Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-11-21
A PUZZLING TRAGEDY.
Coroner and Doctors Mystifed Over
Peter Spankler's Death.
HE WAS POISONED AND SHOT.
A Chemical Analysis Required to Show
What Ended His Life.
THE BAKERS LOVE FOR A LONDON GIRL

A mystery which is puzzling the physi'
clans and the Coroner surrounds the case o.
Peter Spankler. His death at the ALE
gheny General Hospital on Saturday night
was briefly noted in Yesterdays DISPATCH,
! but it was not until last evening the pecu-
liarity of the case was developed. Spank
Ter was well-developed, good looking
German, 26 years of age. He has only beer
in this country short time, coming from
London, where he had lived for eight years,
and made his home with John Schultz, al
tn. Farmers Hotel, out at the end of East
street, Allegheny.
Last Friday evening John Hoffman, q
butcher living in Reserve township, hall
a mile back of MiIlvale borough, was,driv-
ing home from market when he saw Spank
Ter stagger along the foad and fall over
into shallow ditch. As he was within 100
feet of his home Mr. Hoffman drove his
team into the stable and secured lantern.
He found the young man lying unconscious
in the ditch just as he had fallen. A silk
handkerchief was bound around his head
and he was breathing heavily.
Thought the Man Was Drunk.
Hoffman decided the young fellow was
drunk, and calling his hired men had them
carry him into the barn and make him
hours, supposing the effects of the liquor
had worn off, Mr.. Hoffman endeav ored to
arouse spankler. He was surprised to find
the man was in worse shape than be ore,
and in pulling the handkerchief from his
head, saw a gaping wound over the right
eye.
and he arranged to have spankler sent to
the hospital. With him was sent a pint
bottle OF white liquid resembling water,
none of which had been used, and seven
shot revolver, with two empty chambers.
was found in. his pockets. 1t was nearly
midnight when the patient reached the
hospital The physicians found the wound
bullet In extracting it they found it had
not fractured the skull. and was not re-
sponsible for his dying condition. A
further examination satisfied them Spank
Ter WAS suffering from an overdose of opium,
but he Gid not respond to treatment for
that poison. He died without recovering
consciousness Saturday night.
Killed by a Mysterious Poison.
An autopsy was held on the body by the
hospital physicians yesterday to determine
the cause of death, but it only mystified
them further. An analysis of the dead
mans stomach will be required to establish
the real cause, except that it was by poison.
The stomach contained little of anything,
but there was hole clear through the tissue,
which had evidently been caused by a strong
acid. What this acid was the doctors don't
poisoning ] ~ Visible after death, YET vet the ante ante.
mortem symptoms pointed to opium as the
cause.
Spankler was baker. There is romance
in his life of which comparatively little is
known. John schultz, with whom he has
lived since coming to this county, was a
native of the same town in Kreis Kreuznach,
knew his family well. Since his coming
here recently Schultz would accept no nay
from Spankler because he had been unable
to secure employment The young man
was not anxious to find work, spending most
of his time wandering through the country
district back OF Allegheny.
He Loved a London Girl
He spoke several times of young girl he
had fallen in love with in London, but who
had ceased to correspond with him, and he
was anxious to return to see her. Some time
ago he wrote to his mother in Germany for
s4OO, presumably to enable him to make the
trip. The money did not come. He had
been expecting it for two weeks. During
that time he became melancholy ana, while
he told few of the details in connection with
his love affair, frequently referred to it.
Last Tuesday afternoon he left the house
remark1ng to MIS-. ScnultZ tnaU ne DelleVeQ
he would shoot himself. She thought he was
joking and thought nothing further about
it until she heard of his death yesterday
None Of his friends had seen
Spankler after he left Schultz's hotel on
Tuesday. Mrs. Schultz cannot believe the
young man took his own life. although she
admits the bullet wound on the forehead
looks like it. The Coroner is puzzled over
the case, and intends to investigate thor
oughly to ascertain where the young man
was from the time of his disappearance
until he was found dying by the roadside.