Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1871-12-09
The Fatal Dose.

Bedatifyng the COnplerion-A Terrible Warning
10 Young Girls Who are Dissatisfied Wiih otds
Ndt1r. has Done for Them.
From the San Francisco Chronicle. Nov. 2o. !
ON Wednesday morning last. young girl
named Elenor Nondy took strychnne at the
residence of Henry Mess No. - John street,
from the effects of which she died. Ii appears
that the unfortunate girl had been in the habit
OF eating chalk, taking solution of arsenic and
other drugs for the purpose of clearing and beau
Trying her complexion, and at the same time
impression that IL was the drug which she had
been in the habit of taking.
Deceased was native of England, aged
twenty-three years. About enc year ago she
came to this city from England, in the COM
pany OF Marion Deary, who is now employed
as a domestic in the family of Mrs. Captain
Lapidge, at the BrevOOrt House, on Fourth
street The latter formerly held the position
of ladies' maid in the family of Lord Bate
man in Norwich, England, and it was during
the shooting season that she met Elenor at
Douglas, Isle OF Man, where Lord Bateman's
country seat is located. The father of Elenor
VOndy held the position of Superintendent of
Wineries, and is well known throughout the
country. The two girls became fast friends
and finally resolved to come to California
who were on their way to Victory. In due
time they arrived i'm this city, and Marion OBJ
tanned the situation which she holds at present.
After remaining at a servant girls boarding
house on Fremont street for several days, Eie-
nor succeeded in obtaining a situation in the
family of Judge Lorenzo Sawyer through the
warm interest in her. But she did not keep
this long, and afterward was employed by Mrs.
Henry Mess. Her complexion was not very
clear or beautiful, but nevertheless she was not
bad looking. When visiting her friend Marion
she constantly talk ed about her complexion and
expressed wish to get hold of some solution of
arsenic that beauties the skin. on last Tues
day evening Mrs. Mess visited an apothecary's
shop and purchased the strychnine for the
purpose of killing rats, as she stated to the
drug clerk. Mrs. Mess asked the clerk {" if it
would kill two-legged rat" and the clerk
replied that it would kill almost ANYTHING.
klenOr was in the company of Mrs. Mess when
the purchase was made On Sunday evening
previous to her death Elenor called upon her
friend and they had a long conversation
She seemed very much depressed, and once,
riOn, suppose l should die, would YOU 90 in
mourning for me 2" She also remarked during
the evening that she had arranged all her
letters so that her affairs would be straight
il she died suddenly. These facts seem to
show that the girl had some idea of her
approaching death, or that she was medi-
Eating suicide. Whether such was really the
case or not will probably never be known.
On Wednesday the took the bottle of strych-
nine that was ostensibly purchased to kill rats,
and took on the point of penknife small por-
ton Of the deadly drug-the most terrible i'm its
effects Oh the human system of all poisons. Inn
mcdiately she was thrown into violent spasms
and commissions, and for three hours she suf;-
fered the tOrments OF the damned, when ply
stefan (Mr. WILSON, came to her relief. Bat il
was too late, and death soon put an end to her
her features cOntOrted in "A frightful manner
The usual inquest was held by the coroner, and
the verdict was to the effect that her death was
caused by an overdose OF strychnnc