The Dillon herald. [volume] (Dillon, S.C.) 1894-????, 1911-11-23
WOMAN ATTEMPTS SUICIDE
Prompt Action Saves Life of AlIeg-
legged Murieress.

Chicago, November 4. Mrs.
Louise Vermilya, who was arrest
ed yesterday on a charge of having
murdered Policeman Bisonnette. by
poisoning him, made an attempt to-
day to commit suicide by taking a
mineral poison.
1T is my belief that Bisonnette
was given arsenic day by day, ev-
en- while l was treating him, and
and finally he was given enough
to overcome all efforts by myself
and other physicians, to stimulate
him, and killed without our know
Ing what the trouble was"
This statement, issued tonight
by DR.. F. A. Van Arsdale. the ply
sician who attended Mrs. Vermilya
during her recent illness. and who
prescribed for the policeman be-
fore the latter's death, for the first
time furnished a direct connection
between the widow and the last of
the nine deaths that have occurred
beneath her roof during the past Is
years.
At Point of Death.
DR.. Van Arsdale made the asser-
tons after he had made prelimin-
ary examinations of the contents of
supposed to contain the poison,
and which was used to season food
ordered by the woman to-day,
brought on sharp illness, that
= threatened death, and which left
her in grave condition for hours
afterwards
Mrs. Vermilya was watched close
ly tonight by physicians, who fear
ed her death might come at any
time.
When eggs were served to the wo-
man by the police nurses who were
watching her, pending her recovery
from an illness, she objected to the
black pepper with which they were
to be seasoned.
Prefers white Pepper"
I'm the pantry there is some
white pepper in a paper bag she
told the nurse. I'd prefer some of
that, if l might have it,
The nurse, by the odor of the
light colored substance in the bag
determined it was pepper and allow
after she became i'll. Doctors were
called and the contents of her
stomach taken for analysis. Under
antldotes she recovered from the
etfects of the supposed poison, for
the police were convinced she had
mixed a poison with the pepper,
she remained weak from the vigor-
Gus measures of the doctors to
: prevent death.
Mixed With Rat Poison.
The pepper was taken to a
druggist, who, after an examina-
tton, told the police he thought the
condiments was mixed with an ar
senical rat poison. The remainder
OF the compound was sent to a city
chemist.
The incident has pointed to a new
possibility of the method by which
Mrs. Vermilya's roomers and rela-
yves In past years met death. If
the pepper and poison compound
had been a part of her larder in the
past years, that fact, said the po-
lice, while pointing out more clear
ly basis for their contention that
Mrs. Vermyla has more than a pass
ing knowledge of the cause of
death of her associates, made it
more difficult than ever to connect
her with a death other than that of
Bisonnette, since rat poison may be
purchased anywhere without regis
try.
Conductors Body Disintcrrcd.
Representatives of the coroner
brought to Chicago tonight parts Of
the remains of Conductor Smith
who died of stomach disorder. not
clearly defined, while a roomer at
the Vermilya home.
Mrs. G.. A. Alberting, a sister of
Frank Brinkamp, first of Mrs. Ver-
myla's associates who died, said to-
day she would issue n statement re-
lating to her brothers death the
moment Mrs. Vermilya actually was
arrested. She declined to indicate
the nature of the information she
promised TO disclose.