East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1912-06-08
SUICIDE MAKES
TWO ATTEMPTS
Failing to Die by Hanging, Carl
LaustOn Long Charley" Fires
Shot Into His Chest.
PREPARES POISON ALSO
Despairing Of Stopping Ravagcs of
Disease. Picturesque Umatilla Char
acter and Pioneer, Makes Sure of
Self Destruction i'm City.

DespOndent over an illness which
was gradually eating his life away and
despairing OF ever effecting a cure,
Carl NJ Lusten. familiarly known
about the city as Long Charley" an
old sheepherder and poultry raiser in
the county for the past thirty years,
last night shortly before II o'clock
FASTENED the inevitable death by dis
charging a load of shot into his breast
just above his heart. His prepara-
tions for mis- self destruction' were
deliberate and that he was determin-
ed To accomplish his purpose is evil
dcnced by the Indications that prior
u the shooting he made an unsuccess-
ful attempt to hang himself ana fur
ther by the discovery of bottle of
laudanum in his pocket, the contents
of which he probably intended to
swallow in the event that the shot was
not fatal.
The tragedy occurred in the rear
of the Cottonwood lodging house kept
BY Mrs. Anna Smith and the body was
not discovered for some time after
the shot by Night Officer Sheer. He
was not quite dead when found but
expired shortly afterwards.
The body was lying on top Of the
shotgun with which he had taken his
life and near it was a stick with one
end forked with which the trigger
had been released. Along the barreI
Of the gun another stick had been
tied. one end OF it protruding about
an inch beyond the muzzle. Thus an
airspace was left between the muzzle
and his breast. preventing a bursting
Of the barrel at the discharge. When
the gun had been placed in position.
leaning against his left breast, the old
man had evidently touched the trigger
with the stick. Two other shells be
sides the exploded one were found in
the magazine
\ coroner's jury made an invesu-
CATION this morning and brought in
verdict of suicide. II was discov-
cred that some time ago, the deceased
had left a box. containing some pa
pers. with W. P. Daniel with instruc-
tions to deliver it to Fred Price in the
event of his death. The directions
were duly carried out this morning
and when the box was opened in the
presence OF the county judge. it was
found to contain a will making q
brother in Kankakee. Illinois, the
heir To what little money he left.
The body is now being held at the
Folsom undertaking parlors until
communication can he had with this
brother. y nephew in Portland and
another in Oakland. California. are
the only other known relatives of the
deceased.
At the time of death he was about
65 years OF age and had been in the
county about thirty years. Formerly
he was a sheepherder by occupation
and was in the employ of Matthew
Neves at one time. For the last few
years he had been living in cabin
located i'm the gulch which leads ont
Of the city south of the high school.
Here he had been raising chickens
for n living. He had been suffering
from liberation of the stomach for
long time and a year ago was con-
fined to the local hospital for several
weeks. Last February he was dlscoN-
cred in his cabin in a very precari-
Gus condition by Tom Gurdane and
was moved into the city where he
could receive medical attention.
According to DIR. I. L. Temple who
attended the man in his illness, COM
plications recently set in which
greatly weakened his system and the
old man realized that death was but
matter of months He had frequent
| ly spoken of suicide and once his
/ friends took n gun away from him for
fear lest he would execute his threats
to take his own life. These friends
speak very highly of his character,
declaring that in all the years they
have known him he had ever been
honest and industrious.