The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1893-09-14
8UIGIDKD IN JAIL
A Prisoner Takes His Own
Life Saturday Morning.
SENDS BULLET THROUGH HIS BRAIN
John Roberts, Alias Richards, Gsc-
comes Despondent Over Il Probable
Term in the Penitentiary and
Ends HIS Misery by Suicide.

Term in the Penitentiary and
| Ends HIS Misery by Suicide
| The officials and inmates of the Granite
county Jail were very much startled
about IL O'Clock last Saturday morning
by the report of pistol shot in cell No
3, where Check Forger John Roberts,
alias John Richards, was confined
George Suppiger, the jailer, rushed into
the cell and there on the floor lay the
prisoner, Roberts, in a pool of blood
issuing from a bullet hole IN his head.
He committed deliberate suicide as will
be seen from a letter written by him
previous to the rash act, which is as
follows:
| GAS am tired of this world and can
not see anything but the pen before me,
rather than go there have found way
to rid this mortal body from suffering
more than it has already suffered; so
have come to the conclusion to put an
end to myself, knowing l shall be free
| from pain.
! II gave my wrong name. My right
name is John Roberts My fathers name
is John Roberts, Central Mine, Keweenan
county, Michigan. Please telegraph
! right away. Good bye.
Il was guilty, but determined on
suicide. May meet you in heaven.
Don't bury me unt1l you hear from
my father, for I think he will send for
this poor Frame
"Don't tell him why I shot myself for
he is very old and 1t would cause him
much trouble.
Farewell to all.
Nearest telegraph Office Calumet,
Michigan.
"The gun that I shot myself with was
given to me on coming out of the court
house. I would have shot the jailer
only he was not worth the lead.
"Be sure and telegraph. Father is we'll
off. ..-a. JOHN ROBERTS,
Central Mine, Michigan. Via Calumet
office'''
The gun used by Roberts was identified
by the ja1ler as one that he lost two or
three months ago while j. w. Brown,
the slayer of Joseph Gird, was confined
IN the Jail. DiIigent search for it has
been kept up by the officers since it first
disappeared, and having searched the
jail thoroughly every day, they Of late
Come to the conclusion that some dis
charged prisoner had in some way got
the gun and taken it out with hlm. 1t
is a rule of the sheriff's Office that no
officer shall carry weapons with him into
the jail, and accordingly the gun recog-
nized by the jailer was left with others
in the office.
1t is the supposition that some one of
Browns comrades in Jail secured the
pistol for Brown but failed to get it to
him, and whoever it was that took it
must have also been friend of Roberts.
During Browns confinement in the jail
there was also at that time man named
Roberts there, but whether that Roberts
and the one who suicided are relatives
is not known.
The gennineness of the letter found on
Roberts is somewhat questioned for the
reason that the coroner failed to discover
of the kind in his examination.
When the body was turned over to
Undertaken Allison and he was preparing
the corpse for burial, he discovered a
wad of colored wrapping paper in a
pocket in the dead mans clothes. Mr..
Allison gave no heed to 1t, as he sup
posed the coroner made thorough in
vestigatlon, SO he threw the paper aside,
intending to look at it after he had
finished the work of laying out the body. |
The paper was afterward picked up by
Joe Bradshaw, who. discovered what it |
was and told his father about it. The
writing corresponds quite favorably with
that on the checks forged by Roberts
Tor which crime he was awaiting trial.
Soon after the suicide. was committed
nj At <o% i ! |
to the scene, which was not at all invit-
ing. Roberts sat on chair in his cell
when he fired the fatal shot and placing
jhe revolver to his right temple, Al
'aliber. hole was blown completely
through his head, driving the brain out
,he opposite side. He died instantly and
until the undertaken took charge Of the
body it lay there much to the horror cf
themselves fortunate that the suicide
lid not kill several Of them before he
ended his own life., He remarked to one
# the prisoners the night before that
nan might as well be dead as alive any
gay. he also acted very strangely at
lines which indicated insanity.
The crime for which Roberts was i'm
orisoned was published in. rHB NAIL
asst week. He had succeeded in passing
everal . worthless checks, lof small
mounts in Philipsburg during Monday
md Tuesday Of last week, but was
LATER Mayor Allison received a tele- .
ram f1om the father of the suicider ,
tuesday directing him to bury his son 8
ody at the expense of the county, and
dded that he was not in c}rcums tances
o haye.the remains shipped to him. The
elegram was sent from. the address
ts=4 1t. 7-T7705-T III II ~ H
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