The Tragedy of Martin Ware

Since the death of Martin Ware there have been a thousand surmises relative to it. To most of the citizens of the place his suicide was very startling, for to them he was a quiet, inoffensive, respectable citizen who, though he may not have been a moral model, was at least gentlemanly and accommodating in his business. A prominent citizen said a day or two after: 'If some one had met him and spoken a kind word to him after he borrowed that rifle and left the gambling room, Martin Ware might still be alive.' It seems that a certain circle had made the unfortunate young man the butt of their pranks and jokes and ridicule, thoughtlessly, no doubt, but none the less painfully to him. Many times he had left the crowd of jeering, mocking companions and gone gloomily to his office to mope. It was that dangerous practice of picking, which is thought by some to be evidence of manliness, which drove Martin Ware to death. His future prospects were surely brighter than those of some of the people who annoyed him and are now criticizing him.