The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-12-29
TOO MUCH LOVE.
WHY MISS LILY DUER SHOT HER
FRIEND-A BYRONIC
YOUNG LADY.
Cincinnati Commercially

YOUNG LADY.
Cincinnati Commercially
A very curious story comes from Pocomoke
City, Md, showing what reading Il yron may
lead to. Miss Lily Duer was young lady Of
eighteen, and belle Of Pocomoke City. She
had only lately graduated with honors y
which may mean much or little, according to
circumstances. Young ladies from sixteen to
twenty generally affect one style or another,
according to the novels they have read most
Miss Lily Duer adopted the strong minded.
slam bang role. She chopped her hair of
short and parted 1t boy-iashon. Being d
pretty girl, with large, dark eyes, this was
rather becoming. She studied medicine and
hated men. Whether she studied medicine
because she hated men, or hated men because
she studied medicine, Is not quite clear. She
took long walks In the woods. Perhaps to
keep off the abominable masculine sex. she
fell into the pleasant little habit of carrying d
small loaded pistol with her on all occasions.
Moreover. this popgun had cheerful way Of
sometimes going off aceidental-like At least
that was what she claimed
MISS Lily was overwhelmingly intellectual.
She used to sit up nearly all night reading
books. She was passionately fond OF reading,
her mother testified The sequel shows that
she was passionate sort Of female anyhow
Her favorite author was Byron, "whose nature
Is similar TO my own she said. She was
very honest TO own 1t, ut any rate
Sho torswore matrimUny. Most girls do
But 1t was unfortunate In Miss Lily Duer q
case. Ii she had had a nice young man to
waste her affections and her powder on, Miss
Ella Hearn might have been alive to-day
Owing to the fact that she hated
men, Lily conceived an ardent fancy
for Ella. ALI history testiiies that
the human heart must have something to
lean upon, as 1t were. When women won't
fall in love with men, as nature Intended.
they fall In love with each other At length.
after Lilly had studied medicine sat up
nights reading Byron and taken lonely
walks with her loaded little pistol by her side
OF mind to do anything romantic. 1t is said
she put on-in short, that she donned suit of
| masculine clothes, and cavorted about the
country at times In .trowsers. Her strong
| mindedness seems to have developed
| Her love for Miss Hearn assumed the yjo-
| lent phase, 80 violent that at last 1t annoyed
Ella seriously. Lily was as persistent In her
attentions as the Widow Butler Is In wooing
the people OF Massachusetts. Miss Hearn
seems to have been q ral-minded young
woman who did not take kindly to this sort
Of nonsense. Lily used to visit her every day
with queer and extravagant demonstrations
OF Affection although she told her again and
again and again to go home and never come
back. Unrequited love Is apt to become a
nuisance, In male or female. In October the
two young ladies took walk together in the
woods, They gathered tea-berries. After
while they started home, tho she-lover. with
"Stoprf she cried suddenly to Ella.
Miss Hearn did not heed, but walked on.
Suddenly she heard a report, and then another
and another, which caused her to stop very
quickly and look behind her. Lily had DELHI |
erately fired at her three times, narrowly |
missing her. Ella ran to her and knocked |
the pistol out of her hand.
did you Intend to shoot me2" she asked |
Il only intended to brighten you and make |
you stop" said Lily.
After that Ella never walked in the
woods with her any more Miss Hearn
had another young lady friend, Miss
the ungovernable jealousy of the fe-
male lover, who would brook no rival |
From sitting up nights reading Byron she
had learned what was the proper thing to do.
her to call at her Lily's) house ION important
business" Ella called, and the weighty con-
Germ was pressing request to take walk In |
the woods with Lily. Ella declined. Next
day. November 8. the Byronic girl marched
into Miss Hearn's house with her tiny pop
gun. She insisted that Ella should walk
with her In the woods, declaring before AL
mighty God that If she didn't 60 this time
she lilly would never ask her to do anything
else as long as she lived. Ella still refused
Say. that you love me-" exclaimed the
tragic female. Say that you love me better
than anybody else. )
Miss Hearn would not say 1t. Lily turned
to go away in great excitement, but came
1
to kiss her: Ella pushed her. of, and she
slipped and fell, butarose again Immediately.
"Do you love me?" she asked
"No," said Ella.
Then Lily stepped back a pace or two,
pointed her pistol at Elias eyes and fired.
The wounded girl fingered e month, in q
state OF painful suffering, and then died.
The coroner's jury rendered verdict that
She, had died from nervous depression
with bullet In her brain. That fact OF itself
was tolerably depressing circumstance,
Ella at first declined to say whether or not
the shooting was Intentional. Her father asked J
her several times, but she would not answer. !
One day he put the same question, when she !
turned over and began to weep bitterly. A !
few days afterwards she told her father she !
believed she was going to die, and she wished I
,he truth to be known. The shooting, she !
said. was not accidental, but Intentional. She u
hen narrated the strange story as above.
Now York Herald reporter called on Miss
Ouer. To the question whether the shoot
ng was accidental, she answered in top
Official manner: 0
81 am not murderess, sir. Do look like q
,ne?" {.
Her appearance was as tragic as might a
ave been expected in O young lady whose 81
ature was similar to Byron's. She had a II
striking cOuntenance, overcast with sadness v
nd melancholy" and said "sir" when she O
nade remark to the reporter. She was an r
Injured woman, she said She had been mis- Il
Understood from her childhood up. Every Il
rlfiing thing she had done In her life had 81
cen exaggerated. This, too, sounds Byronic. o
Ill in all, the poet who wore turn-down col v
lrs will probably have more sins to answer h
)r after he Is dead than even those he COM I'll
litted In his lifetime.
-ao< IL