New-York tribune., 1901-01-27
SUICIDE OF A PHYSICIAN.
SHOOTS HIMSELF WHILE HIS WIFE is
PREPARING TO GO OUT WITH HIM.

medicine in this city for several years. commit
ted suicide by shooting about noon yesterday in
his rooms in the Gerard apartment house, in
West Fortyfourth-st. According to Coroner
yucca, there a woman in the case" DR..
Simpson lived at the house with his wife. He
and she intended to visit some friends in this
city yesterday afternoon a carriage had been
ordered for them and was waiting in Forty
fourth-st.. opposite the main entrance to the
hotel. The physician and his wife were dressing
in their rooms preparatory to leaving the hotel
to keep their social engagements. when the car
riage they had ordered stopped at the hotel.
Mrs. Simpson the vehicle waiting for them
and hurried into her husbands room and asked
him to dress quickly.
II will he ready in a few minutes he said.
The apartments occupied by them were on the
seventh floor. and consisted of three rooms and
a hath. one OF the rooms a large one. and
was used reception room This was at one
end of a long passageway which opened into the
room which was used by the doctor. He was
in his room when his wife entered and told him
about the carriage and asked him TO get dressed
as rapidly he could. At the time she was
ready for the street
AS she left the room in which her hushan nd
was he shut the door. She got as far as the re-
ception room when she heard the report of a
pistol. The sound came from her husbands
room. and she hurried to it, When she got
there she found him lying his back on the
bed There A bullet hole in his right
temple and in his hand was revolver. His
face turned toward large mirror that
stood A few feet from the bed He was then
dead The bullet had pIoughed deep into the
brain and had killed him instantly. Mrs. Simp-
son was almost overcome. She then did not
know that he dead. She at once sent word
TO the manager Of the hotel that her husband
had shot himself and Or. Alexander Abrams was
summoned. AS soon he looked at the body
he declared that death had been instantaneous
report of the case did not reach the Coro-
ners' office until late in the afternoon. The
cause of this delay mainly that the police
were first informed Of the facts Detective
Lyons Of the West Forty-seventh-st. station
was sent 10 investigate the shooting. and il
took considerable time to question all persons
who could throw any light on the tragedy. He
was occupied about two hours in making his
report Of the case which he left at the Forty
seventh-st. station About o'clock word of
the shooting received at the Coroners' Of
flee. and Coroner yucca took charge Of the
case In his report Detective Lyons said that
one OF the witnesses Of the shooting was the
wife of the physician This gave rise to
rumor that Mrs. Simpson was in the room oc-
cuped by her husband when he shot himself
physicians wife was present at the time Of
the shooting He said that she was the only
person near the physicians room at the time
and he had named her in his report as a wit
ness.
Owing TO the position I'm which the body was
found it was presumed that the doctor was sit
ting the edge of the bed and was looking
into the mirror near the bod T'e er h Shot
himself
Lyons found four unsealed letters in the
room Two were addressed to Mrs. Simpson
and another to DR. H. F. Harvey. Of No. %
West Twenty-seventh-st. These letters were
turned over 10 Coroner yucca, who refused to
make them public. DIR. Simpson had an office
in the house in which DR.. Harvey has an Of
fee. II WIS said that Drs. Simpson and Harvey
were associated in the practice Of medicine hut
this could not be confirmed
Or. Simpson said to have been a specialist
on midwifery. An effort was made to see Mrs
Simpson last night, but it was said that she was
Frustrated and could not be seen. Her husband
was forty-twO years old. He was graduated
from Bowdoin in 1879 and for some years he
practised his profession in Boston. where he was
said TO have a large number Of friends. 1t was
said he had brother Charles living in that city
Mrs. Simpson was married TO the doctor in Bos-
ton in 1892 For about the last two years they
had lived at the Gerard. When Tribune re-
porter called at the apartment house last night,
he was told that the physician had been sick
for n long time, and had suffered at various
times with scatica and rheumatism. The re-
porter further told that DR.. Simpson had
been an invalid for long time until recently,
when he able again be about and leave
the house Little was known at the hotel OF his
business private affairs. He had made sew
eral trips to Europe in the last year. and these
that he had a large income. The manager of
the hotel when seen said:
"Dr. Simpson was one of my best tenants lie
had lived here with his wife for more than a
year He was a great sufferer. l always
thought that he had retired from the practice
quiet man. and he was always in pleasant
mood except when his health poor. When
/ was summoned to the apartments of DIR. Simp-
son to-day found Mrs. Simpson almost frantic.
She was nervous that / could hardly under
stand what she saying / heard her say
her husband to Kill himself She said that he
was well off as far as money matters were con-
cerned."
DR.. Harvey said last night Mrs. Simpson
Miss Mabel Stinney, and lived in Boston
before she was married. DR.. Simpson suffered
from chronic appendicitis. He had recently
complained on frequent occasions of severe
pains on one occasion recently he exclaimed in
my presence, L wish were dead DIR. Simpson
had an income of about $1,000 month. This
money he received from Bangor Me"
Ii said at the hotel that DR.. Simpson had
no domestic troubles and that his married life
was happy one
Deputy Coroner Williams viewed the body last
night. and then issued a burial permit.