Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1895-01-24

Yesterdays New Y orK hecordeT has
the following notice of the death OF Mr.
John Stevens, recently mentioned in
the GAZETTE:
John Stevens. eliest son of the late
e. A. Stevens, died suddenly Monday
morning at 2:30 o'clock, in the old fam
ily mansion, Castle Point, Hoboken
Heart trouble is believed to have been
the cause of death, although MIR. Stew
ems had suffered for years from deli
cate operation performed on him.
John Stevens was born in Castle
Point thirty eight years ago. He mar
ried Miss Mary Mcclure, a beautiful
young lady, whose home was in Vir-
ginia. The couple were blessed with
two children, son and a daughter,
both Of whom are living. The family
had handsome residence in Elizabeth
town, Essex county, j., but for some
time have lived in Castle Point. Mr..
Stevens's wealth was estimated at 500
100000. AS the eldest son he received
the largest share of his fathers fortune.
He was known for his charity, and
never refused an appeal where lie found
the cause worthy.
The funeral will take place on Thurs
day night from Trinity Church. The
burial will be in the old Dutch ceme-
terry in Jersey City.
The World's account of Mr.. Stevens'5
death says:
He was attended in his last hours by
DR. w Z. Fisher. the family phySician,
and Drs. Hunter Mcclure and Stewart
Mcclure. Death was ascribed, in the
notices sent out, TO heart fiilure, but all
day yesterday the rumor was persistent
lc repeated that this heart failure Was
due to exhaustion following an opera
ton for the removal of cancer.
Mr.. Stevens's mother was Miss
bod, sister Of the eminent Princeton
professor of metaphysics, and his father
was the seventh son of the famous
John Stevens, engineer and inventor,
the founder of the family fortunes. He
was born with species of cancer,
which, during his infancy, was the sub
iect of many anxious family consulta-
tions. The numerous growth spread
rapidly. The family, however, de-
clined to assume the risk of an opera
ton during his minority, and left the
question for him to decide afterwards.
Fourteen years ago Mr.. Stevens went
abroad to consult surgical authorities
in London and Paris. He offered fab
ulous sums for relief, but all were afraid
to treat him, or could not guarantee a
cure. Before leaving home he was be-
sought by the late Father Corrigan the
pugnacious rector of the Church of Our
Lady of Grace, Hobokep, whose clashes
with Bishop Wigger gave him notoriety
q few years ago, to visit Rome aud test
the physical efficacy of faith. He went
to Rome, and it is said was told that he
would be cured ifbe joined the Catholic
church. The members of his family
are reticent to day about the incident,
but it was given out at the time that he
refused to abjure his faith.
1t was soon afterwards that the death
of the famous Siamese twins occurred.
The autopsies performed upon them
gave the medical world much new data
aud afforded Mr.. Stevens's physicians
the knowledge they had lacked in the
treatment of his case. The knife was
applied by Drs. Parker, Chalmers and
Skinner, and great eXcresence which
had formed on Mr.. Stevens's neck, for.
cling his head to one side and produc-
ing deformity, in regard to which he
was very sensitive, was removed. For
few years the relief afforded by the
operation was so great that his health
was much improved. The renewed
cancerous growth brought gradual
decline and for the past year or so he
had been very weak, unable to move
around without the helping arm of q
valet.
He was a man of brilliant intellect
and of kindly heart. but so abnormally
sensitive that he led a retired life ex'
cept for his business pursuits.
DR.. Fisher and the members OF the
Stevens family decline to state whether
any recent operation was performed.
Mr.. Stevens was know to many res
idents of Clarke county, he having
married in 1856 Miss Mary Mcclure
daughter of the late David Mcclure, o.
that county. He was also brother
in-law of the late Hon. E. ? c. Lewis
who was Minister to Portugal during
Mr.. Cleveland's first presidential term
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