The evening times., 1898-07-27
nav. As.inst Suicide.

--'Aasvs Asainst Suicide.
There was a disgusted couple in New
York few days ago, and they were on
their bridal tour, which made their
feelings worse. The wife swallowed a
quantity of arnica by mistake, and was
arrested on the charge Of attempted
suicide. 1t cost her husband little
more than $50 to get her out Of the
station-house and settle the doctors
bill, and his opinion Of New York
city wosaidn't be fit to print.
The couple came from Arizona. and
visited New York on their bridal tour
because the fame of that metropolis
has penetrated even to the wilds OF
Arizona. Both are of good family. and
the groom is the son Of a wealthy
ranchman. They were staying at
hotel and the husband unthinkingly
placed the arnica bottle on a table by
the bed. The wife mistOok the bottle
for another one containing medicine.
and as arnica is not intended for in
ternal application. the results OF her
dose were not comfortable. Her hus-
band went post-haste for a physician.
and the young lady was taken to the
hospital. Several people with more
enterprise than brains spread the re-
port that a woman had attempted sui
eide and the next development was
that the unfortunate victim found her
self in the station-hOuse, and was only
rescued after the case had come up in
the police court and the name and
history Of the couple had gotten into
the papers.
1t is difficult to see just what the
sense Of such a law as this can be. 1t
is only one degree less absurd than that
other law once enacted in France,
which made suicide a capital offense.
In this particular case great mortifi-
cation and trouble were brought upon
two entirely innocent persons. But
even in an ordinary ease. it is not likely
that such a law does any particular
good. There are people who attempt
suicide from morbid craving for no.
toriety, and it does not make so very
much difference to them whether they
succeed or not. Such people are only
gratified by the additional notoriety
they get by their arrest, and there is
usually some weeping relative ready to
pay the EXPENSES of the AFFAIR and
coddle the offender till he-or She
promises never to try such thing
again. Another class of suicides at
tempt to take their own lives because
their experience leads them to despair
g Saf N h Q
world These people will not be deferred
from their action by the fear of ar
rest, because they have reached the
limit of their misery. and feel that
nothing worse can happen to them than
has happened already. And there 10 a
third class, deserving only of pity
made UP of those who. in some great
affliction, have temporarily lost control
of themselves, and who will bitterly
repent, when the mood has passed, that
they ever contemplated suicide. The
truest kindness TO persons of this class
is to treat them just as one would a
delirious fever patient-to regard their
suicidal mania as a disease which W II
pass away. 1t surely will not improve
HldtltTS To tLtIil dflu iHtUl
as criminals.
And finally. when one considers the
number of persons who, from love of
sensation. or from some other motive.
are eager to spread the report that ac-
cidental death was really suicide due
to disappointment in love, family
troubles. or hidden crime, it is easy
to see that such law Is extremely
liable to abuse. 1t would be much
more civilized conduct in our lawmak-
ers to turn their attention to remov-
ing some of the condit ons that make
suicides. Instead of putting a man in
prison because he has been cooped up
in a disease-breeding tenement house,
without work, until the heat and the
suspense and the privation of his life
have driven him to attempt suicide, 1t
might be a good thing to pass a few
laws in favor of better homes and sani-
tation for the poor of the metropolis
The present treatment is something like
shipping at the top boughs of tree
while the root remains untouched.