The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-05-27
C.OUDED REASON,

TAKE heb OWN LIFE To JOIN HER HUs
BAND BEYOND THE BORDER
The telegraph yesterday told the reader
of the Sentinel of the attempted suicide o
Mrs Lincoln. The following from the Chi
cago Times gives the full particulars:
was not until late hour in the AFTERNOON
melancholy truth that during the brie
time, in which she had contrived to elude bel
| guards, the unhappy lady bad made de.
termined but Intellectual effort TO commit
! suicide. The plan she laid and carried out
as she for time supposed, was contrived
with that remarkable degree of cunning
| which people In her condition of mind so fire.
quently exhibit, and 1t Is almost miracu-
lous that she did not succeed. The deter
mination displayed, too, shows that she had
firmly resolved never TO be taken to
| the asylum, and had she not fortunately
met with those who knew her and were &C
quainted with her misfortune, and felt
| moved by kindly resi- ect for them, it is al
most certain that she would have carried her
! determination into effect. OF course every
precaution had been taken to guard against
any attempt of this kind, both by her son
and by Mr.. SWEET, who has managed
THIS MOST UNPLEASANT MATTER
with most commendable care and considera-
ton. No one could have been more circum-
spect than they, the one actuated by motives
of filial affection and the other by. strong
sense OF duty owed to the unhappy widow
of his old-time friend and law partner, and
both knowing well that almost any wild
frenzy might seizs upon her disordered mind
at any moment, and impel her to end her
unhappy life. They thought they had
planned well, and that every opportunity
for such thing, should it unhappIly suggest
ITSELF was cut of, and placed even beyond
the bounds of possibility. But the calcu :
lations of some minds, shrewd and cum
ming though they may be, are sometimes out
witted by that keener shrewdness and cum
ding with which shattered intellects are often
gifted, and so it was in this case. So near as
can be learned she found it an easy matter
to convince the girl who had been stationed
in her room to prevent any effort on her
part to jump out of the window, that it was
necessary for her to step out into the hall
for moment. The good-natured servant
consented, probably after some remon-
STRANGE, and once outside she seems to have
found it quite as easy to pass the stalwart
darby aud Pinkert0n's man, both OF whom
had been instructed not to allow her to pass
them on any pretense, though in no case to
lay hands on her or offer her any violer CD.
SHE HURRIED BY THEM
and down the staircase toward the east
& Co., where she ordered two ounces of
laudanum and like quantity of camphor.
The clerk looked at her doubtingly when
she made this demand, but she assured him
that she Was troubled with neuralgia In her
shoulder, and the pain was often so severe
that she was impelled to seek relief by bath
ing il in the compound she had ordered.
Still the clerk hesitsted, and finally con-
suited the proprietor, who suspected the
real object tor which the mixture was de-
sired, and concluding wisely that little
strategy was better than an absolute
refusal, he told her that it should ba pre-
pared for her, but that l. would
tske about ten minutes to put it up. hop
ing in this brief space oftime TO find mean
OF again plBcing her in the control of her
friends. But this did not suit her, probably
for the reason that she suspected the real
object of the excuse, or else that she would
be discovered before it could be prepared.
Without saying another word to indicate
her intention, she stepped out to the side
walk, called carriage from the number
always waiting there, and, stepping quickly
inside, drove to the store of Rogers * Smith,
scarcely block away. at the corner of Clark
and Adams streets. The druggist to whom
she had first applied suspected her object
and hurried after her, as did Pinkerton's
man. who was
THOROUGHLY ALARMED AT THE PREDICA-
MENT
in which his orders and the lady's conduct
were placing him. She reached the store
and gave her order for the same deadly
compound, but the druggist and police
ceiving it, even though the compounder
of drugs had been disposed to give it to
her. She was again met with some ex-
cuse. and again she turned to her carriage
and sdrove to William Dsle's establish
ment. two blocks farther away down Clark |
street, towssd the Sherman House. The |
druggist and policeman followed, and
again she failed to procure the deadly |
fluid By this time IL seemed to occur to
her that her prescription must have
been compounded at the first place to |
which she applied, so she again entered |
her carriage and drove back TO Squair's |
store at the Pacific hotel. Arrived there she |
renewed her demand, ard seeing no other |
way out OF the difficulty, four-ounce vial |
was filled with colored but harmless fluid |
and given her. She grasped it eagerly and |
started for her room, but had scarcely passed |
beyond the door when she had placed the
vial to her lips and drained it of its contents. |
She then went quietly to her room and with |
the utmost compOsure awaited what she /
supposed was the inevitable approach of
death. But in this she was disappointed, |
and she was not slow to discover it. After |
waiting about 10 or 20 minutes without feel |
ing any unpleasant effects from the draught, |
she essayed to repeat the effort and
AGAIN SLIPPED FROM HER ROOM
and passed down to the drug store. She
told Mr.. Squair that the lotion seemed too
weak to afford her any relief, and asked for
another ounce OF laudanum to strengthen |
it. In order that there might be no mistake
about it, she stepped behind the prescription
case to see that il was properly prepared, |
thus putting the druggist to his wits ends |
to find a new way to deceive her. Mr.. |
Robert Lincoln, for whom he had sent the |
moment he first saw her In the store. had |
not arrived, and there was no one at
hand into whose care she could be |
given. The only thing to be done was
to keep her waiting as long as
possible, in the hope that relief of some