The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1912-11-22
MOTIVE
STILL A MYSTERY
X. N. MILLER, JR.. GETS SEALED
LETTER LEFT ron HIM but
WILL NOT OPEN IT.
TAKES BODY HOME
CONVEYED TO OwENsBOR0, kY..
F0R BURIAL-THosE CLOSE
TO YOUNG MAN PROFESS
IGNORANCE.
ES BODY HOME

The body Of william B. Bell, the
twenty eight-year-o bookkeeper of
the Federal Cigar company, who en-
gagged room 332 at Murphys hotel
Tuesday night Tor the especial pur-
pose of taking his own life, and whose
lifeIess form with a bullet hole
through the heart was found Wednes-
day evening at s o'clock. was taken
last night to his old home at Owens
boro. KY. for burial.
If the motive for the deliberately
planned tragedy was confided to his
brother, to whom the suicide left a
sealed letter, ii is still a mystery to
Richmond, for the brother carried
away the letter last night unopened
on his sad journey to their old home
in Kentucky. II 1t did not reveal the
cause of his Redistribution, then the
secret will be buried with the dead
man.
e. NJ. Bell. Jr., of New York. who
was Immediately apprised by wire
Wednesday of his brothers death.
reached Richmond yesterday evening
ats7 O'Clock and Immediately repaired
TO police headquarters. E. p. Smith.
manager of the company. and c. e.
Griffin. with whom young Bell had oc-
cupied apartments at the Hanover,
who had been apprised OF his coming
met him there, and briefly Mr.. Bell
who had been apprised of his coming,
stances Of the tragedy. Though great
ly distressed, he lost no time in max
ing arrangements for the Transports
ton of the body. which, following the
inquest. had been embalmed by l.. T.
Christian and reposed in his morgue
across the street from the City hall
Sealed Letter Delivered.
While the bereaved brother was
making his arrangements for taking
the. G. IL O. westbound train at IL
O'Clock. the headquarters staff had on,
telephone calls and messengers for
Captain Pollock. who was the only
man possess ng the combination &c
the big safe, wherein had been de.
posted the valuabies taken from the
] suicide and the sealed letter addressed
TO his brother. II was nearly . O'Clock
before Captain Pollock reached the of
fee, and he turned over the dead
mans effect to the brother. Mr.. Bel
carefully placed the letter in his in.
side coat pocket and announced thai
he would not open 1t until he reached
Owensboro.
No Lh<S&sOH hIaUWus
Mr.. Smith reiterated his previous
statements that young Belts books
were in good shape. and that he could
conceive of no possible reason for the
act. The statement OF the young wo-
man. whose picture Bell carried In
his watch. that she was simply a
friend and was not engsg to him
Teem =, ~ "o~@ effectuaIly of the
love AFFAIR theory.
HE ssateu >aI he had wired his
father and married sister, who live In
Shelbyville. KY. to meet him at Louis.
vile and accompany the body to theil
old home at Owensboro. where the
.nterment will be uade.
Coroner Taylor announced. after q
post-mortem yesterday, that but one
bullet had entered the body. This
passed through the heart and lodged
In the skin of the back, being easily
removed. Two chambers OF the re-
volver were found empty. and the po-
lice account for the explosion of the
other chamber of the revolver. which
was cheap weapon, and evidently
purchased for the purpose. by the
theory that young Bell had probably
fired IL once after buying 1t to assure
himself that the weapon Was in good
srrykiY order