The Washington herald., 1907-04-22
new THAW SCANDAL
Woman Relative Committed
Suicide in "LyndhurSt."
BEAUTIFUL HOME FOR SALE
Mother of Whites slayer Refuses to
Live in Mansion Where Tragedy
Took Place Five Years AEO-Fears
Uncanny Manifestations-Dead WO-
man Was Beautiful Kentuckian.

Pittsburg, Pa, April 21.-The real rea-
son for the refusal of Mrs. William X.
Thaw TO occupy the old family mansion.
'Lyndhurst,' and the extreme nervous
ness exhibited by Harry X Thaw during
his last visit there became known for the
/ first time to-day, when the ghastly
| tragedy Of "Lyndhurstp leaked out after
having been successfully suppressed for
/ five years.
| To-day former Coroner Jesse NJ. Nc
Geary divulged the grim secret which
the Thaws have been guarding for years.
| Only a few details of the story are now
/ lacking, and these will be supplied as
soon as the Office of Coroner Armstrong
opens tomorrow morning. when the
records viii be accessible. A Kentucky
woman, wife of Presbyterian minister
and relative of Mrs. William Thaw. while
visiting Mrs. Thaw at Lyndhurst. COM
mitted suicide by hanging in one OF the
large bathrooms. OF the house five years
ago The Thaws, it would now appear,
had the matter suppressed. 1t is said
that the Kentucky relatives. Of the woman
are TO this day In ignorance OF the fact
that the woman had killed herself.
Advertised Place for sale.
Mrs. William Thaw, mother Of Harry
h. has since declined to stay ia 'Lynd-
hurst. save when surrounded by a large
party. as she Is somewhat superstiti0us.
She has advertised 'Lyndhurst" for sale,
and has built another residence near by.
The fact that she was so anxious 10 sell
the famous 'Lyndhurst' set on foot an
investigation here. which brought TO light
the evidence Of the tragedy.
II is claimed that Harry Thaw. who
is. perhaps, more superstitiOus than any
other member of the family has always
urged his mother to sell the house, which
ne claimed was haunted since the suicide,
and Harry would never sleep there with
out a light in his room.
Much of Mrs Thaw's testimony regard
ing the restlessness of Harry at "Lynd-
hurst has been explained by the devel-
opments regarding the crime which was
committed in the house, and the memory
of which always kept the Thaw connee-
tions in terror.
EN-COrOner Makes Statement.
Ex-Coroner Jesse McGarry to-day made
the following statement regarding the
mater: I was coroner OF Allegheny
Couny in 1901-02 at the time a beautiful
woman. a guest of Mrs. William Thaw
at Lyndhurst, committed suicide She
was found hanging in one of the bath
rooms, having hanged herself with a
Turkish towel. I don't remember the
name of the woman or her place Of resi- /
denee, but there was great effort on the
part of the Thaw connections to keep
the matter from the public. An inquest
was held, and the verdict was death from
suicide. The woman was relative of
Mrs. William Thaw, the wife of a Pres
byterian minister, who was in poor health. |
and who had not accompanied the woman
10 Pittsburg. / remember the case dis /
tinetly, as I deputized Deputy Rowand to
handle the case"
The name of the woman viii be made |
public when the coroner's Office opens |
tomorrow.
4 viii never enter Lyndhurst again." /
said Mrs. Thaw yesterday to some cali 1
srs who did not know the story of the /
WOman's suicide, and of the alleged ghost |
who walks in the halls of the famous /
old house, but since McGeary's statement |
on the suicide has become public the /
callers OF yesterday smile and say they
now know why Mrs. Thaw will not go /
into the old house again.