The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-01-29
FATHER SAYS
 MISS HARDING SHOT HERSELF
Love Of Social Life, Danc- ing Every Night And
 Smoking Blamed
RECENTLY THREATENED
 BY NERVOUS BREAKDOWN
Relatives Announce Remains Twill Be Brought To Bir-
 mingham In The Spring

BOSION, Jan. ZS.-(By Assoclated Press. )-W. F. G. Harding, governor of the Federal Reserve bank of Boston in a statement tonight, admitted his daughter, Margaret Eliot, who was found dead at. their home last Satur- day, committed suicide by shooting herself with his revolver. Earlier in the day the medical examiner had re- ported that Miss Harding committed suicide, but the immdeiate cause of death was not made known. Associate Medical Examiner William J. Brick ley said later that the immediate cause of death was a hemorrhage, that her act probably was due to i'll health and that no other person was involved.
 Miss Harding, her father said, left notes addressed to him, to relatives and to friends, In the note to her father the young woman asked forgiveness flor what she had done and was about to do." q couldn't stand life any longer" was one phrase of the note, Mir. Harding said. .
 Mir. Harding said his daughters act was due to "her love for social life, every night and smoking cigarettes"
 Et6acNeU DOSLOH Erkudy
 Realizing that her health was be- coming impaired, I wired her last week to return home immediately, at the same time forwarding her check. She ar rived in Boston Friday morning and l went to the station to meet her.
 Upon her arrival home she said she was too i'll to talk and believed she was on the verge of nervous breakdown. I told her I had planned to go to Wash ington that night, but would postpone the trip if her illness was serious. She begged me to go and keep my appoint ment by all means, and then went to her own room, saying I'm tired. Leave me alone.'"
 Mir. Harding said he went to Wash ington that night and on the way back stopped over in New York to visit his daughter, Mrs. Eugene V. R. Thayer. The latter told him that she had re- ceived telephone call from Miss Hard ing the evening before stating she was on the verge of nervous collapse. Sat urday at noon Mrs. Thayer telephoned Margaret, MT. Harding said, and the girl said she was feeling much better.
 Summoned by Phone
 While was out shopping with the Thayers that afternoon one of the maids tried to reach me by telephone Mfr. Harding said. "On learning this I called my home in Boston and the maid told me tQ come home at once ! asked her if anything serious had Happened and she referred me to Dr. e. A. Water man. Dr. Waterman told me Margaret was dead" ~
 On arriving back home Mr. Harding said the maid told him that early Sat urday afternoon Margaret had told her not to admit anyone
 Tell them I am too sick to see any one," she said, according to the maid. Shortly after o'clock the maid went to the room with a tray of food and rapped on the door, but there was no response. Calling another maid, she forced an entrance, sand found Miss Harding dying The two women sum moned Dr. Waterman, who notified the medical examiner.
 Later Mir. Harding said that Mar garet had been suffering from lung hemorrhage, the most recent of which had occurred immediately after she re- turned from Washington.
 MT. Harding said that Stanley Hawkes., head of the information bu- reau of the state department at Wash ington, arrived in Boston today, in response to letter written by Miss Harding before her death. Mir. Hawkes. engagement to young woman in Washington was announced recently.
 To-day was the first time I ever heard my daughters name linked with that of Hawkes." Mir. Harding said. 'I told this fellow to go back to Wash ington, that there was nothing he could do here."
 In his statement regarding his daugh- ter's death, Mir. Harding, who appeared broken and ill, said:
 '' She shot herself with my re- yolver which I left hidden in my own room and which she must have found. Several letters which she had written her room confessed the suicide. The revolver was lying nearby. Only one shot had been fired, the bullet entering her left breast.
 Margaret had spent most of her life in Washington and often visited her sister in New York. Since leaving school she had enjoyed tine whirl Of so- cial gatherings, such as dances, thea tre parties, late suppers, and she had even acquired the habit of cigarette smoking. This life began to tell on her constitution and IS months ago I noticed a change in her health. She then appeared extremely nervous and I warned her against continuing her social habits.
 After being at home for couple of months she returned to Washington
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