Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1876-11-23
for in the sickly and emaciated state

IOr III U1e Slckly ana emaclated STATE
of arriving emigrantS, many of them
sick of ScurYy and other diseases
which long voyage or other hard.
ships had produced. Such people
could not work, and being a burden
on others settled the matter by suicide.
Others had miscalculated their own
powers and inclinations and the nature
of the country they had come to. and be-
being either unable or ashamed to per-
form honest labor, and being too timid
to speculate in the ways by which
other adventures made alhving andfor-
tune, quietly and Self-Satisfedly took
a trip to the other world. Disap-
pointed diggers, returning from the
mines with broken hopes and consti-
! tutions, swelled the number of sui
cides. In the stir and hustle of those
early days, if ones health broke
down. he was virtually abandoned
by his friends and left to pine, to
curse the country and its gold, and
mock at the foolish fancies that led
him to it. The cases of suicides are
about the same to-day as then. The
general idea of suicides appear to be
| the escaping of ills which they feel
| they can no longer bear. Being in
curably i'll either in body or spirit, or
| burden to their friends, they feel
morally bound to commit the crime.
This evidently was Hamlet s.
| idea of the question. He thought not
| of sin or remorse as a possible
cause for the taking of ones life,
but only of suffering inflicted and to
be borne. He is perturbed by the OPP
pressor's S wrong and the proud man.
contumely, and from these he would
know whether a man may escape by
Self-slaughter. He considered the
possible alternative dangerous, for by,
suicide he might "fiyto unknown ills, -
but the modern San Francisco suicide
indulges in no such discussion, but de-
liberately goes at the deed with the be-
lief that he will be dealt leniently with
beyond the grave. So believed the old
Greeks and Romans, Cor in the shadowy
realms of their dead the suicide suffered
not at all, while the parricide was in
tenfold agony. Suicide was the
"ROman DEATH" Christianity opposed
suicide, though in Christian France
there have been over 100000 self
murders committed since the opening
OF the present century, and in this
country nearly like number. But to
return to San Francisco and figures.
The records of the Coroner's office are
incomplete as to early dates, but the
list for 1875, and that of the present
year up to date, will serve to illustrate
the number of Self-murderS and the
most popular methods of putting ones
self out of the way. During the year
1875 there were sixty-three suicides in
this city. Death was effected by a
variety of methods, shooting being the
favOrite, no less than nineteen out of
the slXty-three blowing themselves
into eternity. Poison took it appears,
was much esteemed, as eighteen,
deaths from. this cause will testify;
eight persons found that drowning
was safe, sure and efficacious
way of terminating their existence,
while six more preferred to saw their
throats open with a razor; five poor,
miserable and distressed individuals
passed to the other world through the
immediate agency of a rope, while four
sought relief from their earthly trou-
bles by suffocation, and one man, be-
coming frantic over a selection from
the numerous methods, threw his car
cass under the wheels of locomotive
and made sausage of himself. During
the present year the suicides have
numbered 40 up to the 1st of Septem-
Der, and threaten to exceed those of
1875, as, November and December are
usually counted upon as good suicide
months by the coroner. Thus far, six
teen have disposed of themselves by
pistol-shots, five cut their throats with a
razor, five found drowning sure cure
for trouble, twenty-one died from the
effectsof poison, and one died hanging,
while the usual locomotive suicide is al
ready down On the books and safe in the
other world. From the above figures.
it appears that poison has been the.
favorite means of destruction in this,
centennial year, though the pistol and
gun-shot wounds are not very far be-
hind. The record of suicide by poison
shows that strychnine was the favor
ite, seven deaths being attributed to,
its deadly effects. Next in the list
comes morphine, with six deaths;
Iaudanum, with three Deaths; sui
phuric ether, oxalic acid, opium, chlo-
roform and cyanide of potassium. one
each. According to the statement of
Coroner Swan, suicides always, come
IN patches. Francisco Chaonicle.