The Pontypridd District Herald and Rhondda Valley, Llantrisant, Caerphilly, and Mountain Ash News. — 1892-09-03 (Pontypridd, Mid Glamorgan, Wales)

THE LONDON POISONING CASES.  Thomas Neill, who is charged with the murders of the girls Donworth, Marsh, Shrivell, and Clover, the attempted murder of "Loo Harvey," and the attempted blackmailing of Dr. Broadbent and Dr. Barper, was again brought up before Sir John Bridge at Bow-street Police-court on Saturday, and was now committed for trial on each of these counts. Some important and remarkable evidence was given by Mr. M'Culloch, a commercial traveller of Ottawa, who had made the prisoner's acquaintance at an hotel in Quebec. He said he was employed as a traveller by a grocery firm carrying on business at Toronto. At the end of February and the beginning of March of this year he was in Quebec, and stopped at Blanchard's Hotel. While there he made the acquaintance of the prisoner, whom he knew as Dr. Cream. He occupied a room on the same floor as the witness. A day or two after the witness reached Blanchard's Hotel he felt unwell, and mentioned the matter to the prisoner. The latter replied "Come up to my room; I will give you something, and you will be all right to-morrow." Witness went to his room, and prisoner went to a er and took out some pills, some dark ad some white. He took one from a bottle labelled 'Blue Mass" and gave it to witness. Cream afterwards gave him an antibilious pill, which, he explained, would drive the blue mass pill out of the system, and leave no evil effects. Prisoner said he had obtained the pills from a firm in New York State, and was going to get a sample case made for use in London, about four inches wide, eight inches deep, and twelve inches long While witness was in the prisoner's room he saw several photographs. Cream said that one of them was a young lady to whom he was engaged in London, and "Thom he expected to marry on his return to England. Be said her name was Florence Sabatini. He told witness that he was in Quebec to obtain his share of his father's estate. On Sunday morning, March 6th, witness saw prisoner at breakfast time, and had some conversation with him. After dinner they had another conversation and prisoner asked the witness if he could handle his samples in London to advantage. He stated that he had in his room some samples from a New York firm, and invited witness to go to his room to see them. They went up, and prisoner showed him 18 or 20 bottles of pills. Witness noticed in the room a small yellow tin trunk. Prisoner opened it, and took out a tin cash-box. From this he took a necklace, some brooches, and a pair of brutelets. He said they were very valuable, and that he had got them back from a lady to whom he had been engaged, but who had got married during his absence in the States. He also took from the cashbox a copy of his father's will and some gold coins. He then took from the box a bottle and said, "Do you know what that is ?" Witness replied, "No." , Piisoner said, "That's poison." It was a widemouthed bottle without a label. The contents were whitish crystals of different sizes. Theibottle produced (about two inches long) was smaller than the one he saw, but the contents were similar. Prisone: went to the trunk and took out a false beard. Witness asked him what he used that for. Prisoner said, "To prevent identification when operating." He spoke of women in London. He mentioned this subject more than once, but witness paid little attention to him.