Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-08-26
Rev. Albert Trick DenounCes
Modern Church in Last Letter.
DIES IN A MILLS HOTEL
Americas Trinity Is Success, Pleasure
and Gold, He Writes.
LAST WORDS SENT TO FRIEND
Unable to Follow Christ's Teaching
and Square His Deeds With
Worlds Exactions.

NEW YORK, August 26.-The Rev. AL
bert Trick, former pastor of the First
Presbyterian Church of Chicago. CONT
mitted suicide in Mills Hotel at 36th
street and Third avenue yesterday by
shooting himself through the head. Fail
ing eyesight was the primary reason.
Before he killed himself he wrote sew
eral letters. one a most bitter denuncia-
ton of the modern church. 1t was ad-
dressed to the Rev. Charles NJ. DOwd of
121 West I'D street, and read:
My Dear Carl-Your and other gener
GUS loans to me I fear are gone. I am
weary of 1t all, and must give it up. 1t
has been a long and bitter struggle-just
a prosaic struggle to provide a decent
existence for my family. 1t is Useless for
me to try to make money enough to sup
port my children, and to live apart from
them would be intolerable, as 1 love them
dearly. l am too much handicapped.
When l left the west in 81 1 was suf-
fering from a severe attack of nervous
prostitution, which induced that mis-
fortune to my sight. Melancholia has
grown on me yearly in spite of every
thing l could do to overcome 1T. Then
l have never been able to conquer an in
born contempt for the place money has in
this world, though knowing so well how
absolutely a fair amount of it at least
Is due all of US.
Success, Pleasure and Gold"
I could never adapt myself, in view
of my early ideas, to the methods by
which money is made. They are all so
transparency selfish and more or less
interruptions, whether used by the church
or so-called world l never could worship
Americas trinity-"success, pleasure and
gold" l am too old and settled In my
character to change, though my eyes
have long been opened to my delusion.
l took deeply to heart the teachings OF
Jesus and tried hard and long to square
my very soul by them. l found at last
what a pitiful mistake I had made and
how lonely 1 was even in the church.
Jesus taught, and it makes one heartsick
to hear ecclesiastics rant about 1t.
think it is rank hypocrisy for the aver
age American to claim his leadership.
Every sensible American admits he
wants to prosper. to enjoy life reasona-
bly, in every proper way, but that Is not
what the Founder taught or did. I cam
not change. but rejoice in the better day
dawning in a world with its superstitions
and errors like all the other religions OF
man that are passed away. And religion
itself. pure and simple-religion that has
passion for truth. justice, love. liberty.
does the church care for these things
for truth? 1t twists all the facts, phil
losophy and expressions of history to
make them square with their petty tradi-
lions and systems of the day~
Cleared Life From Infancy"
"The day will come when the world
will know that, as sacred as the place
that Jesus holds in the worlds esteem is,
they are no more bound by what he
taught, did and thought than they are by
the precepts of Robert Ingersoll.
81 wish I could live and preach this,
but I am broken too much. and the habit
ing-always SO tragical-forbids it. 1 do
not complain. IT'S all a destiny 1 feared
life from infancy and 1 regret that I did
not bravely bear to be my true self and
fight out my life as GOD made me. not as
he made the Nazareth who simply in his
time and way bravely lived out his tragi-
cal and brief life.
II lay down the burdens of life be-
cause that life has been ground to pow
der between the upper and neither mill
stones of conflicting elements-human and
divine. Think as kindly of me as you can
hope and expect that we shall meet
again. Yours in affection and pain.
ALBERT T. TRICK"
A letter addressed to the ministers chill
dren read:
Il did this because I am Respondent. 1
could not Withstand the financial strain
any longer. Continue this life as I have
eoueht you. DC always SOOu am go
ing to join mother
'Your Unhappy Father"
On the envelope of this was written:
Remember that your father taught YOU
words of gold and counseled you the wis
dom that cost him SO dearly. 1t is all
everlastingly true"
Mr.. Trick had several pastorates in this
state until his eyesight began to fail.
Then he sold insurance for q time His
daughter is Mrs. Robert Carson of No.
1466 Fulton street Brooklyn, and he left
two sons in Brooklyn-Albert, aged six
teen, and Edgar. aged fourteen.
Not Known in Chicago.
CHICAGO, August 26.-Presbyterian
| clergymen and laymen of this city as
serted last night that Rev. Albert II
Trick. who committed suicide in New
York yesterday, and was said to have
| been pastor Of Chicago church years
| ago. Is not know here
| The records of the First Presbyterian
Church show that he never was CON
nected with the church in a clerical ca
| pacity.
Rev. James Frothingham. who has
been stated clerk of the Chicago preshv-
| terry for more than a score Of years. has
| no recollection Of his ever having been
| in Chicago. His records do not sbow
the existence of the suicide az a for,,o.