take Thomas Richards and his daugh-
ter to his home for dinner, but Rich
ards had a bad cold and remained at
the house.
There is every reason to believe that
all three of the persons in the house
went to sleep after the late breakfast
on that cold morning. The elder Rich
ards had been reading a paper and laid
his glasses aside. He had fallen to the
floor, evidently having been overcome
with the fumes while sleeping in his
chair. Thomas had evidently been ly-
ing on the couch. 1t is the theory that
as the father fell he called the son, who
in trying to get to the window was
overcome at the base of it. Mrs. John
Richards was i'll and was lying on the
in T1iO hn hod
IDENTIFY not been awakened at all.
IF, as some have suggested, the
people were given poison, it would
necessarily have been at breakfast.
There were no indications of poison.
Had they been given strychnine then
there would have been evidences of
violent pains and cramps in the ston1-
ach; had they been given arsenic
there would have been evidences of
sputum and emissions from the
1t is not likely that they
would have accepted any morphine be-
cause it is bitter. There is no likeli-
hood that chloroform or ether could
have been given for it would have
taken an enormous amount to kill all
three and also il the persons had been
poisoned by drugs, they would not
have produced death within many
hours.
Moreover. there is no possible mo-
tive for poisoning the people. There
W dS no insurance Oh d1lN k11Q except d
5000 policy which the younger Rich
ards had with the Odd Fellows to pro-
vide funeral expenses
DIR. Van Horn SmeIled Gas.
DR.. c. B. Van Horn. the first doctor
to arrive upon me scene. describes the
positions Of the bodies and the condi-
tions the same as DR.. Keith, who ar
rived soon afterward. In addition he
says:
when I got there the doors had
been opened. 1 went right in and
could detect the gas but naturally not
so strong as it probably had been.
"A gas light was lit Immediately
because there could be no danger.
These fumes given off by a burning
gas stove do not explode, they are
that Mrs. Richards. being farther from
the stove was not yet past recovery
and worked on her but without avail. |
IN order to get air I tried to raise a
window but it was stuck SO 1 kicked
4 pane out.
'.Chief Eaton has theory that
here was plenty of air in the room
because the window was broken and
hat the house was old and lots of air |
could get in around the windows. AS
l matter of fact, 1 kicked that light |
)ut and the windows were all found |
20 be all corked up with clothes, so
hat the rooms were quite tight.
I'm my mind. there is no doubt |
hat the deaths were caused by gas
I have to be very we'll
several cases in the last few weeks of
entire families becoming nearly |
asphyxiated. One was a family in
Oakland. One of the family had !
awakened just in the nick of time to
save them all. I was called and it !
brought from the influence of the
gas. The carbon monoxide given off
from the burning stoves is a deadly
poison and acts upon the blood i'm
thereby thwarting any
time. Another case was reported to
me by another physician almost
similar and very nearly fatal to an en-
tire family
1.-THE fumes take effect gradually
and are not strong enough to i'm
mediate1y awaken anyone. In fact,
to one awake. they would not be very
noticeable except for the smarting to
the eyes.
Il have no doubt that the Richards
were sleeping there after a late break
fast and were suffocated without awak-
ening except as the old man fell he
called his son who tried to get to a
window
Many of the old friends of John P
Richards and also those of E. H. Hew-
ms are very much disgusted with the
expressing themselves.
In handling the bodies. Undertaken
reports that the gas fumes
were expelled from the lungs and nos
trils of the bodies in great quantities.
Ed O'Neil speaking concerning the
action of the board of commissioners
yesterday declining to stand for the ex-
pense, said:
I'VE concluded that there was not any
evidence presented us by the county
attorney to warrant the spending of
county money for SO absurd a suspic-
ion as the one proposed. There is no
evidence of crime in the case and no
good reasons as we could detect for
digging up the bodies. Therefore we