The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-02-11
A STRANGE LIFE.
Tragic Memories Revived by the Sud-
den Death Of Romano Dillon.

/
The sudden death of Romaine Dillon at
calls famous tragedy, in which Mr.. Dillon
shot and killed a man without the least
apparent pgovocation.
The victim of the crime was John X.
Dilleber, wholesale liquor dealer of Beaver
street, this city. He boarded with his
family at the Westminster Hotel, where
Mr.. Dillon was also guest, and where the
murder was committed.
On New Years eve, 1875, Mr.. Dilleber
was pacing the hall of the first floor of the
hotel 1t was after Z o'clock, and Mr.
Dillon, who was standing near, accused Mr..
Dilleber of playing,the spy upon his actions,
and ordered him to cease his promenade
and leave the hall.
This Dilleber refused to do, urging that
he was guest in a public house and that
Mr.. Dillon had no right to assume to con-
| troll his conduct
There was a brief alteration between the
two men, and then the sound of a pistol
shot rang ont In the comparative stiffness
of the corridor. Mr.. Dilleber staggered
against the wall with the exclamation: Il
am shotn and Mr.. Dillon walked quietly to
| his room.
Proprietor Ferrin, of the hotel, assisted
Mr.. Dilleber to his apartments, where he
! Oleu Une neAb udy. ne ndu Deen SuOu le"
! inches below the heart, and his death was
inevitable He made this ante-mortem
statement:
| AN ANTE-MoRTEM STATEMENT
81 was walking up and down the lower
hallway of the hotel, about 7:40 o'clock
last evening, when Mr. Dillon came from
| his room and ordered me out of the hall. l
replied. What right have you to question
me thuss am guest of this hotel, and
this is public house. have as much right
to be here as you have He then pulled
out his pistol quickly and shot me. | had
no ACQUAINTANCE with the man, but had
tended to shoot me until was shot"
Immediately after the shooting the police
were notified and Mr.. Dillon was arrested
He would give no explanation whatever
of the tragedy.
Mr.. Dillon had boarded at the Westmin-
ster about two years and was regarded as a
man of very eccentric habits by every one
connected with the hotel. One popularity
of his was frequently to order a fire built in
his rooms in the very height of midsummer,
when the mercury was near the boiling
point. The servants of the house disliked
to enter his apartments when he was pres
emit on account of his irascible and uncertain
disposition.
Mr.. Dillon was arraigned in the Fifty
seventh street Police Court before Judge
| Duffy on Saturday morning. Jan. l, 1876,
and held for trial He declined to answer
the formal questions of the court on the
ground that he had not consulted with coun-
| sell
FOUND TO BE INSANE.
1t was subsequently determined that he
was insane when he fired the shot that
killed Mr. Dilleber. and on June 26, 1876
he was taken to the Utica Insane Asylum.
He was subsequently transferred to the
State Homeopathic Asylum for the Insane
at Middletown and was released by Judge
Dykeman on July IL, 1878. He had pre-
viously been in the Auburn Insane Asylum.
Mr.. Dillon resided at the Union Square
Hotel during the last eight years. He was
usually very reserved in his manner and
made few friends. He had very few callers
and lived much in his room.
This was In measure necessitated by the
fact that he had for years past been sui
ferer from organic disease of the heart
Complicated, as 1t frequently was, by severe
| attacks of bronchitis, it rendered the life OF
the patient veritable burden at times.
When laid up in this fashion Mr.
Dillon made it exceedingly lively for who
lever had occasion to administer or try tC
| administer to his wants Hewas very eros:
and petulant with the bell boys and porters
and some of them we're almost afraid t.
|
displays of temper.
1 His physician, DR.. Lewis Conrad, of No.
112 East Fifty seventh street, declared last
evening that he had attended Mr.. Dillon
since 1888 and that the man seemed filled
with hate for nearly all the human kind
There were a few persons excepted from the
| visitation of his intense dislike, among
| them Dr. Conrad himself and the house
keeper of the hotel. They were treated
with a certain degree of consideration, fal
removed from the treatment accorded tx
nearly every one else.
I ESSENTIAL TO his WELFARE.
sit was, perhaps" remarked the doctor
"because we were to certain extent essen
tial 10 his comfort and well being He re
| quired at times my almost constant attend
ance, and the housekeeper was very kind tC
him when he was ill.
81 do not think Mr.. Dillon was insane
during his latter years. He was irritable
and violent at times, it is true, but that was
due, think, more to eccentricity than in
sanity. He was certainly one Of the most
eccentric men l ever knew, and one had tC
understand him pretty well to get along
with him at all.
''He would never talk of family affairs
and to this day do not knowa relative of
his, if, indeed, he had any alive. There
was every evidence that he was a man of
tent of his fortune
"Mr. Dillon was an intellectual man anc
when he chose to exert himself could be al
exceedingly interesting companion. He
was cultured and conversant with all thu
leading topics of discussion and could tall
intelligertly upon any subject. He was in hi
way, too, philosopher, and expressed hi
ideas in such concise and logical forms as Il
preclude the idea that he was insane"
DR.. Conrad said further that Mr.. Dillor
had in past years several very serious at
tacks of his malady which nearly carried
him into his grave, and that his last lines
was aggravated by a severe cold caught
some time ago. He Or. Conrad) however
did not anticipate fatal result until Fri
day last, when the conditions became seIi
| GUS.
'oH, YOU DocToRsp
As he was leaving his patient this after
noon MIR. Dillon, who still retained his con
seriousness, calculated, with touch of the
| old time sarcasm "Oh Won doctorSl What