Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1935-06-02

also early graves OF distinguished
people, but the one which has re-
ceived the greatest attention is that
of "A Female Stranger whose iden-
tity has never been satisfactorily
established. 1t is a good story and
has been written many times, but
THE Narrative of John Trust" by
the late William F. Carne. makes of
the meager facts obtainable an inter-
esting romance.
TRADITION says" to quote an old
= account, that in the year 1916
a brig anchored in the Potomac of
Alexandria and remained only long
enough for a man and woman. the
latter heavily yelled and evidently ILL.,
to be brought ashore. After engaging
the best room in Gadsby's Tavern,
later known as the City Hotel, the
man. who was of distinguished ap-
pearance and address. hurriedly sent
for a physician. who was, however
before being admitted to the sick
room. called aside and placed upon
his honor not to reveal what he might
see or learn concerning his patient.
The physician kept the faith,
vouchsafng only the information that
he had never seen his patients face.
but that it was evident she was Of
distinguished birth.
The man was her only nurse for
many weeks. and when his long vigil
resulted in exhaustion, two Alexandria
ladies. of prominent families, were
permitted to administer to the stranger
after taking a solemn oath that they
would never reveal what they might
learn about the mysterious invalid.
AT midnight on october 3, when it
became evident that the end was near
the man requested the physician and
two volunteer nurses to withdraw.
evidently wishing to be alone with the
loved one when her spirit started its
flight into the great unknown. Death
came at dawn and then. that no one
else might gaze upon the placid face
that had been so carefully concealed
before, the man prepared the body for
burial and personally sealed the
coffin lid.
But little, if anything, is known
Of the ohsequies. The man remained
in Alexandria long enough to see
erected the stone slab. which stands
upon six carved columns.
For a dozen years, it is said, the
man returned annually on the ami
versary Of the female strangers
death and placed flowers on the
grave, and then his visits ceased.
About 40 years afterward. tradi-
ton says, a distinguished-lo looking old
gentleman, accompanied by two
handsomely gowned elderly women,
visited the grave and arranged with
the sexton of the cemetery to have
all necessary repairs made to the
tomb. When questioned by the sex
ton. it is said, the visitors reluctantly
admitted that they we're relatives of
the dead woman and that her hus-
band had been a British officer, but
declined to solve the mystery of the
woman's identity.
THAT the mysterious woman was
Theodosia Burr Aston, daughter of
Aaron Burr and wife of the Cover
nor of South Carolina, was one the
ory advanced many years ago and
another was that she was Sarah Cur
ran, the heart-broken f1ancee of
Robert Emmett, the Irish revolution
ist, and that the 'disconsolate hus-
band was none other than a British
officer, whom she was forced to marry
after Emmets death. Both of these
theories. however, have long since
been exploded, it is believed"
A MOTHER slant, added to the story
a by Mary G. POWELL, is to the ef-
feet that while the husband of the
female stranger" was stopping at
Gadsby's, he lost sum of money in
gambling with a Mr.. Lawrence Hill,
and that, many years after this, Mr..
Hill was visiting Sing Sing, New York,
and while going through the wards of
the prison there, was accosted with
cheerful effrontery by a prisoner who
exclaimed, You do not know me, Mr..
HIP 1t was the stranger, and Mr..
Hill replied, I do know you as a thief
and villain
ION inquiry of the prison author
tiles, they told him that the man
was an educated Englishman, i'm
prisoned for theft and forgery, and
that he bore so many aliases that his
real name was never known"
Continuing, Miss Powell states that
her father was q boarder at Gadsby's
in 1917, and remembered the occur.
renee very well, but did not recall the
name given by the Englishman at that
time.
The epitaph carved on the slab
covering the grave Of this unknown