Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1859-02-05
Extraordinary Suicide in New Orleans.

The New Orleans Crescent of the 24th ult.,
gives the following remarkable story Of a sui
eide:
Sylvester Rupert, 81 years Of age, an Eng
li>hman by birth, and by trade Il ship ear
pcntcr, lived with his wife and two children
in house on Pcrdido street. In October
last, the yellow fever, then prevailing. count
I'd among its victims the youngest chlid ot
the Ruperts-thcir little girl Lizzie about
four years old, and the particular pet of the
father. This was blow from which the
father never recovered. Not able 10 buy a
tomb, he had the child buried in the ground
in Greenwood Cemetery. The grief preyed
heavily upon him. 1t was his only thought;
and. being out of his regular employment, he
found employment in his grief.
lie bought burial lot and some bricks
and other material. and with his own hands,
and all alone in the cemetery, built him a
brick tomb. lie had not the means t" make
the tomb stylish one: So in its mouth or en-
trance he fitted piece of board. and secured
it with screws i'll its four corners. On this
board with which he enclosed the vault. TN
lieu of the usual brick and mortar or marble
slab he had carved nicely with his knife
the burial Inscription of his child. The tomb
finished. he disntcrrcd the child's body and
placed il there. He fastened the board with
screws. in order that he might afterwards
have no trouble in removing il when he felt
like gazing upon the decnying remains of his
child
This employment finished. il was his hab-
it to visit the cemetery. open the tomb. ami
look ut the corpse of his pet. He always
carried IL screw-driver in his pocket with
when To- remove and replace the board ana
also Ia remove and replace the lid of the cot
fin. Neither the haggard aspect Of the
shrinking little corpse. nor the foul od"r OF
its decay. could rrpel him in his morbid
grief. Ills visits were frequent, and some
times his wife went with him. He frequent
" complained to her that he could not get
work: and this inability doubtless tostered
the dependency which was drawing him 10
death He frequently spoke of having no
faith in the future, and of death rs Il de>ra-
bic thing.
On Wednesday, he went to the cemetery
with two shrubs which he had purchased.
and planted them in front Of the tomb. On
Thursday when he left home, he told his
wife that if he had no better luck in finding
work she would never see him again. lie
also said something about having place in
which to rest
That evening. or that night--for no one
saw him in his gloomy procecdings-he vIsi-
ted the cemetery: taking with him his screw
driver. an iron trunk-handle, Il small rod OF
iron. Il piece of wire, some new screws. and
a lar"c vial of laulanum Jnscrewing the
board of the tomb. he threw away the screws
and filled the scrcw-holcs in the board with
clay.
With his new screws ne then secured I'll"
trunk-handlc to the inside of the board
This work of course had to be done outside
Of the tomb. Pushing his child's coffin aside.
he got in by its side, taking with him his
poison and other articles with which he had
provided himself. His hat he placed upon
the coffin: his coat. which he had taken of,
he wrapped around brick for a pillow. He
shut himself in with the board. by means of
the handle he had screwed To it, the board
fitting outside the wooden frame. The iron
bar, which was of the proper length, he
placed across the frame inside. The thick
ness of the frame would not allow the bar To
pass through the trunk-handlo on the inside
of the board: 50 he secured the handle and
the bar by means Of his wire, coillng II
through the one and around the other. He
did not succeed in fitting the board squarciy
upon the frame. One corner oi IT caught
upon the brick-wurk outside the frame; this
he did not discover, probably owing to the
darkness Of the night; and but for this little
circumstance his fate would probably have
never been discovered, or not at least for
many years. Having thus hid himself away.
IA h. iancicd, beyond mortal discovery. h"
drained of the contents of his laudauum bot
tie composed himself on his back, placed
the brick and coat beneath his head, and
went to sleep, and of into the unknown re-
gionS of the suicides.
rs ho did not return home on Thursday
night, his wife feared the worst. remember
ing well the tendency of his late conduct and
the tenor Of his parting words. On Friday
morning she rose early and went out to the
cemetery She looked all around and failed
to find her husband, She went and looked
at the tomb, and was about to leave, when
she happened to notice that the board did
not fit snugly int" the frame aS usual. Look
ing closer, she discovered the mud i'll the
scrrw-hole>; and putting her hand on the
board, found 1t was standing loosely. She
pulled it out little, and the first thing She
saw was the dead face OF her husband. Sh"
tainted away and laid in the grass she could
not tell how long. She recovered at last, got
up and went and informed the sexton. Mr.
Merritt. of her discovery. The latter went
and looked at things, and sent word TO the
coroner; and the inquest was held, rs we have
stated on Saturday
The coroner's verdict was in accordance
with the facts so plainly apparent suicide
by laudanum.
The Public Expenditures.
Mr. Stephens, Of Georgia, is reported to
have employed the following language in