The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1902-10-21
Advertiser Bureau,

l ".
best ard most popular citizens, ended
his life in this city by shooting himself
with a revolver between and . o CLOCK
| last night.
His wife went to Virginia about six
| weeks ago to visit her daughter III
Roanoke Some three or four weeks ago
| Captain Davidson Joined her in Virginia
He complained of being in broken down
| condition when he left Selma ana ex-
pressed the hope that the months rest
| the first he had taken in many years
| would do him good. When he left ne
| thought he would return to this city
rejuvenated man.
He grew worse, however, after reaching
Virginia. and was quite i'll while there.
He had the very best of medical atten-
ton and nursing. but he was very des-
pendent and low spirited. He reached
Selma yesterday afternoon at 4:30 o'clock
on the Rome train. accompanied by ms
wife. After ne got home he took walk
and seemed to be restless and nervous
but no one suspected for moment that
he was IN a frame of mind to commit
| suicide.
After supper he was In the dining room,
| where the family was sitting chatting
about the trip. Mrs. Davidson asked him
| IL he was not tired and he said, mo,
will sit here and listen to you all talk
awhile before / retire" Sometime after
s o'clock he remarked that he woslld go
upstairs, take bath and retire. He
told his wife she need not go up to get
out his fresh underclothes, as he knew
where they were. That was the last seen
of him alive.
In ten or fifteen minutes the muffled
report of a pistol came from upstairs
A heavy sound was heard of a body
striking the floor. Captain Davidson's
son, Eugene, and his son-in-law, James
Kennedy, ran up stairs as fast as they
could. When they reached the head of
the stairway they saw the body of their
parent lying across the hall, it having
| fallen backward out of the bath room.
He had not disrobed. but had evidently
remained in the bath room the ten or
fifteen minutes he had been up stairs,
making careful preparation for the deed
| he was about to commit
| The weapon used was a new Smith
! & Wesson of 80 calibre. He had placed
| the muzZle of the weapon to his right
eye and had pulled the trigger, the ball
| went crashing into his brain and he fell
a corpse. He gasped once or twice after
his son reached his side, death being
| almost instantaneous.
The act was committed, no doubt while
Captain Davidson was laboring under
|
known to carry a pistol and must have
purchased the one with which he took
| his life while in Virginia. 1t Is thought
| that Captain Davidson had Bright's dis
| ease and knew it. and that this so preyed
upon his mind that he ended his life.
Capt. Joe Davidson, as he was famil-
| iarly called by all, was one of Selma
best known and most popular citizens.
| He was a conductor on the Southern
Railroad and was known from Chatta-
nooga to Meridian and from Birmingham
to Mobile. He had been in the employ
of the road for a great many years, and
was very popular with all who knew
him. He kas one of the few men of
whom everybody spoke kindly
Captain Davidson was born In Mecklen-
burg County N. c.. about 1876 He join
ed the army from his native State and
went through the four years of the civil
war, and was in many. of the hardest
fought battles of Virginia The Southern
cause never had a more gallant defender
He was one of the 5000 tattered, ragged
hungry, but brave Confederate soldiers
who laid down their muskets at Apo
mattox, and came home, poor but not
dispirdted, to commence the battle of
life anew. He moved to Alabama in 1868
and settled in Perry County, where he
| resided for a year. He then moved to
Marengo County, where he lived for two
years. and while there married Miss
Louisa Price. who survives him. He
| lived in Hale and Perry for a few years
after 1873, and ten or fifteen years ago
| he came to Selma, where he has since
| resided.
He lived to see all three of his daugh-
| tiers married and was never so happv
| as when they were home on a visit He
was an affectlonate man in his family
relations, and as a neighbor and friend
| he was respected and loved. Quiet and
| reserved, modest but cordial, he was the
kind of man to make and hold friends
| The manner of his death was a great
shock to the city this morning, and the
sympathies of all were extended to his
bereaved ones.
Captain Davidson was a member of the
First Presbyterian Church of this CITY
and his remains were laid to rest from
that editice this afternoon at $3.50 o'clock.
a large concourse of citizens attending
to pay the last tribute of respect
His daughter from Birmingham and a
good many of his Hale, Perry and Ma
rengo relatives came to his funeral. he
being related by blood and marriage
to many of the leading families of the
canebrake Selma and the entire State
lost good and true citizen when CAPTAIN
Davidson closed his eyes in death.