Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-08-24
LAURA NOURsE's SAD DEATH.
The Young Lady who Drowned Her.
self At Louisville Identined-A Broken
Heart that Turned Against GSd.

The Young Lady who Drowned Her
self at Louisville Identined-A Broker
Heart that Turned Against GSd.
The body Of the young woman found in the
Ohio river, below Louisville, was Identified Sat
urday as that of Miss Laura H. Nourse, q young
| lady of excellent family and o native Of this
city. She was well educated, and had been en-
gagged a Christian missionary and q contrib
| utor to the religious press. She had been lately
| living at the Young Ladies' Home, in Louis
Vile, and was in poverty and despair. The
story of her suicide Is especially sad. About q
mile from the place where the body was found
her hat, skirt, gloves and other little articles
| were found where she had deposited them be-
fore taking the suicidal leap. In the finger OF
| glove was the key of her trunk and her address
| scrubbed upon a small bit Of paper. In the
| of her culture and refinement. In one corner OF
| the trunk was found large blank book, which
had been used as diary during the year 1851
kept systematically, and express such facts as
| these: 'This day forwarded an article to the
| Der of very fattering compliments published
| in the Christian Observer"
In the back OF the book there were about
fifty pages covered with clippings from differ
ent religious papers. signed at the bottom with
her initials, LIN. There were also found scat
showing that she had rented during this period
a pew in the Second Presbyterian church In
Cincinnati: Besides these there were a number
of personal letters and communications and
several very fiattering recommendations from
various Christian societies, and on q Jagged
piece of white paper, such as Is used about a
newspaper office, were written her last state
ment before the commission of the deed. 1t
was folded four times, and is written in q large
nervous hand, with several crOSS-marks across
some OF the lines.
HER LAST STATEMENT.
1t is in lead pencil and was traced, 1t is
thought. just before her disappearance. The tale
of suffering and hardship ran As follows:
ANY one that believes in q merciful Saviour
after right with their whole heart is " belieyins
in fraud. have lived an upright life all my
life, and have given kindness and considera-
driven to despair by a succession of injustices
and unkindneSses that have been undeserved.
believed in God, and tried to brave 1t out.
suffered enough to kill ten people that had not
the bravery of a lion. fought against unkind-
ness and injustice, standing up against them
against lying and NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS., and I
defy the world to prove that have ever done
an immoral act of any kind. have loved
righteousness and all that was good with all my
heart. Yet have been in the last few weeks in
suited to my face with the insinuatiOn that /
was not q true woman. have never found that
God kept me in the hour OF trial or gave me
help in trouble, but still have never dishon-
Ored Him before man, but he has entirely for
destruction. oh, terrible, to love a supposed
friend and Saviour and to find the one you be-
lieve To be almighty to save neither able or
live right, and find that there Is no power In
heaven or earth that can bring any good to
triumph over evil, or help those who strive
after righteousness. pity any one who has any
sense of right, for ii is only those who can tram
pie on every principle of honesty and honor
self above everything else, and will trample
upon everything and everybody that comes in
their way, will have a good time AS to the
peace and love and joy that is promised to q
Christian. III is all farce. and there Is SuCh
thing"
THE MATRONs STATEMENT.
Mrs. Johnson, the matron of the Young
Ladies' home, said Miss Nourse came to the
home about six weeks ago She said she was
from Cincinnati, and that she had been doing
missionary work in that city. She bore letters
of recommendation from q great many people.
She seemed to be quite happy at first, but |
was probably due to her failure to secure a sit
uati0n for which she was fitted: She was very
who never had settled purpose in lite. Fully
as pretty as the papers described her, she was
much older. remember her age, for one day
laughed and said: why, Mrs. johnson, am
So After she had been here a while she got
a situation with family. In few days
she came back and seemed very much worried.
She then thought of taking an agency for new
style dress-cntting system, and wrote for
On Thursday morning saw her in her room
packing her trunk, and asked her why she was
doing so. She replied that she thought she
would go to Buckner station and live with her
aunt. Mrs. Hagner. She then LETT the house,
and that is the last ever saw Of her. This was
Tuesday morning. In the afternoon the post
master brought letter pOstmarked at New
Orleans. l have kept it ever since, and as it
MAY be from her brother, will get it."
The letter was from her brother, He replied
that he was in debt and distress himself with
his family to support. He sent her So with a
promise of more from time to time, but with q
warning that she must expect very little. She
was opposed TO doing mental work and his letter
was urging her to accept any honest labor she
could TO earn a living. The letter closes thus:
II only speak of this 10 show you that do not
think you have a right to expect your friends
to bear the consequences Of your proud ideas"
A DISAPPOINTMENT IN LOVE.
Mrs. johnson, telegram from Louisville
says, tells of love affair in which the suicide
endured sorrow. During the first days of her
labOrs here she stated that some years ago she
was engaged to be married to young preacher
in New York city. Having occasion to go to
the country, when she returned to her a1fianced
married another woman. On visiting him on
one occasion she took the matter so much to
heart that she swOOned. The girl took every
to talk of this matter.
NATIVE OF THIS CITY,
Miss NOurse was a niece of. Prof Joseph Z.
Nourse, of the United States naval office. Her
father, Henry H. Nourse, was an officer in the
army, and while stationed here Laura was
born. He left the city while Laura was an in
ant, and went TO the west, where he died. The
aunt of the deceased referred to In the dispatch
merry resided in this city. Lauras mother was
a Miss Cora c. Stansbury, of this city, a member
Oh well-known family here.
Sr~Dav Am aS,uu~r-n~r ~-D--