Ascension County Louisiana Archives News.....4 Mire Children Poisoned September 4, 1875
************************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm
************************************************

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Mary K. Creamer marykcreamer.00@gmail.com March 25, 2020, 9:27 pm

Source: The Donaldsonville Chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, September 04, 1875, Image 3 September 4, 1875

PECULIAR DEATH OF FOUR CHILDREN. - From Mr. Felix Reynaud of New River we 
have learned the particulars of a remarkable case of fatal poisoning that 
occurred in the family of Mr. Douradou Mire, residing at Conway Settlement, 
7th ward of this parish. Wednesday evening of last week, August 25th, four 
of Mr. Mire's children, two boys aged 12-1/2 and 8 years respectively, and 
two girls of 10 and 6 years, came home from a ramble in the woods, where 
they had been gathering muscadines, and complained of pain in the stomach. 
At 6 o'clock next morning Mrs. Mire administered to each of the children a 
dose of santonine dragees, commonly known as "vermifuge candy." About four 
hours afterward all the children were taken sick, vomiting or retching 
continually, and refusing to take any remedies. They craved water, but as 
soon as drinking it would be seized with fits of vomiting of renewed 
violence, emitting only blood and water. No medical attendance could be 
procured, one of the resident physicians being absent from home and the 
other confined to his bed with an attack of rheumatism. At 2 o'clock on the 
following morning, Friday, the older girl died; at 10 o'clock the older boy 
expired; and a half-hour after noon the younger girl also breathed her last. 
The younger boy lingered until 1 P. M. on Saturday, the 28th, when he, too, 
found relief from his sufferings in death. The symptoms preceding death were 
the same in each case. Convulsions would set in, lasting about two hours; 
then for an hour the patient would be quiet and easy, passing peacefully 
away from life, apparently free from pain.

Did these children die from the effects of the medicine given them, or was 
death caused by some poisonous berry or other substance they had eaten when 
hunting muscadines in the woods? Mr. Reynaud will endeavor to have this 
question solved, and to that end has obtained possession of the two vials of 
dragees from which those given to the children were taken. He has placed a 
couple of these dragees in the hands of Dr. J. E. Duffel, who in turn has 
sent them to New Orleans for analyzation. One of the vials is from the 
manufactory of Grimault & Co. of Paris, the other from Pelletier of Lyons. 
Mrs. Mire states that she took only one dragee from the Grimault vial. Those 
that remained had adhered to the glass, so she opened the Pelletier vial and 
obtained seven others, giving two to each child. She is unable to recall to 
which she administered the Grimault dragee and one of Pelletier's; Mr. 
Reynaud thinks it not improbable that it was to the younger boy, who, it 
will be observed, lived twenty-four hours longer than any of the rest. If 
this surmise is correct, and the medicine really caused the deaths, it 
indicates that the Pelletier dragees contained the poison.

Since learning of this sad occurrence, we have been informed of several 
instances in which nearly fatal results have been produced from 
administering "vermifuge candy" to children. We do not know how this remedy 
is regarded by the medical profession generally, but believe that many 
physicians advise against its use.


File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/la/ascension/newspapers/4mirechi575gnw.txt

This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/lafiles/

File size: 3.8 Kb