The daily herald. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1886-1887, 1886-10-15
A SAD DEATH.
Israel Fisher Dies at the Branch Hos
pital-Supposed by Poison Self
Administered.


On Wednesday afternoon Mr. Israel
Fisher was found lying unconscious in
his house within the enclosure of the
Branch Leper Hospital, Kakaako He
was last seen moving about the house
between nine and eleven o'clock that
morning, and the discovery of his
PROSTATE condition was made about
four o'clock. DR.. Trousseau was call
ed to attend him, and discerned the
symptoms of poisoning, but could do
nothing owing to the impossibiity of
administering the proper antidote in
the comatose condition of the patient.
Fisher fingered until four o'clock yes
terday afternoon, when he died without
waking from his heavy slumber
/ EThere was no remnant of the poison
or of the package that contained it left
to afford certainty of its nature 1t
is supposed to have been either opium
or chloral-most probably, from certain
circumstances, the latter. Not long
ago Fisher had shown somebody an
article IN a San Francisco paper, telling
of man who had dressed himself lain
down and taken a dose Of chloral, pro-
cured at specified drug store in that
city, and then, stretching himself and
crossing his arms on his breast, slept
his last sleep AS Fisher was himself
discovered in that position, it is sur
missed that he took his fatal cue from
the article in question He had put
on fresh liEen, dressed himself in his
best clothes and shut up his house. 1t
was only by chance that his position
was discovered before yesterday morn
ing and apparently he counted on that
to be the case. From the circum-
stances above related, as we'll as the
fact that he had made two previous
attempts to poison himself, there is
little rooms, for doubt that Fisher
administered the drug with the full
purpose of sefdestruction.
The later history of the deceased is
melancholy one. Several years ago
insensibility in one of his feet con
vinced HIM that he was leper. He
voluntarily submitted himself to medi-
cal examination, but on one or two
occasions he was dismissed with the
assurance that his symptoms we're moi
such as to warrant consignment to hos
pital Eventually, however, he was
sent to Molokai, but afterward allowed
to return to Honolulu and enter the
Branch Hospital, having house bull
at his own expense for himself on th'
grounds. Although the development
of the disease in his case was no
rapid, and some who knew him well
but he never, doubted that his ailmen
was leprosy, he long ago gave up in des
pair to liv ng death, and would otter
have cut the process short had thu
opportunity and the means been pres
ent. Some time ago, however, earn
estly besought by friends and relatives
he submitted himself reluctantly to tn
treatment Of DIR. Goto, the Japanes
specialist in leprosy, now the regula
physician at the Branch Hospital
After brief course he began to i'm
prove perceptibly, then more rapid
until in few months it was annC unce,
that he was fit to be discharged. In
deed, he was allowed to go out, bu
after one days freedom went back t
his solitary house. He said it was n
use, that he would always be called
leper, and if he attended to his ow
business the houses owned by hir
would not rent.
Israel Fisher was a foreigner of Ion
residence, and was about sixty yeal
Of age at his death. He married
native, and their only son Jacob, a un
versal favorlte for his genial dispos
ton and musical and hlstrionic talen
died about fifteen months ago, leavin
a widow and three grandchildren. M
, Dayton, Deputy Marshal, will hold
coroner's inquest on the lal
Mr.. Fisher this morning.