The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-11-23
LEHMAN MAY HAVE
COMMITTED SUICIDE
Body of Brother of Brattleboro Barber
Had Lain Over Night in Hay
denville Club House

Jeremiah Lenihan, 26, of Hayden
vile, Mass. a conductor in the employ
of the Northampton Street Railway
company and brother of William d.
Lehman of Brattleboro. we'll known
barber, was found dead in the base
ment of the Haydenville clubhouse
Yesterday morning at s clock by Ed
ward Kearney, who had gone to the
house to attend the heater The body
was lying on the basement floor, and
the presence of a gun on a settee close
| by indicated that death had resulted
| from shooting. The medical examiner,
DR.. Christopher Seymour of North
ampton, was summoned. and found that
the charge of gun had passed
through the heart, and had gone
through the body and passed out of
the building through a basement win
dow. Powder burns around the wound
on the chest proved that the gun was
close to the body when discharged.
The only circumstance to raise sus-
picion of foul play Us opposed to sui
eide or accident, was the fact that the
gun was lying on the settee as though
it might have been laid there. In view
of this medical examiner turned the
for investigation The body was living
face downward and was fully clothed.
even to- a raincoat. The gun was a
single barreled shotgun, with which DR..
Seymour was told Lenihan had gone
hunting Saturday afternoon. Lehman
was in the clubhouse Saturday after
noon at ) O'Clock, and had shown no
signs of depression I'M talking with
| hose whom he met there
William d. LeGihan was informed Of
the dTath of his brother and went to
Haydenville Yesterday afternoon.
Detective Michigan, after investiga-
ton of the case, found that the circum-
stance of the gun 5 lying on the settee
did not bear out the possibility OF
foul play in view of the other circum-
stances of the ease. The angle of the
break in the window in relation to any
; possible position of the man was such
that an assailant could not have free
the shot unless he had been crouching
on the floor The gun was one that
Lenihan had borrowed of Fred Rog
ers of Florence. with the explanation
= that he should go rabbit hunting Mon
/ day. The gun was loaded with slug
. 1t was borrowed Saturday afternoon al
- 3, and as Lenihan was in the club
r rooms in the afternoon at ). il is i'm
;, probable that he went hunting Satur
!, day.
;. The rigidity Of the body when founC
n Indicated that death had taken plac,
- several hours before. and it is prob
/. able that it occurred Saturday after
: noon at 80, for it was, about Thu
!. time that Albert Allaire, who had beer
( at the clubhouse, and seen Lenihal
e there, heard a shot when he was re
: turning home and had reached the cor
:; ner near the hotel, only few rod
from the clubhouse He turned abou
!. to- see who had fired the shot. but II,
!; one was in sight.
Jesse Cahill probably was the las
person to see Lenihan alive. This wa
!, nearly $50 and Lenihan was then walk
5 ing down stairs, having the gun in hi
= hand and dropping the butt from ste
to step rs he descended. Detectiv
Michigan found that the clothing of tn
:, young man had been opened to tn
!. skin before the shot was fired Also
t there was found beneath the body
rung of chair, with which the trig
d ger of the gun might have been press
4 ed. These circumstances indicate SUI
eide, but the friends of the Young ma
ID insist that his death was the result O
ID an accident Although his health ha
- not been good, he had not been NJ
g ticeably depressed. He had asked o
k. from work Friday. saying that be plal
- ned to go hunting.
d, Mr.. Lehman leaves his father, ThOn
- as Of Haydeuville; three sisters, Kat