CSI: 1906 Style
Forensics Before There Were Fancy Gizmos to Perform Tests.
Newspaper stories about autopsies connected to the Holy Roller case in 1906 make for some interesting reading.
George Mitchell was killed just days after he had been found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity, so his brain was scrutinized to see if it showed abnormalities.
A few months later, one of his murderers, Maud Hurt Creffield, committed suicide and the chemist who studied her stomach contents went into great detail as to how he came by his findings. I would not suggest trying this at home.
Seattle Post Intelligencer 11/21/1906 p1
Poison Is Found In The Stomach Of Mrs. Creffield
Chemist C. Osseward Determines The Presence Of
Strychnine After Careful Analysis
Five Color Tests All Show Alkaloid Traces.
The Most Delicate Of These, Which Indicates Reaction
Is .000001 Of Grain
Coroner Says Woman Took Her Own Life.
Question Now Confronting The Officials Is How The
Woman Obtained The Substance.
Mrs. Ida Maud Creffield died
of strychnine poisoning. C. Osseward, chemist of the firm of Osseward &
Rubenstein, has found at least a grain of this poison in the contents of the
stomach of the dead woman, and Coroner F. M. Carroll has certified that Mrs.
Creffield committed suicide by taking the deadly alkaloid.
The question that confronts
the officials, now that it has been practically determined that the woman died
of poisoning, is how it came in her possession. It may have been smuggled into
the jail by some visitor or prisoner, or Mrs. Creffield may have had a few
grains secreted on her person when she was first arrested.
Careful
search has been made of the cell and personal belonging of both Mrs. Creffield
and Esther Mitchell since the death of the former by the county jail officials,
assisted by Police Matron Kelly, but nothing was found but what had been allowed by the jailer.
DESCRIBES CHEMICAL PROCESS
Mr. Osseward, when
instructed to make a chemical analysis of the contents of the dead woman’s
stomach, first of all examined it lining to determine if there were any traces
of corrosives. “I found none,” he said.
“My next step was to extract
the alkaloids, if any existed.
“After cutting up the
contents of the stomach they were subjected to a treatment of alcohol and
tartaric acid at a temperature of 70 degrees. After cooling, this mixture was
squeezed out and the liquid filtered, and after filtration again, treated in
the same manner as before with a fresh solution of alcohol and tartaric acid to
make sure.
“This solution was also
filtered and evaporated, at a temperature of not over 40 degrees, to about half
its former bulk. It was then again refiltered to eliminate the fatty matter and
the albuminous substances as much as possible.
“The evaporation was
continued at the same temperature till all the alcohol was driven off.
“The extracted matter left
was taken up with a little distilled water and again filtered. To this filtered
solution was added ether to extract as much of the coloring matter as possible.
This would also extract from the acid solution digatalin and picrotoxin.
“This ether solution was
separated, after a thorough shaking and standing some time, from the water
solution and set aside for further examination. This process was repeated until
no more coloring remained in the ether solution.
“Next I added a weak
solution of sodium-hydra, until it showed distinct alkaline reaction to
turmeric paper.
“This process would throw
out all alkaloids except morphine, which would be dissolved in the
sodium-hydra.
“This alkaline-watery
solution was now shaken up with ether, which would take up any alkaloids except
the morphine. After standing two hours the ether solution was separated from
the watery solution and the same process repeated until no more residue showed
in the ether.
ALKALOID DISCOVERED
“The tests were applied for
alkaloids in general, and showed rather a large precipitate, giving proof that
some alkaloid was present in my solution.
“The question was which one.
The first test was for strychnine. The reason was that the solution tasted very
bitter and showed almost without a doubt that we had found that we had poison
to deal with.”
STRYCHNINE FOUND
Mr. Osseward applied five different color tests, the most
sensitive of which--the sulphuric-permanganat test--shows traces of .000001 of a grain, indicated
strychnine.
After his color tests had
proved that strychnine existed, Mr. Osseward so notified the coroner. This was
at noon yesterday. Last night the chemist by use of a powerful microscope
developed the crystals of the poison.
“There is at least a grain,”
he said, “in the solution. Of course, this does not include that taken up by
absorption before the woman died.”
The authorities are
determined to ascertain, if possible where the poison was obtained and with
this end in view all persons who have at any time visited the prisoners in the
county jail will be examined. Arrests may follow.
[(Corvallis Times) The
authorities have not as yet made any attempt to detain Mrs. Levins, the cousin
of Mrs. Creffield, and her last caller, but there will be an investigation and
arrests may follow.]
NEURALGIA, THINKS MRS.
LEVINS
Mrs. A. Levins, a cousin of
Mrs. Maud Creffield, who lives at 2409 Fourth Avenue said:
I have been in the habit of
visiting Mrs. Creffield at the county jail about twice a week, and I have
noticed that she has been failing in health for some time. I was raised with
Maud and knew her very intimately, being a member of her father’s family. I was
very much surprised when I heard the report that she was poisoned. It was very
far from anything that she would naturally do. I didn’t know of the poisoning
report until today, and I hardly believe it yet.
“Even if she was poisoned I
don’t think they would know it.
“We frequently brought her
fruit and edibles, but always gave them to the jailer, and I think that is the
case with everything that is sent to prisoners at the jail. It all goes through
the jailer’s hands. I have no suspicion that she was poisoned or of anybody
poisoning her. So far as her taking medicine is concerned, I don’t think she
had any except what the doctor at the jail gave her. She was a woman of very
good general health. The only thing that bothered her was neuralgia. I have
been with her several times when she had these attacks of neuralgia, and she
suffered terribly for several days. I did not know that she was dead until my
cousin, Frank Hurt, and his wife came out here and told me. When we were down
town the doctor at the morgue told us that Maud died of neuralgia of the heart.
That’s what I think she died of. I noticed that she failed very rapidly
lately.”
Chief Deputy Sheriff Ed Drew
stated yesterday that visitors to those who are waiting for trial on murder
charges at the county jail are not searched.
“It has never been the
custom to search such visitors,” said Drew yesterday. “They are not allowed to
carry in packages to prisoners, and when they visit prisoners it is done under
the supervision of the jailers. The visits are always held in the corridor,
where a man can keep an eye on both partied concerned.”
CLOSE WATCH ON ESTHER
MITCHELL
Since the death of Mrs.
Creffield the officials at the county jail have been keeping close watch on
Esther Mitchell. The prisoner now occupies a cell just off the jailer’s office,
where she can be observed at all times, and another woman prisoner is kept in
the cell with her.
“Esther has been very
nervous since Mrs. Creffield die,” said Jailer Tom Smith yesterday afternoon, “
and since she has been told that her companion evidently died of poisoning she
has been worse.”
The girl emphatically denied
yesterday that she knew anything concerning the cause of Mrs. Creffield’s
death. “I don’t believe she killed herself,” she said. “I don’t believe she
killed herself,” she said. “I think she died of heart trouble, and I shall
always think so, I don’t care what the doctor’s say.
DEPUTY THINKS CHEMIST
MISTAKEN
Deputy Sheriff Phil Kearney,
who locked Mrs. Creffield and Esther Mitchell in their cell the night the elder
woman died, stated yesterday that he believed the chemist was mistaken.
“Mrs. Creffield was taking a
foot bath when I went to lock them up, and Esther asked me to wait a few
minutes. Both of the women appeared to be in unusually good spirits at the time
and called a cheery good night to me as I left them.”
DR. CARROLL’S STATEMENT
Dr. Carroll, in discussing
the finding of strychnine in the stomach of the dead woman, said:
Mrs. Creffield may have had
the poison in her possession before her arrest. It would have been an easy
matter to secrete enough of the poison in her clothing to produce her death. To
find it would have been a very difficult matter, although I understand the cell
where the two women were kept has been thoroughly gone through, it may be that
the girl has poison secreted about her person now and may use it at any time. I
do not think it was probable that Mrs. Creffield’s death was due to strychnine
poisoning obtained through an overdose of any tonic that might have contained a
percentage of the substance.
BELIEVES IT WAS CRYSTALLIZED
“I believe that Mrs.
Creffield took the strychnine in the crystallized form and in that case a grain
would have been sufficient to cause her death. One eighth of a grain is
considered the maximum dose and is administered in so large a quantity only in
extreme heart failure.
“Tonics are sometimes given
containing iron, quinine and strychnine. The percentage of strychnine in such cases is very minute.
“Mrs. Creffield died in
about forty minutes after it was first noticed that she was ill. Even in
uraemic poisoning or acute Bright’s disease the
patient’s live longer. Had the chemist not found traces of strychnine in the
stomach, my report on Mrs. Creffield’s death would have read:
’Death resulted from uraemic
poisoning, due to toxic influence, either internal or external. Now that I have
the report of the chemist I have certified that Mrs. Creffield committed
suicide by taking strychnine.”
Dr. J. C. Snyder, county
jail physician, stated that the only poison ever allowed inside the county jail
by his authority was bi-chloride of mercury, contained in antiseptic tablets.
NO STRYCHNINE ALLOWED IN
JAIL
“There has never been any
strychnine in the jail,” said Dr. Snyder. “I never administered it except in a
tonic, and then the dose was less than one one-hundred and twentieth of a
grain. The only medicine I have ever prescribed for either Mrs. Creffield or
Esther Mitchell was when they were suffering from slight stomach troubles
incident to the hot weather last summer, and there was never anything of a
poisonous nature contained in the medicines given.
“The effect of bi-chloride
of mercury poisoning is entirely different from that of strychnine. It is a
caustic and I have never yet attended a case where death resulted, although I
know of cases where bi-chloride of mercury produced fatal results when taken
internally.”
Mrs. Stirton,
who lives at 1917 Seventh avenue west, and is said by the officers to visit the
county jail frequently on errands of charity and mercy, said to a reporter last
evening:
I don’t know anything about
Mrs. Creffield or the county jail. I think it strange that people cannot do
little acts of sympathy and kindness without getting notoriety. I am ready to
respond to calls of this kind at any time, but I don not want any notoriety
about it. I certainly have nothing to say for publication. The papers are too
sensational as it is. I don’t see why a reporter should be sent here. This
publicity discourages sympathy and kindness in the world.”
Seattle Post Intelligencer 11/19/1906 p5
Gives Opinion on Creffield Autopsy
Dr. J. H. Snively, Alienist, Reviews Findings in
Examination of Brain.
Dr. J. H. Snively, a member
of the commission which examined Mrs. Maud Creffield as to
her sanity, in reviewing the results of the autopsy said last evening:
Sometimes in cases of
insanity there occur adhesions between the membrane of the brain and certain
parts of the brain itself. These have often been found as a cause of mental
aberration, as have also pressure symptoms and degeneration of brain matter. These
latter conditions are not apparent to the naked eye and must be found through
the microscope. And so far as I am aware no such minute examination was
conducted in the instance of this autopsy.
“In this particular case it
was noted that there were adhesions between the durameter and the brain over
the parietal lobe, and also adhesions in the middle fissures. Not only that,
but there was also an area of congestion over the floor of the fourth ventricle
in the medulla oblongata. This congestion might be the result of uraemic
poisoning or other toxic conditions due to taking poisons in the stomach. The
only things we can say that have any relation to insanity are the adhesions of
the membranes to the brain, and these were found in the examination of Mrs.
Creffield’s brain, as were also the congestions.
“Degeneration in her case
would not easily be found, for the disease could only be in its early stages
and undoubtedly difficult to detect.”
Chapter of Holy Rollers where these articles are some of the sources:
Chapter 21: Yet Another Page One Murder
***
More Articles About George Mitchell''s Murder
Editorial Calling for Gun Control in 1906
***
Newspaper Articles about Creffield & the Holy Rollers
1897-1903: B.C. (Before Creffield)
October to December 1903:Holy Rollers Burn Furniture & Pets
January to March, 1904: Holy Rollers Tarred and Feathered
April to June 1904: Holy Rollers are Committed to the Asylum
July 1904: Creffield is Found & Arrested
September 1904: Creffield's Trial
April 1906: Men are Gunning For Creffield
May 1906: Creffield is Murdered, Murderer is Considered a Hero
May 1906: Holy Rollers Found Starving Near Heceta Head
June 1906: George Mitchell's Trial Begins
July 1906: Hurt Testifies of Debauched Wife and Debased Sisters
July 1906: Esther Mitchell Kills Her Brother
August to October 1906: Seattle Prepares for another Big Trial
November 1906: Maud Hurt Creffield Commits Suicide
April 1909-August 1914: Esther Leaves the Asylum
1953 Stewart Holbrook's Murder Without Tears
1951Startling Detective Magazine, Nemesis of the Nudist High Priest
***
Chapters from
Holy Rollers: Murder & Madness in Oregon's Love Cult
Part 1: The Seduction
Chapter 1: Trust Me, Brothers And Sisters
(Life Before Creffield [B.C.])
Chapter 2: God, Save Us From Compromising Preachers
(Creffield's Preachings)
Chapter 3: The Flock
(Profiles of the Holy Rollers Were)
Chapter 4: The Holy Rollers
(Things Start to Get Wild on on Kiger Island)
Chapter 5: Housecleaning
(There's a Sacrificial Bonfire)
Chapter 6: Community Concerns
(Officers Visit)
Chapter 7: Esther, The Chosen One
(Creffield Plans to Marry 16-Year- Old)
Chapter 8: Tar and Feathers
(The Men of Corvallis Act)
Chapter 9: Sane People Don’t Go Bareheaded
(Holy Rollers are Committed to the Asylum)
Chapter 10: More Beast Than Man
( Creffield is Arrested)
Chapter 11: God Will Plead Creffield's Case
(Creffield in Court)
Chapter 12: Scandal
(Shocking Testimony at the Trial)
Chapter 13: Calm Before the Storm
(The Holy Rollers Resume their Lives)
Chapter 14: Giving Up The Ghost
(Men are Gunning for Creffield)
Part Two: The People V. Creffield
Chapter 16: The Widow Creffield
Chapter 19: An Inherited Streak of Insanity
Part Three: The Madness
Chapter 23: Seeking Reconciliation
Chapter 24: Another Holy Roller Page One Murder
Chapter 25: What Can Papa Do For You?
Chapter 26: Human Life is Too Cheap In This Community
Chapter 30: The Final Chapter
(What Happened to Everyone Afterwards)
The Epilogue
(Heaven's Gate)