The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1928-04-05
Aged Sales Manager and
Another Mans Wife
Held in Jail.
FOUND DYING ON FLOOR
Host, 70, Says Jealousy of
Him Was Motive for
Deed.

jealousy ana poison az party
attended by two women at the home
of 70-year-old James E. Isgrigg, 5031
Kenwood Ave, Wednesday night
and out of this mixture stalked the
grim figure of death.
Today the body Of Mrs. Ida B.
Stanford, AZ, housekeeper for Is
grigg, was the subject Of an autopsy
under direction of Coroner G. H.
Keever. She was one of the two
women at the party and is thought
to have taken poison because Of
jealousy.
The other woman, Mrs. Grace B.
Smith, 43, of Columbus, Ohio. and
Isgrigg are in city prison under
$5 900 bonds each, while the tragedy
is being investigated by police
TSgrigg is sales manager of Bes-
sire g. Co., Inc, ice cream supply
house. In his cell today he told Of
Mrs. Stanford's jealousy, which, he
says, caused her to commit suicide.
~ knew she was jealous Of me"
he said. "She frequently threatened
to take her life, although I told her
not to love me, because I didn't
want to marry. She was beautiful
and wonderful woman"
Insisted She Remain
He then related how Mrs. Smith
phoned that she was coming to visit
and how Mrs. Stanford said she
would prepare dinner and leave.
He insisted that she stay for the
party" 1t lasted far past midnight.
1t was 3:45 this morning when Is
grigg said he heard Mrs. Stanford
/ groaning in the kitchen.
Rushing out, he found her on the
floor. Two hours later he called
police.
The elderly sales manager ex-
planned this by saying that she was
alive when he first found her and
both he and Mrs. Smith sought to
revive her with warm milk, an elec-
trio vibrator and the like.
Neither believed at first that the
case was serious, being of the
opinion that the woman was feign-
ing Hines. Mrs. Smith refused to
leave the davenport and aid in the
work of resuscltation till he az last
impressed her with the genuinenes1
of Mrs. Stanfords condition, he de-
clared.
Story Through Alcohol Haze
Mrs. Smith still was under the in
f1uence of liquor in her cell this
morning.
There she related the events of
the past tWenty-four hours as she
remembered them through an al
coholic haze. She declared that her
husband is j. M. Smith, president
of the American Garage Equipment
Company, Columbus, and that he is
at present in Mexico looking after
mining interests.
She declared she often had visited
at the ISgrigg home, since The
families became friends fourteen
years ago. Mrs. Isgrigg died year
ago, and she continued her visits.
Wednesday. she said, she called
Isgrigg and told him she had been
in a train wreck at Dayton, Ohio,
and would come to Indianapolis by
traction. She said she was en- route
to the home of sister at Hastings,
Mich.
Thought She Was Feigning
ST didn't believe Mrs. Stanford
had taken poison at first" she as
serted. 81 refused to leave the dav-
export, where I was lying. Then I
recognized the serious note IL Jim's
voice and I went out and did every
thing I could to revive her, while
Jim called for doctors"
Coroner Keever and Motor Police
men Edward Deeter and Morris
Corbin investigated the case.
They said they found bottle that
had contained poison, but could find
no burns on Mrs. Stanford's mouth.
After the post-mortem today
however, the coroner announced a
quantity Of poison was found in her
stomach.
Isgrigg explained that the woman
had worked for him since his wife
died and that he had picked her
from a list Of twenty-five appli-
cants because Of her beauty"
She is survived by two daughters,
Alberta, 10, and Dorothy, IL, who
live with sister, Mrs. H. Hardy,
1914 Comar Ave Another sister,
Mrs. John Dale, lives at Richmond
Ind.
Daughter Tells of Worry
Alberta testified at the coroners
inquest today that she had talked
TO her mother by telephone Wednes-
day morning and that her mother
had told her Mrs. Smith was to
visit here.
Mrs. Smith once had advised
Isgrigg to get rid of her mother, she
also said
Her mother also was worried
about the care Of her younger sister,
because Mrs. Hardy is to move from
the city soon and will be unable
to continue caring for her, Alberta
said.
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