The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1870-06-03
From the New York Worlds

Doubtless all, or nearly all, who read
this article, have read and admired a
little poem called "The Beautiful
Snow, which, Immediately on its ap-
pearance a few years ago, not only at
tracted attention because of its intrin-
sic beauty, but also because of its un-
known and disputed authorship. This
man claimed it and that man claimed
it now its author was woman whose
degraded life had separated her from
her sisters, and whose remOrse was
here shadowed in verse, and again the
talk was that poor Bohemian" had
written it on the spur of the moment.
1t seemed destined to be one of those
melancholy songs which wander about
the world, which go from mouth to
mouth, and which, beautiful as they
are, bring no recognition to him who
has made them. They live, as all true
poetry must live, simply because they
are beautiful.
On the night of Friday last, Major
William A. III. Sigourney was found
dead on the Bloomingdale road. He
was shot through the head, and all the
circumstances of the case showed that
he had committed suicide few hours
before he was found. The body was
taken to the house of a friend in One
Hundred and Tenth Street, where an
inquest was held, and whence it was
removed to Greenwood Cemetery and
there buried. Upon his person were
found letters from Stephen Massett,
iJeems Pipes, Mr.. J. Jay Watson, and
Mrs. Lydia III. Sigourney.
Major Sigourney was the mel hew of
Mrs. l.. H. Sigourney, the poet, and
was born near st. Adams, i'm Vermont.
Early i'm life he married Miss Amelia,
Josephine Fillmore, sister of Mr..
VIM. Fillmore, of New York, who was
afterwards associated with him i'm the
publication of a hebdomidal called the
Golden Age, the first number of which
appeared in 1851, and was issued from
No 335 Broadway. Miss Fillmore is
said, by those who knew her, to have
been Very beautiful woman. The
marriage, however, was by no means
happy one, and two years after it
took place, and while the pair were i'm
Europe, rumor said that she was un-
faithful to her husband. Reports of
this sort made their way to the friends
and family of Mrs. Sigourney, and
when the couple returned to this coun-
try, in 1852, they received chilling
welcome. Apparently the wife was
bad by nature, for almost Immediately
upon her appearance i'm this city she
entered upon a life of shame, and it
was not long before she was lodged i'm
BlackwelPs Island as vagrant-the
passion for strong drink had ruined
her. Through the kind offices of Mr..
Henry j. Raymond, Major Sigourney
succeeded in obtaining The release of
his wife, but all endeavors TO reform
her proved unavailing, and it was not
long before she returned to her evil
ways. In the autumn of 1853 she left
her husband, and he heard no more of
her till he learned through the papers
that she had been found dead i'm White
street, frozen, and buried under the
snow, which had fallen upon her.
The papers had spoken of her simply
as young and beautiful woman, but
some circumstances connected with the
case led Sigourney to think that the
dead woman was his wife, and further
examination showed that it was she.
He had her buried i'm Greenwood Gem
etery, Mr.. Raymond again befriending
him and defraying the funeral expenses.
1t was in memory of this woman and
her saa death that Sigourney wrote fas
he claimed) the poem called "The
Beautiful Snow" and published i'm the
Golden Age of the first week of Janua-
ry, 1854.
After the death of the first wife he
again married, and appears always to
have been i'm destitute circumstances
occasioned either by his own neglect of
opportunities, or constitutional ina
bility to keep money after he had made
it. His life was rowing one; now he
was busy at one thing, and now at an
other. His health was not good, and
some time ago a pulmonary affection
forced him to relinquish his place as
editor of the st. Albans Messenger. At
various times he contributed articles to
the New York papers, but as read
lily may be conceived, did not make
sufficient money i'm this way to support
his family, or, at least, to provide for
its support after death, and his suicide
has left them poor.
For some time before his death he
had contributed stories and poems to
Ftckurd's Monthly the Dispatch, and
other puDiicatioils, ana The urgency
with which he asked that the money
for them should be sent to him "as
soon as possible" shows that he was
sadly in need of it; indeed, he said he
was starving. One of his letters re-
minds one of Poe's to n. p. Willis, beg
ging for five dollars to keep him alive.
1t reads, "For Gods sake send me
some money, no matter how little, as
quickly as you can. My child cried for
bread this morning, and had none to
give" This was written but a short
time ago, aid from it the reason of the
self-murder may be easily eonjectured.
In regard to the poem "The Beauti-
full Snow" discussion has not elicited
undoubted truth. Yet, all things con-
idered, Major Sigourney's claim to it