Some time ago Mrs. Irvin Kauffman of Jeromesville
suicided by drowning herself in a rain-barrel and last Friday, her sister, Miss
Ella Stone, daughter of Elias Stone, who resides four miles east of Ashland,
died after a brief illness. Mrs. Kauffman and Miss Stone, while visiting
relatives in Pennsylvania, became ill on which account they returned home.
The following dispatch from Wooster in today's Enquirer, contains some
sensational statements concerning the probable cause of their deaths.
WOOSTER, O., DEC. 11 -- A gentleman residing near
Blachleyville, a town in this county, remote from telegraph offices and
railways, while here told an interesting and peculiar story in connection with
the suicide of a resident of Jeromesville. Some weeks ago Mrs. Irvin
Kauffman and her sister, Miss Mary Stone, went to visit a wealthy uncle, who
resided in an eastern city, and who promised to do well by them if they would
come and pay him a visit. The ladies, on getting to the home of the uncle,
found that he had died. They remained a few days, when both were taken
ill. A physician was called and prescribed for them. On their return
home they brought the medicine, which had been given them, along. Mrs.
Kauffman was sick for some days after reaching home, and late one night suicided
by drowning in a barrel of rain water. It was known that she had been made
sick every time that she took of the medicine, and it was supposed that the
stuff had affected her brain.
The sister kept taking the medicine and also
died. The medicine was then taken to a chemist and proved, upon analysis,
to contain enough arsenic to have killed both women outright had they taken it
according to directions. That gentleman was unable to give the name of the
city where the ladies had visited or the name of the physician.
** Submitter's Note: I have
typed this article exactly as it appeared in the paper, including the fact that
the sister of Mrs. Kauffman is first referred to as "Ella" and later
in the story, she is referred to as "Mary". **
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