New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-01-16
Neru71ork uailp Mibnmk
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE.
A CASE OF OFFICIAL NEGLECT.


SIR: The evening papers Of Thursday. ne ll:h
inst, and the morning papers Of the l2th inst:
tanned. among their City Items in substance the fol-
loving paragraph;
When the 6 o'clock p. VI. Harlem Railroad train
arrived q. the Depot q; Forysecondst st. and Fourth
sv. an unknown man was found dead on the COW
catcher. There was found on biz person bundle Of
the Union square Real Estate Circulls, and So 20
cold piece in his pocket. The circumstances con-
., cted with this mans death are as yet wrapped in
nystry."
and NJ Coroner-and, for all the effort you made,
mis- mans death would HH be a mystery, asd an
knorn thing 10 his family, who received the rs. init
nation Of the catastrophe from others III y0u and
rot until the morning after the body had been buried
or othersise disposed Of
,rkv when those circulars found upon that body
INQUIRY not at once made at the office fro which
ibey srnansted 10 obtain Information concerning him
What more direct or natural clue 70 mans identity
DO Won reonire before you will adopt measures for
tie restoration Of dead booy 10 the family or friends
10 whom it rghtfelly belongs The merest Child II
would seem would have sufficient knowledge OF the
rrouriees Of ciUih.,9 hfe TO reflect tha' the frs.
hing required in sul an emergency, would be the
identity Of the body, and that those CIRCULAR would
afford NEST natural and definite clue TO that investl'
CATION. Bot Incorporated companies and public ON
cials content themselves with an investigation when
decides that man with hs skull fractured and body
broken i. dead; and, being found upon the COW
catcher of an engine infer probable connection be-
tween the events.
affirm that 30 far as any practical result is CON-
cerned MCt was the substance of the verdict upon
that body affirm that no inquiry was msie at the
Office froI which those circulars enana'ed, respect
ipg the deceased, and, had such inquiry been made,
TIE body could have been Identified at once, and re-
stored 10 the eeoply afflicted family. ] affirm tina,
the character ard habits Of the deceased and other
crcum stances too lengthy for detail here, forbid the
idea that the body lying upon the trark az the
tin Of the occurrence-he impression Of the d,sia-
ferested engineer and fireman TO the contrary, not
wi,hsianding, affirm that the conduct OF the author
ities in this matter il equally As m ystfrious a. the
fate Of the unfortunate dead, and looks strangely
ike sn attempt Of the Railroad Company aided and
allotted by the Coroner to pass the thing by as quiet
" as possible lest rigid investigation should reveal
their own responsible connection with the event.
Now az an individual citizen, Interested in the oil
cial recoC milton of casualties 70 which all alike
liable prot, st against any such inyestga oo or lack
of il, as characterized this unfortunate occurrence.
II this is the way bodies overtaken by sudden death
are 10 be disposed Of who il safe How many OF US,
if thus suddenly cut off, nd be likely to have up)a
our persons a more direct clue TO our identity than hal
this unfortunate man; what assurance, that II we
should have, it would be made available in restoring
10 friends The public are interested in this
matier-it is one Of deep and tender cOncenment.
Have we not right to demand an exp anatiou Of so
culpAble neglect Of duty in official station Let u
know if il is not part of CorOners duty 10 make
some eiioIt 10 identify body aud restore it 10 its
iiiends and if it is not let have such officer At
once, that no more borrowing wives be left TO utter
he bitter lament that did the wife Of the deceased 20
me- " Oh that had known Of this before p
EMERSON w. KEYEs
No. III Wet 9,hs-., NeS Yors