The Fall River Tragedy: A History of the Borden Murders

by Edwin H. Porter

He said: “I received a package containing two stomachs August 5. The package contained four jars. The first one was labelled ‘Milk of August 4,’ the second was labelled ‘Milk of August 5,’ the third was labelled ‘Stomach of Andrew J. Borden,’ and the fourth, ‘Stomach of Mrs. Andrew J. Borden.’ I opened the packages, which bore their original seals, and found both stomachs perfectly natural in appearance. There was no evidence of any inflammation. I opened and examined the contents of the stomachs. The stomach of Mrs. Andrew J. Borden contained eleven ounces of semi-solid food, the rest being water. At least four-fifths and perhaps nine-tenths was solid food. The rest was water. It was partially digested. The solid food contained bread or rather wheat, starch and a good deal of fat. That is, the contents were chiefly bread, or similar food, meat and oil. It also contained many vegetable pulp cells; which might be potatoes, and also some vegetable tissue, which might be apple or onion skins. The digestion seemed to be advanced two or three hours. To the best of my opinion it had advanced two and one-half hours more or less. The stomach was immediately tested for prussic acid with negative results. There was no prussic acid in the stomach. I made a more complete analysis later with the same result. The stomach of Mr. Borden contained six ounces, mostly water. Nine-tenths was water and one-tenth solid material. In

connection with Mrs. Borden’s stomach there were many solid bits of meat. In Mr. Borden’s stomach the food contained but small quantities of starch. The principal part of the solid food was vegetable pulp, and digestion in his stomach had advanced three and one-half to four hours. Digestion was very much further advanced than in the case of Mrs. Borden. There was about two and one-half hours difference. There were a few shreds of vegetable tissue in his stomach. I tested Mr. Borden’s stomach for prussic acid with negative results. I did not test it for any other poison, but there was no evidence of irritation in either. I have not yet analyzed the milk.”

There was a pause as Prof. Wood concluded the sentences and a notable relaxation of the tension which prevailed through the room. It was but momentary, however, and in a second everybody was on edge again, as the District Attorney propounded the next inquiry.

“Did you receive a trunk?” he asked.

“I did,” answered the professor. “I was in Fall River, August 9, and on August 10 I received from Dr. Dolan a trunk. In the trunk there was a hatchet and two axes, a blue dress skirt, a blue dress waist, a white starched skirt, a lounge cover and a large envelope which contained three small envelopes. One was marked, ‘Hair taken from Andrew J. Borden,’ a second, ‘Hair taken from Mrs. Andrew J. Borden,’ a third, ‘Hair taken from the hatchet.’ On Aug. 16, I received from Marshal Hilliard a box containing a pair of shoes and a pair of woman’s black stockings. Of these I examined the hatchet. It contained quite a number of suspicious looking spots, which looked as if they might be blood spots. They were on the edge and handle. There were no blood spots, however, on the hatchet, as my examination showed. The same was true of the axes. Every spot that it seemed possible might be blood I tested, and found no blood whatever on the instruments. On the blue dress there was a stain near the pocket. It was a smirch and looked as if it might be a blood smooch, but it was not. There was a lower stain of similar appearance, but it was not blood. There was no spot whatever on the blue dress waist. The white skirt had one very small spot, which was plainer outside than on the inside of the garment. It was almost a foot and six inches from the bottom. It was one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter. That was a spot of blood, and there was no other spot on the skirt. The carpet was light Brussels and had two dried pools of blood. I recognized it as the

sitting room carpet. The other carpet was saturated. It was from the spare room and was found under the body. There was a stain on the lounge cover, which looked like blood, but it was not. The envelope marked hair from Andrew J. Borden, contained a lock of white hair stained with blood. The envelope marked hair from Mrs. Andrew J. Borden, contained a lock of dark gray hair, stained with blood. The envelope marked hair from the hatchet, contained a hair of red brown color. The root and end were there and the hair was like that of a cow or some other animal. It was not a human hair. I next examined the pair of shoes. On the bottom of the right shoe there was a stain that looked like blood, but a careful testing showed that it came from the tanning. There was no spot on the shoe, and I found nothing on either of the other two axes.”

CAPTAIN DENNIS DESMOND.

Then pent-up excitement could be contained no longer, and great sighs of relief from the strain were heard as the professor concluded the important portion of his testimony. The friends of Miss Borden looked greatly relieved and the prisoner herself appeared easier, but there was no change upon the placid countenance of the District Attorney. Mr. Knowlton then asked some questions regarding the stains on the hatchet. Professor Wood said the material that looked like blood was chiefly wood and other fibres. There was a little stain and a long narrow stain on the bended edge, and on the blade was a spatter of water and iron rust. “I examined the stains on the handle for blood spots with negative results.” This ended Prof. Wood’s testimony and Captain Philip Harrington was called. He said: “After hearing of the murders, I went to the house, and entered at the side door. Went into the sitting room and on the lounge was a body. It was very much mutilated. Went up stairs and saw Mrs. Borden’s body. Came down and looking into a room saw Miss Lizzie and Miss Russell. I stepped into the room and asked Miss Lizzie if she knew anything about the crime, and she said ‘No.’ She was cool and collected, and

said she could tell me nothing at all. I then asked her when she last saw her father. She said: ‘When he returned from the Post Office.’ She said Maggie was in the house and she was in the barn. I asked her how long she was there and she said, ‘twenty minutes.’ I asked her if she was sure it was fifteen minutes or half an hour, and she said, ‘No, it was twenty minutes.’ Then I told her she had better be careful what she said, and that to-morrow she might have a clearer frame of mind. She made a courtesy and said, ‘No, sir, I can tell you all I know now, just as well as at any other time.’ I asked her if she had seen anybody go by, and she said no. I said, ‘The barn is not a great distance, and as the screen door would have made a noise if anybody had passed it, would she not have heard it.’ She said she was up in the loft. She said she saw nobody in the yard or about. I asked her if she had any suspicion, and she told me about a man who had angry words with her father about a store. She heard her father say he would never let his store for that business. The man came again about two months ago, and there was another angry interview. Then she heard her father tell him the next time he was in town to call and see about it. I asked her if the man was from out of town, and she said yes, she should judge so. I said, ‘Miss Borden, I would advise you not to submit to any further interviews. By to-morrow you may be able to recollect more about this man.’ I asked her if she had heard her father say anything about this and she said no. I then went down stairs and Dr. Bowen was there. There was a small fire in the stove and what appeared to be the remains of some burned paper lay in the fireplace of the stove. The fire was very low.” Officer Harrington then detailed the story of the search of the barn. The hay, he said, was tossed about.