A BANKER'S SUICIDE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 14925, 24 February 1912, Page 2 (Supplement)

A BANKER'S SUICIDE.

MENTAL TORTURE AND MISER?' ■'»'■ That a lethal chamber should be mw. ■ v.ded to enable one to have done S lil physical existence, with a minimum Jfk| discomfort, was .aid, aan i„ quet , t J I Hampstcad, on. January 4, to have h>Z ' fl the opinion expressed by a banker wh' I took his life, in his sixtieth vcar, becaua I of an exaggerated view of hW'fiianSlH position. . ■ i,?tH Mr. Ernest Spiegel was found shot at I Jus residence, titzjohn's Avenue, Ramn M stead on New Year's Day. Ho camo to 1 London from Berlin in the early nineties'"H having held, before that, a prominent posi' | tion in the banking house of Weichroder'■' 1 Herr von Bleichroder, who Was an j m fl portent figure in German banking matters ""'" H acted a ft honorary British Cunsul-General I in Berlin, but the business of the office' M was practically conducted by Mr. Spiegel II who knew English well. Mr. Spiegel mail H ried an English lady, who died about teA I years ago. ? j I Attracted by the gold industry in South! 9 Africa, he left tho linn of Bleichroder an* fl set up in business with a. countryman} fl who was acquainted with South Africa! fl Mr. Spiegel amassed a considerable or 'fl tune in London, and took a prominent ,IS part in the development of portion 6 of gj-ffl Essex coast. ' In A friend, of his at the inquest, Mr. fl Fischer Schobell, who v. a professional/fl musician, said he had known Mr. Spiegel ill eight years, and they lived together. Bur' fl ing the past five months there had beer - fl a marked change in the German banker'.- fl manner. He became unduly depressed] "' and pessimistic, taking a very gloomy viev \ of life. Tho witness spent three day:, with him at Christmas, sacrificing the op portunity of being with his family, and) I on Sunday remained with him from break 1 fast time until 12.45. Ho was then ex $ ceptionally cheerful. The witness left tin j house, and next morning heard tha', his friend had been found shot. Mr. Spiegel had often said he was tired I of life. Ho was a man given to cxaggera # ting matters greatly. His relatives had i' not recently visited him, and he had jic If children. ? The musician added that Mr. Spiegel' H was in the habit of discussing nuicide, and fl expressed regret that there was not a, fl simple way of getting out of life— way fl of a lethal chamber instead of by violent fl means. Mr. Spiegel had not gone out of fl doors of late, and had gone to bed early la and risen late. In former days he - was ~fl in the habit of frequently dining out. fl Mrs. Blanche Lowe, of Harvard Court, fl Hampstead, 'said she had known Sir, fl Spiegel for twenty years, and had been a. Eg great friend of his late wife. There had fl been a great change in him during the fl past six months. Ho had spoken of hip 19 finances, and said ho was worried, but ho ifl never went into details. On the Saturday fl before his death she dined with Mr, 8 Spiegel, and he was then abnormally f| bright. _ _ ',;. : ; M'''''yv;'; if IS The coroner said that in a letter left 'fl for Mrs. Lowe Mr. Spiegel wrote &■"<§ . "This awful year is drawing to a close, I don't know whether I shall ! live to see l another morning. I feel as if I could not . endure my misery any longer." Medical evidence showed that the banker had shot himself with a revolver, and in a letter addressed to the police and the coroner he wrote :— •'., '■ s " Having for months past been without S hope of retrieving my financial losses and ■ the position of my business, I have at tha same .time been contemplating suicide u the only means of escape from mental tor« ture and miseries of every kind. -I enclose receipted bill for the revolver I am about to ase." ™ "Suicide whilst of -unsound mind" wa< |jj the jury's verdict. 11