As things began to unravel, Charles Forbes, head of the Veterans Bureau, went to Europe and sent his resignation back to the White House. (He was later convicted and sent to jail.) Charles Cramer, Forbes' assistant at the Veterans Bureau, committed suicide, leaving a suicide note addressed to President Harding (who refused to open it). Jesse Smith, assistant to Attorney General Harry Daugherty, either committed suicide or was murdered. (He supposedly bought a gun and shot himself with it, but he had an absolute terror of guns.) Secretary of the Interior Fall resigned.
The Senate was debating the creation of a special committee to investigate the leases of Navy oil reserve lands to private companies. Harding put all his administration's effort and resources behind the move to defeat the creation of such a committee. He realized that such a committee would uncover the poorly kept secrets of his administration, and it would mean sure impeachment.
To buoy Harding's health and spirits, a cross-country trip was planned. During the trip, a long coded message reached the Presidential train informing Harding that the Senate had voted to establish a special committee to investigate the oil leases. Reporters with Harding later told of a depressed looking Harding asking them what a President could do when his friends betrayed him.
During his trip, he went to Canada and Alaska, the first President to go to Alaska. As his train passed through Seattle, he became ill. On July 27, he went to bed with severe cramps and indigestion. Surgeon General Charles Sawyer diagnosed it as food poisoning. On July 29, his train reached San Francisco, and Harding checked into Room 8064 of the Palace Hotel. He developed pneumonia, and had a fever of 102 degrees. On August 1, his fever broke, his accelerated pulse had slowed to normal, and his breathing was more comfortable. He was even making plans to go fishing the next day.
According to Mrs. Harding, she wanted to cheer him up by reading "A Calm View of a Calm Man," which was a very flattering article about Harding in the Saturday Evening Post. Harding supposedly said, "That's good. Go on; read some more." Those were his last words. Mrs. Harding left him when she finished reading the article, with his eyes closed, assuming him asleep. Later, Burse Ruth Powderly came in, saw his face twitch, his mouth drop open, and his head roll to the side. Doctors concluded that he had suffered a stroke. This is where the mystery started.
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