The New York herald., 1872-05-29
TIE GREENVILLE, TENN, SCANDAL
A Libel on Ex-President
johnson.
How an Exemplary Lady Was Driven 10
Commit Suicide.

lFrom the KNOXVILLE tTenn) chronicle, May Zo.n
About the last of April the detailed circumstance :
OF great scandal, based on occurrences said td
have taken place in Greenville, reached the C7yor
fcle reporter, and under circumstances that indi3
Gated that they had at least some foundation. De3
string to act with proper and Judgment before
giving the rumors publicity, we telegraphed to re-
sponsible citizens OF Greenville, asking as to the
truth OF the stories. They promptly answered by
telegraph that the charges false. Subsequently
the story reached again with full clrcumstancess
and In order to ascertain the real TRUTH one Of the
editors of the Chronicle went to Greenvile to make
an investigation OF the case.
THE FALSE RUMORs.
AZ the names OF the parties and the charges In an
exaggerated form have been made public, we pro-
pose now TO give the result OF our Investigations.
to Us s too ate on thursday night to enable US
send this statement forth with 1t, as we should havd
done had the parties interested In Greenvllle senq
The story originally started was that Mrs. Har0lG
and ex-Presdent Johnson had had improper inter-
course with each other for some time. The story
ran that these meetings took place In Mr.. Johnsons
library, which Is next door to Mr.. Harold's housed
aud that the ,tdison was discovered by Mr.. Harolds
meeting his wife late ut night coming from the Ill
brary with blanket shawl thrown over her head.j
The story ran that Mr.. Harold had suspected the,
intimacy and on the night referred to had watched
his wife and caught her on the street disguised as
referred to. He was said to have halted her. asked
her who she was pulled the shawl from her face
but that she had avoided him and gone around BED
unobserved Her husband, However, anticipated
her. went to the back door, and there found his
suspicious g. &C confirmed: The report was that they
been overheard. This was substantially the story
as IT originally came out in Greenville We may be-
mistaken as to some OF the details, but we give the
main facts as we heard Them The statements were
false in every respect.
now TIIE REAL TROUBLE BEGAN.
But the facts that brought about the suicide are
substantially as folows:-On one OF the last Sun
anonymous note to Mr.. Harold through the Post
once intimatng to him that an improper intl-
Mr.. Harold and Mr.. Johnson had been personal
and warm friends for thirty years. Their families
a pen ad yea nor most % pI t that & erSa @
forty years. She had his entire confidence and
deep love- For thirty years she had been an actives
exemplary and most consistent member OF tho
Presbyterian Church. AS as he read the letter
he went promptly to her, showed 1t to her and as
sured her he did not believe a word OF It. Mrs.
Harold read the letter and was so indignant that
she could hardly restrain herself At one timei
In the evening she was found almost crazy with
excitement, with gun In her hand aud declar-
Ing she intended to shoot her traducers. SO ex-
cited did she become that she almost lost her
reason. She repeatedly assured her husband OF her
innocence; but the idle gossps who infest Green
vile and other places took up tile scandal and talked
about 1t constantly. In hundred different ways
was presented. so positively was 1t asserted that
few always ready to believe III OF their betters
believed It, Mrs. Harold seemed borne down by
these repetitons of the scandal. About this
time her only son, leutenarit IN the United States
traits came home on leave of absence. 1t was
thought best to keep him ignorant OF the ISLANDERS,
days after his return word came to Mrs. Harold
that her mother was dangerously Ill. 1t was deter
Rhea county, rather than her sister living with her
as the visit would take her from the scandal and
give her resto Her son ACCOMPANIED her,
THE SUICIDE.
They reached the mothers house after a short
trip, during which Mrs. Harold seemed very de-
spondent. But her son, still ignorant OF the SLAM
dors, attributed this to her mothers condition.
When they reached Mrs. Heiskell's (her mothers
name) she was found to be some better on the
second morning after reaching there Mrs. Harold
arose earlier than usual, went to her mothers room
to attend to her, and then was seen to take from
her sons satchel his small piston Her mother sup
posed she was getting 1t for HIM. Taking the pistol,
into hcke and there H' shot herself through e fh tho
lett breast ana through the heart Three shots
sne Wa nep n .e IN aI vn was gyen ana soon alter
posed the first shot was fatal, as II set fire to her
clothing, which were burning when found. She
II, never nttcring word. Her remains were taken
home lor nterment. Ihe suicide following 80 close
into dangerous state, from which he has hardly
WHAT IS THOUGHT OF IT.
Mr.. Harold, who Is a quiet man OF few words, fears
now that though he assured her more than once OF
and others did not entirely believe her innocent,
and that IL weighed so heavily upon her as to
balance e, me- her mind Her son never yer heard 10 OF the
5. v McCorke at her funeral sermon very justly
and properly referred in severe language to the ter
rible lesson the event Afforded the Idle sanderers
who had brought about the trouble.
We found all OF the good citizens Of Greenville,
irrespective OF religion or politics, denouncng the
slander as false Mr.. Johnson declared the lady had
never been In his library. He said she had been
friend OF Mrs. Johnsons for half lifetime but that
he had not spoken to her for q week before or at
the time of the alleged visit to his library.
citizen or Gleenvillc esteemed for his veracty
showed us pair OF pants Mrs. Harold had made
about the time oi the scandal. She had made them
for tailor who occupies Johnson's old shop
next door to the library and second from Mrs.
Harold's. 1t had been necessary while making
these for Mrs. Harold to go several times to the
shop, and thus passing back and forth by Johnson's
library Is supposed to have been used as some
foundation for the story.
AS said before, Mrs. Harold was an exemplary
Christian woman OF high character, universally es-
teemed for many noble qualities, ardently attached
to her husband and children, and q lady OF great
energy and warm heart. She was literally broken
down by these false scandals, and in an hour OF
mental arrangement, with burning consciousness
OF innocence, and without power to resist the temp
taton she took her lifc The family have the deep
est sympathy OF all the good people OF Greenvilie
and the satisfaction Of knowing that no one who
knows them, or whose good opinion they care for,
believes the scandal.
The author OF the SANDERS we understand has
ncd II ever found he ana those who have encour-
aged and aided him should be punished.
We have thus given the SANDER and the facts, to
the end that the story might be arrested. gen.
eral denial ought to be enough but denial in de-
tail and circumstances refuting the ISLANDERS do
no HARM These are our motives for again referring
to the unfortunate affair.