The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer

CALOMEL INSTEAD OF ARSENIC,
But It Wasn't Her Fault It Was Not the
Latter—A Woman's Freak.
West Alexandria, O., November 24
One of the most dastardly attempts to poison
human beings ever made in this State
has just occurred about five miles west of
this place. On Thursday, Mrs. Cynthia
Harshman, wife of a furniture dealer, who
a few months ago made an attempt to poison
her husband, went to the residence of Mrs.
Mary Overholt, a rich old widow and an
imbecile on the question of marriage. She
told Mrs. Overholt that she could furnish
her a husband worth about $50,000, a man
named Charles Coppach, who resided near
the northern boundary of this county.
Mrs. Overholt was highly delighted at the
alluring prospect of a husband worth $50,000.
She was to move her goods into Mrs.
Harshman's house, and live there with the
family.
Mrs. Overholt at once had her goods
hauled to the Harshman residence, and on
Thursday afternoon was safely lodged
there. When Mr. Harshman came home
to supper he was very much surprised to
find Mrs. Overholt domiciled in his house,
but his wife told him she had that day
moved in to keep her company. Mrs.
Harshman requested her husband to get
some fresh oysters for supper, which he
did. Mrs. Harshman prepared them, but
while her husband and Mrs. Overholt ate
heartily of them, she herself would not eat
a bite, feigning sickness.
As soon as the meal was finished both
Mr. Harshman and Mrs. Overholt were
taken suddenly with cramping pains, and
showed all symptoms of being poisoned.
Their son-in-law, named McNeal, sent for
a doctor, and before he came Mrs. Harshman
brought out two glasses of whisky and
desired McNeal to drink one, and she
would drink the other. He refused the
glass she offered, and she drank hers and
threw his glass away. This aroused his
suspicions, and he concluded the woman
was endeavoring to poison them all. His suspicions
proved to be well founded, as it was
afterward learned that Mrs. Harshman had called
at Lake's drug store for arsenic, but the
vigilance of Mr. Lake saved the lives of
Harshman, Mrs. Overholt and McNeal
for he gave her calomel instead of the deadly
poison. The desperate woman had
cooked it with the oysters. Had it been
arsenic all would have died. Mrs. Overholt
has about recovered, but Mr. Harshman
still feels the effects of the overdose of
calomel and may not recover. Mrs. Harshman,
the would-be murderess, has just been
adjudged insane by the Probate Court and
will at once be sent to the asylum.