New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1859-01-24
Nsh Orleaas Bully Crescent
MONDAY MORNING, JANUARY ~, 1853.
S0tal SntelIiafttte.

sa gotal Sntslligtntt. l
The LATEST DISTINGUISHED ARRIVAL is that Of
Jack Frost Several times this winter he has flung
the end Of his mantle over the city, betokening his
proximity but he did not arrive in person till Sat-
urday night The crowds who visited the theatersin
the evening, thinking it was rather cool ont, went
home at o late hour skipping and shivering, with
red and ears, in the decided opinion that the
weather was about to be cold.
Yesterday morning all water was ice-water to touch
and taste, and all exposed water was handsomely
iced over. The day was gloriousy beautiful, but Of
o freezing temperature all day. Jack Frost and Dan
Sol seemed to have come to sort of agreement for
the nonce the one asserting his presence every.
where and the other sending down his most dazzling
smile from cerulian as blue as beautys eye at six
teen, through an atmosphere as translucent as the
extract of diamonds. There was just
warmth enough to melt such ice as became exposed
to the solar rays in the shady places, Jack Frost
gloated over his crystals all day long, The beauty
the day lured out the multitudes only to get them
frostuipped and TO send them shvering to the blaz
ing coares indoors, each Of which the center Of
q happy reunion. It was by far the coolest day of
the season. and last night the indications were that
to-day would be just such another.
NEW CATHOLIC CHURCH is contemplated in the |
Third District. Rev. G. Moynehan, Pastor of st.
Peters, announces the fact in published card, and
calls upon the community for aid. He will solicit
subscriptions in person.
BRIGADIER GENERAL PALFREY has been reelected
to the command Of the Louisiana Legion.
The BENIcrA Boy and Aaron Jones have left the
city. They were unable to procure suitable hall in
which to give their proposed sparring exhibition.
FIRES ARE BAD THINGS this cold weather; we
mean those fires which get too big for their allotted
stoves and CRATES and try to eat up the houses in
which they live. We have too such to report. One
commenced in house on Customhouse street, be-
tween Marais and Viere, on Saturday evening but
received its quaint. su Of the cooling element before
much damage was done. The other, at late hour
the same night, destroyed frame tenement at the
corner Of Apollo and Eighth Streets turning German
family out in the biting cold.
THE MOST ExTR AoRDINARY SUICIDE we ever heard
or read Of took place in this city on Thursday night
last The dead body was found on Friday, and the
Coroners inquest held on Saturday. As it is case
unexamped in the history ofsucide we will give the
facts connected with it, as elected before the Coroner
in their proper sequence 1t illustrates the effect of
succumbing too much to morbid grief, and becoming
too familiar with death in its repusive aspects.
Sylvester Rupert, 81 years of age, an Engshman
by birth, and by trade shipcarpenter, lived with
his wife and two children in house Perdido street
In October last the yellow fever, then prevailing,
counted among its victims the youngest child of the
Ruperts-their little girl Lizzie about four years DID,
and the particular pet of the father. This blow
from which the father recovered. Not able to
buy tomb be had the child buried in the ground in
Greenwood Cemetery. The grief preyed heavily upon
him. 1t was his only thought; and, being out Of his
regular employment, he found employment in his
grief
He bought burial lot and some bricks and other
MATERIAL and with his hands and all alone in the
cemetery, built him brick tomb. He had not the
means to make the tomb stylish one SO in its mouth
or entrance he fitted wooden frame, and on this
frame he fitted piece of board and secured it with
screws in its four corners On this board with which
be enclosed the vault lin lieu of the usual brick and
mortar or marble slab), be had carved nicely with his
knife the burial inscription of his child The tomb
finished he disinterred the chds body and placed it
there. He fastened the board with screws, in order
that he might afterward have no trouble in removing
when he felt like gazing upon the decaying remains
| of his child.
This employment finished, it was his habit to visit
his pet. He always carried a screw-drver in his
pocket with which to remove and replace the board
and also to remove and replace the lid OF the coffin
Neither the haggard aspect of the shrinking little
corpse the foul odor Of its decay could repel him
in his morbid grief. His visits were frequent: and
| sometimes his wife went with him. He frequently
complained to her that he could not get work and
this inability doubtless fostered the dependency
which was drawing him to death. He frequently
spoke of having faith in the future and Of death
desirable thing
| On Wednesday, he went to the cemetery with two
shrubs which he had purchased, and planted them in
front of the tomb. On Thursday, when he left home
he told his wife that if he had better luck in find
| ing work, she would never see him again. He also
said something about having place in which tt
rest.
That evening, or that night-for no one saw him il
his gloomy proceedings-he visited the cemetery
taking with him his screw-driyer, an iron trunk
handle, small rod of iron, piece of wire some new
screws, and large vial of laudanum. Unscrewinl
the board of the tomb he threw away the screws ant
filed the screw-holes in the board with clay.
With his new screws he then secured the trunk
handle to the inside of the board. This work, oil
course had to be done outside the tomb. Pushing
his chid's coffin aside he got in by its side, taking
with him his poison and the other articles with which
he had provided himself. His hat Replaced upon tn
coffin his coat which he had taken of, he wrapped
around brick for pillow. He shut himself in Wit
the board, by means of the handle he had screwed
it; the board fitting outside the wooden frame. TIL
iron bar, which of the proper length, be place.
across the frame inside. The thickness of the fran
would not allow the bar to pass through the trunk
handle on the inside of the board so he secured tn
handle and the bar by means Of his wire, coiling
through the one and around the other. He did no
succeed in fitting the board squarey upon the frame
One corner of it caught upon the brickwork outsid
the France this he did not discover, probably, OWN
to the darkness of the night and but for this lttl
circumstance his fate would probably have never bee
discovered, or not at least for many years. Havin
thus hid himself away, as he fancied beyond morris
discovery he drained off the contents of his laudanur
BOTTLE composed himself on his back, placed the brio
and coat beneath his head and went to s,eep, and
into the unknown region of the suicides.
As he did not return home on Thursday night, hi
wife feared the worst, remembering well the tendenc
Of his late conduct, and the tenor of his partin
words. On Friday morning she rose early and wer
out to the cemetery. She looked all around, an