The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-02-24

of .pitch, There was gag securely
fastened in the mouth, and these two
circumstances were positive evidence
that murder had been done.
When the body was landed upon the
pfer. 1t was found to be in a tolerable
state of preservation, although there
were conclusive signs that 1t had been
in the water for some time. It was the
BODY OF a female, entirely nude, with
the execution of an embroidered linen
chemise and one lisle.thread stocking,
two siZes larger than the foot, but ex~
actly fitting the full rounded. limb. The
face and the contour of the form wereI
therefore, fully exposed to examine
ton, and proved to be those ola woman
who must have been very handsome.
There was the cicatrice ofan old wound
on a lower limb, but otherwise there
was no spot or blemish upon the body.
ndue time the body was buried but
the head was removed and preserved in
the Office of the city physician, with
hope that it might be the means of es-
tablishing the identity OF the dead, and
leading to the detection ofthe murderer.
The police on both sides of the river
were intensely interested in the case /;
but they found themselves impotent De,
fore that head OF a woman, who seemed
to have never been seen on earth in life.
They could do nothing, therefore, but
wait patiently for whatever develop
ments timesmight.bring.
Chance finally led to the desired iden-
LITIGATION. A gentleman who had
known her intimately for two years,
happening to see the head, at once de-
clared 1t to be that of Ada Ricard. The
detectives eagerly clutched at this
thread, and were soon In possession OF
the coincidence in time of her disap-
pearance and that of the barrel of pitch
| to which the body was dashed. They
/ F. civ
had not been seen in the city, norcould
any trace of her be discovered in other
sections of the country, through cor
respondence with the police authorities
of distant cities. They had thus wo-
man lost and a body found, and the
case was considered to be IN most
promising condition.
The next step was to establish the
identity by the testimony of those who
had known the missing woman most
Intimately. The detectives, therefore,
instituted a search, which was finally
successful, for Charles Ricard, her
putatiye husband. he had not lived
with her for sometime, and had not
even seen or heard of her for months;
but his recollection was perfect, and he
gave z very minute statement OF her
distinguishing marks, he remembered
that she had PERSISTED in wearing
pair OF very heavy earrings, until their
>
and the other nearly so, and that, as
consequence, both ears had been pierced
second time, and unusually high up.
He regretted that her splendid array OF
teeth had heen marred by the loss OF
one upon the left side of the mouth,
and told how wound had been re-
celved, whose cicatrice appeared upon
one OF her limbs, stating exactly Its
location, He dwelt with some pride
upon the fact that she had been forced,
by the unusual development, to wear
stockings too large for her feet, and
gave a general description of hair, cast
OF face, height, and weight that was
valuable, because minute.
When he gave this statement he was
not aware of the death of his wife, or
OF the finding OF her body, and without
being informed of either fact he was
taken to Jersey City, and suddenly con-
fronted with the head. The instant he
saw 1t he sank into a chair in horror.
His statement having been compared
with the head and the record OF the
body, the similtude was found to be
exact, except as to the teeth. The head
had one tooth missing on each side of
the mouth, and this fact having been
called to his attention, Ricard insisted
that she had lost but one when he last
saw her, but Ii was highly probable
the other had been forced out In the
struggle which robbed her of her life.
and the physician, for the first time
making Il minute examination, found
that the tooth upon the right side had
been forced from its place but was still
adheriuS to the gum. he easily puSheu
1t back to its proper position, and there
was the head without discrepancy
between it and the description oil Ada
Ricard.
and among them the hair dresser who
had acted i'll that capacity for Ada
RiCard during many months, who, in
common with all others, fully confirms
ed the evidence of Charles Ricard.
The identity of the murdered woman
WAS therefore established beyond ques-
ton.
Naturally the next step was to solve
the mystery of her death. The detec-
IiveS went to work with unusual eau
ton, but PERSISTED in the task they had
assigned themselves, and were slowly
gathering the shrsds of her life, to
weave from them theRrd that would
lead to the author of her tragical death,
when they were suddenly "hOored," to
use their own energetic expression.
Ada Ricard herself appeared alta down
town New York hotel, in perfect health
and unscathed in person.
The explanation was simple. The
within had suddenly seized her TO 20 10
New Orleans, and she had gone without
leave.taking or warning. 1t was no
unusual incident in her wandering life,
and her speedy return was due only TO
the fact that she found the Southern
city only military camp under the iron
rule OF General Butler, and therefore
an Improbable field for her.
The CHASTITY head became more OF n
mystery than before. The ba1lled de-
tectives could again only look at 1t help
lessly, and send descriptions of 1t over
the country. At last 1t was seen by
woman named Callahan, living in Bos-
ton, whoswas in search of daughter
who had gone astray. She instantly pro-
nounced it to be that of her child, and
she WAS corroborated by all the MEM
bers OF her family and several of her
neighbors. The Identification was no
| less specific than before, and the per-
picked authorities, glad at last to know
something certainly, gave Mrs. Gala
han an order for the body. Before,
however, she had completed her arrang-
ments for its transfer TO Boston, mes
sage reached her from the daughter,
who was living sick in Bellevue Hospi-
tai, and so the head once more became
a mystery. And such il has always re-
mained. The body told that a female
who had been delicately reared, who
had Jared sumptuously, and had been
arrayed In costly fabrics, had been foul
ly done TO death, just as she was step
ping into the dawn of womanhood-
and that is all that Is known. Her
name, her station, her history, her vtr-
tues, or it may be, her frailties, all went
down with her life, and were irrevoca-
| bly, lost. There is every probability
| that her case will always be classed as
unfinished bushes.
Other papers are the following: Su-
| San Fielding, by Mrs. Edwards, with