New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-01-09
EDWARDS A SUICIDE
CORONER GIVES VERDICT.
Thinks Ne5c-Y Yorker Took Poison
and Then Shot Himself.
by Telegraph to The Tribune.

VINO was FOUND dead IN pea at TIE nome OF HIS
brother-in-law, Charles A. Hitler, in this city,
last Wednesday morning, is the official verdict
of Coroner Mix, as given out late this afternoon
The coroner's statement came as a sensational
climax to this most unusual case and a re-
suit A Maxcy Hitler the brother-in-law of Mr..
Edwards. who was held under surveillance as a
witness by the police. was at once released
The coroner's report places the suicide in the
back yard of the Hitler. home at a. m. last
Wednesday and surmises that Mr.. Edwards
came down through the house in his under
clothes and stockings, lighted the dining room
gas and stepped out of doors TO kill himself 1t
says that the finding in the body of quantity
OF morphine possibly sufficient to cause death,
The discovery of a bottle of iaudanum in the
back yard of the Hitler home within easy throw
of the back door, and the finding of .22-calibre
revolver in the yard. also within easy throw Of
the back door. all indicate suicide.
The revolver. the report says. contained two
empty shells and FIVE loaded cartridges. The
finding Of blood stains, which from outside
the rear dining room door UP the back stairway
TO the landing leading TO the front hail. also in
dicated suicide according TO the coroner's state
Inent-
In consequence of such developments" says
the report, all surveillance of a Maxcy Hitler
has been withdrawn" The additional statement
was made that the investigation has not been
concluded and that the final report is not yet
ready.
Coroner Mix in discussing mis- verdict last
night, said:
Detectives Ward and DOnnelly found both re-
volver and bottle in the College-st. Hitler yard,
about thirty feet from the rear Of the dining
room, just stones throw from the back door;
The pistol was found TO be IN snghtly corIoueu
condition, and was discovered unoer soiIle
bushes. with dirt the barrel where It hsla
pIoughed up the earth The bottle was 1oun t
nearby. II was a half pint size, with an men
Of fluid remaining in il. The laudanum potlie
was mart of the Hitler family medicine stock,
but how much Of il the dead man took is not
known yet. Another revolver was tound IN the
house. but its chambers were filed with GUS
and had not been discharged recently Bolh
bottle and revolver were found In the same
direction from the back door.
The finding is that Mr. EdWaIes p d4os,t
made three attempts to kill himself at ABOUT
O'Clock Wednesday morning in the back yaLu
OF the Hitler house There was a puieI MY ~
p1e lamb of the back door when Ieaas iHto ~
garden Another bullet was found in his heaQ.
There were traces Of morphine in the stoin ia
~ tho dead man cannot say Just what llIeu
Mr. Edwards whether it was the poison or OILY Ii
bullet He was strong man ana pom 9a, Jul IL
and poison may have caused me . 35,,,1,1,
mist have taken ? large quantity of laudahulI.
There were blood stains on the door, eilIeaI
On tre e+airvav and smearingS OF blooo We're
discovered on the back entrance stat1 ;atrs
detectives and on the handraH OF me 41oo5
rTba oar5lxerchief had numerous daubs OF otood
on Il as II Edwards had tried 10 stdhC I ~
Cow Of blood by frequent DRESSINGS OF IAe lIo1Iu
iyerchief TO his head. Wounded ana PoiSolIeu
oe he was he must have staggered pack ltllo
tLa house dripping blood as he walked, leII Ile
si.e ,,rIoclxe5 and the lights burning: gone up
~ his room and gone to bed |Eere ne W. W.
found the next morning. Another hanak IA
80 found outside the back door. and TINS was
.,orre6 with the initial e" The blood suaItls
fror7 outside the dining room ed upstairs ~ e.
rail and stopped at the landing He was IN ms
drnIo4tes and stockings and threw both re-
1-oIver and bottle away after ne dlo Ile oeeu;
II is by all odds the most rerafk I3 IS :
ever knew Tt makes convictions on clrcuIIsttl-
4taI evidence shaky proceedings Here WdS my
tive and opportunity. A man was Louiu m 9
pnnarentIy had the motive and opporIunltS, 60
Io 80 a history Of events leading up 10 the
case Of unprecedented circurnst antlaI sG73ls
80 tho case was plainly suicide. we old not
-. Ngoxcv HITLER because we had no rlgnt
- bu1nIiate him. but we had TO holo MN utitN
a complete investigation had been hepd u C o
talIef in certain facts was not disturbed oy out
tI-egtigation but they were found TO be circu-n-
e+.n+iaJ In such a case circumStanJlal eVloeiiCe
is so complete and the apparent cnalh ls so
- +os,etf,er that we would have had a hard
+ir1a of il except for the known presence "
17oison The States Attorney and myseh helo
the opinion that the case against a ceTta!a sus
Tect was the strangest circumstantlai case We
had ever seen or heard Of. While we Went ~
the matter slowly, we have covered every Po os
sib1e cIeyy and now have doubt that MI Ed
wards took his own life
The theory Of the police to- night was that Mr.
Edwards shot at himself twice. the first bullet
missing. the second entering his head and caus-
ing concussion and that he then took the
laudanum-
The coroner showed the revolver, which was
slightly rusted. presumably from the rain bf last
Wednesday night, and the bottle, an ordinary
half pint glass bottle. Asked as to the papers
x,,nposed TO have been missing, he said: The
diarv that has been said TO be missing is now
in nv safe" He showed It, and it contained, as
reported minutes Of family affairs. The coro-
,er said that the states attorney took the same
stand that he did. and that there had been no
friction between the departments.
Asked as TO any motive which had been dis
covered for the suicide of Mr.. Edwards, the
Coroner declined to answer He said that a
motive might be found a. MaXcy Hitler. early
in the case. asked the reporters to look into
Mr.. Edwards's financial affairs and his dealings
in Wall Street and in the General Chemical
company 10 see whether he was in good hnan-
cial standing Excellent information, however,
IS that Mr. Edwards had money troubles and
no motive for self-destruction.
While the finding Of the Coroner is explicit
and no further action viii be taken in the case
the public feeling here has not Yet quteted down
Amusement on all sides is shown. IL IS asked
what induced a man. financially sound heaIthy
robust and even unusually strong. socially pop
,,Isr with the closest home ties, beloved OF ev-
er,one TO shoot himself, and, 10 make the sui
asked why he SHOULD have appeared SO SocIable
and content at the house Of President Dwight
who entreated him to remain overnight, fear
ing violence at the Hitler place.
II Is asked why he should have chosen the
back yard for the deed, and why he should have
,,ndressed to his Juaderciothes. and in that garh
x,one down through the house, lighted the dining
room gas. unlocked the back door and gone out
an the doorstep TO shoot himself. II is asked
why he had both laudanum and 4 revolver; how
he had the physical strength after shooting him
self to drink the laUdanunl; now he managed to
go back through the house with a bullet in his
head and laudanum in his system, enter his