Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1897-10-08

SUICIDE OF FRANK w. CLARK

by Hanging In the BeIfry Tower OF
the Congregational Church saturday
Morning---He was Dependent he
cause OF Many Dissppointments.
Frank w. Clark, CO. sexton Of the Cen
tire Congregational church, committed sui
eide Saturday morning by hanging in the
belfry tower Of the church, which for the
past ten years had received his faithful
and efficient care. Dependency because
of disappointment in private affairs is be-
lieved to have prompted him in taking his
life, as it had been noticed by his family
and some Of his friends that for several
weeks his bearing in some respects had
been out Of the ordinary, and it was feared
that his peculiar actions were a Fremont
ton Of apOplexy.
About 5 o'clock Saturday morning he
arose and left the house as usual to start
the fires at the water house of the Boston
& Maine railroad, where he was employed
as engineer and TO run the pumps which
| fill the tank from which various locomo-
| tives get their water supply. 1t was his
custom to start the fires and remain at the
house until the arrival of his son, when he
would return home to breakfast His son
went to the house as usual and finding tile
| fires started and his father absent sup
posed he had gone home.
Becoming alarmed at bis failure to re-
turn to breakfast with his usual punctual-
| ity some of the family went to Mr.. Clark's
room where they found his purse, watch
and other articles which he invariably car
ried with him. His daughter Phpbe then
went to the wafer house and as nothing
had been seen of him she inquired Of En-
gineer Edmund VI. Smith at the Brattle-
boro gas light company's building. Mr..
Smith advised her to 60 with her brother
10 the church and il her father was there
and was not all right TO advise him and to
send for Dr. Webster.
The two children went to the church
and found their fathers hat hanging in
the cloak room. They searched the church,
first the main portion, then the cellar and,
lastly, the befry tower, the door Of which
was ajar. Upon opening the door fur
| ther the sad fact was revealed. Mr.. Clark
had hung himself by winding small rope
| several times around an inclined beam and,
after adjusting the moose, stepping off
rom a platform which he had constructed
by placing board across two beams few
feet from the floor. The daughter carried
out Mr.. Smiths instructions, sending her
brother TO notify Mr. Smith, but, as her
brother had locked the door after him,
| when the doctor arrived he was unable TO
! enter the church. Dea. c. F. Thompson
was near, however, and unlocked the door
! Mr.. Thompson then went home with the
daughter, the body having been taken
down, and notified the other members of
the family The body was removed to Mr.
Clark's home at Il Washington street.
Mr. Clark was born in Westminster
West. He came to Brattleboro with his
mother and her family in 1850. He has
since been employed in various ways, hav-
ing worked for the Estey Organ company
aud Z. Crosby Il Co. a number Of years
and having spent several years as a farmer
! in Kansas. He was always painstaking
and industrious, but was unfortunate in
many ways and was unable to accumulate
worldly goods. He leaves a widow, Syl-
via, daughter of the late John Putnam for
many years keeper of the old toll bridge
between Brattleboro and the island, and
three children, Edith of Lebanon, y. H.,
and Phoebe and Frank of Brattleboro. He
was brother of George NJ. Clark of Chi
cage, president of the George NJ. Clark IL
Co. corporation, and of Mrs. Harriet Had
| ley and Mrs Sarah Carroll of Chicago.
He was also brother OF the late Barna A.
| Clark of Brattleboro.
The funeral was held a. the house at 2
O'Clock Tuesday afternoon, Rev. c. O..
Day officiating. The burial was in Pros
pect Hill cemetery Mr.. Clark was a mem
Der of the Brattleboro lodge of Pilgrim
| Fathers and was insured in that order for
$1,000.