The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-03-20
HOOD ASTON.
A P0etical suicide Exposed and Frauh
Laid hare.

On the sixth instant our venerable contem-
porary. the PIC. published sensational letter
| from suicide. whose body was found UNDER
| tree at Bay st. Louis on the third instant. The
story as told by the dead man was very roman
tic. He was born. according to his autobio-
graphy, OF poor but honest parents, and was
naturally inclined to virtue and infinite sweet
ness of disposition. wound in the head re-
cejved at the battle Of Gettysburg. however
spoiled all his good temper. as the sequel
| shows Some time after the war Hood Aston,
for such was the suicides name, loved.
courted was accepted and married A beyy
auences Of this, rash act and he was
in a fair way OF being happy. Here the
wound received at Gettysburg began to display
its vicious propensities. Hood Aston was ali
at once seized with an invincibe desire to kill
all those he loved; for this reason he Fed from
bis family and, as he AYERS, roamed through
nally his mania for killing his friends and rel
atives be same 80 great that 10 order to save
eide. after, however having written an eloquent
letter to the purpose above stated.
1t seems. however. that all this romance Is
rom nnd Rse Hood AsPen
with all his literature. Is fraud of the first
magnitude. The people down his way do not
even believe that he Is dead. a witness the fol-
lowing account given by the Dixon tSolano
county. CALI Tribune:
1T declares Hood Aston to have been au
utterly unprincipled adventurer. aud TO be SO
yet. IL he is still In this world. 1t says that
several years since Alston, being In Utah, and
presumably penniie,s. made oyer $1,000 BY lee
lures on the infallibiity Of the Mormon Church.
and the wickedness Of the GENTLE persecution
OF II and Its saints Four years ago when he
won the afec Ct M g, Mrs Aston then the
recently deceased. all her. relatives and her
friends protested aga INST her marrying him.
all ging that his nefarious object was to obtain
UOSSpS ion of her pT0nBrty After marrfQDa
Mr.. and Mrs. Aston went to San Jose. where
they resieed q year. During that time a suit
to be legal heirs of the deceased Werner. Ais
ton was all the time maintaining a rum
ming and costly fight with faro and
the suit WAS finally determined in favor
OF his wife. and he accounted to her for the de-
flcency In the budget by dividing the deficiency
their ORIG inal county Aston obtained an ap.
&C 10 or the
cessful way In which he made the Young Yolo
ideas shoot along the grooves OF the four re-
Quisite RS. But with all his salary and all the
income from his wife's farm. he could not yet
30 skillfully play on the green cloth as to leave
enough In the general fund 70 pay the house.
70 sell the farm aud received 5000 In gold to
bind the contract, under the statute Of frauds
That very same day he fastened down to the
Riverside. and that night be dropped the whole
amount, every cent, at draw poker, having I'M
wisely called upon four queens with only full
on Jacks. Upon the recei pt Of the balance Of the
purchase money he speeded to Sacramento and
deposited slsOotn capital faro bank. few days
after he came to san Francisco. and, returning,
told his wife he had bought a lot at Berkeley.
paid q portion Of it's price and deposited with
Frank Prixley the remainder Of the money
When he and bis wife came down their furni-
ture bad been packed and sent, down also, This
furniture has been recovered. The day he
abandoned his wife he offered her $40 gold
piece. but she declined 1t because she bad four
bits. which was all she had. and which, she
said would be- all she needed til he returned
the same evening, The wa,,ch returned to her
was comparatively worthless, Aston retain
ing valuable gold one. Il was known ne had
e $500 check, being the balance Of $500 paid
His recent neiehbor5 object to his ante mortem
leremiad that it does not explain. why he left
his wife stranger in q strange city without a
cent and with his children to care for. az d they
are sill firm Of the opinion that Hood Aston |
is too cnnsummate a rascal TO commit suicide |
In Mississippi or any place else, In a cemetery
or under cedar. Hood Aston himself and the |
postmaster OF Bay st. Louis to the contrary |