The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-12-09
DETERMINED ON suicide
A New Yorker Kills Himself in Spite
of Bystanders' Efforts.
Holds Five Men at Bny Mt the Point
of n Pistol When Interruption
Seems Certain He Blows Out His
Brains Dependency Evidently
the Cause of the Desperate Act.

| NEW YORK, Dec. S.-Theatregoers who
had got off the cars at Sixth Avenue and
| Forty-second Street about 7:45 o'clock
tonight saw woman come running UP
| Sixth Avenue from Forty-first Street
shrieking and endeavoring to attract the
attention of two policemen who stood on
the corner. AS she turned and pointed
down Sixth Avenue they started on a run
! in that direction
| On the southwest corner of Sixth Ave
| nue. and Forty-first Street were five men
| backed up against the Forty-first Street
wall of the building looking into the muz-
| gle of revolver which another man
pointed first at one and then at another.
When one of the men took a step forward
and made a motion with his arm the re-
volver was pointed at him while the man
who held it shouted: you, get hack
there"
The menaced man stepped back. The
man with the revolver turned and saw
the policemen and. before they could
reach him, he had fired the pistol close
to his own temple. He fell to the side
walk, which for ten feet around him was
covered with his blood.
The five men who had been his prisoners
started forward as he fell, but several of
them were sick from fright. Two of them
were Central Office Detectives Reilly and
Armstrong who had followed the man for
a block trying to prevent him from killing
himself. All the way through the block
from Broadway he had left the two men
at a distance, and at the corner he had
pinned them up against the wall with
three other men.
The suicide was Philip Sondheim, who
for the past three months has been living
at the Criterion Hotel, at Broadway and
Forty-first Street. Sondheim was twenty
eight gears old and was q lawyer. Since
taking up his residence at the hotel.
however. he had done very little business.
although he had money. His brother. Sol
ONION, and two sisters live in the Ven
dome Hotel. directly opposite. and all
seemed to be on good terms until Philip
began to make threats about killing him
self.
This was about a week ago. week
ago he gotta check for 81, 600 cashed, and
began to drink heavily. Their he began
talking suicide In every place he went into
Detectives Armstrong and Reilly were
among those who heard him talk suicide.
They also heard him say he would kill
himself tonight
when SOHuueiH ielt the uOtei
the detectives walked with him and at
tempted to Illustrate his purpose. Soad-
helm finally backed the two men up against
the wall with three others. who had come
running up, and he held them there until
the interruption came from another quar-
ter.
Solomon Sondheim came up as his broth
er's body still lay on the pavement. Turn
Ing to one OF the detectives he was heard
to say:
We'll. you see what It's done One kind
word would have stopped this whole busi-
ness"
The suicides revolver had on 1t the mark
OF the Astor Battery. Sondheim had been
a member OF the battery. and went to the
Philippines with 1t.
A porter at the Criterion Hotel said to-
night that Sondheim had tried to kill him
self on Friday night in his room. His aim
was poor, and the bullet went through
panel in the door.