The daily press. (Cincinnati [Ohio) 1859-1859, 1859-05-25
supposed NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. of Female
Remains Found in Vault--Supposed
Work of an AbOrtionist.

Ihigh and severed trunk Of O female wore
found yesterday in the vault rear of the tene-
ment. house, No. l25 Columbia street.
medical examination induces belief that the
deceased was young woman whose death
was produced by abortion. The presumption
is that the body was cut up to hide the crime,
| and that the parts of the body still missing
have beon thrown down different vaults, In the
hope more effectuslly to secure concealment
Thus far no clue has been obtained tending to
the Identification Of the deceased. 1t appears
that about twenty families, principally Ger
man, occupy the tenement house, No. 125 Col
| umbia street, and that Vim. Botsch, one of the
occupants, discovered bundle wrapped In pa
per, which, thinking to be the cast-away booty
OF some thief, who had been frightened into
making this disposition of his plunder, he
| hooked up, when, to his utter amazement he
found human thigh. Communicating the
fact to the police, further search was made
OF the vault, and two other bundles were dis
covered, which proved to be separate portions
OF female trunk. The head, arms and legs
are still missing.
A medical examination was made of the
portions OF the body found, and the facts de-
veloped that the deceased was young woman;
that she had been dead but two or three days
and that just prior to her death an abortion
had been produced. 1t was further seen, from
the manner In which the head and limbs had
been severed from the body, that the work of
| mutilation was performed by unskilled hands
At late hour in the evening preceding the
hnding OF the remains, one of the occupants of
| the house noticed n man onter an alleyway,
| which has access to the vault, having a small
bundle under his arm. In two or three minutes
the man reappeared without any bundle and
proceeded along Stanton street in the direction
of the Bowery. 1t is believed now, although
no Importance was attached to the ciroum-
stance at the time, that this stranger threw the
remains down the vault. As far as is known.
no female is missing from the vicinity, and as
the case stands the whole affair is involved in
| great obscurity.
Coroner Jackman held an inquest In the
| case at the Eleventh Ward Station house yes
terday, when the following evidence was
elected and verdict rendered by the jury.
Louis Hesse, sworn.--I live in the rear of
No. l25 Columbia street on Saturday morn
ing was told that the thigh of woman had
been found in the vault, under circumstances
| inducing belief that a woman had been
| murdered; went into the yard and saw the
| thigh lying on the ground know nothing
| as TO how the thigh came in the vault;
know of no woman III the house or vicinity
| who is missing; afterwards learned that a
large share of the remainder of human
body had been found in the same vault; the
whole thing is mystery to me.
William Egert, sworn---I reside at No. l25
Columbia street, and have resided there
| nearly year; know all of tho people living
in the house, front and reari l know of no
woman being missing who lived in either of
the houses, or in the vicinity; OH Friday eve
ming last, about half-past ten o'clock, saw n
man come down Stanton street, having O
| bundle under his arm; the bundle was COW
cred with piece Of black looking cloth, and
was about the size of one of the dismembered
| portions Of the human body taken from the
| clubhouse; the man turned into the aIIeyway
| adjoining my doorway - I was standing in
the door Of my housc-and was absent about
three minutes when he returned without any
bundle, and walked on past my door in the
| direction of the Bowery; looked at the man
and saw that he was stranger, but at the
| time attached no importance to tho circum-
stance; I noticed the disappearance of his
bundle, and supposed he had left it with
some one living in the rear house. On the
next morning I was informed that human
thigh had been fished up from the vault.
Immediately thought of the strange man, as
| access could be had with the vault through
the alley. l saw the thigh, and this morning
| was shown the trunk of female divided in
two parts. They were lying in the rear yard
when / saw them.
William Betsch, sworn-My residence is in
| the house rear of No. l25 Columbia street;
! little after six o'clock on Saturday morning
went into tina clubhouse, and under the seat
saw a bundle; my first impression was that
some one had been throwing stolen goods into
the vault; got up the bundle and commenced
unrolling the paper covering TO see its con-
tents; there were two coverings of paper, al d
underneath q piece Of brown linen, and in
closed in the latter was human thigh; be-
lieving that murder had been committed, !
Immediately informed the Police there was Nc
one with me when found the bundle; 20.
lieeman assisted me in making further searcn,
aud after awhile we ished up two other bun.
dies containing portions of female trunk;
the bundles were enveloped with paper similar
| to the first bundle, but underneath was a table
oil-coth; my belief is that the last two bundles
were thrown down after I discovered the first
bundle.
Frederick WieGon corrOboratod the testimony
| of the last witness.
Justin Hawks, of the Eleventh Precinct
Police, testified to having been apprised of the
finding of the thigh, and assisting in searching
| the vault. ... ..... ....
DR.. John Beach testified that he made care
| ful examination of the portions of the body
| found in the vault attached to No. l25 Colum
| bia street; chloride of lime had been very re-
Gently sprinkled upon it; an incision into the
muscles showed that the deceased had not been
had been amputated and the arms were re-
moved with a scOpula, the lower limbs had
been cut very unskilfully. All the organs OF
tho thorax had been removed. Most of the
abdominal organs were missing, the uterus
however, remained and was very much infamed
and gave other Indications that an abortion
had been recently produced upon the deceased
evidently ayoung person. s
Police-Surgeon Kimball, who witnessed thu
post mortem examination, ooincided with DR.
Beach. He gave it as his opinion that dealt
was produced by an attempted abortion, ant
that the mutiation Of the body was performed
by unskillful hands.
The Coroner here submitted the case to III,
jury, who returned the following
/ VERDICT: ..-
"That the deceased, woman TO the jury
unknown, came to her death by foul means, a
the hands of some person OF persons to thon
unknown"
After tho rendition Of the verdict, the Coro
nor gave instructions to have the vault, wher,
the remains. were found, thoroughly drained
In hopes that possibly the head might be found
and Identification of the deceased thus be Of
| = n. I'D IL -