The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-03-09
JAP HANGS
HIMSELF IN
CITY JAIL
CONTINUED from Page L,

| For a man cannot cook when he is
drunk. at least not satisfactorily TO the
master. and Mitani lost his position
sinking lower and lower. 1t became
soon. so that the friends of former days
knew him no more. and his face was
better known at police headquarters
than any where else.
Mitani. in effect. had become a COM
mon drunkard. Every cent that he
could beg-he had quit working-went
for sake. and every time that he drank
sake he fell into the hands of the
police.
That happened to him on Saturday
night. He was carried into the sta
ton, too drunk to stand upright, by a
brawny native police officer, and went
the usual road to the drunk cell. He
had thirty-f1ve cents in money in his
pockets, which was strange, but per-
haps the sake oyercauqe him before he
could spend that. At all events, his
presence was a matter Of course, and
nobody noticed him particularly.
Nobody noticed him particularly yes
terday morning, either, although Turn
key Melanche kept the same watchful
eye upon him that he did upon all the
prisoners in the yard. Mitani was sick
at his stomach, following his debauch,
but he seemed cheerful enough He
sent to the desk sergeant, drew his thir-
ty-five cents, and was allowed to buy
tobacco with it. That was a small in
diligence. He smoked cigarettes, as So
cially as any japanese could by himself.
all morning. Then, at a quarter past
two in the afternoon, after asking a
Portuguese boy in the yard for match,
he went into one of the bath rooms in
the corner of the Jail yard and closed
the door after him.
He could not have been there more
than five minutes alone. One of the
prisoners told the Coroner's jury after
minutes. At all events, within a very
few minutes, negro prisoner, wishing
to wash his hat, went into the same
room, and found Mitani hanging by his
Grape obi to the water pipe running up
to the ceiling from the floor of the
place.
The negro. in jail for burglary. was
badly frightened. and called the turn
key, Melanche at once caught hold of
the body, seeking to support it and
ease the strain on the neck, and called
for knife to cut the suicide down. The
negro helped him, seeing somebody
willing to act, and the body was cut
down-the water pipe being broken in
the process and the turnkey, the negro
and the Jap soaked.
1t is probable that Mitani was dea
when his body was cut down, although !
the corpse was still warm. At all |
events, artificial respiration was tried. |
without avail, and when DR.. Mcdonald, |
being called. reached the Jail, there was
no hope of saving the suicide.
Coroner Chillingworth called a jury |
later in the afternoon, and the matter
Of the death was inquired into most
OF course there could be but
one conclusion. 1t was clearly case
IF deliberate suicide,-and Mitani must
nave been most determined, and must
nave possessed great agility and
strength to have climbed the water
pipes as he did and to have chung there
With his feet while making the Grape
hi fast about the pipe and around his
leck.
The verdict of the jury was as fol-
ow: THE jury finds that Mitani came
o his death by strangulation, with in
ent to commit suicide.
And the jury further finds that no
lame on account of negligence is to be
ttached to the turnkey of the JAIL nor
o the police department"
Il Z