The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-04-10
HE BURIED HIMSELF.
THE UNIQUE SUICIDE OF A MEXICAN
INDIAN IN CALIFORNIA.

Disheartcned by IN Accident Which I'm
fitted Him For active Life. Jose Meadcz
Resolved to End KS Existence without
Causing Ills Friends Trouble.
Joso Mendoz was Mexican Indian
who killed himself III 1869 in San Jose,
Cal. At the time of his death Jose was
SO years of age. He had all his life been
an exceedingly active man.
Among tho daring characters then
residing in San Jose none could excel
him as rider Of wild horses. He was
also very ingenious and could not only
make the finest kinds of lariats. but
could also use them in many original
ways
One day the daring rider came to
grief. BY some means he was thrown
from wild mustang. and, being stun
ned aud made helpless by the fall, he
was dragged for some distance in the
stirrups. When finally rescued, he was
in q condition that would have been
sure and almost instant death to any
but man of wonderful nerve and to-
nacity Of life
Injured and helpless, he recovered suf-
fioiently to realize that he could never
engage In active pursuits again, and he
became very moody and respondent. A
life in which he was preoluded from
daring riding un unframed mustangs
had no charms for him, and in the
midst Of his sufferings from Internal IN
juries no made frequent threats Of sui
oida Once. in speaking of the matter to
On intimate friend, who tried to dis
suade him from the idea, he said that
when he killed himself it would be
done in such a manner that no one
would ever have any more trouble about
him 1t was thought at the time that he
intended to drown himself in the sea,
where his body would never be recover
ed.
Every morning for several weeks
thereafter jose crawled away from the
adobe hut in which he and number of
others lived and came back quite late
every evening. On these trips be took
pick and shovel and occasionally a
pieoe of lumber, no one knew for what
purpose. Some supposed that he was
mining somewhere. By this time he
had grown so respondent as 30 be en-
tirely communicative, and no expla-
nation Of his conduct could be- obtained
from him. One evening, as was expect
ed, the invalid did not return to the
adobe, and the next day search was
made in the direction in which he went.
Something like mile from the adobe
house the searching party found small
clearing in the grass and weeds To the
surprise Of every one Of the party O rude
board box about feet wide and 6 feet
long and about Is inches in depth was
found lying upside down in the middle
Of the open place. The box was imme-
diately overturned, but nothing but q
heap Of loose earth was found under it.
A closer examination revealed the fact
that attached to the box were. q number
of pieces Of lariat. The explanation of
oil this was mystery, and at first it
was not connected with the disappear
ance of tho Mexican.
An intimate friend of the missing
man then made an explanation which
was pronounced entirely plausible and
cleared the mystery. The man said that
the Mexican, after sustaining his in
jury, had been entirely dependent upon
strangers for his support and sustenaDce,
ard he was determined, if possible, aft
er he was dead not to give them any
more trouble. he therefore devised q
scheme by which he could not only kill
but also, ut the same time, bury him
self. How the thing was managed was
easily enough determined by an inspec-
ton Of tho ground. The deceased had
dug grave. n rather shallow-one, ia
which his skeleton WIGS fcrnd come
years later.
After the grave was dag walsh ro-
quired some time, owing ~ the feeble
condition of the deceased, he phced the
loose earth in box that had been made
for that purpose. This earth was pack
ed in as solid as possible by being wet
and then allowed 10 dry again, so that
when the box was carefully stood m;its
side with the earth toward the ground
none of it fell out. Several lariats were
then stretched across from the upper
side Of the box as it lay across the grave
to stakes ON the other side
The box was then carefully balanced,
so that any object that might fall on
the lariats would cause it to fall over
the grave and empty the earth it con-
tanned on top of the body. In this man
Der the unfortunate man not only killed
but also buried himself almost in the
same instant of time.
So we'll satisfied were those who made
the surprising discovery that their theo-
ry was correct that they did not take
the trouble to Gig in order to ascertain
that the body was underneath. The
theory, however. was further strength
ened by the finding of the pistol with
which the ShnQtinp lad hppn dnna liz,