Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1883-07-29
BUcHANAN's LOVE.
The Sad Death OF Miss Annie C.
Coleman. ..
ex-President Buehanan's Obituary Of his
BIighted LoVe-His Letter to the Father
Returned Unopened The True
Story as Told by George
Ticknof Curtis.

issued yesterday py nlpeE u DIOtneIs
From advance sheets received from the
publishers, we present below the oft-told
and oft-vs'iegated story Of the engagement
of Mr.. Buchsnan to Miss Coleman, an &C
complished lady, OF their hasty estrange-
ment for trivial cause, of her sudden death
without time for explanation, OF Mr..
Buehanan's rejected appeal to her father
after her death, of his tribute to his beloved
but estranged afianced, and of the effect OF
the sad incident upon bis character aud
actions throughout life.
1t is a story that has been strangely and
often maliciously exaggerated, and it is
we'll that Mr.. Curtis has told it in authentic
form. Although Mr.. Buchanan forbade
the examination Of the carefully preserved
letters and memoranda relating to his en-
gsgement to Miss Coleman, Mr.. Curtis has
had access to all that is necessary to enable
him &c present an entire reliable history of
that event in the life of the only Pennsyl-
vanisn who has been honored with the
Presidency.
-.
From Curtis Life of Buchanan, Just Issued.
With an honorable and distinguished pro-
fessjonal career thus opening before him,
favorite in society both from his talents and
his character, young, high-spirited and full
of energy, it seemed that happiness had
been provided for him by his own merits
and kind Providence. But there now oc-
CURED an episode in his life which cast
upon him neverending sorrow. He be-
Il Ia lad IN O
lady In Lancaster, who has been described
to me. by persons who knew her. as very
beautiful girl, of singularly attractive and
gentle disposition, but retiring and senSi-
live Her father. Robert Coleman, Esq,
wealthy citizen of Lancaster, entirely ap-
proved OF the engagement. After this con-
nection had existed for some time, she sud
denly wrote a note TO her lover and asked
him to release her from the engagement.
There is no reason to believe that
Their Mutual Feelings
had in any degree changed. He could
only reply that if it was her wish to put an
end TO their engagement he must submit.
This occurred in the latter part OF the sum.
mer OF 1919. The young lady died very
suddenly, while on a visit to Philadel phia,
on the 9th Of December following in the
tweniy.tbird year of her age. Her remains
ere brought to her fathers house In Ian
easier, on the next Saturday, just one week
from the day on which she LETT home.
The funeral" says the diary already
quoted from, took place the next day,
and Was attended by large mum Der OF The
inhabitants, who appeared to feel deep
.!mpathy with the family on this distress
ing occasion
From the same source transcrihc
LITTLE OBITUARY NOTICE
which was published in a Lancaster piper
n the l1th Of December, and which the
diary states was written by Mr.. Buchanan:
departed this life, on Thursd ay morn
ing last in the twenty.third year OF her
sge, while on visit to her friends in the
man. daughter Of Robert Coleman, Esquire,
of this city. II rarely falls to our lot to
med tear over the mortal remains OF one
so much and so dearly beloved as was the
She was everything which the
fondest parent or fondest friend could have |
wished her 10 be. Although she was young |
and beautiful, and accomplished, and the |
miles of fortune shOne upon her, yet her |
native modesty and worth made her un-
conscious of her own attractions. Her |
heart was the seat of all the softer virtues |
which ennOble and dignity the charaUteI
of woman. She has now gone TO a world |
" here in the bosom of her God she will be |
happy with CoDgenial spirits. May the |
memory of her virtues be ever green In the |
hearts of her surviving friends. May her |
mild spirit, which on earth still breatheS |
eace and good will, be their guardian |
angel to preserve them from the faults to /
which she was ever stranger
1.-THE spiders most aitenuated thread
Is cord, Is cable, To mans tenuer tie
On ear hly bliss 1t breaks at every breeze.
The following letter
written by Mr.. Buchanan
to the father of the young lady, is all that |
remains of written evidence to attest the |
de pth of his attachment to her:
James Buchanan to Robert Coleman, Esq:
LANCASTER, December 10, 1919.
Ny DEAR SIR: You have lost child, |
dear. dear child. l have lost the only |
earthly object of my affections, without |
" hOm life now presents to me dreary |
blank. My prospects are all cut of, and | |
feel that my happiness will be buried with |
her in the grave. 1t is new no time for eI |
PLANTATION, but the time will come when |
you will discover that she, as well as |, |
have been much abused. God forgive the |
author of it. My feelings of resentment |
against them, whoever they may be, are |
buried in the dust. l have now one re |
quest to make. and, for the love OF God aud |
your dear, departed daughter, whom | |
loved infinitely more than any other hu. |
man being could love, deny me not AT.
Iurd me the melancholy pleasure Of seeing |
her body before its inteTment. | would |
not for the world be denied this request.
might make another, but from the mis- |
representations which must have been
made To you, am almost afraid would
ike TO follow her remains to the grave as a
lnourner. | wopld like to convince the
world, and ] hope yet to convince you,
that she was infinitely desrer to me than
life. j may sustain the shock OF her death,
but feel that happiness has fled from me
forever. The prayer which make to God
without ceasing is, that | yet may be able
TO show my veneration for the memory OF
my dear departed saint, by my respect and
attachment for her surviving friends.
May Heaven bless you and enable you
10 bear the shock with the fortitude Of a
Christisn.
am, forever, your sincere and grateful
friend, JAMES BUCHANAN.
In course of Mt Buchanan's long subse.
qutnt political career, this incident in bis
early life was often alluded u in partisan
newspapers, and in that species OF litera
ture called campaign documents" accom-
panied by many peryersions and misrep
reservations. These publications are each
and all unworthy Of notice. On one occa
sion. after he had retired to Wheatland,
and when he had passed
The Age of Seventy,
he was shown by friend newspaper ar
uCle, miSrepresenting, as usual, the details
Of this affair. He then said, with deep
.motion, that there were papers and relics
which he had religiously preserved, then
in a sealed package in place of de.
post in the city of New York, which
would explain the trivial origin OF this
separation His executors found these
papers inclosed and sealed separately from
all Others, and with a direction upon them
in bis own handwriting, that they were to
be destroyed without being read. They
obeyed the injunction and burnt the
package without breaking the seal. 1t hap
pened, however. that the original OF the let
ter addressed by Mr.. Buchanan to the
young lady's father before her funeral was
not contained in this packsge. 1t was
found in his private depositaries at Wheat.
land and it came there in consequence OF
the fact that it was returned by the father
unread and unopened.
1t is now known that the
S.~...,sou NJ 1ha Uowars