Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-11-29
LOCAL INTELLIGENCE.
SUICIDE BY POISONING


George S. Roth, son Of Simon Roth, whose
harness shop is near the Golden Eagle on K
street, between Sixth and Seventh, commit
ted suicide by taking strychnine yesterday
afternoon. It is said that he has been de-
spondent for some time and remarked few
weeks since to associates that he would put
himself tout of the way one of these times. y
He was formerly at work in his fathers shop.
and told friend on Sunday that he had got
his tools at the shop again and should go to
work yesterday. He was about 20 wears of
age. He had drank several times Yesterday
but was said not to be intoxicated, and be-
tween II and l o'clock in the afternoon went
to the drug store of j. j. Spieker, at the
corner of Sixth and K streets, and asked for
some strychnine. which he wanted, he said.
to kill rats. To avoid suspicion, he followed
his remark of calling for it by saying: 1.-THE
place where our shop is used to be restaurant,
you know, before we had our shop there, and
the rats have pestered Us to death ever
since we have been there" The clerk TO
whom he applied used commendable care in
the matter of selling the poison, and sug-
gested that as ssrychnine was so dangerous to
have around, that he use phosphorus paste.
which he recommended as very effective for
SGS PAA EpSC VI aiming anu look GOWN a
box to show him. George took the box in
his hand and looked at it as if TO decide
whether ne would take it, and then remarked,
- guess l will take the strychnine, as we
always use that and are used to it." The
clerk knew the applicant perfectly WELL and
having no reason to distrust anything wrong,
sold him dlashm vial of ssrychnine,
entering the name Of the buyer and for what
purpose it was bought upon his records, as
required by law when poisons are sold.
George immediately went back to the shop,
asked colored man named Frank Morton in
to the Golden Eagle bar to take drink with
him, which they did, and going back to the
harness shop together, George borrowed q
glass from an adjoining building, mixed about
half of the strychnine which was in powdered
form, in a glass of water and drank it.
Whether Morton knew at the time that he
was taking poison cannot be ascertained, as
he is a 'crank" of the most pronounced
order, and refuses to give any informa-
ton upon the subject = if indeed he
has any upon this or any other subject
Within two or three minutes young Roth be-
gan to show symptoms of the effect of the
poison, and was soon after seizsd with
cramps, which were followed by spasms
Drs. Bruno and Pyburn were Immediately
summoned, and an effort was made to use a
stomach-pump, but the patient was still
aware oil what was passing about him, aud
refused to allow it to be used The despera-
ton of the case being known, an attempt was
made to force the tube into his mouth, in
which effort the fingers of the doctors were
bitten and somewhat injured. Finally the
tube was inserted, but no sooner was it done
than the patient bit the tube in two, and the
effort had to be abandoned. Efforts to ad-
minister an enetic were then made, and par
tally successful. Between 1 and 2 O'Clock,
about an hour after the fatal dose had been
taken, he was placed in carriage and taken
to his fathers home, where the efforts were
continuedto counteract the poisonous draught,
o'clock in the afternoon.
Coroner Vermilya will hold an inquest upon
the remains this afternoon or evening.