The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1912-03-23
lcopyrlght y q. q. chapmaa. ]

sistence the mother wrote TO her son
urging him to eat one Of these cakes
at a particular hour upon a certalnspe-
cited day. Marie wasto eat one at the
same time, in order that a bond Of affin-
lty might be created between them.
The case containing the cakes and
the portrait was dispatched to La
fargo and duly reached him. but not In
the same condition as that in which it
had been sent There were two indi-
cations that II had been tsInpered
with; in the first place. IT had been fas-
tened down with small screws when 1t
left Chandler, but when it arrived, as
transpired at the trial, 1t was secured
with long nails. Secondly, the numer-
Gus small cakes had been replaced by
one large one. Lafarge broke on a
portion OF this CONNECTION and ate It,
That same night he was seized with
violent convulsIons, and, upon his par
tial recovery, he relinquished bis bust.
ness in Paris and returned 10 Chandler.
When the charge OF murder was lA-
timately formulated against Marie La
fargo it was found that on December
II, two days before the box left Gland
fer, she had purchased a quantity OF
arsenic from a druggist In a neighbor-
ing ty..t. Her letter, in which she
asked for this poison, was read in
court, and ran as follows
! "Sir-r-t am oyerr2n with rats. l
have tried hux vomica, but entirely
without avail. Win you and can you
trust ME with a Little arsenic? You
can count on my being most careful
with 1t, and shall only use 1t in a
linen closet"
But II Marie had indeed been guilty
Of a conspiracy against her husbands
life, why shouldSshe have changed the
small cakes for one large one, after
especially begging her mother:in-law
to make the small cakes and to write
to Charles Lafarge about them? This
fact was not properly brought out in
court; considered upon another n.y.
pothesis, however, 1t might have point
ed to the possible intervention OF a
third party, who was guilty OF the poi
son conspiracy.
Lafarge returned to Chandler and
took to his bed. On the very day of
his return his wife wrote again to the
druggist for arsenic, Saying that she
had made the first lot into a paste,
which her doctor had seen and ap-
proved She also mentioned, Incl
dentally, that her husband had re-
turned unwell, but that she expected
that he would speedily recover his
health again. ~ ~ .
: Day by day however, Lafarge grew
worse, and his symptoms were I'm,
doubtedly those OF arsenical poisoning.
Nine Lafarge the mother, began to en-
terrain suspicious Other daughter-in-
law, and insisted upon remaining by
her sons bedside constantly. Marie
resented thIsiand demanded that she
should be hefGhusbaH6s isole nurse5
the entire family opposed her how
ever, and compelled her TO yield. The
relatives now began to watch her mar
rowly, as developed at the trial. Many
curious incidents were recorded. One
woman deposed that she had seen
Marie go to Il cupboard and take from
it white powder, which she had mixed
into her husbands medicines and food.
The mother and sister, furthermore,
showed the doctor a cup OF chicken
broth, upon whose surface white
powder was floating. The doctor said
that 1t was probably lime from the
wall, whereup0n the ladies mixed some
lime with broth, but this did not pre-
sent at all the same appearance. Final
~, 1t was testified that. when Marie,
gave her husband broth 10 drink in
which the powder had been mixed, he
cried out: H'
What are you giving me? II burns
like fire" ~
To which Marie replied:
u am not surprised. They let you
have wine when you are suffering from
inflammation Of the stomach"
If Marie LaIarge was indeed slowly
poisoning her husband with arsenic,
her folly was incredible. During his
illness she received a quantity OF the
poison from the druggist. and opened
It in the presence OF the family 1t
was brought 10 her at the bedside by
the clerk, Denis Barber, Of whom
mention has been made, and she put
the package In her pocket. at tue same
time informing her husband that 1t
was for the purpose of killing the rats
overhead, of which he had been COM
planning. Lafarge took the poison
from her and gave 1t to maid, desir.
ing her to make a paste out Of It.
Meanwhile he continued 10 grow
worse, and at last new doctor was
summoned from distant town through
the agency Of Barber. who, as he
brought him back, confded 10 him
that he had often purchased arsenic
for Marie, but that she had begged him
to say nothing about it. The Doctors
suspicious we're aroused. lie pre-
scribed antidotcs for arsenical poison.
ing and sent some of the mysterious
white powder which the iron.master's
mother had preserved. for examination
10 the druggist who had supplied the