The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-02-25
CHEATING THE CORONER,

Narrow Escape from . Living burial
Carrie Johnson's Death, which was No
Death At ALA Dangerous Experi-
ment-How Coroner Young Lost .
Case-A Story which Proves that Dead
Bodies Are Not Always Dead.
An extraordinary case Of human being being
nearly buried alive took place two days since in
this city. and avoided by the merest accident.
The particulars Of the case are very interesting.
Mr. De Puy. living at SO Morton street, had q
colored servant named Carrie Johnson in his
family. She was accounted good servant, and
did her work well. She had not been long In the
family, and was not on very intimate terms with
the people in the house. On Wednesday she was
taken sick, and seemed f
RAPIDLY TO BE SINKING.
IL does not appear that any doctor called in to
visit the woman, but on Thursday she was dead,
at all events to Mr.. De Puy's satisfaction. for ON
Friday morning, at an early hour, Coroner Young
Johnson was nad u ms tssldemce that carrie
make post.mortem examination. A permit was
thereupon granted, after he had made succinct
account Of the apparent causes ana circumstances
OF her death, to have the body removed TO the
Morgue. Mr.. De Puy even then did not think it
date.y to the station house with his permit, and
message was sent TO the Warden Of Bellevue Hos
THE BODY REMOVED
rom the mousse. The most curious circumstance OF
the whole was that when Mr.. de Puy had lett
his house In the morning he had had the body
pillow In the middle. When he went home he re-
bed towards the moor. But even this ex traordi-
nary incident for corpse does not seem to have
awakened MT. de Puys suspicious: He simply
thought that some curious person had gone into
the room while he was away and had In touching
the body or examining it caused change of posi-
ton, which accounted for the head dropping over
IN the manner he had found 1t.
AT about Two oflsck On Friday g afternoon the
driver went up stairs and took hold OF the body
around the oins to load 1t his back to take 1t
the wagon, when he exclaimed "Why, this body is
warm; don't believe she is dead" 1t may be i'm
agined that this exclamation caused no small sur
prise among the lOokers-on. They began assuring
the driver that he was utterly mistaken; and to
prove what he had said the driver made them feel
the stomach and the oins OF the supposed CORPSE
which were yet warm-perceptibly so. Mr.. De
SENT FOR DOCTOR.
and in the meantime the driver OF the wagon
pried open the teeth of the presumably dead woman
and inserted some salt in her mouth This had no
immediate effect; but when the doctor arrived he
said that life was not quite extinct and that 1t
yet possible to bring the woman to herself. He then
applied the usual restOratlves to restore animation
OF the vital functions, and after some time his
efforts were rewarded by seeing the girl come to
herself and open her eyes, and, IN weak voice,
ask questions OF those about her. All this was
OF course done to the intense establishment OF the
persons gathered around the bed wherein she re-
posed. They had all considered her so perfectly
ueau CudC III was only OUT OF Oeerence 10 Jne POSI-
tiveness OF the dead house eeper that the ply
stefan had been sent for.
In the meantime Coroner Young and his deputy
had gone to the MOrgue to hold the inquest; but
they, Of course,
FOUND NO BODY
there, and were shortly after informed OF the par
ticuars. Coroner Young called at the house OF
Mr.. De Puy, and saw the girl on Friday afternoon.
She was there In q state Of great weakness. but
was already taking some nOurishment. On Friday
night she remained at Mr.. De Puy's house, and on
Saturday afternoon got up out of bed and, dress
ing herself went ont OF the house, took Sixth
avenue Car and went up to the Col0red WOmen's
Home in Thirty third street, where she is remain
ing at present. 1t is said that the girl affected
IN the same dangerous way as that described some
time ago. and came very
NEAR BEING BURIED
while In her state Of syncOpe. She escaped even
more narrowly than in the present instance. This
case serves to illustrate the fact that delays
not always dangerous" and that II the dead house
man had not happened to feel the warmth OF the
girls body as he took her up in his brutal way it Is
probable that she would have been efrectually
killed afterwards, or at least treated that her
temporary state OF suspended animation woald
have become chronic from want OF being taken in
time. Taken altogether 1t Is one Of the most sin
gular cases on record.