Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1889-06-06
AN AWFUL TRAGEDY.
A Son PoiSOns and Stabs His Mother
and then Suicides.
{. G.. LUCE.
Governor.

"ilh NiASi OhANaNNos
Charles Nelte, a furniture worker of
Grand Rapids, IS years Old, out OF employ.
ment for some time past, became despOn-
dent On May 81 he sharpened long steel
wire TO a point, and gong 10 the room
where his mother, an invalid, lay, he stab
bed her in the breast eight times int!icting
mortal wounds. Nelte then went to hls
own room and shot himself through the
head with double barreled rito. He died
shortly after the tragedy was discoy-
cred
Velte had written to a friend that he con
temp.ated suicide. The friend called ut
the Neltc home and was met at the door by
the young man, who said 1t was too late.
The visitor then started tor Il doctor,
thinking Nelte had taken poison.
The tragedy was finished while he was
gone.
Among Telte's effects are letters to the
several newspapers in the city and to a
number Of friends, He gives minute in
structions as to what disposition shall be
made Of his assets. He aid not want any
Of her relatives TO profit by his death, but
left every thing 20 his labor union.
In closing one letter he wrote:
"Why does a man work all his days 70 get
a fortune to leave for others! My mother
says that she has made up her mind III { if
God is just, He could not let her suffer so
long. She believes that al priests and
ministers are bad, and the people who fol
low their teachings are dumb. Now, dear
ones, goodbye, VIC must part. Your once
Jolly NELTE.'
TIE letter addressed t. tho Germania
printing company, which was only one of a
score or more OF sucn missives, was opened
and read. II was a ten page document
written on letter size paper aud addressed
to the editor. IL was all written in German
in "a fine, almost woman,ike hand, part of il
in blue ink and part in black. 1t was dated
This beautiful month OF May, and started
out with a compile e and dCtalod history of
his life. il gave read 10 @ and interests y
sketches of all his troubles and love affairs
and as TO why hc never got married,
and toward the close gave reasons
as to why he committed the deed
The latter part was in the form of an agree
ment and was signed by both himself and
his mother. 1t read that the both had be.
come tired OF living and had premeditated
this act for TIE last five years. The only
reason that he had not executed his iDten-
ton sooner was because he wanted TO wait
until his mother became so sick Of living
that she would prefer death rather than
that of existence. They had mutually
aged TO take poison and end their lives
then and there. The act, he says was has
tened by the story of woman who visited
his home and told about her confinement in
the insane asylum at Kalamazoo, when she
was insane. He was afraid that both no
and his mother would eventually end there,
and so he FASTENED to draw up the compact
of death.
IL was poison that they doubtless took at
first and when that was not working rapid
ly enough and his friend. John Gossier, dis
covered them in the middle of the act, he
decided to hasten the end by the bullet and
sharpened wire.
The physicians think that Mrs. Vcltc may
recover