The Washington times., 1922-03-20
PENS. NOTE
P!RA|S| Nc
HER ACTION
Otto n. Larsen Was Enamored
of Beauty Who Took
| Death Potion.

BOSTON. March 20.-Driven to
suicide by remorse over the death
Of Mrs. Pauline Virginia Clark,
Of 282 Newbury street, Otto Hal
der Larsen, who was sought by
the police in connection with her
death, late yesterday afternoon
was found dead q few yards from
the Boston Art Museum On the
banks of Muddy River.
Drinks Poison Potion.
He had drunk a deadly poison
and from the same vial that he
wrenched from the girls hand last
Thursday morning, after she had
killed herself in her apartment.
Before following Pauline Clark to
death, Larson wrote a complete con-
fession of how he gave the poison
which ended her life. BY his dra-
matte self-destruction he baked
the law, for had he lived Larsen
would unquestionably have been
tried for the murder of the girl. He
gave her the poison she used. know
ing for what purpose she intended
to use 1t, according to his confes'
sion.
He, however, did noe fine thing.
He completely eXonerated the one
other man who was present at the
time of the young womanS death.
his friend, Bayard Wharton, q
prominent Harvard student, who re-
sides at S123 Germantown avenue.
Philadelphia.
Wharton, who, 1t is stated by the
police, was to have married Miss
Clark yesterday, has been grilled
and grilled by the authorities, but
his straightforward story of what
happened at that Bacchanalian fes,
tival held in the dead girls apart
ment Friday afternoon remained
unshaken. The report OF his con-
templated marriage was emphatic.
ally denied by his father and attor-
neys retained to handled the case.
Wharton Grilled by Police.
While the police of Greater Bos-
ton were searching every nook and
corner of the city for Larsen yes
terday morning even while his body
lay between an oak tree and the
bride path not far from the Art
Museum and nearer still to the
river, Wharton was again detailing
the happenings of Pauline Clark 8
death.
With Wharton was his father.
Henry Wharton, of Philadelphia,
who arrived in Boston Saturday
night. Wharton said that he had
retained an attorney. According to
the story which Wharton told the
police, none of the revelers had any
tntimation that Mrs. Clark was
contemplating suicide.
During the evening she had ex-
hibited two bottles, one Of which,
she said, contained perfume. and
the other, a small brown, unlabeled
vial, which is thought to have held
the poison. Nothing more was said
ut the time, and from IL o'clock
until 80 a. m. there was a success
sion of singing, dancing and drink,
ing. Then came a lull in the
hilarity, while Mrs. Clark was
sitting in the living room talking to
Larsen and Wharton. 1t was
while she smoked and chatted with
Larsen and Wharton that she par
took of a drink containing a well.
known poison and collapsed before
the eyes of the students. Selling
bottles containing whiskey and the
vial containing the death tablets,
Larsen hastened into the night
after efforts to resuscitate the girl
had failed and after notifying two
doctors to hurry to the scene, he
disappeared.
Letter Contains Confession.
In his letter to Medical Examiner
McGrath, Larsen said:
I'm order that the disgraceful
comment of certain Boston news.
papers upon the death of Miss
Clark may be given a chance to
come to a completion, I take the
liberty in this way to tell what /
know about the tragedy:
81 met Miss Clark about six
weeks ago at her apartment on
Newbury street. She was already
at that time excessively depressed
and told me incidents from her life
Of such character that l at times
wondered how she had resisted the
temptation death in reality is.
Miss Clark was not a society
belle of the pleasurs-seeking type.
Her charming parties were given to
kill the moroseness her life had pre-.
cipitated in her. Defiant of society
too strong to ask for help or sympa
thy, she had long ago decided upon