The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1888-08-31
| SHOCKING SUICIDE.
y. yarrIcx v. WALSH KsDs HEn
ExIsTNcE.
...the Fatal Step by Bodily
s.ssrns -csrbolie Acid the Poison
--,,.v.d sig Children Left in
resd Of Charity.

- patrick w. wal-h died at her
On Cherry street. between Ninth
- Tenth, yesterday morning from
-. ..,dose OF carbolic acid, admins
80 by herself. The circumstances
grounding the case are sad in the
49,. The deceased was a hard
-s;rv yoman, and the wife Of la
ss,sr who some lime ago took up a
- 10 the woods. Mr.. Walsh has
80 been supporting the family by
~ r. washing. She was the moth
sir children, four OF whom were
sa,,e One daughter was in Port
~ snd another employed by Miss
.'s.s IN SECOND street. The husband
.-sv an hi, place, and /. probably
I'm IGNORANT OF the fact that his wife
8 dead. ,
n, Churchill, the attending ply
Ia. made the following statement.
a1hoat 80 Thursday morning Mrs.
rasnin a midwife, called me 70 assist
ksrfelIver Mrs. Walsh OF child. On
- ssrriyal / found il very difficult
- and was engaged several hours
= IL morning | made up my mind
al The child could not be born
ss,.,aIIy. and that / would prob
sssv have 10 perform crancotomy. l
sa,3 Mr. Coppin OF my conclusions,
nd asked her to look alter the case
-hie went 70 my Office 10 get the
recessary instrument and some com
,stent assistant 10 administer the
fbloroform. Daring Mrs. Walsh's
.sins had given her bit
n chloroform, and when ! left
ant a little in bottle
"a ne administered by Mrs. Coppin.
crowded the pains came on during
nv Absence. Mrs.. Walsh. during. her
terrible suffering had several times
threatened ~ get knife and put an
end 10 her pain, bat such threats are
not uncommon under similar eircum-
STANCES. and I took little notice OF
them. had heen using strong So
iuiion OF carbolic acid as a di-infect-
mt and the bottle containing the so.
intiop was on a table few feet from
Mrs. walsh's bed.
DETERMINED TO DIE.
.soon after left the room the suf-
ferer spied the bottle, and asked Mrs.
coppin II that was chloroform. She
vas told that the bottle contained car
bolc acid. deadly poison. A few
moments later she asked Mrs. Coppin
10 get her a glass OF water, and during
the temporary absence OF the midwife,
Mrs. Wal IA poured the contents OF
that bottle two ounces of carboiic acid,
down her throat. When Mrs. Coppin
returned with the water Mrs. Walsh
remarked: II have done IL now,
and pointed to the empty bottle. Mrs.
C0ppin forced some sweet oil down
Mrs. Wal.h's throat, but In q few
minutes the poor woman went into
spasms and died 10 minutes later.
twenty doctors could not have saved
her after she swallowed that fatal
dose"
AN rpsiGhf woaAS.
A ncighbor. in speaking Of the case
said II have known Mrs. Walsh for
several years and know her to have
been a Woodworking. upright woman,
poison with suicidal intent, In her
terrible agony she reached for the
bottle, suppOsing il contained some
thing that would relieve her pain, and
took the fatal dose. The family IL
large and helpless, and something
must be done at once To keep the
little orphans from suffering. The
daughter IN Portland has been sent
for, and the husband also. This Is
the saddest case that has ever come
under my ebseryaii0n.