Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-02-02
CAUSES OF SUICIDE.
Men Who Have Nothing Left to Live
For.

/
For.
| THE IMPORTANT PART PLAYED BY WHISKY IN
| SUICIDAL DRAMAs-THE MOST POPULAR METH
| DDS OF REMovAL-FALsE ATTEMPTS AT SUICIDE
| HOW AND WHY THE ATTEMPTS ARE MADE.
"What is the principal cause of suicide?"
asked STAR reporter OF a well-known physi-
clan the other day.
That. he replied, sis rather a difficult ques-
| ton to answer. There are a great many causes,
| and 1t would be impossible to tell the principal
ones. Generally they may be said to be whisky
and trouble. But, then. trouble may be the re-
| suit OF drinking whisky. and that would bring
1t down to one reason, and that is whisky.
| Liquor drinking, / think. has close connection
| with many suicides. For instance, a person
may have considerable trouble in his family
| and he attempts to drown his sorrow with
| the wine-glass. OF course this only gets him
| deeper into trouble and the only means he
sees OF getting out is to end his existence. But.
| as l said before, there are many other reasons
for taking life. Often it is the result of a mans
being Tilted by his sweetheart. Then, again,
| there have been many cases where escaping
criminals have taken their lives to avoid being
| captured. and where convicted murderers made
| bold attempts to cheat the gallows There are
| some poor unfortunates who are driven to
suicide because they have played in hard luck.
| Probably thrown out of employment. unable to
make an honest dollar, and too proud to beg.
FROM DISEASE.
| There are others who are driven to suicide
by disease. A person will be sick sometimes
for weeks or months. He will try various doc
tors. and will apparently get no better. He
| becomes Respondent, and feels desire to die.
| This is not gratified soon enough. and he takes
I a nj hat will hax
all desires. There are many cases of this class,
| and, indeed, II any person is justified in COM
hitting suicide it is when everything has been
done for him and he is still in constant pain for
| months with not the least possibility of ever
getting better. But even in such case comes
IN the cheering assertion, While there's life
| there's hope
ANY person who will deliberately take his
own life" continued the physician, surely
must be crazy at the time, and if he is not it is
charitable way to speak of it. Many persons.
| l have no doubt, often contemplate suicide or
| say Il wish were dead when they really don't
| mean either. but the one who has the former
wish in mind is n dangerous man to himself,
and had better turn his in life if posi-
| BILE for him to do so, or else he will probably
| go from this world with his name disgraced
| and leave reflection on his family, if he has
one. 1t Is singular fact that woman seldom
| takes her own life, although she is spoken of
| as belonging to the weaker sex. 1t may be be-
cause she thinks more of herself than a ma
does or because she has more fears of the here
after.
RELIGIOUS PREPARATION FOR SUICIDE.
persons bent on ending their existence often
do some peculiar things. remember man,
who was not a model man by any means. Very
| suddenly he begun going to church He soon be-
came church member, and for few weeks was
| one of the mostregular attendants at service. As
| suddenly as he became member of the church
| he became corpse. He committed suicide
That man / have no doubt contemplated sui
| eide before he went to church. He did not
| care to meet his Maker without some religious
| preparation. He adopted the means related,
and no doubt felt better prepared to die.
MEN OF FAMILY.
"Others, but very few, look after the interests
of their families before committing the rash
act, while larger proportion of them see that
nothing is left behind them when they leave
Men of families usually select some secluded
spot about their own premises when they go
about such job, and frequently use a rope
and hang themselves. Some prefer dose of
laudanum, while others would rather drown
| their troubles by jumping from some high
bridge or create sensation by jumping from
| a steamboat
SUICIDAL EPIDEMIcs.
persons who select such public places usually
commit suicide because there has been a
Il q
| not because of any particular trouble. Such
persons usually are light about the head, are
/ anxious for notoriety of some sort, and are
almost unable to select any other means by
which they can accomplish their desires. With
single men 1t is different. They usually take
their life while at some point distant from
| their homes. In many instances il is done
where the victim has left home to seek his for
tune. He fails in his endeavors to become
| wealthy or be sent to Washington to represent
| some congressional district.
HE STARTS OUT WITH THE BOYS,
becomes a rounder, and when at last he has no
money he finds himself an outcast. and the
only way to get square with the world, he
thinks, is to take dose of something that will
make him sleep forever.
MEANS TO AN END.
''Of late years" continued the doctor, rough
on rats has been used pretty freely as means
of taking life, and may be said to be the most
popular means of suicide, especially in this sec
ton The use of the pistol in such cases is also
pretty general, while the razor, which leaves
behind it ghastlv sight, is not so often used.
Persons who use pistols are generally those who
make up their minds in a hurry and think the
harder the storm, the sooner over They be-
lieve in doing the work well and quickly and
with as little suffering as possible. It fire.
quently occurs that in cases where pistols are
used, the victim fails to effect his designs,
| through portion OF his clothing or through
the open air. The same with some who take
poison. They misjudge the drug and will not
take enough Of it to cause death. or they will
take an overdose, which makes them deathly
sick, and also causes the poison to be thrown
OF the stomach.
Sometimes the supposed victim had not the
slightest idea of taking his life. He only
wanted to brighten his friends and get little
sympathy or regain a friend who had discarded
him. There have been many such cases and
sometimes death has resulted from some such
foolish freak when in fact the victim. had no
idea Of taking his life. The same may be said
| In cases OF drowning. 1t is said that a drown
| ing man suffers but little, and that drowning
man grasps at a straw. So that in such case
| although death ensues in a few minutes the
man certainly must repent, for when he is
| reaching for the straw so to speak he is max
| Ing desperate effort to save his life. Persons
who simply want TO make a bluff at ending life
| TO accomplish some purpose might well Jump
INTO the river, provided they do so when
| there are some river men or wharf rats"
| about who are pretty certain to rescue them.
Poison is dangerous article to handle when
business isn't intended
There ought to be some way in which TO
punish persons who attempt suicide and fail"
the doctor continued, ''as examples for other
| weak-minded individuals. Washington needs
/ law to remove such persons from the hos
pitai to the jail or penitentiary, where they