I decided to start a new thread cause ones that get really, really long start making me nutso after a while. This one shouldn't be as difficult as the albatross one was. (But I didn't say it was easy.)

I flipped the tent flap open and surveyed the scene.

On the floor, in the center of the tent, a man lay dead from self-inflicted gunshot wounds.
In the corner of the tent was a small cot.
A package of cigarettes and an empty whiskey bottle lay on the bedside table next to the kerosene lamp.

The only other items I found at the scene were 6 small circular wooden disks under the cot, the man's personal effects, and a variety of scrapbooks and news clippings. I found the last items strange as the suicide victim was completely illiterate.

What was the reason for the suicide?

Remember, yes or no questions ONLY. The answers are yes, no and irrelevant. Please try to watch out for assumptions about stuff that has not be established. (And "or" questions are difficult.)

Did you find the gun?

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Originally Posted by J_9

Did you find the gun?

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Irrelevant but it was probably lying right there. (Off to a good start. :p)

Were the scrapbooks and paper clippings related to him or anyone in his family? Meaning, was there a pattern?

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Originally Posted by J_9

Were the scrapbooks and paper clippings related to him or anyone in his family? Meaning, was there a pattern?

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Yes to the first part. But I'm not sure what you mean by a pattern, though it isn't likely important.

Were the clippings about him?

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Originally Posted by J_9

Were the clippings about him?

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Yes. (Though it's reasonable some were about someone(s) else.)

Were some about a girlfriend?

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Originally Posted by J_9

Were some about a girlfriend?

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No.

Didn't see this thread until now :o

Were there comprehensible words in the scrapbook?

Did you know the man?

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Didn't see this thread until now :o

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Hey, welcome to my world. Hope your recent homework didn't drag you down too much.

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Were there comprehensible words in the scrapbook?

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Is that what you meant to ask? Comprehensible, as in understandable? Um, what words are in the scrapbook, or even if, isn't really relevant anyway.

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Did you know the man?

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Irrelevant. (I don't even know who "I" am in the scenario.)

Well, then I'm forced to ask how did you know the dead was completely illiterate if "you" (as the author) didn't know him?

Ok, back to the game...

Did the man really commit suicide?
Could it be that it was someone else who killed the man and 'you' thought it was suicide?
Were the news clippings about the a particular person in each case?

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Well, then I'm forced to ask how did you know the dead was completely illiterate if "you" (as the author) didn't know him?

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Uh, uh... I'm a cop investigating the death and someone who knew him told me?

Ok, back to the game...

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Did the man really commit suicide?

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Yes.

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Could it be that it was someone else who killed the man and 'you' thought it was suicide?

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No.

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Were the news clippings about the a particular person in each case?

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Not sure what you mean by "in each case". Is there more than one case? But otherwise yes.

OK, I had to go check what had already been established about the news clippings, and I see it's already been asked if they were about him, and that I said yes but there reasonably could be ones about other person or persons.

Don't make too much out of that. For the moment just assume they were about the dead guy. There don't have to be any about anyone else - and therefore it's obviously not necessary to solving it.

(In fact, look elsewhere. You won't guess the clippings, and the fact that they exist will suffice.)

Is there a baby involved (cot)

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Originally Posted by aimee_tt

Is there a baby involved (cot)

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No.

Did the tent belong to the dead man?

Did the man not like what he saw in the paper?

Did the papers have to do with his suicide?

Was the man camping alone?

Did anybody witness it?

Were the scrapbooks his?

Did the wooden disks have anything to do with anything?

Did he do something bad in his life?

Did someone want him dead?

Was he a convict?

Was he ever in jail?

Did he have family?

Did any of his friends or family die?

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Originally Posted by adam_89

Did the wooden disks have anything to do with anything?

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I don`t know this one (puzzle) but I`m willing to bet they have a lot to do with it. We have to figure out what they actually are.

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Originally Posted by NeedKarma

I don`t know this one (puzzle) but I`m willing to bet they have a lot to do with it. We have to figure out what they actually are.

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I have no clue on what a wooden disk is, but I found it strange seeing it. Now the long wait to have my questions answered.

I'm trying my best not to easily Google the answer. :D

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Originally Posted by Unknown008

Did the tent belong to the dead man?

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He didn't personally own it, no.

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Did the man not like what he saw in the paper?

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Difficult to answer when you put the "not" in. Re-worded: Did the man dislike what he saw in the paper? No.

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Did the papers have to do with his suicide?

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In some fashion, yes.

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Was the man camping alone?

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Assumption. It's never been established what he was doing.

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Did anybody witness it?

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Irrelevant.

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Were the scrapbooks his?

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Yes.

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Did the wooden disks have anything to do with anything?

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Yes.

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Did he do something bad in his life?

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Most of us have. :p

No.

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Did someone want him dead?

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We don't know.

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Was he a convict?

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No.

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Was he ever in jail?

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Irrelevant.

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Did he have family?

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Irrelevant.

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Did any of his friends or family die?

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Irrelevant but no.

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Originally Posted by NeedKarma

I don`t know this one (puzzle) but I`m willing to bet they have a lot to do with it. We have to figure out what they actually are.

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Right you are.

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I'm trying my best not to easily Google the answer.

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You know, when I was googling these kinds of puzzles, this was one I never found. One must definitely enjoy a good mystery to do these. (Actually, I know a mystery puzzle, and I know some about it, but I don't think it was ever solved so I don't know the final answer. Not very useful.)

Knowing that in these kinds of puzzles the devil is in how one defines things. Hence the "wooden disks" are likely a minimalistic way of describing something that we know under another name.
Are the wooden disks household objects?
Is that fact that there are six of them have any bearing?

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Are the wooden disks household objects?

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No.

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Is that fact that there are six of them have any bearing?

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That there's specifically six, no.

Was he camping?

Was he at a circus?

Was he at any public events?

It is killing me to know what the wooden disks are because I know now they have something to do with it and I have no questions to ask about them. Hmmm...

Were the wooden disks his?

Was the stuff inside the scrapbook done by him?

Do the scrapbooks and disks go together?

Did the wooden disks have writing on them or were they some kind of tablets?

Was everything in the tent his?

Was the man homeless?

Was the man well known or famous?

Were the disks new? Older?

Did the papers make him look like a town idiot and embarressed him?

Did the papers say he was illiterate?

Was he being blackmailed about something and somebody went to the papers to release something about it and made him kill himsefl?

Or... Did the papers reveal a secret about him?

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Was he camping?

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No. :D

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Was he at a circus?

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Yes.

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Was he at any public events?

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Yes, but not while he was dead. :p

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Were the wooden disks his?

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Yes.

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Was the stuff inside the scrapbook done by him?

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Irrelevant.

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Do the scrapbooks and disks go together?

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No.

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Did the wooden disks have writing on them or were they some kind of tablets?

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No.

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Was everything in the tent his?

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<looking at original to see what was in the tent... >

We'll say yes. (Maybe not the cot but that's irrelevant anyway.)

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Was the man homeless?

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No.

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Was the man well known or famous?

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Yes.

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Were the disks new? Older?

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That's not a yes or no. :)

On the older side.

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Did the papers make him look like a town idiot and embarressed him?

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No.

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Did the papers say he was illiterate?

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Irrelevant.

Was he working for a circus?

Were the disks his?

Had he drank whiskey? (his breath)

Is he a smoker?

Was he shot from the back?

From the chest?

From the head?

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Was he being blackmailed about something and somebody went to the papers to release something about it and made him kill himsefl?

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No.

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Or... Did the papers reveal a secret about him?

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No.

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Was he working for a circus?

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Yes.

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Were the disks his?

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Already asked, but yes.

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Had he drank whiskey? (his breath)

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Very likely.

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Is he a smoker?

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Irrelevant.

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Was he shot from the back?

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From "self-inflicted gunshot wounds"? :p

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From the chest?

From the head?

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Irrelevant.

I was making sure it was suicide ;) Though I'm still confused as to why he used many bullets instead of one... which would have largely been sufficient...

Plus, if the pistol can't be found, it means someone carried it away, hence it won't be a suicide...

Okay... never mind.

Was he so drunk that he got angry at himself over something he has done that he shot himself?

Did anyone hear the shots? (Thinking about setting a time when he was killed)

Yes, good point to be brought up. It never said that the gun was in the tent. It may have been one of those obvious things. So my questions is: Was the gun still there?

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I was making sure it was suicide ;) Though I'm still confused as to why he used many bullets instead of one... which would have largely been sufficient...

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The entire question is why the suicide. There's nothing anywhere that says anything about bullets. Re-read the original. (I can also post another summary of all questions, although right now I'm in and out, trying to get certain things done while it's sunny out.)

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Was he so drunk that he got angry at himself over something he has done that he shot himself?

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No.

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Did anyone hear the shots?

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Probably.

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Originally Posted by adam_89

Was the gun still there?

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Yes.

Well, I think what he was talking about is that the original says he died from gun shot woundS instead of a wound.

Oooh. I literally pasted it in from elsewhere and made sure I read it carefully, but still never noticed that. Maybe cause I knew it didn't mean anything and it just went over my head. No clue why it's plural. Sorry 'bout that.

Were the wooden disks originally connected in some way ? Like a circus prop? A stilt?