OCR Text |
Show COMMITS SUICIDE III IH BAM Lorenzo W. Cracroft, Employed by J. M. Marriott, Kills Himself. BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN VERY MUCH JN DEBT Unnsual Scenes When the Family Fam-ily Is Notified of Young Man's Death. Lorenzo W. Cracrofi of Seventh and J streets, 24 years oldfor years employed as a driver by .7. M. Marriott's meat market, committed suicide In his father's barn at 854 East Sixth South street by shootinp himself through the heart with a ,33-cnlIbf;r revolver, about 2:30 o'clock Tuosdny monilngr. Tho motive Is assigned as-signed as domestic and pecuniary trouble?. trou-ble?. His lifeless body was discovered by George Williams, a brother-in-law, lying In a pool?-of his own blood, face downward, down-ward, four hours afterwardr Williams flld not recognize the suicide until ho turned tho body over. As hn did so the blood gushed from the mouth, and a ghastly wound gnped from over the- heart. Tho revolver lay underneath the body upon tho floor of ihe barn, near the right hand, which had directed the fatal shot. Through a misunderstanding of the Coroner's orders, tho body was allowed to lie In the poo! of blood for almost three hours before It was removed lo Joseph W. Taylor's undertaking pnrlora. Policemen II. D. Lyon. Carey, Simpson and Moore Investigated the suicide anil reported to Justice Dana T. Smith. Acting Act-ing Coroner, who decided that an Inquest is not necessary. 1 In Ignorance of Suicide. The body was not removed to the undertaking un-dertaking purlors until about 10 o'clock, and In tho meantime- the father, mother, wife and three children of tho dead man were kept In Ignorance of the suicide, disastrous results being fenred from the shock. Tho father, who Is a painter, learned of the son's: rash net about 10 o'clock, but the mother and wife and children wore not told until about noon. Thf mother, upon being Informed of her son's self-destruction. Insisted upon Visiting the place where ho had killed himself, and shod bitter tears over the clots of blood upon the -barn- floor. J11 a humble cottage at J and Seventh strnots, tho wifo and three little children, ranging In ago from fi months to 5 years, had waited In vain all night and half the day. for tho hnsband nnd father to return. re-turn. A slater of tho dead man broke the news of his suicide to thorn as gently as possible about the noon hour. Their grlpf wns Indescribable. Mr Marriott, with whom Crncroft was employed for sbr years", being a trusted employee, says that ho learned Tuesday morning that Cracroft wns heavily in debt, nnd this is assigned as one of the motives for suicide. Cracroft left the meat market with a load of goods Monday afternoon and later telephoned In that he had upset a case of eggs and asked thnt some one else be assigned to deliver the rest of Ills route. Collectod 530. Cracroft collectod in the neighborhood of $30 for Marriott. Monday afternoon, thnt lie did not turn In owing to the accident In spilling the- eggs. When searched Tuesday morning there was only 55 In his pockets. What became of tho rost Is a matter of speculation Cracroft drank some, but nol heavily, and Is said to have, been exemplary In his habits. The belief that he commit ted suicldo about 2:7.0 o'clock Is based upon the hearing of a pistol shot about that time by members of tho older Cracroft fnm-II fnm-II y. Williams, the brother-in-law. who lives with the senior Cracroft. Investigated Investi-gated the shooting, but as two dogs were harking in the neighborhood he came to the conclusion thnt the shot was fired by night prowlers .and did not continue the Investigation far. Cracroft was born, and lived his life. In Suit Lake. Ills widow was Miss Molllc Tooks. He wa? a member of the Woodmen of the World, In good standing, stand-ing, having paid his flues tho day before his death. Tho funeral will be held from the 1111-dtsrlaklng 1111-dtsrlaklng parlors tit 2 o'clock Thursday afternoon. Friends are invited. |