The National tribune., 1892-10-06
su,cIpE OF col, CavspaY.


Col. w. P. Canaday. x-sergeant-at-Arms Of
the United States Senate, committed suicide by
shooting himself through the head with q revolt
YER at his rooms at TIA Tenth street northwest.
on Tuesday morning, Sept. %. Col. Canaday
seemed to be in bis normally healthy condition
the evening before the tragedy was committed,
ard early on Tuesday morning he was ap-
parcntly the victim of three burglars. Two
hours later he was found lying on his cot with
the doors to his room locked, bathed in his
own blood with bullet through his brain
dead.
1t appears that the Colonel attempted to &C.
cornp!isb something which hSd proved mis-
cradle failure, and that this failure meant
ridicule, prosecution. and possible punishment
for his misieeds. lie therefore hurriedly bat
carefully dressed himself, took pearl-handied
revolver from drawer, laid himself down
upon cot, and placing the piuZZle OF the re-
yolver to his right temple, fired bullet through
his head, the ball coming cut on the opposite
side
little after o'clock in the morning c. Fl.
Stevenson. who occupied q room the floor
above Col. Csnaday, was awakened from
sound sleep by cries and q pounding on the
woodwork He coud not at first locate the
sounds, as he had not long been an occupant Of
the house. and at first thought they were made
by soma drunken man in the alley, but after
wards thought the cries came from some sick
person in the house. The noise continuing. hs
raised window and asked what was wanted.
Col Canaday answered. and asked him to cenle
down. Stevenson asked if the voice was down
stairs, and received = reply that ii was be
| then went down stairs aud opened Col. Cana
! days Office door. he YVES cautious, being
stranger, and when the voics said Come
| here" and he saw figure standing by one Of
| the back doors dressed in white, he hesilatsd
about approaching IT, Then the voice said:
| Come aud cut me down"
| 1t was Col. Canaday who made the request,
! and Stevenson thought il man who had
| attempted TO commit suicide By hanging, but
| had repeHted in time 10 save himself; so he en-
| tered and found the Colonel clad only in bis
| nightshjrt, apparently tied to the knob and the
| hing. OF the closet door. The cords with
which he IVES tied could easily have besa
scyercd by tho exertion OF a boy OF 10 years.
| Across the ColoneFs mouth and secured behind
/ his head, was band of linen, which had been
7 cut from the nightsIiirt then OIL the Colonel.
| Tho string was tied around his seek loosely.
and about the ankles. elbows. wrists and
| thumbs. Stevenson cut tho cords with an
erasng knife and removed the gag. While do
| ing this he suggested that it was done by rob
| bers TO which the Colonel assented and tod
| him to look at the floor which was Uttered
with papers of all sorts. When asked il be had
been chlorofnrmed the Colonelsaid: Nc; they
| just got me-"
| Col. Canaday asked Mr. Stevenson to go for
| the police which he at once did, and soon re-
! turned with two officers, whom the Colonel at
once admitted to the room, which was also used
as All ofIics by Col. Canaday and his business
! associate, Capt j. @. A. Houghtop. he was
very nervous and frequently contradicted him
self while narrating his experience with the
| burglars to the officers. He said he was
awakened by three negroes, two of whom had
blackcned their faces artifcialy. He said at
| first that they had covered him with a revolver,
but either forgot what he said. or changed his
mind and said they had coerced him with a
| knife held against his breast. He said that 10
money had been taken from the Office SAFE
| which was wide open, but that from 5000 to
$4,000 in negotiable notes had been burned by
the burglars.
The Colonel's partner Capt. Houghton. had
been sent for, and when he entered the room
he found the Colonel still dressed in bis nj sht-
shirt, with an overcoat thrown over his
shoulders. TIE contents of the safe were
sirewn about the floor and HougIton asked the
| Colonel what had happened and was told that
burglars had entered the window about 2
o'clock by breaking the glass. They had
gagged and bound the Colonel and robbed tbs
| safe.
Houghtou soou satisfied himself that the
window had been broken from the inside By
| the way in which the chips of glass we're
scattered. and ne told the Colonel that every
thing looked very suspicious AMI that his story
| was very thin, then turned and left the room
and went to Police Headquarters and asked for
the detail Of detectives the case.
While Capt. Houghton WAS absent on this
errand Col. tsHaday proceeded TO dress himself
! with unusual care and again locked himself in.
! hi very short tine the report OF pistol was
! heard, taen all WAS still. When Capt. Hoggh-
/ ton returned ne was told by the servants that
! Col Cauaday had probably killed himself, as
| they had heard tho report of pistol in his
room. Officer Gilbert broke into the room and
the body was found on Ehs cot covered with
| blood. A physician was summoned, who pro-
| nounced life extinct, although the officer said
the pulse WA beating when he first entered
| the room.
| note was found, addressed to Miss Helen
! Moore, of Washington, accompanying which
was package containing q few photographs.
| Tho note said: 81 am not guilty OF any wrong
| You may trust in me. The people who are
prosecuting me are worse than l an. H
| ia a villain of the very largest. God bless you,
is the last prayer of your true friend Canaday."
| Col. Cauaday, according to q gentleman who
! knew him well in North Carolina, was by
| nature fitted for sn adventurous career in poll
tics and in business and his history shows that
| the statement is well founded. At the same
time, all who knew him agree that he had the
| liberality, warmness of attachment, and deyo-
ton to friends frequently characteristic OF men
| of his very sanguine temperament.
William P. Canaday was born in Carteret
County, N. c., and was reared on a farm by
parents of fair standing and only moderate
! circumstances. He did not belong to the aris-
tocracy Of the "Tar-hss" State. As boy he
was always full of energy. When the war
broke out he was only youth, at the time of
his death being hardly 4s years of age; but he
entered the Confederate army. and, it is said,
| showed himself to be brave and daring. At
the close of the war he settled in Wilmington,
and was elected Town Marshal. Those were
exciting days, and as q judicial officer he ex-
hbited great personal courage. He was an
efficient officer, and showed that he was also
gifted with large share Of executive ability.
Entering into politics, ha became Mayor of
Wilmington, and rapidly to position of
influence in the Republican party in North
Carolina, which became greater when he was
| appointed Collector Of Customs of the Port of
| Wilmington on tine Recommendation of Senator
Sherman, at that time Secretary of the Treas
ury. A warm friendship for the Senator was
shown by Col. Canaday and at all times he did
every thing that he could to advance the politi-
cal interests of the senior Senator from Ohio,
doing much soon after his appointment to Sc
cure Southern following for the Senator in
the Republicans Presidential Conventions. His
warm espousal of Secretary Sherman's nomi-
nation naturally WAS net to his advantage
when the nomination went elsewhere.
When Mr.. Sherman became Senator from
Ohio after leaving President Hayes's Cabinet,
it was largely through him that Col. Canaday
| IL Co MT "A If he