Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-07-14
A PARIS MYSTERY.

An American widow and Singular
Case of Arsenic Poisoning.
Paris Cor Chicago Inter-0cean.l
1t was at this dinner-table that
was lately narrated a story the
rarest skeleton of which had ap-
peared in the morning papers. We
listened. to it over our soup; we
had eatan our grapes and fingered
long over our cafe noir before it
was finished, so many were the in
terrogation points with which the
story was punctuated by the coun-
trymen and women of the heroine
of the tale. She is an American
whose sudden disappearance from
the social circles of a Western city
a few years ago made a great deal Of
talk at the time, but was never ex-
planned to the satisfaction Of the
gossips. 1t was at one time report
ed that she had entered a convent
in Montreal, another that having
lost her small fortune she had
buried herself in a small German
town on the Rhine where living was
cheap and temptations to a social
display beyond her means did moi
exist. This lady, although nc
longer young, is very beautiful, and
as much a queen of men as she
could possibly have been at nine.
teen. Nay, more, for what is the
power of youth but weakness com
pared to that of beauty and expe
rience combined at thirty-fye
Madame is a widow, not rich, bu
by some mysterious means living il
a luxury like that of the Egyptian
queen rocked in her golden galley
on the slumbrous Nile. Her littlt
dinners in her elegant apartment
au premier are absolutely Sardana
palian in luxury; with the adde(
refreshments Of an Athenian sym
postum her petits soupers ar,
leasts fit for the gods.
Her toilets are ravishing, albei
Of SO quiet style that only thos'
who know the sometimes counties
values of unobtrusiye things detec
that her laces are more costly thai
chateaus, her silks and velvets rich
er than any Of Tyrean dyes. Gu
rious enough she never wear
diamonds = they are vulgar, sh
says and she Is never seen will
more than her plain wedding-rin,
upon her hand, never any othe
ornament upon her head than he
own luxuriant hair, now more whit
than black.
She lives in seclusion-that il
with only a narrow circle of friends
never appears in public places
goes rarely to the theater, and theI
only in plaineSt dress, and neve
goes out except in close carriage
That there are important reason
for this close seclusion of lad
naturally excessively fond of societ
and gay life is naturally surmiseC
but what they are must also be con
iectured. And while one is in tn
guessing mood let also be attache
the mystery of her dropping tn
letter W with which her name
spelled in English, thus making
that name one so entirely differen
that her own brother.in-law of I'll
same name might read her visitin
card and declare that he never sa
or heard the name before. 1t
, said that every morning she hi
brought to her a list of all II
hotel arrivals Of the day before
that she looked first at the w
!, and that sometimes after readln
them she denied herself to all Wis
{ tors except one, and remained
her room all day.
This one visitor, to whom she
mover denied, is only a part Of IL
= time on this side OF the Atlanti
\ The other half he lives with h
wife and handsome daughter in Il
same city where the beautiful wido
l' was once well known.
She had two servants, one
Frenchman, the other her ov
= American maid, who came vii
3 her to Paris. This maid is also We
s' c,.cttv aud lodv-lila lonkinO.