The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-08-23
THE CAUSE WAS POVERTY
Arthur II. Dodge Planned De-
Iiberately, but Failed in
Execution.
BOTH EXPECTED TO LIVE.
Wrote Letters to Friends Then SWal-
lowed Several Doses of Nor
phine and Chloroform.

Arthur H. Dodge, printer by trade, one
time editor and owner of the San Miguel
Courier, and well known in this City from
his connection with publishing enter
prises and his activity in reform move
ments, made several determined efforts to
take his life Wednesday night and yester-
day at his home in San Rafael.
He is a single man and lives with his
mother. She not only approved the tragic
plan. but Joined him in the effort to cross
the life line.
The intimation of the intended suicide
was contained in two letters which reached
this City yesterday evening. They were
addressed to well-known persons, who i'm
mediately set about to verify the state
ments made in them and to prevent If
possible, the double suicide.
What the letters contained was found to
be true enough, but the efforts to stop the
rash act came too late. Already the poison
had been taken-repeated doses of NOR
phine and chloroform-and it was only
fate that interviewed and kept the would-be
suicides alive.
At half-past o'clock Wednesday even
ing both the mother and son began their
tragic work 1t was very deliberately
planned, but not so well executed. Aside
from these two letters, both OF which were
mailed so as to reach this City nearly
twenty-four hours after the suicide, no
other intimation of their intentions was
given.
At the hour named Wednesday night
both swallowed five grains of morphine
and then lay down to die.
The dose was too large, it seems, or the
stomachs of the respondent ones too weak
to hold the drug long enough for it to
assimilate and enter the circulation.
A few hours later both regained con-
seriousness and began vomiting violently.
at was nearly 10 o'clock when we awoke
and began throwing off the poison, Arthur
Dodge told friends that went to see him
last evening.
''All night long we suffered tortures and
vomited at intervals, but the death we
prayed for would not come. There was no
more poison in the house to take, and if
there had been, we were both too sick and
weak to have gone after it. So we must
lie still and suffer, hoping for the end that
would not come"
In the morning the son was strong
enough to get up. He went to the drug
store and purchased a bottle of chloroform.
This was just before noon.
Again mother and son tried what they
fondIy hoped would bring oblivion with it.
But again the vomiting commenced, this
time sooner than before. The poison re-
fused to do its work.
AT 2 o'clock Arthur Dodge vent again. to
the drugstore and bought more chloroform.
But even this failed. Life was hard to
drive away. Later in the afternoon, real
izing that it was useless to make further
attempt with the means at hand, Dodge
set about to save his mothers life.
II would have purchased prussic acid or
something like that" Dodge explained
last evening to his friend, "but could not
secure that at the drugstore without pre-
scription. [ thought the morphine would
be enough. planned badly, after ALL"
Mrs. Dodge was in very critical condi-
ton when young Dodge decided not to
make any further attempts to die. His
own efforts to bring her back to conscious
ness were unavailing.
He called in Mrs. Gouldey, the landlady.
This was the first intimation she had OF
tragedy being enacted in her house. Mrs.
Gouldey called in physician, and after q
few hours work with the stomach-pump
and counteracting remedies he left Mrs
Dodge IN very weak condition, but said
he thought she would live.
Supervisor R. KinselIa was notified, and
he made preparations to have the mother
and son, both of whom are very weak and
i'll, taken to the Marin County Hospital
this morning.
In many ways this attempt at double
suicide is remarkable. The first intimation
of itcame from this City. Last evening
two well-known citizens of San Francisco
rushed with all haste to the telephone and
made frantic efforts to communicate with
the man who had notified them of his in
tended suicide.
After many efforts they succeeded in get
ting mutual friend at San Rafael to go to
Mrs. Gouldey's residence and tell Arthur
Dodge that he was wanted at the telephone
Immediately on most vital business. The
boats had stopped running till late al
night, and there was no way to reach San
Rafael short of charterlng a tug. Tele.
grams were sent, but these elected nc
.dISWeT.
Finally the mutual friend performed his
errand and returned to the telephone to
answer that dodge is too weak and sick
to leave his bed. He took poison last night
and again to-day. His mother is in q
critical condition. Both of them tried tc
end their lives. ="
And why did Arthur Dodge and Mrs
Dodge seek death?
Poverty, is the answer.
But Dodge's own words, as contained in
the letters that reached this City last even
ing, best tell the story. In one of these BIZ
writes:
SAN RAFAEL, Aug. 81, '95.
Ny Dear Friend: I've been drawing nothing
but blanks for the past two years, SO I have
decided to leave it all and give up the struggle
Iregret exceedingly that 1 can't pay