The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1886-03-10
AN ILL-SPENT LIFE
Is Ended with a Bullet Through
the Brain.
ACCOUNTk
And Morphine Cause Another Suicide
e. b. T. Graham Found Dead
IN His Bed.

III Another case OF self-destruction on =,
sepunt Of drink and extravaganza has .,
tE4urred, and another man who had the cou
& sI1dence and respect OF large circle G
Hends has ended his career by his ow
i ieand. A little before 6 o'clock yesterda
q Emorning DR.. C. 8. Whitford, the Coroner
Was aroused from his bed by messenger
who informed him that man had sho
|. himself at South Butte, and requesting hin
t0 60 down and hold an inquest. The Cor
, cher promptly responded and was con
dncted to the Northwestern Hotel, wner,
ir one of the upper rooms he found tn,
. victim OF his own rash act.
The dead man proved to be T.. B. T. Ora
ham. an accountant, lately in the employ
OF Messrs. Kirkendall & Brown, the
frsighters and transfer men. The proprie
tor Of the house, Mr.. P. H. Toole, says
that Mr.. Graham has been stopping at
his house almost continually for the
past fifteen or eighteen months, and that last
night about $50 0 clock he came into the no.
tea, passing directly up to his room. About
lE3O o'clock the night clerk OF the house
looked into the room and saw Mr.. Graham
lying on the bed and apparently sleeping
soundly, but having on all OF his clothes.
f,Nothing more was heard or seen OF him
until about $50 O'Clock in the morning.
! At that hour the gentlemen who occupy the
room adjoining Graham's came down 70
| their breakfast, and one OF them in the
I course OF conversation, remarked that
hd thought he had
igSt HEARD SHOT FIRED
| in the next room, and did not know what
| ltmeant. The waiter went to the apart
mont, and opening the door found Graham
Fiaying across the bel, his feet resting on
the floor, rigid and cold in death, with
everything about the bed covered with
blood, and a small hole in tine victims
forehead. From the position Of the body
| 1t was evident that Graham had awakened
| from his sleep, and about Ut 2 O'clock
| the time the other roomers heard the shot
had raised up and while sitting on the side
! OF the bed, had placed the pistol to
his forehead, putting an eud to his earthly
career. The ball had entered the center OF
the forehead at the edge OF the hair and
passing downward and backward, had
lodged in the base OF the BRAIN, producing
Instantaneous death. Beside hln lay q
new 3S-calber. double-action Smith &
Nesson iive-shooter with one empty
chamber, while under the pillow was q
bottle OF whisky. No letters or any part
iag lnssivcs were left and it became nee.
eRsary to ascertain elsewhere the
CAUSE OF THE SUICIDE
In searching the body DR.. Whitford found
k4.2O in silver, but no other evidence OF his
possessing additional means. In one of his
pockets was bottle OF morphine contain
ing an eighth Of an ounce from which only
a.yery small quantity had been used, and
IL another poekeitu M kiu uset, Mss hypodermie
deadly drug into his arms. No letters or
papers we're found among his effects which
lead to his family connections, but he has
often told friends that he had relatives
in Philadelphia and New York State. !
but their names cannot be ascertaiued
The only thing bearing upon the subject is |
letter, which was found in his valise, and !
signed 'Uncle William bearing date in de- |
cember last, II alludes entirely to family |
matters. among other things stating that |
his old mother was in feeble health and !
hoping that the deceased would turn over a |
new leaf with the beginning OF the new year. !
and write t. his mother at least once a |
week. The epistle is postmarked Ph1ladel- |
phia, but does not give any name, address |
or number OF street by which its writer can |
be traced. The body was removed by the |
Coroner to the undertaking establishment |
OF J. Z. Singer, from whence it will be buried |
to-day.
GRAHAM'S CAREER
Since Graham has been in Butte he has
lived very gay and fast life, and has al.
ways spent his money freely. He took q |
great interest in athletic sports and his ia
miliar face WAS always to be seen at spar.
ring exhibitions, races and the like, while
he has frequently been known to assist
those pugilists who were in need OF funds in
arranging and carrying out the programmes
~ rN1 Erh$ 70 |
drinker and would often spend his nights
in carousing around town with party of
friends, always throwing away::his money;
but his worst and most serious habit was
the use OF morphine and opium to great
excess. 1t is said that he not only took
the former hypodermically, but would also
put the powder or a pill in his liquor when
taking drink. He was comparatively
young man, being only about IS years of
age, and was physically a well-developed
person, being about 5 feet 10 inches in
height. and weighing in the neighborhood
OF $50 pounds. He was very popular
among his friends, being a Jolly and iovial
but recently the narcotics
which he nsed had begun to tell upon him.
and his disposition was changing consider
ably.
SHORT ACCOUNTS
Mr.. Graham had been in the employ of
& Brown about two years. part
of the time at Helena and tor the past year
and a hall ut Butte, and had during the
greater part OF that time been an
honest and faithful accountant Since
1e has been in the vicinity OF Q
Butte he has been the book. keeper
or the firm at the depot, and
1eld his position until about the first of
February, when it was ascertained that he
oil L. "a
urther developed that there was short d
lge in his accounts, and the firm was forced a
o dispense with his service. The exact
lmount of the defalcation could not be
but the manager OF the busi- q
less thinks it will not exceed $500,
.lthough friend OF Graham at the depot =
ays he was informed by the dead man d
hat it was considerably larger than that
gure. Since his discharge from the com.
any's employ Graham has done nothing
kept to dissipate more than ever, and in
rooding over the gloomy aspect OF the q
ltQre before him, became morose and at r
ines even disagreeable. For the past "
hree Or four weeks his friends have noticed
he change in him and have feared that his q u
ifdculties and troubles would result in the "a
eed which he finally committed Remorse
had much to do with the com. ln m
'ission OF the suicide. Being a man used !"
, having a good time. and carrying
lmself in money.speuding circle, ~ ~
. eventually came face to face
ith the fact that he was disgraced in the
7es of his employers and intimate asso u
ates; thrown out OF work, with a poor al
pportunity OF getting more; unable to
lake of the habit OF using the poisonous q
rugs; considerably in debt, and almost na
'stitute OF money, he was goaded to a
pint OF desperation, the only way past
hich he considered to he in DEATH and in
1e OF his dreary moods he sent the fatal
lllet crashing through his brain, leaving B,
,e cold world to pass as lightly az pos. At
bic in it's judgment upon his sindiscretions. ch
----- ga
Hotel Fire. WI
BosroN. March 6.-At / O'Clock this 10
ternoon q fire broke out in the American -; =.
Quaa. TWO ala rma ha xa haan 4u.nod In | W.