The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1867-03-09

IsoIse; tnm thing u nos auve y M ~ IN
why, mother" said the son. with evident embarrass-
meni what are you talking absutf"
the gentleman and his family soon withdrew. Lyman
maintained tho utmost gravity OF countenance and the
keenes observer would have failed detect In his visage
any evidence OF his having played or joke upon the
unsophisticated old lady
From Boston wen. to bingham, and thence In sue
cession 10 Lowell Worcester Springfield and Hartford
mertng with most satisfactory success Everywhere
seTe appeared % be conviction Of the extreme longevity
We. We fastened our return to New York 70 an
sec engagemsnt ! had made with Mr.. Nbio
q tho same time The great inux Of visitors to the
much that we were frequently compelled 70
applicants that the hall was full ana NO more could be
hurry up the exhibitions, cut short 4 hymn or two,
answer Questions with great rapidity and politely open
opening the entrance from the garden for the nsress Of
frosh customers &. fa
From NioIos We went % New Haven for three days.
where the crowds were a. large usual We then
turned 70 New York and proceeded 10 Newark whore
met Nv win 1 inc us1, From Newark ws returned
Museum. a5.'. T' :. : 80
Meanwhile poor old Jocs had sckcned, and with her
attendant faithful coored woman whom I shirsd in
Boston, had gonc 10 my brothers. house Bethel where
she was provided with warm apartments and the best
On tho 2lst OF February 1885, my brother's horses
and sleigh stopped at the door Of my boarding house
brother Pho, stating that Aunt Joics more She
died at his house on Friday night the 10th, and her body
York for dispose Of as thought proper at
determined have returned to Bethel and Inferred
our village burial ground Though for d tsS present was
The next morning Icalled on eminent surgeon who,
| upon visiting Jcice at Nblos had expressed desire
| 10 institute post mortem examination IL she should
have the opportunity. il unfortunately it should
1 occur while sho under my protection. now in
formed him that Aunt Joic, Dead and no reminded
| me of my promise admitted It, and immediately
proceeded to arrange for the examination 10 take place
| or The following day
| In The meantime a mahogany coffin and plate
procured aad taken to the hail Yhero tina exaiuaton
! WAS to take place large number of physicians stu
dents and several cerymen aud Editors were present
Among tho last named class vas Richard Adams Locke,
sa!hor q the celebrated Noon Hoax" who vas at that
| lime editor OF the New York SIN.
Au absence o. osaca,ioa Of the arteries in the imme
date region Of the heart deemed oy The disscctor
and most Of the gentlemen present evidence against
| the assumed age of Joce.
When all lad withdrawn excepting the surgeon, his
partca friend Locke Lyman and myself tho surgeon
remarked addressing M, that there was surely some
mistake IN regard 70 the alleged age Of Joce; tina. In
stead Of being hundred and sixty yoas old she
stalled TO him, in reply what strictly true tina.
al hired Joice in perfect good faith and relied upon
her appearance and tho documents evidence OF the
truth Of her 81 ~. Tho samegenteman had examined
that ne had doubt had been dec lived In the matter
that her personal appearances really did indicate extreme
longevity but tnat the documents either have been
forced. else they appid other individual
Lyman, who was always ready for joke, no matter
regarding the liability q he iasaiiy to decide With
mach precision IN regard 10 cuss or this kind His OBJ
se~vaons wounded the feelings Of the sureon and TAX
ns the srn OF his trend Locke they afs tho hail. fear
TIL. sun Of the day (cbruary Is, 1885, contained
an editorial written Of course by Locke, commencing
follower 800 y, .iset yesls~5I gag Ea0li7N 81
S 50ss % s ~ dss .s
ycsnay ed in inc srposars Of ono & the most
on hnnaous that ever was imposed upon creduloas conn
Mr. locke then proceeded 70 give ascioau6c account
Of the dissection and the reasons he had fos doabng
Here let mo say word in reply to the captious who
may claim that Iwas oser creduous Ia accepting the
q ina me- Jcs Han =
visited hcr who sssmsd to doubt sps Claim of her age
and history. Hundreds Of modiod men assured me
that thoy thought the statement Of her was correct
and Dr. Rogers himself, in his parting conversation
spoiled half dozen knives in severing the ossicaon
the arteries around the region Of tbs hsae ana Ghost
Indeed Mr. Locke plainly indicated his bslio; In her
story by the following remarks found in the editorial
from which mako the above extract- beS-n 8. net'
1--WE were half inclined 70 Question The Rropsy Of ne
te a. ,houh the psrsan Of poor ycce shshoaid have
account her extreme old age aud The public curiosity
which she hsa already sr.aed FOR .hs gain q
Of Immortal washin gton!
Lockes editorial that se Of Jsce did not
exceed severty-iive or eighty years sN t
Whoa tho Sna newspaper appeared, and the account
Of the post norton Animation read thousands Of
peroas who had seen hcr whom alive werc mach aston
isled "rhsrs must be mistake" said one, sfor her
very appearance indicated her 10 have been at least
hundred and twenty" 'She could not have been less
than hundpsd said Others, while still others believed
she quite rs old represented. 6a
In this state Of the public mind, Lyman determined
TO put joke upon James Gordon Bennstt, Of the
HEaALn lie therefore called nj Bcnnctt's ofloo and
told hin. that we had been humOugging Dr. Rogers
IN Connecticut, and that tho body which had been
had Ated nj Horla Ram ouo - tho
bait, hook, and all He declared u was the best hoax
he heard oI, eciips'ng Locke's "moon hoax"
tely aahe proceeded ~ ot down the details a. they
we're invented by Lyman's fertile brain. The result
tho appearance q tbs article from thu Sn IN the
HERALD OF February ~ 1885, proceeded by the following
remarks:-- 5 MIal etssla f@i3a
Asorn EoAS l.AnnsI.d is long .smsrois accom-. q
SUI. whehis no.hins loss than complete hoax
from bes,anng 70 end Jo:ce iie.h e NOS dead On
was Hebron where w%s
A r mna In: sed for sd %
y .ss.y sss M tSss. 4. sa
sss @ Ssy and nrS
shs Was Otherwise good spirits rncent winter
however has been very severe and she the ghost
SONS persn this city, We believe one Of the advertising
the o. which i il now believed Ia Dr. Rogers
S sis s Ss ap Sn Sr 81 I A. Scs s
Aunt Nelly send her body into the city and contrve
e 81 s SSs
ssas was he and morem enamns
ton prepared The public swallowed the phi Aunt Nelly
ected, unsown unpiscd alive, became object u
deep science aud ec2cr Investigation when she died. she
looked old aud ugly Joce herss and in that respect
answered the thing exactly
Such true version the hoax, given Us By good
authority the story told In the following hunbug
taken from yesterdays Su.
This editorial preface Of the HEslLp introduced the
account of the dissection II appeared In the Sua
aud Bennett suboined the comprehensive COMMENT
"Thus far the Joce Heth hoax, for the vcrHcity OF
which we have names and certihcates In our posses
SON.
Upon reading the article from The HEaALD, largo.
portion OF the public believed IT, andconsoled themselves
by saying, "Ah Iwassure the Old. woman consider.
ably more than eighty. The article In the HERALp
makes the matter all Clear
Locke insisted that he had NOT boen humbugged, and
Bennett persisted that he had and obrod 70 wager
Of several hundred dollars that Jocs really alive end
then being Exhibited In Connecticut After while The
editor Of the HERALD finding himself hoaxed, cried sill
the louder that ho right and psbshed several nc
tious certificates purporng TO have been written aud
signed by persons residing in Harlem. corroborang Ly
mans story OF "poor Aunt Nelly"