The New York herald., 1876-03-25
THE OUTRAGE ON THE DEAD
Was Rose YOung'S Body Kept To Be Sold or
Was 1t Simply Neglected! Z!
WHERE THE RESPONSIBILITY LIES.

the night and only abandoned his vigil join at No.
IL Furman street. Brooklyn, his unprotected children,
has been fully related in the HERALD Of the past few
days Tho responsibility, however, not clearly
located and with view of definitely fixing IT, the
writer ordered sft the matter. HIS investiga-
tons given below show that while the responsibility
is divided three departments of the city gov
ernment the Police Department is primarily respon-
sblc. IL becomes pertinent question in this
ton to ask whether there is such a fearless body In
this county as a Grand Jury which will assume
the power given them by law, summon before 1t all
persons supposed know anything of the case, and
indct the offenders, whether they be the Commits
soners Charities and Correction the Superintendent
OF the Outdoor Poor, Mr. Kellock twho admits he
at fault), the police officials one more OF tho
Coroners who little for the refined sensibities OF
the friends of the unfortunate dead, and in the
habit OF brutality designating every corpse upon which
they hold inquest
"sTIFF OR "FLoArER.n
As an AID TO such jury and TO the Mayor as the
responsible head of all the departments the HERALD
reporters have carefully prepared synopsis OF the
record in archives OF the three departments named
The first record in this remarkable was re-
cevcd by Roundsman and Acting Sergeant Smith, ofNew
street police station, who states that quarter past
two NJ officer of the Harbor police presented the
following despatch which sent to the Fifth pre-
oinct within fifteen minutes with request that be
forwarded to the police boat Scneca:-
We have drowned woman at pier 10, East River.
Roundsman CURTAIN
THIS despatch was countersigned by Sergeant Smith
The Official knowledge Smith had OF the was
iory minutes past four, when he requested 10
send tho following
44o--To Central Office Notify Coroner. We have dead
Captain Twenty-fourth precinct.
The above notification reached the Coroners' ofice
at tyiour minutes past tour, after Coroner EickhoG
elegraphed tho Commissioners of Charities and Cor
rection the following order
No. ee THIRD AvESuE
Morsas For Coroner p'' j. s fo4 % mo
1t will be seen that the blank is left in the despatch
chd."
il is claimed that the Charity Commission require
this Descriptions but there justification for such
II "red tapen demand, will be hereafter Tho
record is in the form OF an inquiry from the
Central OIIce operator TO the First precinct than
hour after this operator had been ordered TO notify
the dead wagonl
e:Ie p. NJ
Isit or at pier l5 East River cox, Jr
Answer-Woman w. j. L.
1t seems IRON the records that delay OF one hour
and three minutes occurred between the receipt Mr.
Toals despatch and this The operator reports
that he then called the operator of tho Charity Com
mission and found that he had left the office corner
OF Eleventh and Third avenue, consequently the
order TO remove The body rot sent until forty
minutes past eight. Wednesday morning
Another record the Police Central Office blotter
shows that order for dead to be the
Sixteenth precinct received by the operator of the
Charity Commission as late eight minutes past six
T. NJ. This clearly shows that the Central ONCE opera
tor, # he had not promptly telegraphed the First
precinct for the sex OF the corpse could have had
answer at quarter.past five 7. NJ, and notified the
operator in Eleventh street within three minutes to
send dead wagon TO the pier. The body could have
been removed within two hours to the Morgue
The order for the removal of the body according to
the of Chief Clerk Hedden of the Charities
Commission, reached tho olco in Eleventh street. ut
q quarter 10 nine A. NJ, Wednesday. IL reached the
hands of Daniel RUSSELL driver of the dead cart (he
reporis) at half-pas. ten He left the Office, In
Eleventh street. Third avenue, a quarter to
eleven, and finally removed the remains ut about
twenty minutes 10 twelve O'Clock, Wednesday
tweniy-three hours and orty minutes after the body
had been tied TO pile by Roundsman Curiainl
WHAT CHARITY OFFICIALS SAY
The reporter first visited yesterday the Office OF the
Commissioners OF Charities and Correction and
usual ound none OF them present. One Of the polite
clerks permitted him 10 interview the driver OF the
dead wagon who stated that he received the Coroners
order to remove the remains Of Mrs Young to tho
Morgue at haf-past ten a. NJ, Wednesday and arrived
at pier 10, East Kiver, about quarter to eleven,
where he found roundsman supposed TO be Curtain
The Husband b. sd0 there WITH sun IN vehcs
remove IT, The driver further stated that the
rOGndsman I,II. =, refused to let hlm have tho
about twenty minutcs alleging that he could not give
up the body until Coroner arrived. Russell then
showed him hr. Toas despatch, and explained that It
was sufficient authority. The roundsman took the
order and pat II n has pocket saying he woud keep It,
Russell then explained tile stupid fellow that this
order must be turned Mr. White, OF the
Morguc, with the body The officer returned him the
order with the remark, take 1t and the body, toon
Russell at once drove 10 the Morguo followed by Mr.
Young, and waited at tho Morgue twenty-five minutes
for the latter to come up AS he did not arrive tho
driver asked Mr. White TO take special care OF the
mains, as the husband was on his way TO claim them
At this point the reporter, who had not forgotten
that has often been charged aDd that the legislative
committees have endeavorcd to show that thero
tue Morgue traffic in dead bodies 10 be supplied to
the students of tie Medical College, cross-examned
the driver in the presence Of the clerk, and learned
from HIM that one wagon collects all the dead found
within the limits OF the city Sometimes it removes
as many as seventeen bodies per day, while other
days he has not single call Mr..
Russell admitted that there is justification the
order OF the Commissioners OF Charities that
ner's order shall define the nature OF the corpse The
dead wagon is always provided with collins OF six feet
six feet six inches four ieet two feet six inches and
two feet IN length respectively that when they re-
an order there may be no occasion for delay
tclcgraphng Tor information, as explained above
superintendent kcloCk, OF the Outdoor Poor,
planned that part OF the blame for the delay
Wednesday may rest upon him. II seems that he Is
The order Tor the removal of tho body given
Russell until after ;he sick wagon had departed. Had
he known that the body had been long Tho water
u would have been removed to the Morgae at once
He explains that the former practice Ofethc police
10 scnd hotncauon 70 thcr once pyspccal nessen-
ger, through the Seventeenth precinct OF all cases
OF this kind occurring after the head office had closed
Had this been done IN the present the body could
have been removed promptly. This exhausts the in
formation obtained from the representatives oil tho
Commissioners OF Charities and Correction.
POLICE INVESTIGATION
The announcement made in nearly all tho
papers yesterday that Colonel Erbard of the Police
Commission, had begun an investigation Of the part
played by the police officers in this namy. The
porter called upon nm IN the afternoon and explain
lug his business learned that Colonel Erhardt had not
gwen the matter any attention, except to reply 10
prominent gentleman relative OF the dead, VINO, about
twentyour hours after the body had been tied 10 the
picr, asked HIM send Coroner, that he
could not give orders 10 Coroner OF the city and
county. hen Commissioner Voorhees, aud President
Smith came IN, and the importance OF The eX
planned 10 these gentlemen supcrintcndcnt Wallng
was summoned ant the matter entirely can.
vassci Mr.. Walling explained very circum.
sianally the nciion OF all The police officials and
convinced the commission that Captain Irving OF the
police boat Seneca, IN way responsible. Tho
htlc book M which his movements that day wcro
recorded referred TO, and proved that between
one and O'Clock p. ~ Wednesday he
ing in the Bay IN command Of tho vessel and could not
know anything OF The II therefore appears thai
the despatch purporuug TO notify the Coroner and
signed by james Irving Captain Twenty fourth pre-
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