The morning call., 1893-02-12
TIRED OF LIVING.
John MalOney Leaps From
Meiggs Wharf.
He Was Very ScantiIy Clothed and
Where he Came From Is
Mystery.

John Maloney. once prosperous STOCK
operator in this city, ended his life yester-
day morning shortly after o'clock by
throwing himself into the bay from Meiggs
wharf.
Such things are of such frequent occur
renee there I'd al the crowd Of bOatmen and
iders expressed little surprise when MalOney
made his appearance on the end OF the
wharf and took the fatal plunge.
Where he came from immediately previ-
Gus TO his mad action is so far mystery. as
no one in the neighbOrhood could be found
who ever remem bered having seen him be-
fore bis sudden appearance on Powell
street short distance from the wharf He
was then running and attracted attention
by his strange costume, which consisted OF
a suit Of uBderclOthes ana an 0vercoat aud
while be attracted attention and his inten.
ton must have been apparent. especially TO
those who have witnessed such things so
often, DO one seems 10 have thought OF try
ing 10 detain him.
At the end Of the wharf the unhappy
man threw off his 0verc0at and without
hesitation sprang his death.
a strong ebb tide was running at the
time, and although search was made for
the body without loss Of time it was not
found till about an hour later, when Anton
Sofa, an Italian crab-isher, picked 1t up
some distance below the wharf.
The body was taken to the Morgue, where
". {. Rippey, a ships carpenter living at
1920 Powell street, identified the remains
those Of his OLD friend Mal0ney.
To CALL reporter Mr.. Rippey said:
Eyes, knew the deceased quite we'll
almost intmately-since he lost his prop
erty. But when l say intimately l don't
use the term with exactly the same meaning
as il is generally used, because no one was
ever very intimate with MaOney. az he
kept his affairs very much to himself and
while he told me more than any one else 1t
was still very little.
John MalOney was at one time worth
between $4,000 and $500, 600 in money and
real estate and his residence have for
gotten Just where IL was, because | was not
much acquainted with him then-eost him,
he told me, ST., 900. For years he was heavy
operator in stocks and very lucky, but there
came time some nine or Ten years ago when
his luck deserted him aud he kept losing
money steadily till short time ago the
mortgage on his last piece Of property was
fOreclOsed and left him penniiess. The last
house and lot was one that he had once
decided to his wife, but when he had lost
everything else IL was one day reported that
a rich BODY Of ore had been uncovered in
the Con. Virginia and he persuaded his wife
to mortgage the property for money enough
to make one more effort to rec0up his wasted
fortune How the speculation turned out is
seen by bis death.
"His wife died some four or five years ago
ana as he never had any children he has
been alone in his misfortune since.
He came to me on the ID of last month
and gave me this note with the request that
l attend to the matter for him, explaining
that lie wanted to give the sleeYe-buttOns
referred to to Mrs. Robinson OF 627 O'Far-
rell street, she had befriended him.:
Wtilidm Htlblut - Please give the sleeve
buttons you have Of mine TO Mr. Rppey, aud
obilge j. MALoNEY.
In response to a request for MalOney's
former address, Mr. Rippey shook his head
and said be had no address.
Mrs. Robinson, the lady mentioned by
the deceased as having beirended him, was
found at GOO LeavenwOrth street, and at
first was unable TO recall any one of the
name of MalOney, but, on being made ac-
quainted with the circumstances of his
death and given description of the man,
she said:
"Oh, yes; / remember now. He used to
sleep in q big dry-gOods box under our front
steps when we lived ON O'Farrell street"
On being asked for further particulars
she told the following strange story:
ABOUT a year ago the old fellow came
and asked permission TO sleep in the little
room under the front steps and as never
turn any one away | told him he was wei
come to sleep there, which he did for nearly
year, and we used to joke about 1t aud
call MIN our star D0aTdeE
How he managed to live during this
time | do not know, but always supposed
he was at VI rk some place. He used to
tell me that he had been very wealthy at
one time, and seemed TO be hopeful Of again
becoming so.
What | always thought to be the
strangest thing about him was the fact th at
he wore pretty good clothes, gold ring,
gold watch and chain, and had in a little
cloth sack several small though fine dia-
mOuds without setting. In all l should say
about $500 worth Of jewelry.
G"He slept In big dryg-oods box, partially
filled with old newspapers, in which he used
to bury himself"
Mrs. Robinson stated that she had not
seen the old man for month. as she moved
10 her present address about that time.
The lady expressed her belief that Malo-
ney had been robbed of bis jewelry and
clothes, but there is nothing to bear that
theory out, as there was plain gold ring on
the finger when the body reached the
Morgue. and had he been robbed this would
most likely have been taken, as we'll as the
rest OF the jewelry. The ring bore the let
tiers "R. g." engraved on the inner side.
The theory was advanced that he came
from the Home for the Cure OF Inebriates,
but Investigations have proved the theory
groundess.
The most plausible idea so far advanced
In view Of bis past habits is that he has
been sleeping in the Golden Gate lumber
yard, near which he was first noticed yes
terday morning, and that careful search
OF the lumber piles will result in the finding
Of the dead mans clothes, and possibly the
jewelry referred TO by Mrs. Robinson.
1t Is supposed that the dependency re-
sulting from his losses, and Ill health, In
duced the unfortunate man to end his life
and troubles in the bay.
at the end OF juno last there were 6S, $50
miles Of telegraph lines representing 23S,-
944 miles of wire throughout Germany. AS