The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1880-04-01
SUICIDE.
A Man Found With a Bullet in
His Head.

10 the Tithing weigh scslee. The It'll
: ing Office nighlWstchmen, Messr
Fryer and Jensen, discovered hir
,. lying partly in the water ditch an
Is parity on the curhstones, and LITE
is him out, when it was ascertained thu
b his head was BABY bruised above th
e right ear, while his face was also cuI
= At first, it was thought that he wa
? drunk and bad fallen and bruises
D himself; but his heavy breathing in
] dictated that his injuries were of ;
= serious character, and oil efforts L
arouse him proved iruitless. He wa
lifted inside the scsle-house, and thu
police and DR.. Richards called. HI
was then carried into the Tithinl
Office. and the doctor examined the
wound above the ear, probed it ami
stated that the man could moi
live long. He was then carried
to the City Hall, and shortly
after s O'Clock died, never hav-
ing regained consciousness, and never
uttering a word. Coroner Taylor
summoned a jury and the examin
alton commenced. DR.. ]. NJ. Bene-
dict, with Drs. Thomson and F. d.
Benedict probed, the wound, ex-
tracing a ball and following q hole
into the brain about three inches,
and stated that death was caused by
hemorrhsge of the brain. The skull
was broken at the point where the
ball had entered, about an inch and
half above the right ear. The jury
not being Satisfied, the skull was cut
open, and the course of the ball traced
through the brain; pieces of the skull
bone we're also found in the brain,
while CONCEALED blood was discovered
inside the lining of the brain, proving
that death had resulted from the
cause stated. Besides this there were
the other cuts on the face heretofore
mentioned. An examination showed
that just inside the Eagle Gate blood
had been dropped and it was plain
that the man shot himself there. He
could be traced from that spot to the
picket fence around the shade trees
west of the Eagle gate, where blood
WAS discovered on stone, and from
there in a zig zsg route to the place
where he was found by the night
watohmen, the course being indicated |
by the drops of blood.
Mr.. Glenn. Horsley, who was going
home from the Theatre about 2
O'Clock, testified that he saw two men
near the Eagle Gate, and that upon
reaching that point he saw one walk
ing along the road leading up City
Creek Csfion. About half an hour
later Mr.. Harry Horsley, also going
home from the Theatre, stated to the
jury that he saw man reel out Of
the Eagle Gate, around by the shade
trees and fall down, but thinking him
drunk, passed on without paying any
further attention to him. Further
testimony evidenced the fact that he
had arrived here on Saturday night,
and registered at the Overland House
as G. Drake, Topeka, KS; that he
was a quiet man; paid for everything;
drank but little, so far as known; had
a buckskin purse about six or seven
inches long, which contained about i
two inches of coin, as near as could
be guessed by those that saw it. He
had no money on his person when
found; there were some eighty car
tridges in his pocket, which proved
to be OF the same calibre, decided By
weight, as the one taken from his
brain. His satchel was opened,
which contained nothing but shirt
or two and some socks. A new diary
was foand on him, with the words,
George Wilson Drake, Beattie, Mar
shall County, Kansas" with the
words, Overland House," written on
the first leaf. A money order, rev
ceipting for money received from the
above named person and sent to Mar
garet Drake, OF the above address,
was also found. and telegram was
sent 20 that lady regarding the affair.
When last seen SO as to be identified
he was in a saloon in company with
two men.
Many thought it a clear case Of
murder, but it seems unreasonable to
make such supposition. 1t IS true
that his face was not powder burned
in the least, but it was claimed by
that powder from pistol
carrying g ball of the cahbre of that
taken from the mans head would not
burn at Elk inches. A pistol, how
ever, carrying the same sized ball was
held about six inches from q newspa
per and fired of by Coroner Taylor,
and the powder burned through three
folds. 1t was again fired at q
feather at the same distance, and
the feather was burned by the powder.
1t therefore appearing that the muzzle
of the pistol could not have been more
than six or eight inches away from
the mans head, had he been attempt
ing suicide, his lace would necessarily
have been powder burned. Another
reason that led to tue belief OF muir
der was that no pistol was found any
where near the place, as would, in
all probability have been the case had
it been q case Of suicide. 1t was also
alleged that everything tended to
establish the opinion that the man
vas murdered for bis money, and the
only reason he was not killed outright
was because the cartridge carried
only three grains OF powder. A piss
lol was. picked up on the street early
Yesterday morning, near the residence
of the late William Clayton, which
carried the same sized ball, but it
was shown clearly that it belonged to
a young man named Beattie, and
had been dropped by a friend toI
whom it was loaned; so 1t cannot
figure in this matter. The mystery
is that 10 shot was heard by any one.
Last evening, however, some new
facts were developed in the case,
which leave but little doubt about its
being suicide. Vigorous search had
been made for the pistol with which
the shooting was done, and as it was
not found and for the reasons given
above, the natural conclusion was
that il could not have been suicide,
or the pistol would have been found.
Last evening Mr.. John Wardrobe
came up from West Jordan and de
livered to the police a plstol which he
nicked I'D at the Eagle Gate Wednes'
dav morning, near the place where
the blood was. Accompanied by his
brother Abraham, they were coming
through the gate, between and z
O'Clock, when John saw the handle Oh