Transcribed from Emma Rey’s scrapbook of Newspaper articles by Wayne Rey.


BRIDEGROOM DIES BY BULLET AFTER MOTHER’S BURIAL

Bride Tells How Jacob Riebling Shot Himself Kneeling by the Bed

The death of Jacob Riebling, shot in the right temple and instantly killed at 
his home, 210 Bowen Street, at 1:30 a. m. Tuesday, is being investigated by 
the police to determine the motive.
Riebling’s bride, Lulu, the only person with him when the tragedy occurred, 
says that her husband took a revolver from under a pillow and kneeling at 
her bedside shoot himself.
The weapon with one shell empty was found lying near him on the floor.
Mrs. Riebling says that she believes her husband’s motive for suicide was 
grief over the death of his mother. She also says that he was jealous, and that 
they had quarreled frequently since their marriage Nov. 5.

Married in Illinois
The wedding took place in Columbia, Illinois, where both lived. Riebling and 
his bride came to St. Louis, and since then he had been a conductor on the 
Jefferson Line.
Mrs. Riebling says that she and her husband returned Monday afternoon from 
Columbia, where they went to attend the funeral of Riebling’s mother. “My 
husband seemed greatly depressed by his mother’s death,” she said. “After 
supper last night he urged me to go to bed early. He said he would sit up and 
write some letters.
“At 11: 30 I arose and went into the kitchen, where he was writing, and begged 
him to go to bed. He told me not to bother him. “About 1:30 I was awakened by
someone groaning. My husband with his clothes on was lying on the floor in the 
bedroom. I asked him what was the matter and he said he was awful sick. I 
jumped out of bed and started for a doctor. Before I reached the door my husband 
crawled to the bed and took a revolver from under the pillow. He knelt beside the 
bed and shot himself.
“ I slipped on a long coat over my gown and ran to the home of my brother-in-law 
Frank Harmack, a block away. Harmack and several neighbors came back with me. 
My husband was dead.
Neighbors notified the police.

He Wrote Two Letters
On the kitchen table were found two letters which Riebling had written to relatives. 
There was nothing in them to indicate that he contemplated suicide when he wrote 
them. They were about commonplace family affairs.
Mrs. Riebling says that she does not think the quarrels which she and her husband 
had were serious enough to cause him to kill himself.
“He was a very jealous man, though she said, “and you can’t tell what a jealous 
person will do.”