The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-04-27

Since CoWPS death occurTed 1n Lne city of Bridgeport although the shooting occurred in Stratford-the death is within the jurisdtction of BridgepoFt's medical examiner. He says the case is suicide. Miss Wheeler convinced that she is responsible for the firing of the fatal bullet through her pulling a, baby ribbon a,t- tached to the big Colts revolver. is prostrated at her home, in the exclu- sive Academy Hill section of Strat- ford.
 Coroner Phelan has been in Dan bury and Stamford today Up to press hour pr. 4Garlick had not communi- ca;ted with him, but acting on his own initiative had permitted the body of the victim to be taken away by his Aheart broken parents.
 Miss Wheeler is the only actual wit ness to the shooting. Experiments conducted today by Dr. CogsWeu and by newspapermen demonstrate that in all probability she was not responsd- b1e for the firing of the fatal bull let. It is all but impossible to fire the pistol under circumstances which are said to have existed, in such a manner as to allow the bullet to take the course indicated by Cow1s wound. Miss Wheeler believes she fired the pistol, by pulling the ribbon, gignor- ant of the effect of her action. She failed on her first attempt, she says
 
 of the nature of the crash. until she saw young Cowl slide from the porch down upon the grava11ed walk in front of her home
 Probably the real reason for the act is the fact that a, broken engagement was to be renewed anc suddenly CowI's ill health stared him in the. face, for the family is aware of the fact that when he was in the South and Miss Wheeler was in Bermuda the young man had broken the en- Egagement in letter.
 Y Yesterday CowI came to Stratford and demanded that the broken en- gagement be renewed. She at first {denurred but later consented to burn the letter breaking the engagement
 It was then that CowI presented her with the ring again, and in the belief of Medical Examiner Gar1ick the ring was attached to the ribbon. This fact however is not admitted by the fam fly It would account for the severed end of the blue ribbon if it was at tached to the ring and broke upon Miss WheeIers first effort to pull the the trigger unbeknownst to herself and which failed.
 CowI arrived in Stratford about 5 o'clock yesterday afternoon, having come from New York via Bridgeport where he took a trolley car to Strat- ford. He had apparently not seen Miss Wheeler since their parting in l Bermuda. Bareheaded, she had await ed his comingt and seeing him get off the car from her vantage point on the l spacious colonial style porch had trip ped gafly down Academy Hill to. meet him A person who knows both young people well had seen her greet him by throwing her arms about his neck. Both were laughing and happy and walked up the hill together towards 1 the house.
 They were together at the dinner hour and chatted during the afternoon and evening, both being in gay spirits. They were on the front porch during the early evening. At about 10 o'clock they were said to be engrossed in a discussion of their own love affairs It 1 was related by Miss Wheeler at the Bridgeport hospital later that they had discussed the matter of a ring-a sapphire .@one-that had been given to her some time previous by young CowI. I A letter that had been written by the l young man to Miss Wheeler some time previous to his going to Bermuda, and which shes had decided upon keeping also is said to have ben discussed l Cowl is said to have regretted much l what he wrote in the letter when Jn- der mental strain and asked that this letter be returned to him by the girl At first she is said to have refused the request, but later both decided upon burinE it together. It is said that il Twas consumed by flame on the grave