The San Francisco call., 1897-11-01
HER WOE WAS
BORN OF FANCY
More Light Shed on the
Mysterious Suicide of
Miss Holywell at
Berkeley.
Circumstances All Point to the
Fact That She Wrote Her
Death=Inviting Letters
to Herself.
She Once Hinted at Having a Secret Sorrow
That Possibly Charles A. Ruggles,
Redands STUDENT n1ay
Explain.

That Monday night she made the hrst
attempt upon her life.
DR.. Joseph F. Eastman of Berkeley,
who was called in on that occasion, ques-
ioned the girl after e had been revived
as to why she had taken poison.
She declared that she suffered from in
somnia ana headache and had taken the
drug as she had always taken 1t, to relieve
her suffering.
"Are you morphine hendT bIuhtly
asked the physician.
The girl youchsafed no reply.
Ibid you take the drug this evening
with the purpose of ending your Iife?' he
demanded.
To this inquiry the unhappy young
girl gave no response.
81 am sure" said DR.. Eastman yester-
day. that the girl was addicted to the
use of morphine. Her complexion and
physical appearance indicated that such
was the fact. Although l have prescribed
for her / knew very little of the girl.
after we brought her to on Monday
night she wept and sobbsd, repeating
over and over the name Arthur
DR.. Eastman further refutes the suppo-
sition that Miss Holy we'll was in straitened
financial condition. On Tuesday last she
came to his office and promptly paid the
doctor for his services on the night pre-
vious She seemed TO have plenty OF
money at the time. He said further that
he knew the girl to have been vrtuous.
1t has been pretty definitely ascertained
how the unfortunate girl secured the
poison with which she ended her life.
The investigation has also confirmed the
belief that the girl was addicted to the
use of morphine.
About seven weeks ago Charles R.
McNulty, a clerk in Kelsey's drug store,
sold to NJ ss HoIyweli a one-eighth grain
morphine powder.
The powder was put up in an envelope
marked with The name OF the druggist
who had sold it. The same envelope was
found in the girls room after her death
with one and three-fourths grains OF N Or
phine in it.
1t was at first supposed that the poison
which the girl had used was purchased at
Kelsey's. Upon inquiry at the drugstore
il was found that the only morphine sold
for some wrecks had been sold to an old
gray-haired lady who wore spectacles
1t was suspected that this old lady had
furnished the poison TO the girl.
The mystery surrounding the old lady
however, has b en- cleared up. She is
Mrs. Harriet s. Conners, and on the 18th
inst. she purchased from r. S. Hawley, a
clerk at kelsey's, one grain of morphine
in one-sixth grain powders for her hus-
band, who IS a sufferer from lum bago.
She still has four of the powders, having
given the other two to her huS band.
The poison used by Miss Holy well must
therefore have been obtained elsewhere,
and besides, Mrs. Conners declares that
that she never had any dealings whatever
with the dead girl.
The powders. moreover, that were found
in the Kelsey envelope were put up
in papers of different shape from those
used at the drugs ore
Clerk McNulty declares positively that
the powders in question were not OBJ
tanned there, and is quite certain that nc
such powder papers are used by any OF
the drugstores in the college town.
Miss Holywell. nevertheless, is known
TO have purchased the drug elsewhere in
| Berkeley.
On Friday last at about $3.50 P. NJ. six
gra rs of morphine we're sold at Rut-
! ledge's drugstore to young lady giving
her name as Miss Lablache, but whom tn e
clerk at Rutledge's has positively identi-
fed as Mss Holywell. She gave her resi-
dence as 2240 Durant avenue, and stated
that she wanted them TO alleviate pain
and that she was in the habit of using the
drug for that purpose.
There is no such number on Durant
avenue as that given by The girl. The box
containing the poison was found in the
dead girls room and it was probably from
~ LudL sue tOOh the Id Idl upSc.
w. c. Ho!ywell arrived at Berkeley yes.
terdaY evening on the 6:15 train, having
left the overs and and taken the local al
Sixte h-street station.
+. W. Durgan, with whom the unfortu
J nate girl had been stopping, met the girl's
stricken father at the depot. He was i'm
mediately conducted TO she Durgin resi-
dence.
In snswer 10 a mum Der of inquiries Mr..
Holywell declared that he knew nothing
of the persons mentioned in the inys-
ferrous letter which his daughter received
| last Monday night.
He was unable to shed any light upon
the mystery or to give any clew to the
/ identity of Arthur" or Els r. King OIL
/ Bishop Blythe or r. ]. Blythe or Profes.
| sor Paget, who are mentioned in the
| letter.
II was aware that my dau. hter had
| been respondent OF late" he said, "but
beyond this / know absolutely nothing II
The father identified the letter, which
| has come addressed to the girl since her
death, and which Deputy Coroner Strightii
has refused 10 open until after the inquest
| this morning, as a letter from tie dead
girls aunt in Redlanus. He also lden.
titled the package which accompanied
| this letter, as having been mailed by him.
self.
| w ME ueCiihlng 10 state what the con
| tents OF the package were he declared til a,
they were nothing which would throw
any light upon the mystery of the case
| Beyond this the father had nothing te
say, requesting the reporters to wait until
this morning for further particulars.
Beyond the register bearing the name
"Charles A, Ruggle )" and the black-bor
| dered paper, the search OF Miss Holywell'
! room revealed little that could throw any
| light on the cause Of her act.
L room was in The greatest con fusion
when Coroner Baldwin entered it yester
day afternoon. II was a little square
room, plainly furnished, and just such ar
| abidlng-place as one would picture girl
studen to select.
The floor was covered with mating ano
in the corner opposite the door stood mar
row bed with nothing on it but the mat.
tress. In another corner. piled partly or
a traveling-case and partly On the floor
1 knH Hr6 nla4l Il.