The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-11-30


in any way lead to his identification,
well-dressed man, about 80 years of
age, committed suicide at the Kimball
hotel 262 Clark street, last night by
taking laudanum. He described the
effects of the drug in writing until his
hand could no longer hold the pencil.
The body was not found until late this
afternoon, death having resulted some
time previously In his efforts to de-
stroy any clue which might lead 10
his Identification he forgot two articles,
which show that he was from the east
A small mirror found in. the hand OF
the dead man bears the stamp OF
firm in Rochester. and the memoran-
dunn book in which he described the
manner of his death contains the trade
mark of A. W. Mccoy & Co., 443 Wood
street, Pittsburg. The police believe
that he has lived in one or the other
of these two cities, and that the eX-
istence of the two articles will eventu-
ally lead to his identification. The
trade marks on his clothing, even to
his hat and Shoes were effaced. He
engaged a room at the hotel last even
! ing and registered as E. L. Bryan, al
though the police are of the opinion
that this is not his name. When found
the body was lying diagonally across
the bed. and the memorandum book
and pencil were near by, evidently
having fallen from his hand. Before
taking the drug he wrote a letter to
the hotel proprietor and another TO
the press in which he gave no cause
for his act other than that his life had
terminated in failure. In both these
letters he had some humorous re-
marks He continued his description
of the effects of the drug until all his
strength had failed him. and some of
the last of il could not be deciphered.
AS much of it as could be made out IS
as follows:
ITO NJ. D.: Drank one ounce of
laudanum. After five minutes feel lit
tie or no pain. Heart action now pro-
nounced. A slight pain in stomach.
''Note-My stomach. is very weak,
having suffered for years from acute
dyspepsia.
Ten minutes-Condition about the
same. Pulse rapid and pains in wrists
and Slight pain in region of heart.
Hand trembles. A feeling of dullness
with more pain in all parts of the
body.
.'Note-Will keep up this description
of effects as long as possible. Hone it
will be of use to medical science. Eyes
show change. 4 feeling of drowsiness
coming on. A sort of a feeling of in
toxication, accompanied by slight
fever
Twenty minutes-Pain increasing.
A slight perspiration starts. Am get
ting sleepy. Have sort of numb feel
ing and no pain"
The last few sentences were scarcely
legibie. so unsteady had the writer's
hand become, and although he at
tempted to write a few more lines, it
could not be made out.
The clothing CT the dead man is of
good material, and the police think
that he may be well connected. No
money was found. He was about 80
years of age. feet 9 inches tall, and
weighed about $50 pounds. He was
smooth shaven and had brown hair
and blue eyes.
The words of the final bulletin be-
came larger as the end of the bulletin
Vas neared. They were scrawled so
as to be almost beyond deciphering.
and their completion was evidently the
final effort of the suicide. The other
statements which were in the memoir
andum were undoubtedly taken before
the drug had been taken, as they were
in a clear. bold hand.
The letter to the hotel proprietor
read:
ITO the Man that Keeps the Hotel:
Dear Sir-I am awful sorry to cause
You this annoyance. You will get some
undesirable advertising out of it, and
upon the whole it won't pay you.
Still, such things must occur some
where. In all sincerity l hope that you
won't think l have harmed your house
for any motive except accident. Re-
GREETING the trouble I cause YOU and
trusting that you will regard the in
cident as trifiing, 1 am, sir, with great
regrets, no more,
e. L. BRYAN.
NO relation TO w. J."
The man started to write second
letter in the notebook. but, changing
his mind after starting it, scratched il
out with his lead pencil and recon-
menced on a hotel letterhead. The
letter is as follows:
ITO any old authority, newspaper.
coroner. etc:
This is just a case of shutting off
this mortal coil or attempting TO do
so, for one can never be sure that the
most carefully laid plans will be sue
ceSsful; and this, like almost every act
of my life, is careless and bungling,
so far.
''Who am I? My name is on the
register downstairs. I have no friends
1 am glad of that, for there will be no
mourners. Byron said his one regret
was that he left nothing that caused a
tear. My case is the same. but l don't
regret it at all. People die sometimes
and others are glad. Well. am glad
that in my case nobody will be made
either happy or unhappy.
DO with me. OH most anything.
Just don't bother to look for friends
You could not find any with search
light or microscope. OF course, the
reason 1 have not any friends is be-
cause l have been bad Well, maybe
so. and maybe not. The world is a
big place. Students of right and wrong
are different. Circumstances often
compel action without consulting de-
sires. I have known both success and
failure; tasted lifes sweet and bitter
est potions and drained to the
dregs the cup of life at the threshold
of existence. Hopelessly handicapped
by bad health, by injustice, and by dis
appointment. give up the struggle. I
die because 1 cannot live. Please leave
me alone just as 1 am.
Il have drunk one ounce of lauda-
mum. l presume this will be enough
On the cover of the memorandum
book was found the name of the firm
of A. w. McCloy & Co., Pittsburg,
from whom it had been purchased
From that it is thought by the central
police that the man may have come
from Pittsburg. This is the only clue
to his home, as he came to the Kimball
hotel on Saturday afternoon at
o'clock and registered as E. L. Bryan