The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-11
.CONSTAS COMMITS SUICIDE ON ACCOUNT IOF HIS POOR HEALTH BOOkkeeper Shoots Himself While in Basement of the
 American Trust Bank SHOT WAS HEARD BY
 CAPT. JOHN B. REID First to Reach Dead Mans Side. Constas Leaves Note Saying:
 My Life Is Disgusting to
 Me"-Had Typhoid Fever
 

Efstratios J. Constas, aged 2S years, a
 bookkeeper in the employ of the Ameri-
 can Trust and Savings bank, shot him.
 self in the right temple yesterday after
 noon at 425 o'clock in the coupon room
 in the basement of the bank. Death
 was instantaneous. Constas used SS-
 caliber revolver to take his life
 The shot was heard by Capt John B.
 Reed who rushed to the side of the
 man. He then called Dr. Miles Watkins
 who arrived immediately. An examina-
 tion by Dr. Watkins showed that Con-
 stas was dead. Johns ambulance was
 called and thei body of the deceased
 was removed to the undertaking estab-
 llshment. Coroner Spain was notified
 and went to the undertaking company
 where he held an examination.
 The coroner said that it was a clear
 case of suicide and that from what he
 could learn Constas had been in ill
 health for the past few weeks and was
 despondent. It is undestood that 5Dr Charles Nice had been treating him
 lately and yesterday advised him that
 It would be necessary for him to go to
 hospital. The deceased had been -suf-
 fering from a mild case of typhoid fever and refused to take his bed de- spite the advice of his doctor.
 Captain Reed last night made the fol- lowing statement to an Age-Herald re- porter:
 CAPTAIN REID'S STATEMENT T was sitting at desk reading when ConStaS eli peared to be normal I asked him how he was feeling and he replied, I feel pretty badly I am not very well.' ] said something about him taking care of himself and he then asked me for a sheet of paper It was nothing unusual for him to come down in the basement and get some paper, He generally wrote his letters in the coupon room where he killed himself In about 10 or 15 minutes
 heard 8 shot. thought that some one probably had accidently fired a re- volver and had no thought of anything like a suicide I went back in the room where Constas had gone, and to my hor- TOT found him in a half sitting posture with blood running out of the wound in his head. I called some other gen tlemen who were in the vault at the time and then called the doctor and ann bulance. l have known Constas for a long while and was always fond of
 him. He was simply i'll and Respondent and decided to end his life.'
 LEFT BRIEF NOTE Constas left note on the table il the coupon room. The note was written
 on the back of a deposit slip and had evidently been written hastily, although he had been in the room at least 15 minutes before he shot himself The
 note read: My life is disgusting tc
 me-" The note was signed E. J. c. pr. Charles M. Nice stated that Con- stas had been to his office yesterday
 morning to consult him. Constas was advised by Dr. Nice that he had fever and that it would be necessary for him
 to go to hospital at 5 o'clock in the afternoon He appeared to be slightly depressed but Dr. Nice did not think he was in a desperate frame of mind Constas had fever when he visited the
 doctors office and had made arrange ments with the bank to go to the hos pital.
 The deceased is survived by his fath- CT, two sisters and two brothers, one of whom is a captain in the Greek army He was a graduate of Athens university and was a linguist of ability, speaking five languages fiuently. His residence was at Terrace Court, where he had 1 lived for the past four months. He for
 
 Sboronos. He was very popular among his fellow countrymen as well as citi-
 zens of this country. The remains are being hald by Johns pending funeral arrangements which will be announced later.
 Mrs. J. B. Reid last night felt dis. tressed that she had been unable tc
 keep luncheon engagement with Con- stas which he had requested with great earnestness. Monday as passed through the bank" said Mrs. Reid, "he asked me to go to lunch with him as he wanted to have a heart to heart talk had another engageemnt and could not go, but told him would go at an i other time. Every day this week as passed he would say. remember oui 1 lunch engagement
 1 "Thursday as I passed his window
 him in the next day or two. Well come soon,' he said, because I'm long way 1 from home
 q can't help feeling distressed be- cause there may have been some way could have helped him because he spoke so earnestly that I know now there was something on his. mind"
 | E. B. Crawford, assistant cashier ol | the American Trust, said last night l ''We were all distressed to hear of Con stas' act and attribute it entirely tt | i'll health. He had been with the bank 1 five years, was quiet and gentle ant apparently never had any trouble. Hs always lived within his means an1 saved his money. Every one in the bank