The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1903-11-06
PIT|FUL TRAGEDY
or JAMES [. BLAIR
GmbezzIer Of Fortunes and q
Leading Citizen He Pays
the Penalty.
TWICE ATTEMPTS SUICIDE
Took Morphine to Kill Himself, Plan
ming a Most Dramatic Death,
but Failed-Wife Loyalty
Stands by Him.

ST. Louis. Oct. 31.-James Lawrence
Blair, charged with embezzling thou
sands of dollars, twice attempted to
ommit suicide, following II complete
confession to his wife of the truth Of
the charges made against him.
Mad infatuation for his accomplished
ana beautiful wife and an insane desire
to see her happy in the possession of
everything money could buy, were as
signed by him to hcr as the cause of
his pecuIiition& extending through sew
cral years.
He admitted to her that he had de-
CelNed her as to the amount of his le-
Ultimate income. When she questioned
him as to why and low she enjoyed so
many more luXurics and comforts thar
MIS-. Seldom, the wife of Blair's part
ner, he Silcnced her suspicious by de-
ciaflnG that he made more none out
side his law practice than within it.
When Mrs. Blair became acquainted
with the truth of the accusations
against ner husbands integrity and
honor, h was overwhelmed with grief,
but her o for him suffered no dimin-
ution. Rallying her daZed and be-
umDc wits she asked him what of
the future. He spoke SO hopelessly and
deSpondently. fearing exposure and
dreadlng what the next day might
bring forth that she suspected he meant
to commit suicide.
Wife Begged Him to Live.
This suspicion was strengthened by
his constant reference to the enormous
amount of his life Insurance., about
81 200, coo. and the consolation he seemed
to derive from the contemplation of the
TACT that her comfort after his death
was absolutely assured. On her knees.
with tears and the beautiful
woman begged her husband to promise
her that come what might, for her sake
and for the sake of their sons, he would
no take his W life. She told him
that no matter that he had done, she
loved him devotedly, and hat she
would give up everything and go with
him TO the GttermoSt ends of the earth
If need be, live with him in two rooms,
cook for him, wash for him and work
Tor him. Anything, any fate she plead
ca Tor save that Of the widow of a dis
honored suicide. And Blair promised
her that conne what might he would
not attempt to take his own life.
How he obtained the morphine with
which, by his own confession, he tried
on two occasions to end all by suicide,
is not known. hat he deliberately
planned suicide and planned to commit
IL IN Such a way as to appear to have
dled in the very act of defending his
honor and his honored family name
against his accusers, he has confessed.
How dramatic We're the occasions on
which he collapsed after taking the
poison bears out his own statements.
5lair's Plans to Die Failed.
a week last Monday when GER
tain publications in the city We're
charging him in plain terms with hay
Ing stolen thousands of dollars, Blair
saw that exposure could not much
longer be delayed. He could not face it
and he would not see his wife dragged
into poverty as well as disgrace. The
moment had arrived. he decided. to end
1t all. He summoned a private street
car to carry him to the Fou Courts
Just before entering the building he
took a large dose of the drug-too much
to accomplish his purpose it afterward
deVeloped-and, expecting every mo-
ment to collapse in his last sickness,
went before the prosecuting attorney,
Mr.. Dalton, and in emphatic language
denounced %. c. Brokmeyer, of the
Missouri Republican, as a %slanderer
and libeler, and asked for a warrant
for the EDITORS arrest.
While talking to Dalton, the expected
collapse came. That it did not rove
fatal was due entirely to the fact that
Blair had taken an overdose of NOR
prime He collapsed again before he
could be taken home and so desperate
was his situation tina he was removed
to the Baptist sanitarium, where his
life was saved only after an all night
struggle.
Many suspected that the collapse of
that evening was really ii attempted
suicide, but in the absence of positive.
proof Mr.. Blair vas generally given the
benefit of the doubt. Being removed
from Sftancote, or Airdrie, as his coun-
try home is v~ariously styled, Mr.. Blair
was ~tenderly cared for by his wife, son
Z physicians. He was almost re-
covered from the effects of his attempt
at self destruction when on Saturday
evening he was permitted to stand
alone on the veranda of his home talk
ing to a newspaper reporter to whom
he was debating a statement denying
the charges made by James II. Roberts
and printed that morning in a ST. Louis
newspaper.
He Stood on the eranda.
The sun was shining on the veranda
n Blair said that he wanted sun
shine. The air was cold but the ply
stefan attending him granted him per-
mission to enjoy an hour in the open
air. Mrs. Blair, who had been watch
ing her husband Utmost constantly, was
lying down. The servants We're all
busy. DR.. George Holman, Blair's ply
stefan, was just leaving when the re-
| porter arrived. The doctors last words
We're: Don't make Mr.. Blair ak too
mach
Blair was standing neal the stone
steps which led to the ground. His
left hand resteo on the heavy stone
which surnounts the porch. There was
one chair on the porch n the re-
porter asked Mr.. Blair to be seated
in IL. He refused. saying he preferred
to stand and get the effect of the sun
iieltt.i blair seemed but a shadow of
his former self. His manner showed
unsuistakable signs of extreme worry.
a few hours previous he had read the
statement of James T.. Roberts which
had been printed in the Globe Demo-
crat Of that morning. Although eX-
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