Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-10-21
EATON WAS
KILLED BY POISON
Continued from Page One.)

| introduced, today The letter follows:
| will YOU kindly inform me how
much longer it will be before you can
| state exactly what my dear little
healthy strong child died from? | am
| here alone in this isolated place with
my husband. Admiral j. G.. Eaton,
whom / know to be a dangerous in
sane man. Ny heart and pity go out
| to this man (Who is 50 clever that he
| fools the world at large) but not me.
please search for foreign poiSons as
| he has talked to me freely about foreign
| poisons and he has all the cleverness of
a maniac and cunning enough to use
| one that would be hard to detect He
| has been planning my death all day,
| today. and yet / am powerless and |
| trust on the finding of poison To have
| him examined for insanity and taken
| care of. l don't want his money tsai-
ary), he has no money, but / do want
| the state to take charge of that dear
little life and him, for he is mad. Please
| let me hear from you at an early date
and search for a cholera subtle poison
Respectfully,
MRS. J. G.. EATON.
"Also have a thorough examination of
| his food and medicine, If it is a poison
1t is subtle one as he is familiar with
cholera and has spoken about poison
used for 1t and as much as said they
could not find 1t, it is so much like
symptoms of cholera. So watch on these
| lines. l know he is insane"
| Every organ in the admral's body was
| permeated by arsenic, Professor Whit
ney reported. as result of his analysis.
A total of 1867 grains of pure white ar
senic was definitely aseertained as pres
| ent
In answer to hypothetical question
| put to him by District Attorney Barker,
| at the suggestion of Judge Aiken, Pro-
fessor Whitney testified that the poison
| which killed Admiral Eaton was taken
| in more than one dose The first dose
| in the opinion of the professor. was
| taken within a few hours of the time
| the admiral was first seized.
Professor Whitney expressed the opin-
| ion that poison was administered to Adj
| miral Eaton within six hours of the time
| of his death. which previous witnesses
had placed at 5 A. NJ. March s.
Professor Whitney said large addi-
| tional amount of the poison had been
| thrown off from the body of Admiral
| Eaton, probably several times as much
as was retained. From two to three
grains is considered the minimum fatal
dose, he tested. and he added that
arsenic, to reach the stomach in pow
| dered form, must have been taken
through the mouth. either pure or sus-
pended in some fluid.
| Professor Whitney produced col
lection of articles taken from the Eat
| on home, the contents of which he
had analysed. Arsenic was found only
in a package of sweepings taken from
| the room in which Admiral Eaton died
and slight trace in a cake of tobacco
J taken from the admirals pipe. These
results. however, might have been
! gained from specimens of such mate
1 rial taken from anywhere, or at any
time.
Referring to package of Paris green
found I'm the Eaton home, Professor
| Whitney tested that the death of Ad-
miral Eaton was not caused by arsenic
in that form,
The witness said there was no trace
of fatty degeneration in any organs
removed from the admirars body. This
would indicate, he said, that poison
: was not administered until shortly be-
: fore death.
= on cross-examination, Attorney
Morse asked, that the presence al
large quantities of arsenic in a per
sons system is easily detected
| Yes" replied the witness.
I 4.
; have been present in Admiral Eatons
system, on Wednesday.
A patient with Is grains of arsenic
, in his system would notice it by in
tense pains, by great thirst and in
t other ways, Professor Whitney testi-
fled.
A question whether this would in.
dictate that the poison was self-ad
ministered and that Admiral EatoT
apparently tried to conceal it was eX.
Guided by the court. The condition!
, of the admirafs digestive organs wer,
not inconsistent with the theory tina
the poison had been administered in {
! large initial dose, Professor Whitne,
said in reply TO a question by Mr.
Morse.
On redirect examination the wit
: ness said that the conditions were no
Inconsistent with the theory that tn
r poison had been administered in man,
Z doses. The first dose, Professor Whit
ney said. WAS probably taken within
an hour of dinner time, Thursday
? Professor William Balch of TIL
chemistry staff OF the Harvard Medi
, cal school testified that in his opin
5 lon the poison found in Admira
I Eaton's body was administered il
: more than one dose. The initial dose
; he believed. was received within al