In the basement, police found two hatchets, two axes, and a hatchet-head with a broken handle. The hatchet-head was suspected of being the murder weapon as the break in the handle appeared fresh and the ash and dust on the head, unlike that on the other bladed tools, appeared to have been deliberately applied to make it look as if it had been in the basement for some time. However, none of these tools were removed from the house. Because of the mysterious illness that had stricken the household before the murders, the family's milk and Andrew's and Abby's stomachs (removed during autopsies performed in the Borden dining room) were tested for poison; none was found. Residents suspected Lizzie of purchasing 'hydrocyanic acid in a diluted form' from the local drugstore. She defended that she inquired about the acid, so she could clean her furs (despite the local medical examiner's testimony that it did not have antiseptic properties).