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May 18, 1921

Dr. Ray Lyman Wilbur,
Stanford University.

Dear Dr. Wilbur:

In my autobiography I shall not go into many
details as to Mrs. Stanford's death. But I think
that the University should have a record of the cir-
cumstances which led to the widespread idea that she
was poisoned, and the simple explanations which the
facts permit.

Mrs. Stanford died on February 18, 1905. On
the day before, she went on a picnic to the glorious
scenery of the Pali, overdoing herself and overeating
from the generous luncheon provided by the Hotel Moana.
In the night she awoke with agonizing pain, believing
that she had been poisoned. She had taken a little
bicarbonate of soda as a relief from the overfull
feeling, and some time in the day also a tonic pill
prescribed, I was told, by Dr. Stanley Stillman, in
which there was a minute quantity of nux vomica.

Her secretary, Miss Bertha Berner and her lady's
maid, a Miss Hunt, gave her emetics, in spite of which,
in great pain, but without rigor, she died during the
night. The attendant physician, Dr. Humphries if I
recall the name (an English remittance man, if not of
good reputation) seemed dazed, as if under the influ-
ence of some drug. When told by Mrs. Stanford that
she had been poisoned by strychnine, he tasted the
bottle of soda, and said something to the effect that
it contained strychnine enough to kill a dozen men.

Six days later, Mr. Hopkins and I reached Hono-
lulu. We took with us two very competent detectives,
Captain Cullandan, a private detective and a
man of great ability and integrity, and Mr. Reynolds
from the Police Force of San Francisco.