The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1889-03-07
THE STORY OF EDGAR PoE's DEATH.
The Poets Tragic End-Drugged to Death
by Ballot-Box Suffers.


A former Baltimoreau, now living in
San Francisco, gives what he claims to
be true account of Poe's last days
and death. This is the story: 81 was
intimately acquainted with Edgar AL
Ian Poe for years. Much that has
been said and written in regard to his
death is false: His habitual resort in
Baltimore was the Widow Meagher's
place. This was an oyster stand and
liquor bar on the city front. cores
pending in some respects with the cof-
fee houses of San Francisco. 1t was
frequented much by printers and rank
ed as respectable place, where par
ties could enjoy a social game of cards
or engage in social conversation. Poe
was great favOrite with the old wO-
man. The favorite seat of the poet
was just behind the stand, and he w;ls
just about as quiet and sociable as an
oyster himself. He went by the name
of Bard, and when parties came into
the shop it was Bard come mp and
take a nip or Bard. come and take Il
hand in the game Whenever Widow
Meaghcr met with any incident or idea
that tickled her fancy she would ask
the Bard to versify it. Poe always
complied, writing many witty coup
let, and at times poems of some length.
These verses, quite as meritOrious as
some by which his name was immor-
talized, were thus frittered into OBJ
security. 1t was in this little shop that
Poe's attention was called to an adver-
tisement in Philadelphia paper for a
prize for the best story, and it was
there that he wrote his famous Gold
Bug winch carried off the 800 prize.
"Poe had been shifting for many
years between Baltimore, Philadelphia
and New York. He had been away
from Boston three or four months
when he turned up one evening at the
Widow Meagher's. was there when
he come in. He privately told me
that he had been to Richmond and was
on his way north TO get ready for his
wedding. 1t was drink all around
and repeat until the crowd was pretty
full. 1t was the night before election,
and four of us. including Poe, started
up. We had not gone half q dozen
squares when we were nabbed by a
gang of men who were on the lookout
for voters to coop ls was the prac-
tice in those days 10 seize people
until tho polls were opened, and then
march them around TO every precinct,
where they were made to vote the
ticket of the party that controlled the
coop Our coop, was ia the rear of
an engine-house on Calvert street. 1t
was part of the game to stupefy the
prisoners with drugged liquor. Well,
the next day we were voted at thirty
one different places, and over and
ever, it heiug as much as a mans life
was worth to REBEL, Poe was so badly
drugged that, after he was carried ON
two or three different rounds, the
gang said it was no use to vote dead
man any longer, so they showed him
into a cab and sent him to a hospital
to get him out of the way.
1.-The commonly accepted story that
Poe died from the effects of dissipa-
ton is all bosh. 1t was nothing of the
kind. He died from laudanum or
some other poison thatwas forced upon
him in the coop. He was in Il dying
condition when he was being voted
around the city. The story told by
Griswold of Poe's having been on a
weeks spree and being picked up Oh
the street is false. saw him showed
into the cab myself. and he told me
he had just arrived in the city,"
The above narrative will form an in
teresLing chapter in the life and death
of the poet, whose life was 4 romance
and whose death was 4 tragedy. The
account of Poe's last days agrees in
several respects with the account which
the late Chief Judge Nelson Poe of
Baltimore gave to the undersigned. 1t
is painful 10 think that a man Of Poe's
wonderful genius should, after life
of into erable misery, die in The
wreLcheu manner above described
But il must be admitted thatthe author
of The Raven" wascooped and drug
ged to death by political toughs, who
used the hapless poet as a repeater at
local election. Others have vaguely
stated this befOr', aud the detailed ac-
count now giver by one who was with
Poe at the time confirms the horrible
story.