The sun., 1909-02-03
]. G. SPEED KILLS HIMSELF
had COMPLAINED OF HARD
LINES OF AN AUTHORS LIFE.
Former Editor OF the American Maya
zine" and "Lcslie's weekly" and the
Author OF Several Books shoots Him.
SELF In HIS BED In Mendham. n. j.


Author OF Several Books shoots Him.
SELF In HIS BED In Mendham, n. j..
MoRRIsTowN. n. j., Feb. 2.--Bolstered
up in bed at the PheniS House in Mend
ham, a suburb Of Morristown, John Gil
mer Speed. journalist and author. was
found bleeding from a bullet wound in
the right temple at 10 O'Clock this morning.
In his hand he clutohed a revolver with
one chamber empty. He was unconscious
when hysicians reached the bedside
and died in an hour without regaining
consciousness.
The last person who saw Mr.. speed
before he shot himself was a servant
OF the PhBnix House who took cup
Of coffee to him about O'Clock this
morning He was then in bed and said
he did not feel well and thought be would
remain in bed the rest Of the morning
Some time after this a r istol shot was
heard, but as il was not a loud ref OFT
the boarding house employees were not
sure whether it came from outside or
inside the house. 1t was several minutes
before any one thought Of going to Mr.
Speeds room
Beside Mr.. Speeds bed was fat top
desk, where Mr.. ST eed had been working
on a story for New York msgazine. He
retired last night, 1t was said, in fairy
good sSirits, although he had been com
planning about the hard lines OF an au-
thor's life. No motive for his suicide
has been given e1 cert that he had spoken
several times Of being tired OF life.
Although Mr.. Speed had received con-
siderable money for some recent publ
cations and had a small income from the
sale Of his books he is said TO have been
liberal spender and oor business man.
A week before Christma he broke down
rhysically and was taken TO the Memoria!
hoeI ital in this city. but soon returned
TO the boarding house.
John Gilmer Speed was a civil engineer,
then q newspaper man and ma game
editor and finally writer on the breeding
Of horses. He was grandnephew OF
the poet John Keats.
Mr.. Speed was born in Kentucky on
Philip and Emma Keats Speed, His
uncle, James Speed, was instrumental in
keeping Kentucky in the Union. He had
known Abraham Lincoln in Springfield,
and in 1864 he became Attorney General
Of the United States under lincoln. John
Gilmer Speed was GRADUATED from the
University Of Louisville in 1859. He
became a railroad engineer and then city
engineer Of Louisville. At the Centennial
Exposition he was chief OF the bureau Of
transportation.
In is77 he went TO the New York World
and was managing editor Of that paper
from 1879 until its purchase by MIR. Pulitzer
in 1888 He then edited keats's letters
and poems and wrote n life OF Keats:
In 1885 he was commissioner-general OF
the Louisville American exposition. He
ravelled wrote magazine articles and
in 1887 was secretary Of the American
exhibition in London. He edited the
American Magazine in lsSS-S9, and for
two years thereafter he was editor OF
Leslie's Weekly.
In recent years i'll health had prevented
Mr.. Speed from doing much writing.
Eis last book dealt with the Arab horse
and its importation for breeding in
America. some OF his other books were
a Fall River Incident" The Gilmers in
America a Deal in Denver and The
Horse in America, the last named pub
lished in 1909. In 1904 Mr.. Speed was
sent by the Government 10 the Philippines
to inspect horses and mules bought Tor
Panama Canal work. For the last two
years he had been one Of the editors Of
House and Garden,
Mr.. Speeds first wife, Mary Poin-
dexter Of Louisville, died in 1898. In
1906 he married Mrs. Emma Stutz Daily.
the widow Of Thomas Daily. banker OF
Goshen, Ind. but after month the couple
separated. Mrs. Speed sued for divorce
and died in a New York hospital while
the action was pending, A $4,000 in
tereet in her estate Mr.. speed voluntarily
turned over to her relatives,
llr. Speed had lived in Mendham, v, j..
for twenty years. He built a country
home there which he gave up about a
year ago. Sometimes he visited his only
daughter, Mrs. Dudley Gray Of Norris
town. but Of late he had kept close TO his
room at Mrs. Phoenix's boarding house