Omaha daily bee., 1896-12-12
SEQUEL TO CHURCH SCANDAL
Two Deaths Dse to the Disclosures About
Rev. O. 0. Brown.
MOTHER AND DAUGHTER COMMIT SUICIDE
Mrs. Sarah Cooper and Harriet Cooper
Die Together - Elder Woman
Prominent in Philnnthropic
Work.

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 1.-THE death
by asphyxiation of Mrs. Sarah b. Cooper
and her daughter, Harriet, this morning
has produced a profound sensation in this
city. No woman in San Francisco or on the
entire Pacific coast was so prominent as
Mrs. Cooper, who had devoted her life to
religious and philanthropic work and was
actively connected with every reform move
ment. She was a cousin of Colonel Robert
Ingersoll, with whom despite their opposite
religious views, she maintained a warm
friendship.
The Coopers had lived entirely alone except
for Chinese cook, who had been in their
employ for twenty years. He has not yet
been found. 1t is expected he can throw
some light on the tragedy.
When the scandal concerning DR.. Brown
was first talked about, Mrs. Cooper stood by
her pastor and expressed confidence in him.
Later developments caused her to change her
mind, and she and her daughter became his
most prominent opponents and accusers
after Mrs Davidson. Much bitterness in
church circles was engendered by Mrs.
Cooper's statements on the witness stand at
the church trial. Miss Cooper was even
more pronounced than her mother in opposi-
tion to DR.. Brown.
IDiS action eStranBeu many OLD friends ana
the suicide of mother and daughter is ascribed
to the broodng over the coldness and snubs
of former friends.
There is no doubt but that Miss Cooper
was responsible for the deaths of herself
and mother. The family physician states
that Miss Cooper had been suffering for
months from melancholia with homicida
and suicidal tendencies. Her father COM
mitted suicide ten years ago. and two
cousins, nephews of her father, also killed
themselves. Harriet Cooper had made sew
eral previous attempts to end her life, once
attempting to jump from ferry boat and
several times announcing to her mother
that she longed to turn on the gas at
night so that she and her mother could pass
away together. Mrs Cooper concealed her
daughters condition from all except few
intimate friends and had arranged to take
her east soon to place her in the
care of relatives, hoping the change might
restore her health Harriet left a note to
the coroner requesting that the bodies
might not be removed to the morgue At
first the coroner refused to accede to the
request, but through the intercession of
many friends the corpses were allowed to
repose side by side in the death chamber.
Mrs. Coopers will, dated two months ago,
refers to the probability of her early de-
mise and also alludes to the possible death
of her daughter. All her bequests are made
with the idea that her daughter would not
survive her, as If she anticipated a double
death. 1t is known that during the past
few days Miss Cooper attempted suicide by
asphyxiation, but was detected by her
| mother. During the past three nights Mrs
Cooper had watched her daughter and 1t is
supposed that last night she fell asleep from
exhaustion. Her daughter then took ad-
vantage of the opportunity and after turn
ing on the gas lay down beside Mrs Cooper
Mrs. Cooper was born in New York sixty
four years ago and before the war was
prominent advocate of abolition She was
in Memphis during a smallpox epidemic
and did effective work as a volunteer nurse
Two of her children died during the cpl
demic. She and her husband worked as
instructors to the freedmen after the war
and came to San Francisco in 1870, found
ing the kindergarten system in this state
She was prominent as director of the AS
sociated Charities, was at one time presi-
dent OF the Pacific Coast Woman's Press
association the Womans Suffrage associa-
tion and the Woman's Christian Temperance
union. For twenty years she had been
contributor to the press part of the time
being engaged as an editorial writer on
local paper. She was especially prominent
in the Congregational churches of the state
as a delegate to conferences and often oc-
cupied the pulpits OF churches of the de-
nomination. She organized new denomi-
nation and built a new church in an out
side district few months ago.