Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1876-06-22
The Most Remarkable Suicide on
Record.

{
named James A. Moon, who resides on a
farm near the Farmers Institute, in
! Union township, nine miles south of the
| city, registered at the Lair House, and
was assigned to room No. Al, on the
third floor. In asking for room he said
| he wanted one in the rear of the house,
| abutting on the alley if possible. No
especial attention was paid to the new
| guest at the house, except that the porters
complained that his baggage was very
heavy, and they had some difficulty in
getting i to his room. The man went in
and out he same as other guests, but on
one occasion he remarked to Mr.. Weak
ley, che of the landlords, that he was en-
gagged in perfecting patent of consider
able Importance. Several times yesterday
the housekeeper tried the door of No. Al j.,
for the purpose Of having it cleaned up,
but each time found it locked. About
five o'clock in the evening, finding the
door still locked, she went through the
adjoining room, No. 40, which opens into
No. Al, and there saw what she supposed
was the dead body of a man lying upon
the floor. She gave the alarm, and the
fl1st persons to arrive upon the scene
were Mr.. Lance, a travelling man for a
Cincinnati drug house, and Henry C.
Tinney, OF our city, who was visiting him.
Theso gentlemen went to the room, and
sure enough they found a dead mana
man with his head completely severed
from his body-cut as clean as one would
a chickens with an axe. The situation,
as they found it, was bad enough, but the
appliances which had been used to pro-
duce death were most wonderful, and will
stand in the history of suicides without a
parallel. We shall attempt to describe
them. In the first place there was beam,
or more properly a lever, about seven feet
long, made up Of three sections, each lit
tie over two feet long, also fastened togeth-
er with strong iron bolts The base o. this
lever was composed Of two pieces of lum-
Der, one inch thick and six wide, spread
perhaps six inches apart. The next sec
ton was also composed of two pieces of
the same size, but considerably closer to-
gether. The last section was a single
piece Of the same size. At the small or
upper end of the lever Tor beam) there
were bolted horizontally two pieces of
iron, one inch thick, three inches wide
and sixteen inches long. At the lower
end Of these pieces Of iron a broad-ax
was bolted, whose bit Or cutting edge was
twelve inches wide. The two pieces of
iron and the ak are estimated to weigh at
least forty pounds. The other or butt-end
Of the beam was fastened TO the floor bv
means of crOss-pieces, with heavy iron
door hinges, securely screwed down. On
the west side of the room heavy bracket
was secured to the wall, with a shelf upon
which candlestick was fastened From
the upper end of the beam a cord was
run to hook in the bracket-the beam
being raised about six feet high and Sc
cured in that position by the cord to the
hook in the wall. Where the cord was
fastened at the wall on the bracket it was
divided and a candle inserted between the
strands, so that when the candle burned
down sufficiently the two strands would
come together and the cord be burned 10
two. This was the means adopted to in
sure the falling of the engine of destruc-
ton. Right under where the ak would
fall a soap. box was secured, screwed to
the wall and floor, with the opening out
ward into the room, so arranged that the
ak could come down in front of the box,
the upper edges being beveled to secure
straight stroke from the implement. The
AK, the irons in which it was clamped,
and the timbers in the beam will probably
altogether weigh a hundred or more
pounds, to say nothing of the force of the
fall, distance Of six feet or more After
arranging the above machine, TIE suicide
laid himself down upon the floor at right
angles with the modern guillotine,
buckled strap around his thighs,
which was screwed down to the
floor, buckled another around his body,
which was similarly fastened to the floor,
put both his hands inside his suspenders
laying, of course, upon his back-and
placed his head inside the box above
lllCul4OuCu. l1IC UOA was uilCu Will COG-
ton batting, saturated with chloroform.
To keep the chin out of the way holes
were made in each side of the box, and
wooden rod ran through, upon which the
chin rested. 1t is supposed that having
his machinery arranged to his satisfaction
and the candle lighted, the suicide laid
himself upon the floor arranged the
straps, applied the chloroform to the
cotton, placed his head in the box, and
calmly slept until the ak descended. To
accommodate his neck three narrow strips
were screwed to the floor, which operated
the same as pillow, and gave good
foundation for the ak to fall into. When
the candle burned down sufficiently the
cord was burned off and the ak fell, COM
pletely severing the head from the body
making a clean job of it. The head re-
manned in the box, while the blood
flowed out upon the floor and accumu-
lated in a great pool. The room is mar
row, and half the mans body lay under
the bed. The physicians say that death
must have ensued some time during the