Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1875-11-26

| M1uge ROane's Life aud Death "A
sad Story of UnhaIIow.d Love
The Gtrl's vi OrbEd Fear of Her
| Lovers Deserting Her
Drives Her tO Suicide.
New York Times
| The suicide OF the young girl known
as Minge Roane, at her re- idence No.
! $50 Fifth Avenue, on Tuesday evening
opens startling story IF city society,
life. Thomas Il. Whitney, who is in
timate!y connected il the tyage dy. is
about 26 ytsrs old, and is thu son OF
Thomas r Whitney, the vel known
brewer of Nos. GIL, u73 and CTS Wash
ington street, Young Whitney owns a
large interest IL the brewery and other
business concerns and is possessed of
Il considerable yearly income. After
hi, return from Europe, Year ago, he
vIsitt q disrrputable house IN the
twenty nlne Lr. c:nct, With an inmate
of which he had a previous acIualn-
tancc. After several visits to the
hovse, he noticed auOtaer inmate,
young girl who passed under the name
of M,nge Roane. This girl was then
twenty years old. brunette, we'll edu-
c4ted and OF very haLdsome appear
and she with him, as far as such wO
men can be supposed to love. OF the
girls previous history but little is
known. Her real name is supposed to
be Elizabeth Roane, and it is said that
her family resid. near Richmond. She
was first known in this city about tLree
years ago, when she entered house III
the fifteenth ward. In that establish,
ment she became acquainted with a
culored servant girl named Euphemla
Baptiste, whom she took into her en-
pioy as a personal servant, and who
has lived with her ever since, sharing
alike her prosperity and adversely in
various houses in the hetwenty-ninth pre-
cjnct. Whitney proposed to Miss
Roane that she should become his mis-
tress aud she accepted. He at once
hir ed fat in the brown stone house,
1870 Fifth Avenue, and furnished 1T III
sumptuous style, sparlng Lo expense
or trouble in securing the most costly
and unique articles OF furniture. Two
other servants in addition to Phe mle |
Baptiste were hired, aud Whitney and |
Miss Roaue first occupied their apart |
ments in February last.
They seemed 20 have lived very hap |
PLY together. although her e1citable |
and nervous temperament occasionally |
showed itself whichever the name of |
fo mer mistress CHANGED to
be mentioned. The story of the sui
eide can best be learned from the tes-
tt mony taken at the Inquest held by
Coroner Eickhoff at Seniors under
taking establishment. No. 36 Sixth
avenue. yesterday evening. The first
called was Mr.. Whitney. He
made the following statement under
oath: My name is Thomas d. Whit
ney; I know the deceased, Minge
Roaue, whose real name was Betty
ROane, and have lived with her at
No. $50 Fifth avenue since last Febru
ary; yesterday evening, about half an
hour before dinner, she mentioned the
Dame of lady used to visit and be-
came very much excited; I avoided all
sat down to dinner about $50 o'clock;
she treated ms rather coldly. but did
not say one angry word; at dinner We
ale, as was our usual custom; after
dinner she wanted some chestnnts,
and i sent the colored servant girl out
for some, and laid down on the sofa
and went to sleep; she woke me up
and said, ''Tom you don't care for me
any more:" l said. "Minge, am tired
aud sleepy; don't bother me-" and then
went and laid on the bed and fell
asleep; sooD alter this she woke me up
again aud said, "Tonl, if you don't get
up and talk to me you will regret 1T
forever" said, "Minge, don't bother
me-" and went to sleep again; vas
awakened by the report of a pistol,
aud jumping from the bed. saw her ly-
ing on the sofa; a pistol was on the f. Il
beside her; it was my pistol, whlcL
usually hung near the mantle; 1 ran to
ner side aud said, "My God, Minge,
have you shot yourself ?" she did not
speak, she was struggling violently
.pd gasping for breath J tore open
ler robe and saw where she had shot
1ersrlf in the left breast the powder
had blackened her skin and part of
ner clothing was burn ed ; l rang for
Pnemie, the servant, and ran to DIR.
Office be came with me
20 the house, and, on feeling her pulse
very excitable nature, au1 on my
evlncine the slightest neglect toward
1er would burst into tears il | spoke
0ne kind word to her she would al.
ways throw her arms around my neck
Il
,he thought at any time that she had
ost my aft ctiors she would not live
an hour: no two people in the world
ever lived happier than We did, or had
30 strong a bond of affection between
them. During the giving of his ev-
]ence Mr.. Whitney cried continually
and seemed utterly broken down. The
,olored servant. DR.. Hupanner. Cap
tain Steers and Deputy Coroner Marsh
gave corroborative testimony. The
case WIS then placed in the hands of
the jury, who rendered verdict that
the deceased came to her death by q
pistol shot wound, self-inficted, while
insane. l. was quite evil
dent that on Whitney refusing for the
second time to arouse herself and talk
to her, she at once determined to COM
NIT suicide She took from her war
drobe and put on silk wrapper which
Whitney had brought from Turkey.
and attired, in which he had often in
formed her, she appeared to the great
est advantage. She then DIRE sed her
hair in a fashion most admired by her
lover, and lying down on the lounge
shot herse f. By order of Whitney,
the body of the unfortunate young
girl was plac, d in a magnificent rose
wood casket, mounted in solid silver,
and having On the plate this inscrip-
ton "Minge Roane, died NoYem-
Der 9, 1875, aged 81 years"
OPTICAL returns from the November