The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-03-24
MONEY GONE
KILLED HIMSELF
Harry Thurston Peck Closed
Career That Was
Eventful
WAS FORMERLY
COLUMBIA PROFESSOR
Was Sued for $4,000 in AL
legged Breach Of Prom
Use Suit

! Stamford, Conn, March "a Harry
Thurston Peck, former professor at
Columbia university, committed suicide
| at a rooming house here yesterday by
| shooting in the head with a revolver.
| Professor Peck had been in i'll health
| for considerable period. A year ago
this spring, Professor Peck was in a
hospital in Ithaca, N Y, in dire straits
| from mental breakdown. During the
past winter Professor Peck had lived
at Sound Bepch, Riverside, and had
taken rooms In this city in Bell street.
1t was at the last named placed that
he killed himself. Persons in the house
heard a pistol report, and they found
the body revolver being tightly held
in his hand
Mr.. Peck in November, 1883, who was
appointed to the chair of Latin in Co
lumbia college, made vacant by the
death OF Professor Short, and long asso-
ciated with the name of Professor AM
thon, was graduated from Columbia in
1881, became a fellow and tutor in Latin,
gave voluntary instruction in Hebrew
and Arabic. and in June, 1886, was made
tutor in Latin and instructor in the
Semitic languages. He was member
of the Oriental society and contributed
largely to the American Journal of Phil
ology and other publications. At the
time OF his appointment he was engaged
in preparing Ciceronian lexicon, in
connection with an edition OF the ora
lions of Cicero He has spent some. time
in Berlin, studying with Professor YAH
len in connection with this work, and
in connection with an edition OF the
Tuscan disputations of Cicero, in the
classical series edited by Professor Pease
of Bowdoin college Professor Peck is
best known to the general public
through his literary work and his brill
liant book reviews
In later years Professor Peck became
more prominent in the press on account
of a suit for $4,000 damages for al
legged breach Of promise OF marriage
filed by Miss Esther Quinn of Cambridge,
Mass. The first wife OF Professor Peck
obtained a divorce in Sioux Falls, $. d..
in September. 1903 The grounds were
desertion. On Aug 20 of the following
year he married Miss Elizabeth II. Du-
Bots, a teacher OF classics in the Morris
alleged that her friendship with him be
gan in June, 100, when she was employ
ed by the Commercial Advertiser OF
New York City, and continued until she
heard for the first time OF bis marriage
to Miss Dubois. Many sensational pas
sionate letters and poems were intro
duced at the trial, but the case was dis
missed as insufficient. Soon after this
Peck declared himself bankrupt with as
sets OF $780,
Following the suit, and ii is said as a
result of it. came Professor Peek's dis |
missal from Columbia, after twenty
eight years OF service. ''for the best in |
terests of the university" DR. Peck |
dropped ont OF sight after his retirement |
from Columbia and did not come before |
the public eye until April OF last year, |
when lie became critically i'll at Ithaca. |
n Y, suffering with nervous break |
down. His life was despaired of until
his divorced wife, Mrs Cornelis d. Peck. |
/ Christian Scientist. came TO the hos
Dital and ministered to him. The second |
Mrs Peck found no objection to the min
situations of the divorced wife, in fact
both worked together for the professors
As far back as 1910 DR.. Peck had
sharp controversy with Nicholas Murray
Butler, president OF Columbia, over the
of certain Latin addresses.
Peck charged that DR.. Butler purposed
o deliver in Berlin as his own an adj
lress in Latin which Peck wrote. DIR.
Butler subsequently admitted that this
vas true, and was quoted in dispatches
rom Berlin rs saying that the prepare
ion of such matter was part of the pro-
essor's duty and that there was mo
eeret about it."