Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1892-02-12
CURIOUS SUICIDES.
HISTORICAL DEATHS THAT HAVE
BEEN SELF AFFLICTED.

| Remarkable Methods Employed by Peo-
pie Seeking to Fathom the Mysteries
of the Unknown worId-Niagara Falls
Is Popular Place for Dependents.
In talk l had a few days ago with
gentleman who is well up" on the subject
of suicide, who has made it life study al
most, he impaired to me some facts that
were startling There are many who say
that none but towards commit suicide,
while others insist that it requires nerve
and bravery 10 suddenly terminate ones
own existence and enter into a future state
that is paradoXical as to its being. Some
men who commit suicide are brave, others
are towards and do not dare to face mis-
fortune. ] think they are about evenly
! divided. 1t is a disease in many instances.
A work devoted for the most part to
statistics on suicide was at hand, and it
showed many interesting facts concerning
the subject under consideration. From it
the fact was CLEANED that the United States
is considered an Al country in which to
shuttle off the mortal coil Here the ratio
is 1 60 every 800 inhabitants, while in gay
/ Paris it is 1 to each 300, and in smoky
] London and chilly st. Petersburg TO each
! 21 1000 Of population In all Russia, how
ever, the ratio is as / to "a ,246 in Sweden,
/ to o., 315; in SaXony, 1 TO S,446
/ In ''the winter of our discomfort" there
are decidedly more suicides than in the
summer time, and a majority Of them oc-
cur in the morning. Women appear to
/ love life more than men, for four men com
I NIT suicide where one woman takes her
own life, and the ratio is much smaller in
married life than in widowerhood The
early part of the week claims more sui
cides than the latter part, and the early
I part of the month more than the waning.
/ DEATHS AT NIAGARA
In any one particular part Of the United
] States Niagara Falls has thacall, and there
is no doubt that many "Asappearances"
/ find a last resting place at this suicide
/ suggesting resort. Suicides are so com
mon nowadays that the subject would not
| be worthy of extended comment were it
/ not for the fact that the means used to as
/ sure the desired result have in a number
/ of cases been so remarkable.
/ The pistol, poison and the rope are gen
orally used in solving the great problem,
and these are so frequently used by the
man or woman tired of life that unless
there is some romance connected with the
/ suicide or unless he or she may have been
] distinguished person very little space is
yOuchsafed the story in the daily newspa-
pers. Here are a few of the remarkable
ones which have caused excitement during
/ the past score of years or so and which are
remarkable for the exceptional reasons
above referred to.
TWO WELL REMEMBERED DEATHS.
Twenty years ago there was probably no
man better known among gentleman
drivers" than Mort Tunison, whose famed
hosiery was on the old Coney island road.
l Mort was known from Coney island to
/ Canada as a'jolly host and good fellow.
His hotel was the stopping place, and Mort
grew wealthy. Suddenly the park com
missioners determined to construct a new
! 30 foot boulevard about a quarter of
mile west Of Cmey island road. Mort
kicked. The commissioners urged him TO
move his hotel to a new site on the pro
] posed boulevard, but he wouldn't have it.
! He said that his place would draw the
crowds, boulevard or no boulevard. The
new parkway soon became a fact, and new
hotels sprang mp all along its line. The
old Coney island road became deserted.
One by one Mort's old customers left him,
as the new road was beauty and was just
built for trotters.
Mort had plenty Of opportunity to get in
the swim, but he was contrary and wouldn't
take advantage of it, One fine morning
Mort didn't appear at breakfast as had
/ been his won't Investigation proved that
he would never appear at breakfast in this
I world again During the night or in the
early morning hours he haI committed
suicide. His old friends had left him, his
/ famed hosiery had become desolate and
life had become burden to him.
The suicide of Cornelius J. Vanderbilt
was an exception to the rule because of
the fact that his name was world known.
/ He was a son Of Commodore Vanderbilt.
He had become a spendthrift and in March,
1882, he shot himself through the head in
his room in the Glenham hotel in this city.
! Financial troubles were said to have been
the cause of the deed Several times Com
modore Vanderbilt had been called upon to
pay his sons debts and he finally became
Tired of so doing. When the commodore
died he left young Cornell the interest of
$4,000 Cornell also received large sum
to withdraw from the contest of the com
modore's will. These amounts he soon
squandered and he died almost penniless
AN UNCANNY SUICIDE.
Another case of interest at the time of
its occurrence was that Of Nine Restell, a
malpractitioner, who was one Of the
wealthiest women in the country, her
wealth having been accumulated in her
practice. She owned and occupied pala-
tial mansion on Fifth avenue One morn
ing she was found dead in her bathtub,
and few sorrowed, as she was said to hold
many secrets concerning scandals in high
life which died with her.
Probably the most uncanny suicide that
the newspapers were called upon to report
the facts of was that Of Philip Truschel
which occurred in Clarkson street, Flat
bush, l.. l., in the summer Of 1880. TruscheI
was employed by his uncle Louis Schmutz,
who was florist in the village named.
Truschel became Respondent and frequent
ly threatened to take his own life.
One morning as the other employees en-
tered the greenhouse they smelled an odor
as if Of something burning Upon investi-
eating they found Truschel with his body
wedged half way through the furnace door
way. His head and part Of his body were