Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1906-12-01
Mr.. ]. Y. Quinn A SUICIDE
Shot Himself In the Head at Home
In Bedington.
MIND PROBABLY AFFECTED
: No Other Reason Can Be Found for
Rash Act--Veteran of War and
Prominent Democrat.

Berkeley county, man of wide &C.
quaintance and a large circle Of
friends, and a promn mt democratic
worker and politician, committed sui
eide at his home in Pedington at
o'clock Friday morning during a tenn
porary alteration of mind.
The rash deed was accomplished
while he was alone in his bed room,
and the bullet that ended his long and
active life was sent crashing into his
q right temple while he was sitting III
his bed.
The news OF the terrible affair
reached Martinsburg about 7:30
O'clock when a telephone message was
received by Mr.. Guinn's sister, Mrs
Sarah L. Smith, who resides on North
Queen street, and in a short time it
had spread to all quarters of the city,
the extended acquaintance of Mr.
Quinn in Martinsburg making 1t a mat
Il ter of general interest and regret here
The intelligence was a shock espec-
tally to those persons who had con
yersed with the dead man Thursday,
when he was in this city attending to
business, and when he talked Of Ger
tain sales which he expected to have
charge Of during the next few weeks.
Died at Sunrise.
The unhappy affair took place just
as the sun was peeping above the hills.
Mrs. Quinn, who had arisen some time
before, had gone to the barn to do
the milking leaving Mr.. Quinn appar>
emily asleep in bed. A short time af-
ter her departure she heard a muffled
report from the house, and while not
recognizing the sound as a pistol shot,
she hurried back to her home with "a
/ premonition that something had hap
pened.
Entering the bedroom the dreadful
spectacle of her dying husband was
presented to her. Mr.. Quinn lay upon
the bed unconscious ard breathing
heavily, with the blood streaming from
q CHASTITY wound in the right temple
and running in a crimson pool upon
the bed Lying within few inches
\of the relaxed fingers OF the dying man
was the revolver with which the rash
eed had been accompi shed.
DR.. Oliver and DR.. LelLaster, of Bed |
ston, were hurriedly summoned, but
Quinn died within five minutes af-
he had sent the bullet into his
in, without regaining conscious
or speaking.
eus OF the tragedy spread like wild !
in the village, and in a few min
les many lifelong friends and neigh /
ors of the dead auction Ger were gath /
Bred about the blood-stained couch |
yFhe utter helplessness OF the situation, |
however, was obvious, and those who |
had FASTENED to the scene of the trag-
edy departed sadly except few close
friends who remained to arrange the |
remains decorously and give what !
sympathy was possible 70 the stricken
widow.
s Was Wholly Unexpected.
No one who knew Mr.. Quinn ever
entertained a thought that his life
would end thus, and the distressing af
Vfair can only be explained on the
theory of mental alteration. He was
nan of optimistic cha 'acter, usually
cheerful and full of spirits, and seem
ed to. be full of plans for his work IN
the future. He was never of morose
disposition, and his affairs were in
such condition as to preclude the pos
sihSaty of any private financial diff
fculties having influenced him to turn.
his hand upon himself
About year ago Mr.. Quinn was the
victim of serious attack of Illness.
which, for short time, seemed to af-
feet his mental faculties. He recover
ed from this, and until recently APP
reared to be in at last ordinary
health. For the past few days, how
ever. he was apparently suffering from
n recurrence Of his former bodily ill
ness. and it is believed by those who
knew him best that this was attended
nv a spasmodic attack of mental
trouble, leading him unwittingly to
take his own life.
Thursday Mr. Quinn vas in Mar
tinsburg and appeared As witness u
a case in the circuit court. II was no
ticed then that he was confused and
uncertain regarding the details of the
incident to which his attention was
directed. and this was more noticeable
from the fact that he was ordinarily
a man with a tenacious memory for
faces, dates and figures concerning
matters with which he was directly
connected.
Later he engaged in conversation
with several friends, and stated lhat
ne was not feeling we'll, appearing
to be depressed He was also trifie
rambling in his conversation, and
would leave one subject and touch
upon another sometimes without hav-
ing completed the sentence he was
altering. These matters in themselves
would not have occasioned much COM
ment but in the light Of the tragedy
the following morning they become
significant as showing that his mind
was under some great strain, perhaps
again becoming affected by recut
renee of his old physical ailment.
Veteran of the War.
Mr.. Quinn was an ardent sympathiz.
er with the cause of the southland az
the outbreak of the civil war, and
enlisted as a member of Company B,
Second Virginia regiment, known as
the regiment of Colonel Nadenbousch
He served with galiantry throughout