The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-09-11
TO DIE TOGETHER.
Horrible Tragedy Enacted by a
Husband and Wife.
They Make Desperate Effort to Leave the
World at Once, but Fai,-Attempt
at Murder and Suicide.

respondent husband and his loving wife
early yesterday morning enacted in their
saloon at 425 Montgomery avenue a horrible
tragedy. which, in spite of its responsiveness
favored of romance. Despondent, sicky
and weary of living, the man deliberately
attempted suicide, ssnd at his wifes appeal,
cut her wrist that she might bleed to death
by his side.
The participants in the bloody act were
Adolph Jordan, proprietor of the saloon, and
his wife Catherine. When they had closed
their little liquor-shop late at night he stated
his final intention of killing himself before
the next days sun would rise above him.
She heard the announcement in great fear
and begged her desperate partner not to
leave her alone in the world, but 10 take her
life along with his. He agreed to do so and
then gashed the woman's wrist with knife
and opened his own arteries. They lay
down side by side to die and dropped into
Inconsistencies from loss of blood.
Two hours later Jordan revived and saw
his wife apparently dead beside him. With
bitter groan he turned painfully to where
the keen blade lay in their still warm blood.
He clutched it nervously, looked once more
on the ghastly, upturred face, and with the
cry 81 am murderer" plunged the knife
into his left side below the heart and fell
back into a swoon.
BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE.
But death was not so kindly as they had
wished. AT o'clock yesterday afternoon
they were discovered, weak from the loss of
blood, but showing favorable signs of recov-
cry. They were removed by the patrol
wagon to the Receiving Hospital, where they
regained consciousness and are now doing
fairly well.
Jordan is man nearly 60 years of age,
and his wife is but ten years his junior.
His hair and full beard are gray, and give
him a venerable appearance For years he
has been suffering from a running sore in his
leg, OF which he deSpaired of ever receiving
any cure. This preyed on his health also,
and tended to increase his dependency.
And to make matters worse, his business
began to fail recently.
All these troubles combined drove him TO
speak of suicide as a relief. and he impaired
to his most intimate friends his determine
ton 10 end them with death; and had it not
been that he shrank from leaving his wife
behind he would have died long ago. Tues
day night he said would be his last on
earth.
The old couple sat talking over the awful
atfalr until o'clock in the morning when
Jordan went behind the bar for knife used
in cutting lines. He sharpened the blade
and set about carrying out his desperate re-
solve.
HORRIBLE SIGHT.
What passed between them is not known,
but their own statements after returning to
consciousness showed that they wished to
die together.
AT o'clock in the afternoon Daniel Fish,
bartender in the saloon, went to the place
and found it closed. Satisfying himself by
peeping through keyhole that Jordan had
carried into execution his threat, Fish hur-
ried to the Central Police Station and in
formed Captain Douglass that he believed
murder and suicide had been committed.
immediately police officers drove to the sa-
loon in the patrol wagon and reached the in
side through back door.
They found the floor covered with blood.
In a corner lay Jordan, and near him was his
wife. There was no evidence of a struggle,
and all that remained to show how the deed
had been done was the lime-knife with a
blade about four inches long lying on the
floor beside Jordan's right hand. The blood
had ceased TO flow from the gaping wounds
in the wrists of the man and woman. Captain
Douglass shook his head "They are both
dead, he said. But the woman gasped aud
muttered something at first uninteligible.
She opened her eyes and stirred the wounded
wrist in the sawdust.
WANTED TO DIE"
'''Waterl water! She begged family, and
her lips werefWs tened before they carried
Soon the POI surgeons were attending
to her wounds. and her husband was quickly
placed upon the operating table. The fresh
air brought back the life that was ebbing
from him, and with the aid of a stimulant he
was able to speak about his deed when in
the hospital. he admitted everything
frankly.
- wanted to de-" he said. with difficulty,
land thought it would have been all over
before now, but did not want to leave my
wife alone. told her that l was going to
Kill myself and she begged me to live for
her sake. She was always good, kind and
true to ME. | loved her deeply, and the
thought of deserving her nearly drove me
mad. have had sore on my leg for long
time and despaired of ever having itcured
Then my business began falling off and mat
tiers went from bad to worse, and this morn
ing determined to die.
SHE CALLED HIM A COWARD.
My wife appeared very much frightened
and tried to argue with me. l said il was
no use to waste any more time talking. l
meant to kill myself and she could not stop
me. You are a coward she said, to kill
yourself and leave me alone in the world
If you must do it you must Kill me too /
had often told her that would cut myself
with knife. and she said / would have to
open the veins OF her wrist before she would
let me turn the knife upon myself. For long
time | refused to do it, and we sat talking
until O'Clock this morning. My wife taunt-
ed me WIFI being c0WaTu. II you are the
brave man who is not afraid to kill himself,
why have you not courage enough to kill
me, too? 1t will take but stroke of the
knife to do the work.
WOULD DEPART TOGETHER.
"Could 1 refuse her pleading? i could
not. l took hold of her hands and drew the
blade across her wrist. She fell in a faint,
and then took the knife and cut both my
own wrists, thinking we would bleed to
death together. 1t was daylight when be-
came conscious and was Mortified by seeing
my wife dead, as | thought. beside me. |
could still use my right hand, and then
drove the blade into where l thought my
heart was"
81 begged him to kill me, for I was too
old to struggle through the world alone be-
hind him." said the woman. HE loved me
always, and we were happy, but everything
went against him-health and business-and
when he wanted to die wished to join him
in the other world"
The mans recovery is considered by the
surgeons as doubtful, owing to his low con-
dition. The woman will probably survive.
~ 4 Il l.