South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-12-14
SAYS SUHL TOOK
ARSENIC To CURE
HIS RHEUMAT ISM
Henry BoetCher, as Witness for
Defense in Murder Trial,
Springs SurprlSe-State Be-
gins Evidence in RebuttaI.

A surprise was sprung by the de-
fense in the triaI Of Mrs. Augusta
Suhl Monday morning. when they put
on the witness stand Henry BOetcher
a butcher employed on y. Michigan
st, no testified 10 the fact that
ChGrlas subj had been in the habit
of taking arsenic in whisky for the
cure of rheumatism. The direct eN-
animation Of the witness was brief
aS was also the cross examination.
Although the latter was brief 1T was
correspondingly lively The prOsecu-
tor intimated that the testimony was
made because the witness held d
yrudge against him because of recent
prosecution against the witness in an
other court
Boetcher said that his son had
been employed in a drug store six
years ago and that often on Sundays
the druggist would go away on hunt
ing trips and that on such occasions
he (Boetcher) would stay at the store
with his son. He testified that on a
certain Sunday when he was at the
drug store with his son, Mr.. Suhl
came into the store and asked for 10
cents worth of arsenic. The witness
said that he heard his son and Mr.
Suhl visit and that his son finally ask
ed Mr.. Suhl why it was that he
bought SO much arsenic and the lat
ter had replied that he used it in
whisky for his rheumatism.
ON crOsS-eNamination the witness
admitted that his son was now dead
and that there had been no others
i'm the store at the time of which he
spoke.
Little Danger of Contamination.
The defense also put on the stand
DR.. g. =. Crumpacker, who testified
that when he had performed the
autopsy on the body of Mr.. Suhl he
had found small hole in the middle
of the front wall OF the stomach He
declared also that he noticed at the
same time that the liver in the same
body was not normal and that there
was signs of fatty degeneration.
This witness had formerly been on
the stand Tor the state. 1t was he
who had performed the autopsy un-
der the direction OF the coroner The
defense rested their case after the
hearing of BOetcher and Or. Crum-
packer.
Considerable delay was experienced
before the state was ready with its
evidence in rebuttal Drs. +. II. My
ers. :. w. Baer. r. +. Moore and q.
c. Terry were finally questioned rs to
the probability of there having been
contamination of the stomach of Mr.
Suhl during the time between the
autopsy and the analysis mt Indianap-
oils. They agreed that there was a
possibility of contamination under
the circumstances of that case but
that there was no probability of con-
taminatiOn. They agreed also that
under the same circumstances. they
would have sealed the stomach with
in the jar in which it was sent
through the mails.
D.;ne
The cross examination of these wit
nesses was also brief The defense
sought 10 show merely that the
stomach had been handled in a care
less manner and that there was no
way of telling that the same stomach
reached Indianapolis as was taken
from the body of Mr.. Suhl or that
there had been no arsenic injected
into the stomach in the interum.
IL was the belief Of the state at
the noon hour that they would be
through in time for the taking up Of
the arguments Tuesday morning and