In the New York Central Milk Station at East Rome -- Admits He Shot Himself -- Formerly of East Florence.
Howard Hannay, aged 23, was taken to the Rome hospital in the ambulance Thursday morning shortly before 9 o'clock, suffering from a bullet wound in the pit of the stomach.
The story of the events leading up to the shooting, which occurred at the milk station on the New York Central railroad in East Rome; as told my Mrs. Thomas Connors a sister of Hannay, who with her husband an employe of the station, lives upstairs in the creamery, follows:
"Howard came here this morning and about 8 o'clock had some words with my husband, who accused him of telling around that he (Howard) held a mortgage on our things. Howard denied telling any one, and they had some words, but nothing serious. This was in the weighing room. Soon after Howard went out to the weighing room and entered the ice storage part of the building, where the superintendent of the creamery, Augustine Blum, was at work picking ice. The next I knew was when my husband brought the revolver upstairs to me and said Howard was shot and that Mr. Blum had picked up the revolver and given it to him."
Augustine Blum said Hannay came in the open door of the ice house where he was, but he paid no attention to him. He stood near the door behind the superintendent. Mr. Blum heard the revolver shot and turned just in time to see Hannay fall to the ground. He went to his assistance and asked what was the matter, to which Hannay replied: "Nothing; I guess I'm all right." He was helped up and place in a chair for a moment or two and then, in company of Mr. Blum and Connors, started to go to a doctor. At John M. O'Brien's, 313 E. Dominick street, he was in so weak a condition that he was left there while Mr. Connors went to Hotel Byrnes and telephoned for the ambulance. Drs. Sutton, W.B. Reid, White and Coroner Hubbard were summoned.
Mrs. Connors said that in April she heard her brother insinuate that he would some time make away with himself. He had carried a revolver for over a year.
The weapon with which the shooting was done was a seven shooter double action Young America revolver. Its caliber is 23 short, and when turned over contained two empty cartridges. The other five chambers were empty.
Howard Hannay formerly reside in East Florence and is a son of Byron Hannay of this city. He has lived in Rome about five years and has recently been employed as a farm hand.
Hannay admitted to the police, physicians and attendants at the hospital that the wound was self-inflicted. He explained that he had some words with his brother-in-law and that the rebuke he received led to the act. The shot was fired at such close range that the young man's flesh was marked by burned powder. He died Friday morning about six o'clock. The bullet penetrated the young man's body two inches above the navel and passed into the stomach. After being removed to the hospital he suffered from severe hemorrhage which with the attendant shock caused his death. He was conscious for some time before his death.
Besides his father, G. Byron Hannay, and sister, Mrs. Thomas Connors of Rome, there are the following brothers and sisters living; Ernest of Schuyler, Edward and Cornelius of Rochester, Leonard of Illinois, George of Point Rock, Miss Eva Hannay of Missouri and Mrs. Maud Sollitt of Rome.
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