Evening star., 1934-03-28
TWO ASPHYX|ATED
|NROOM|NC HOUSE
AFTER RUM SPREE
Suicide Pact or Accidental
Opening of Gas Jet
Seen by Police.
AUTOPSY ON BODIES
ORDERED BY CORONER
Roomer Tells of Hearing Noise
in Painters Quarters and
Offering Them Aid.

Two unemployed house painters
who shared a room together at 45O
H street ended their friendship
together in death this morning under
circumstances which left police guess
ing as to whether they died in sui
eide pact or because one OF them &C
cidentally turned on gas jet after
a drinking bout.
The men, Joseph Wilson, IS, and
Joseph Roach, A, were found stretched
out on two single beds in the room.
partially clothed. small gas jet.
which protruded from the wall only
a few inches, was turned on. The
windows we're down and the door
locked from the inside. There were
no notes found.
Coroner A. Magruder Macdonald
ordered an autopsy performed on both
bodies. Whether an inquest will be
held will depend on the outcome of
that examination.
Odor of Gas Noticed.
Increasing the mystery Of the
deaths was the fact another roomer
in the house, Charles Magee, told
police he heard peculiar noises in the
=
the door He found 1t locked then.
When he called to the occupants, he
said, Wilson answered that he was
i'll. He asked if there was anything
he could do, but there was no reply.
Magee said he stood at the door
moment and then, thinking the sick
man had dropped off to sleep, went
back to his own quarters. He said
he did not notice an odor of gas at
that time. The bodies were discovered
about six hours later when the land
lady, Mrs. Harry Daniels, came to the
house from the residence across the
street where she lived. She noticed
the odor of gas in the Railways, and
summoning two roomerS, set out with
them to trace it.
They went to the room occupied by
Wilson and Roach, where the odor
seemed strongest. When they called
to the men and did not receive an
answer. the roomerS, Daniel Pickles
and Mac Witherspoon, forced the lock.
They found the two painters on the
beds. Both were dead when an am
bulance surgeon arrived.
The gas jet was set almost COM
pletely open when Pickles and Wither-
spoon entered. There are electric
lights in the room and the jet was
kept there only for attachment to
small gas stove, which was not in the
house at the time.
Members of Local Union.
Residents of the boarding house
told police both Wilson and Roach
H,L = L14 I,fv, ~ 1ae inl, &c.
returned to the house at about 10:30
pm. and Magee, who saw them,
talked to Roach. Magee said he told
the men to go upstairs and dry out
their wet clothing.
Both men were members of the 10
cal painters union here. 1t is under
stood Roachs wife lives in New York
and that Wilson is survived by sew
eral children in the same city. Police
were attempting to communicate with
their relatives to obtain funeral in
structions. Shortly after word of the
deaths was made known a delegation
of painters from the union called at
the house, offering to take charge of
the burial negotiations.
Detective Sergt. Clyde N. Strange
of the homicide squad, who was as
signed to the case, said he had
learned Wilson recently visited New
York for some time and returned here
little more than a week ago. He took
the room with Roach, with whom he
had been friendly for some years,
and had planned to move into an
other room in the same house today.
Roach had been living at the house
for about six months.