Honolulu Republican, Volume IV, Number 502, 21 January 1902 — TRIES MURDER AND THEN TAKES HIS OWN LIFE [ARTICLE]

TRIES MURDER AND THEN TAKES HIS OWN LIFE

TroscWer a German Shoemaker Sends a Ballet Into His Own Brain. CALLED TO COLLECT A DEBT Yosbimura a Japanese Woman Narrowly Escaped With Her Life. Found on Floor in Room in the Ah Leong Building, in Pool of Blood. Jury Declares Verdict of Suicide. Japanese Woman Kept House For Him Nine Months. The love which J. H. Truscoler pos-s's-rd {or a Japanese woman named Vo«hlmnr* r®miU®H in hf« placing a ' s .i.'ihr e revolver to his temple and tiring a shot yesterday morning w! ii h caused Instant death Truschler was a shoemaker, and be has resided In the Islands for the past fifteen years. He is a German t jr birth, and has borne a reputation Mr sobriety and industry. For many y.-ars he operated a shop on Alakea Mreet but of recent date moved his • ffei ts to Palama Shortly before 10 o’clock yesterday looming the Yoshlmura woman called at th* police station, and stated that Truschler had committed suiotde In a room in the Ah Leong building, lo»afeo near the Honolulu Iron Works. The unman appeared to be laboring uusi a srras deaj of ■ xcttem*gt s «■« •;'<y?e!y questioned by High t-’ii* riff Brown, and related facts »h<eb indicated that Truschler had . ailed at the building and at the rooms of the Yoshiraura woman, and i!i mau led that the Japanese pay him >m.>tstr>r oife , b*.t Tt'JSchlsr i aimed was due him. Love and Money. It appears that some months ago. ■' ischler had engaged the Yoshi n ira woman to take care of his lodg lug and also look after his washing sr | Ir ming His acquaintance soon r r: ■ :i. <1 fn‘o a close affection. \t various t;nn*s he advanced sums of u nev to the woman as they would ! • requested. Matters went along in tl - manner until the German bad ■ n the woman a sum approxima t . Tntschler claimed he had loaned the woman SSO for a short time only, and that he had repoatdly . ailed upon her for payment or a p f . -rial remittance. It was on one of !h m> regular visits that the tragedy plicf. High Sheriff Brown soon summoned ■ y consisting of Messrs. A Ku- ■ v John C. Cluney. E F. Imholf. A H Jackson. Harold Jeffs, and Horace C t’rnbbe They visited the scene of th* suicide Here, upon entering the re. m designated by the Japanese woman, they saw a man stretched on ti. floor On examining his body it was found that the man was quite d ad. A revolver was lying on the fl.K>r at the side of the body. There was a pool of blood on the floor which (amo from a frightful wound in the l ead, made by a bullet from the recede. r. The body was removed to the morgue and an autopsy was performi d by Pr McDonald. Woman’s Narrow Escape. V o iding to the story told by the Yoshlmura woman. Truschler went to ihe woman's room In Ah Leong’s place and demanded that she return him the money. She said she could r • He upbraided her and suddenly * a calibre bulldog revolver and fired point blank at her face. The ball narrowly missed her. the ! ewder burning her mouth. Truschler is then said to have turned the gun upon himself and (ir*sl the shot that resulted in his }.• ath In searching the clothes of the S.ad man. the following note was r ound. which in a manner is explana lory: "Honolulu. January 20. 1001. ■‘Or account of the swindling and

cheating actions of the Japanese woman Otaro Jesemoto induced me to execute this action. Said woman worked for me for considerable time and I have paid her well, she borrow ed beside* $OO of me with the prom is*- to par it back in two months r* n months have expired without payment I demanded, energetically to sati-fy me. instead she disappeared one day. "One day I discovered her in a hiJng in Kaka&ko I ordered her to the police station to get my rights but what had I to hear. She declared herself a prostitute. The shame is too great for me to hare bad such a person in my house. •J. H. T. ’ Wanted His Money. It seems that Truschler had called at the office of the High Sheriff some weeks ago and stated that the Yoshimura woman owed him a sum of money and had refused to pay. He wanted the woman arrested for embezzlement. The German also claimed that the woman had been his mistress for a period of over nine months. An inquest was held at the police station at 1:30 yesterday afternoon.' with Coroner A M. Brown presiding H. Focke was the first witness. He i stated he had examined the papej-s ,in the dead man's clothes, and the letter in German was translated, which appears above. Japanese Woman’s Testimony. The Yoshimura woman was put on j the stand and substantially testified that she had been in the employ of Truschler for about nine months as cook and washwoman, at a weekly salary of $3. She claimed to have had trouble with the deceased, and staled that Truschler had not provid ed food or money in sufficient quantities. The woman declared that Truschler owed her seven weeks’ pay when she left his place at Palama. The woman also stated; "Truschler gave me Ji?o. He loani'd me the money on three different occasions. He told me to remain in the room **n the day of his last visit, and pulled out a revolver close to my mouth. After he fired the first shot 1 ran out of the room. I did not know that be had shot himself.” The woman insisted that she hoard two shots fired, and was positive that Truschler died by his own hand. Verdict of the Jury. Orio, a Japanese woman residing at Kakaako. claimed she did not hear any viuiversation between the woman and Truschler at the time of tne shooting. She heard the two shots fired. Deputy Sheriff Chillingworth tesfi fiod to Truschler s calling at the High Sheriff s office some days ago. and demanding the arrest of Yoshimura. the Japanese woman, upon a charge of embezzlement. The woman wasj sent for at the time, but said she was unable to pay the amount demanded by Truschler. The deceased then left the police station, declaring he would collect the debt. Dr. McDonald testified that the death of Truschler was caused by a bullet going through his head, th-’ same coming from a gun. In accordance with the facts adduced at the inquest, the jury ren ( dered a verdict that the death of Truschler was caused by a gunshot wound, from a 38-calibre revolver, self-inflicted and with suicidal intent.