The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-07-21

A ROMANCE IN REAL L1FE-REMARKABLt
CASE OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY IN BR0oKLTN.-
A very remarkable case Of mistaken identity
has Just been revealed in Brooklyn.
On the morning of the Sd of July the body
of man, about thirty years of age, was
found in the water at the foot of Vandyke
street, Brooklyn. The hand of the deceased
wa. firmly secured by rope to satchel
and the satchel was found to contain seven
large fat-irons. 1t was also discovered that
the deceased had bullet-hole in his head,
and q box of percussion caps and nineteen
pistol cartridges in the hip-pocket of his
pants. Some believed that the man had
committed suicide, while others were of the
opinion that he had met with foul play. If
he had been murdered it was argued, he
would have been robbed; but it was found,
on searching his clothing, that he had 81
in his possession. Strange as 1t may appear,
there was nothing abotit the body except
his clothing which would lead to his iden-
tity. Coroner Jones, being notified, caused
the body to be moved to the Brooklyn
morgue, where it was reviewed by large
number of persons who had missing friends
whose appearance correspondent with that of
the deceased,
Four days after the body had been taken
to the morgue. lady residing In Grand
street, E. D., whose sontin-law had been
missing for two or three weeks, called at the
morgue and positively recognized the de-
ceased as that of The missing man Charles
-Dichl. Diehl, she said, had married her
daughter contrary to her wishes, and they
had not lived very happy together. He went
of. she said, in a fit Of anger, and had in all
sl,.I. rod ,n,1n fn
knowing his disposition better than her
mother did, said, "No; If that Is the body
Of Charley he was murdered. He never
committed suicide. for it was not like him."
The uncle of Diehl also visited the morgue,
as we'll as others who knew him, and they
all were firmly convinced that the unfortu-
nate young man had come to sad end. His
family were thrown in great grief, and set to
work at once to make preparations for bis
funeral. Diehl had been employed as agent
for the Atlantic Life Insurance Company, in
New York, hid being pretty vel known in
the vicinity in which he resided, tie ftltsral
was largely attended. The body was put in
the family plot, and Mrs. Diehl mourned the
loss of husband to whom, with all his
faults, she was deeply attached, and dressed
in the habiliments Of a widow. lime wore
on, and nothing occurred until yesterday to
lead her to suspect for moment that she
was hot widow:
Yesterday, to Der unbounded establishment,
she received letter from her husband,
who was, when he mailed the letter, ut Key
West. He wrote that he regretted leaving
her SO abruptly; regretted bis hasty temper;
said lie was well, and hoped that nothing
had oeeurrsd since his departure from the
city that might cause her ANY ttnsasitiess fur
ther than what she might feel concerning
her erring husband.
1t required considerable effort on the part
Of Mrs. Diell to read the letter, for, as may
be imagined, she almost tainted. She would
have been more surprised had her .husbahd,
wbo. she sEpfosea deaf aid buried in the
family plot, walked in and held out bis arths
to her, but the letter was nearly as great.
She had buried some one for her husband
perhaps somebody else's husband, and who
could it beP Who the man is who was
buried by Mrs. Diehl is mystery which
will probably never be solved, for now the
remaits have passed beyond recognition.