The Washington times., 1920-10-23
WRITER AND
W|FEPO|SONEO
Cult Founder Asserts Mercury
Tablets Were Taken by
Mistake.

NEW YORK. Oct zy.-AichA Appel
baum. founder and leader OF the
Humanitarian Cult" and his wife,
known on the stage as Helen Yorke,
noted singer. today were reported In
q favorable condition at knickor-
booker Hospital They took bichiorid~
of mercury tablets last night In their
apartment here.
Appelbaum told police and physt-
clans the poison was taken by mis-
take. He refused TO amplify the
statement In any way. MIR. Appel
baum made no statement.
Appelbaum married Miss Yorke, his
second wife. about six months ago.
He had been divorced by his nrst
wife.
CONDITION FAVORABLE
While the condition OF the couple
was pronounced favorable today. IL
was explained that owing to the
character of the poison. II might be
several days before 1t would be
known whether they would recover.
| Applebaum, admitting that he and
his wife each had swallowed four
seven and one-half grain tablets OF
bichloride OF mercury. protested:
at was all a mistake"
When physicians were working
over the couple and during their trip
to the hospital In an ambulance, Mr..
and Mrs. Appelbaum. 1t Is said. re-
Trained from speaking to each other.
though they talked to the medical at
| tendants.
TOLD BOY OF HIS DEED.
| The Appellants took the mercury
tablets about 6:45 o'clock. At
o'clock a colored elevator boy in the
apartment house received q call from
| Appelbaum. who shouted In tragic
tones:
I've taken poison! Call a phys
Clan Quick!"
The elevator boy ran out found
Patrolmsn Harry s,ger. siGer called
| an ambulance. When he reached the
| Appelbaum apartment he found Mrs.
Appelbaum stretched on the bed.
fully dressed, while a physician was
treating her. Appelbaum, the police
man says, was on the bathroom
floor. and another physician was
working over him. Neither of the
Appellants was unconscious.
| The doctors asked the pauofman
to get milk and eggs. He did this
In putting the milk and eggs on the
4
a bottle containing bichloride OF
mercury tablets.
He searched the rooms for q note
that might indicate q suicide pact.
but reported that he found nothing
of that character.
NO aUARRELING HEARD.
The Appellants moved into the
apartment two weeks ago. Neigh
49, ~ M
indicating a quarrel.
Appelbaum and his first wife sep
arated in 1917 when he and she de-
cided that their temperaments were
"unsuited to one another" They had
a son, John. who Is now nine years
old. The first Mrs. Appelbaum, be
fore her marriage In 1906, was Miss
Irma Koshiand. of Riverdale.
Appelbaum. for several years hs-
ure in metropolitan circles, Is a Rus.
sian by birth. He came to this coun-
try when fifteen years old.
He began his career In New York
city rs an errand boy for the New
York Metal Selling Company, OF
which he became president several
years ago. For q time Appelbaum
was rated as wealthy, but in 1919 he
confided OF members Of tho Human
tartan Cult, an organization which he
had founded to develop between IN
dividuals a proper sense of response
bility," that he was broke"
WIFE SANG IN CONCERT.
He said he had spent several hun
dreds of thousands OF dollars in de-
veloping the HumanitartS Cult, re-
ceiving no salary as an officer
therein.
1t was last November that Appel
baum told the members OF his cult
that at the age Of forty-four he found
himself without funds and In debt
The necessity for self-preservation,
he told them, made 1t necessary for
him Ito transfer his thoughts to
other things" When he finished
speaking many members of the or
ganixation pledged themselves to
subscribe to his support.
Mrs. Appelbaum, who was married
about a year ago, was Helen Yorke.
of Maine, and has attained some
prominence on the concert stage.
Two weeks ago Sunday night she
sang with Alessandro Bonci In the