Rockingham post-dispatch. [volume] (Rockingham, N.C.) 1917-1965, 1921-02-24
=
Frozen Death
10 1870. BY yhs Wheeler syndicate.J

Look back over the city's death
records for the past six months and
then ask Dr. Albert Beaurigard why
1t is that fifteen prominent citizens
have died from cholera and yellow
fever when there has been no epi-
Gemic. Ask him why these men died
within a few days after dining at his
house."
This was the anonymous letter. that
led the chief of police of Buenos Aires
to assign Manuel Porteras, enc Of his
best men, to the Nase which was
destined to become unique In criminal
annals.
1t was true that number Of men
who were prominent in the life Of the
city-bankers and lawyers and doc
tors-had died within the period men
toned in the unsigned communica-
tion. But in every case the attending
physicians had given certificates of
death from natural causes. In fact,
as Porteras pointed out to his chief,
there had been autopsies on three of
the bodies, but even these post-mor-
tenn examinations disclosed nothing
out of the ordinary.
II know all that" retorted the chief
Of police, "but the charges made in
this letter are too grave to overlook
If only for the sake of Doctor Beauri-
CARDS reputation. It is unthinkable
that a scientist of his standing a
member Of the Ecole de Medicine,
man who is mentioned as the logical
successor to KOCH. should be con-
nected with these deaths. Besides,
what would be his motive"
Professional jealousyT hazarded
Porteras.
Possibly, but that's hardly prob
| able"
Before tackling the question of the
letter itself, Porteras dug back into
the history of the fifteen men who
had died of cholera and yellow fever
In no case did he find any reason
which would explain their murder,
any motive for removing them.
What Porteras did find, however,
was a support for the allegation of
the anonymous writer. Each Of the
| dead men had been a guest at the
Beaurigard home only few days be-
fore their death. Less than twenty.
four hours later they developed symp
toms Of the dread disease!
Armed with this information, the
detective started his search for tn,
man who had written the note Dis
guised as a book agent Porteras sue.
ceeded in securing samples of the
handwriting of number of persons
who were known to be friendly with
Doctor Beaurigard, but none of these
showed the distinct characteristics
which were apparent even in the al
tered penmanship Of the letter to the
police. 1t was not until he came away
from the Beaurigard home with sam
Piles of the servants handwriting that
he found what he had been looking
for. $4,000. --~- -~S~-
| The following morning Buenos
Aires was startled by the news of the
arrest of DR.. Albert Beaurigard, the
foremost physician in South Amer
lea, on a charge of murder.
During the days which preceded his
trial, the scientist preserved an air of
total nonchalance, appearing obllviOus
Of the fact that he was about to be
tried for his life and eontenting him.
self with the issuance of statements
that the whole matter was too alb
surd to be considered seriously" So
numerous were his friends and so
secure his position in the social life
of the South American capital that
the majority of the people claimed
that the affair was plot on the part
of the police, an attempt to cover
their past failures by sensational
prosecution of an innocent man.
1t was not until the state had laid
the foundation for its case by intro
ducing the testimony of physicians
who had attended the dead men, fol-
lowed by proof that each of these men
had diEed at the Beaurigard home
only few hours before they had
been taken Ill, that Porteras played
his trump card. Vat his direction the
prosecuting attorney called Doctor
Beaurigard's butler to the stand and
for the first time the face Of the ac-
cused showed the strain under which
he had been laboring.
"AlI preparations for the dinners
were left in my hands," testified the
butler, with the exception of the
preparation of single glass of creme
de menthe. This Doctor Beaurigard
invariably fixed himself, placing it on
the tray in the midst of the other
glasses"
| "What was the difference between
this glass and the others?"
'The liqueur was the same. The
ice came from small test tube in
Doctor Beaurigard's iaboratoryl'
| Hardly had the butler finished this
sentence before the prisoner was on
his feet, his left hand appraised to at
!. tract the attention of the court.
Eyes" he exclaimed, II am re-
!. sponsible for their deaths--but you'd
never have discovered 1t if 1t hadn't
| hepn FOR fhis nrvinr servant I dasirad