East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-06-20
Tragedy From Idaho Reads
Like Fiction

| Ihe tolloWing sad story from real
| life is taken from the Boise States
man and reads more like fiction than
actual occurrence in Idaho. The
statesman says:
True to the last to her self-imposed
duty of caring for the little mother
/ less tots left by her sister two years
! ago, Miss Mabel Burroughs died
about week ago near Weiser, strug-
Cling with almost her last breath to
give them the care and attention she
| felt they should have. Her remains
were laid to rest yesterday afternoon
| in Morris Hill cemetery.
Her sister. Mrs, ]. NJ. Boggess. died
in this city about two years ago, leav-
one little daughter, Ardelle, who will
not be 6 years old until next Octo-
| ber, and a blind babe, Leone who
was years old last April. Mr.. Bog
CESS did not care to separate his little
ones, especially because of the little
blind girl, then only few months old.
and induced his wifes sister. Mabel
Burroughs, to leave her Wisconsin
home and come to Boise to care for
his children.
For year or so Mr.. Boggess and
his sister-in-law, with the two little
ones, made their home at 604 South
Fifteenth street, Miss Burroughs win
ming many friends during her stay in
Boise by her pleasing ways But a
year ago this month, the family de-
termined to go upon homestead on
the Malheur tract, just across the
Snake river in Oregon. nine miles
from Weiser, the nearest town.
/ Mr.. Boggess was making his home
there on the homestead but was away
much Of his time, earning livelihood
| by working on the railroad, running
on the O. r. & n. out of The Dalles.
| He was home for a couple of weeks
about the first of June. being driven
| back to Weiser on June to take a
train for The Dalles to resume work.
The last time that Miss Burroughs
was seen alive except by the little girls
was as she was driving home from
| Weiser on that day.
She had not been feeling we'll for a
few days before that, and the next
morning. a week ago Friday, she was
so i'll that she could hardly attend to
the wants Of her little nieces. But she
| kept about. pumping water for them
to drink, so they have since told, and
even baking a little bread for them to
eat. Tired nature finally gave way
cording to the story told by the child
rem.
After futile attempts to revive theil
aunt, the two little girls started out
to walk to Weiser, nine miles away, tc
summon help. but the little leg
would not carry them so far, ant
when little Ardelle, leading her binf
sister Leone, had gone about a mily
and a half from home, she was over.
taken by the distracted aunt. Sh,
had revived from her faint and realiz
ing that all was not well with her lit
tie nieces, had started out even il
her extreme illness to find them.
Upon her return, so the children
say, she lay down upon the bed anC
fell asleep.
Fer five days and nights the two lit
tie girls, one and the other 5. stay
ed in the house with the remains o
their aunt, eating what thev coul,
find and drinking water that was il
the house. unable to pump more. A
= night they would sleep, the little one
told their father, sometimes on tn
floor. sometimes in the clothes closet
and sometimes upon the bed wit
their aunt.
= When the supply of food finall
: gave out, little Ardelle took her blin
sister by the hand and led he
through the sagebrush. each carryin
a clean dress in her chubby hands,
l., mile away to the home of the neares
v neighhor, Mr.. East. Arriving there
!, little Ardelle announced to Mrs. Ee:
that she had come there to live, a
: her aunt was asleep and they coul
:, not wake her.
e Neighbors at once went to tn
, house, where the remains of Miss Bul
,. roughs were found on the bed, as tn
y children had said. It is suppose
s though nothing definite Is know
h that she had died on Friday, June
The little ones had stayed with HI
from that time until last Thursda
noon.
The coroner of Malheur coun
went to the scene and held an inque
over the remains, n verdict ber
u reached that Miss Burroughs had die
= from heart failure.
r Miss Burroughs was a native
n Marysville Kan, and was 33 years
age at the time of her death.