The Express. — 1868-07-04 (London, England)

REMARKABLE TRIAL FOR POISONING.  Our Herlin correspondent, writing on the Ist inst. says :—One of those ratan eilifres has just been tried at Posen which would almost justify the belief that men are occasionally born into the world as entirely destitute of all principle of conscience as others are of sight or heming. The trial itself presented no particular points of interest beyond that of clearly establishing the guilt of the prisoner, whose crimes almost eclipse those of the notorious Palmer of detestable memory. The facts are shortly as follows. The master bookbinder Wittmann was accused of having poisoned six persons in six years, namely, his four wives and two children. Wittmann bad worked as journeyman for a bookbinder named Pirech, of Wollin, where ho made the acquaintance of Mario Gehm, Pirsch's housekeeper. Wittmanu was on a visit at Wollin at the end of 1858 and beginning of 1839, on January 1 of which year Pinch died very suddenly, and Marie Oehm, according to a previous arrangement, came into the possession of all his property. Soon after this Wittmann commenced business in Wollin, and in February, 1860, married Marie Gehm, who in addition to Pinch's property had also inherited some money through the sudden death of an aunt. Two sons, John and Paul, were the result of this marriage. Mrs. Wittmann died very suddenly in 1862, leaving all her property to her husband and two children, of whom the eldest died in the same mysterious manner three months later. In June, 1863, Wittniann married his second wife, Charlotte Hohn, who possessed some fortune. The latter made her will in the following December, leaving everything to her husband, and died a week afterwards. In April, 1864, Wittmann married his third wife, Augusta Kornotzky, who was richer than her predecessor. Her fate may be described in almost the same words. She died in August, 1865, leaving her property between her husband and her mother. Only two months after her death Wittmann married his fourth and by far the richest wife, the widow Boee, who had one child by her first marriage. This child sickened immediately after its mother's wedding, and died in a day or two, by which the fourth Mrs. Wittmann inherited its property. Wittman then removed from Wollin to Posen. It is hardly necessary to add that the fourth Mrs. Wittmann's life was not of very long aunties, as she died in September, 1866, having made a will in favour of her drand fr Month or two beform, Under the pretext that she bad died of cholera Wittinann had made arrangements for burying her the day after her death. But the extraordinary mortality in the Wittmann family had already excited attention. The police here took the matter up, and their first suspicions were strengthened when they found that Wittman had called in no medical advice. Wittmann was arrested just as the funeral procession was about to start, and the burial of the body was prohibited. On searching the house, a large lump of arsenic, sufficient to poison a hundred persona, was found locked up in a chest. All the bodies of Wittmann's former wives, as also those of his two children, were then exhumed, awl submitted to a chemical investigation. The result was the same in all six cases ; a large quantity of arsenic was detected, and there could not be the shadow of a doubt that Wittmann had poisoned his four wives and two children. He has been found guilty and sentenced to death. If we consider that the motive for those crimes was no higher passion than avarice, and then remember the relation in which be stood to his victims, and the deliberate perfidy with which he entered upon those relations, I doubt if the whole record of crime can show a blacker case. Indeed, it is not improbable that he committed eight murders, as the very sudden death of Pirech during Wittinaun's visit, and also of his first wife's aunt, are extremely suspicious coincidences under the above circumstances.  Ferdinand Freiligrath, one of the most honoured of German poets, reached Cologne on Saturday last, after au exile of 18 pairs. A large number of his friends and admirers had asscniblod at the binding-place to receive him, and a magnificent banquet was given in his honour the same evening. Alter the dinner the poet was presented with a splendid silver goblet.