The New York herald., 1873-09-16

fore death. was led to infer that It was. think
1t rs exceedingly Improbable that legs should hoat
after having been IN the water eleven months.
slow Is 1t that the upper part OF the legs were
SO perfect and the lower so aggedSn
"Because fish could not nibbe at the flesh
through the trousers, and the lower part was
probably unprotected. In regard to the erect OF
servatve. should say tnat preservation would
depend on the depth OF the water. The bottom
might be warm during our hot summer days at a
depth OF ten or fifteen eet but at depth OF ilfty
or sixty feet 1t would be cool"
''liow were the gases retained in the legs ?" the
81 don't see how the gases could be possibly re-
tanned. Even Il the sAln were sound the gases
was severed. / don't see how gases enough could
be formed to iloat the heavy bones OF the thighs
and legs.n
''Do you think The remains were those OF Kel-
seys"
opinion IL is adverse to their being Kelsey's re-
mains or the remains OF anybody who had been in
the water eleven months"
DIR. AIONzo CLARKs OPINION.
DR.. AlonZo Clark, ei No. % East Twentyirst
street. said he had not read lines OF the case,
but was nevertheless. willing TO answer any gen
q think the natural course of things when
body has been sunk, he said, sis that the gaseous
matter will be imprisoned IN the tissues sufficiently
TO make IL t0at in time"
Would the tar be projections
''lf the legs were covered with tar 1t would be
protection against decomposition. i believe the
remains Were found IN salt water, but II it were
fresh water the soft Tissues would be decomposed
In eleven mOnths-the soft tissues, not the bones.
l have no conjectuics IN regard 10 TINS case IN my
complete ignorance OF al the circumstances"
DIR. sABINE's OPINION.
Dr. Gustavus sabine, OF NO. 70 West Twenty-thir
street. gave 1t as his opinion that the legs were
''rhe question is" he said, ''whether the tar
preserved the legs AS long as flesh remained ON
the limbs decomposition would take place. anu the
gas would evolve in those tissues ana hOat the
remains. alter they were disengaged from the
s'Do you believe that Kelsey or his friends tarred
and threw these legs into the water IN order to
punish his enemies, as was suggested III COM
muncatiOn in yesterdays liEnALDY
''Oh, 1t seems TO me very improbable, very I'M
probable indeed am am cute clear that M &c these s9 were we're
cred with tar, showing that the tar had preserved
the limbs. Ii the body was not sufficiently decom.
posed 80 that the superficial integuments and
fascia were not destroyed by decomposition, the
gas evolved would still be retained TO hoat the
body"
"Would the gases not escape at the upper partsS"
81 don't think one-ith OF The gases would escape
GASES WOULD DE GENERATING
all the time as long as there was any hesh ON the
''NWhat do you think Of the mutuaton Of the
ii think the body was mutilated before DEATH
that's my. impression. This case has created \
this city 1t Is very important question whether
the remains would float after having been IN the
water eleven months-in salt water l believe.
Unless you tried experiments 1t would be impossi-
bic to give decided opinion II body were pat
into the water and IL the tissues were decom-
al
the bones certainly would not alloat; and whether
1t would take one or six months or one or Two
years don't know. There are things that would
preserve body for ever on land"
'llow do you account for the fact that the feet
We're missingf"
"The BODY was probably sunk by the feet. If the
weights had been fastened TO the leet-and the
ankle joints from decomposition may have separ-
ated from the leet-then the body might float up,
and the feet and stones might remain at the bot
tom. The body trying to ioat up the gas within
would
DRAG AT THE ANKLE JOyNTS
causing them to separate as soon as they were
sufficiently decompOsed.n
Carbolic acid, which is closely allied TO tar, Is
one OF the strongest preservatives known 10
s'WetS his mutilations sufficient to cause
death ?"
"I could not tell. In oil probability ne would
ever, and recovered"
nd sht there Is no doubt in your mind that these
81 think if ever there was Kelsey these were
his remains"
DIR. WILLIAM II. DRAPER's OPINION.
DR.. Draper, OF No. 4 East Tairty- seventh street,
was just about leaving his house on a professional
visit when he met the reporter. and he stopped to
converse with him for q lew moments.
81 have paid but little attention 20 the case" he
said, land can only give you my impressions. 1
legs for eleven months. They would escape rom
the cut exremties through the connecting tissues.
This Is point, however, about which there might
be differences OF opinion. should say that the
gas would escape through the openings In the sec
night h nave been % pnaWed or by the shes whe
| the trousers protected the upper parts"
What OF the preservative effects OF the tar ~
''The section OF the body exposed the tissues TO
the free admission OF water and such air as is IN
the water, so that the preseryaive effects OF tar
externally would be, in u measure, counteracted by
the antseptic effects OF the tar. don't think gases
could be retained under any circumstances III mu-
tilated legs for eleven months.
'DO you think they were Ke!sey's legs ~
81 doubt very much whether they were Kelsey
trumped up" with emphasis). "Thcre are par
ties to be indicted for murder, ana on what cVi-
dence On the evidence OF q pair OF legs, regard
ing which there appears to be no proof that they
were Kelsey's. attach no Importance to the chain
which was found,o
Here DR.. Draper was compelled to leave, owing to
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