The Mena weekly star., 1921-01-13
.IISED CHLOROFORN
 TO TAKE LIFE
r,es A. Purdue, Itinerant Team I ..~ iu Highway Construction Camp
 ro.ud Dead in Bunk With Bot tie of Drug in Hand.

|fs,arles A. Purdue, was found dead in { ]. hunk at the Jones & Lybrand con-
 -,,et;on camp, near Golden Rule
 .rr Saturday evening. There was
 .rle evidence at hand to satisfy the .,,tborities that the man had ended
 :s own life, tho there was no reason .rsiened for the suicide.
 Discoyery of Purdue's lifeless body
 as made by his former fellow work . returning from their days labors the Jefferson highway. Dr. B. H.
 aUkins was called and after exam
 ation gave the cause of death as ,.D ,.Dsouing from chloroform. A part
 emptied bottle of which was still >sutehed in the dead mans hand.
 purdue was first known in Mena .sout three weeks ago when he ap- \ ied for work with the Jones & Ly- & and Construction Company and was \ ven a job as teamster. The new Amer had little to say about himself, sve to say that his home was up ..brth" and that he was "tramping." Hc was apparently about 35 years of Spe and proved to be good worker. f On Friday Purdue announced his 4tention of quitting his job and was 4sven his time" After securing the <soney due him in Mena the young ~erker bought a new pair of shoes, .$naid several loans secured from fel- ]sw workers and that evening re- Armed to the camp near the Golden j>ule farm and announced his inten- sion of spending the night there.
 Tho he had quit work, there was no Election to his occupying his old Ssnk for the night and he retired as s6e usual time. Shortly before Pur- .jhe went to what was to be his last seep he talked with J. W. Jones, ttnekeeper at the camp, and others sad appeared to be in his usual frame M mind. He did not show any indi- tstions, the men say, that he was about to end his life.
 Saturday morning when the work afs rose to start on the days tasks brdue was called but when he did 10 respond the men figured he want
 
 Nnger employed and they did not dis <drb him. In the evening when the r1en returned from their labors and f6und Purdue's bunk still occupied 4r. Jones went to investigate and {1and there was something decidedly Xfong.
 From the position of the body it is S1ident that when Purdue went to <d be pulled the covers up over his 1ead. opened a pint bottle of chloro- {crn, poured some on a handkerchief }ARt he placed across his face, drank 4one of the poison and then held the men bottle close to his nose The <oEers the man had pulled over his H<sd prevented the fumes from es- f6ping and affecting the men who z<pt on both sides of him in other <0ts.
 was the opinion of Dr. Hawkins 31ht Purdue died in a few minutese
 thout struggling. The bottle of 1 |oroform with some of the deadly
 Id still in it was found by the hand \ the suicide The chloroform bottle 99fe the label of Jackson's drug store.
 ustice s. Fl. Smith was called and Ter the testimony of Dr. Hawkins,
 mekeeper Jones and others decided tM evidence of self-destruction was so tlfin there was no need of putting fn county to the expense of an in- 4Qest- The body of Purdue was taken <4 Fraxier's parlors and on Sunday z4enoon was inferred at Odd Eel s cemetery, it being considered in isable to hold the body longer.
 rom the few papers found in Pur- R's possession it was learned that was member of the Brotherhood
 Railway Maintenance of Way Elm
 Ives and belonged last to a local :4ge at Alexandria, Neb. At request M a transfer to another local was <Rong the papers found. A receipt 1 dues in the Knights and Ladies of 9f furity at Fairbury, Neb., was also 7Rnd. These were the only papers .Rnd that would indicate the mans 1Nner location. Sheriff ]. A. Thorn M has wired some of the officials 'zfhed on the receipts for informa- w concerning Purdue.