Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-07-13
THREATENS SUICIDE
coIoRED MANS ALARMING MES
sAGEs TO HIS FRIENDS.
Believed to Have Jumped Into River
From River Queen Saturday
Night.

charlie Lee Banks colored wafter' Il
,,;a,.a, ~ have committed suicide Satur-
day night by jumping overheard from 'he
,,a.rar River Queen Nobody has peer
t,,rd uho saw him leave the boat IN sucn
- r,onner Int he has disappeared ana tells
:, ,.tt.,s that such was his intention lie
,a,,.rs n,ere received this morning and MS
sister Annie Banks, and his sweetheart.
Sus,a Washington, called at police heao-
Quarters and asked for assistance. - ho'e
ba had written in order that his employer
Mrs II NJ. HAYDEN OF 1918 l. street. misn'
not he dfsappointed because of his 1allure
:, anpear at work yesterday morning "as
received at her house yesterday. ms ho'e
uas loft at an employment bureau ana war
delivered to Mrs. Hayden by the man wiz
was sent TO do his work. 1t reaus.
od-bye Mrs. Hayden and MISS o"ee'
and Mrs Nass and Mr.. Nass. TOT nay
gone to the bottom Of the Potomac anu ~.
exchange will send you waiter this no -,
ing. and will you please give Mha as,h stree,
YOU owe to my sister on llS1 l''h s'''e
northwest. Washington. D. T.
Threatened Suicide.
The receipt of this note was the MS -
timation Mrs. Hayden had that DAN,
was tired of living. She coH'hui'''"'o.
with friends of the colored walter. ana
Sweet. went to Mrs. Hayden's house WIN
tho s,ster of the Young man. There they
,rara Informed by Colored woman inie
Ranks had said he was going to take HIS
life. .,,,o r,s
He had been talking about taxing ms
life for a week. she stated. but paid no
attention to him. because ne was AWAY
carving on some fooliShneSs.
This morning when the postman deliver
ed the other letters the recipients OF then'
aft.,,t, ~ ard
ed Captain Boardman. Detective Peck was
assigned to Investigate the case ana tne
letters were turned over to him In the let
ter To his sister the writer said:
.'Good-bye mama. sister Mary. Marion
and Clarisa for am gone. You VIII never
SEQ me anv more and tell all the rest OF the
folks goodbye for me. But want Marion
To have my wheel and all my clothes. IheJ
may be too large for him now put II Nv. s
lives he will need them some day. Some OF
them are in the trunk and some are uhueF
the bed. AS l go down the river on the
River Queen and fall never to be seen
"CHARI.IE LEE BANKS.
II. wrote Susie Washington the following:
"Miss Washington.
MY Dear Sweets: Goodbye. goodbye.
for | am gone. As go down the river on
the River Queen soon. l Will fall into the
river never to be seen. And tell all my
friends goodbye for me- for l am gone no
more c. l.. BANKS.
p Sand it is not your fault, Sweets,
and don't you think 1t.
Letters Dated July g.
The letters written by Banks were dated
July g. They were not posted. however
until Saturday night and were taken up ir
the II o'clock collection. 1t was about
o'clock Saturday night when he left the
house Before leaving he turned the key
to his room over to his sister and told hel
she might help herself to anything in there
His sister had come here from HagerS-
town only about ten days ago to seek en-
ployment. Her brother had been here
about two years. Banks had a room al
1l23 18th street. where his sister has also
stopped. and Susie Washington lives at
ljOS Nj street northwest. 1t is stated thai
Banks had complained of severe headaches
for the past three months. and recently he
had been unable to eat much. Insomnia
followed and some of his friends think his
mind was affected. Harbormaster Sutton
was notified and the crew of the police
boat will probably make effort to find
the body. The steamer River Queen. 1t is
stated. makes trips to Motley Hall Satur-
day nights. and If Banks carried out his
intentions he went into the water between
this city and the excursion resort. which
Is only a short distance below Alexandria