The sun., 1878-10-01
MURDERED FOR HIS BODY.
A MOST AMAZING REASON GIyEN EOR
KILLING STUTTERING JiCK
Chioroformins Man to Dcnth aud then Try.
tng 10 Sell his Hcmnins 10 Medical
follenc Trnfessnr-A Is Onirn fnnr.n.lnr.

Frank WoinbCckcr was n worthless sort Cf
fellow around bridgeport For some untold
reason he was called Jack Rufus. except whom
he was called Suffering Jack. His parents
were dead. and he was without family con-
nections. In point Of Intelligence he wns con-
sidcrnby below the average: hcsecmcd to have
m impcdiment in his mind ns we'll ns IN his
articulation. At % years Of age hc was getting
his living by dong odd Jobs around tho whnr'.
Occasionally hc nndc short voyage on some
sloop out Of bridgeport. and no ono expected
him back until he returned. With the cXc,p-
tion oi his own body there WIS scarccly any
thing that he could call his own. But he WIS
murdered for his body.
Frank Bassctt Is young man of medium
height. dirk hair and cycs. and ordinnry mp
pcnrancc In all respects He had charge of
small sloop. and made trips up nnd down tho
const Not long ago he was arrested Mt New
London on warrant charging him with thoit
and since that time his place OF address has
been the Jail just out oi Bridgeport Last spring
and In the early summer he lived with Mrs. lo-
rem Elizabeth Alexander. in an old coach fac
tory In East bridgeport. Bassctt and this wo-
man are now In iail. charged with having muir
dcring Suffering Jack in the hope Of selling
his body for dissection by the Yale medical stu
dents at New Haven.
covery Of the murder. week nGo last Friday
r. Mckay " Vandalia. H., laid his poekeibook.
containing some .6s. on the top oi n post in the
city of Bridgeport IN order that he might write
n message on postal card, using the pocket
book rs n rest After he had finished writing
he walked nwny. leaving his money on tn" post
Missing H. he went to the ofIicc of tho Bridge
port standard and mndo n bargain for the in
serton OF an advertisement on the basis Of no
1nd no pay. Two'gir- saw Frank Basseu take
the pockethook from the post. and a'terward
read tho advertisement. This led His arrest in
Now London whittier he Ind gono in tho sloop
taking the Alexander woman with him. He
was taken 10 Bridgeport and she remained IN
The slnop Before she returned he sold somo
~ her furniture and other ynluuhles 20 procure
money with which TO secure his acluita Last
Thursday, he was bound over 70 the October
term oi tho superior Court and In default of
Before he was sent To- jail Baese;, told tho
Chiet Of Police that he, gave TO tho AlcNgnd'r
yomnn. about onc..hnli Of the money ne found
In McKay's pocketbuok. She Indignantly DO
MED that She received amy Of II, declared that
he hni sold her furniture and valunhlps and
hn,ei TINT sho could MAKE revelation that
cnught by Assistant city Attorney Holt. who
elected from her the story oi the mur'irr
Sanford Of the Yale Medical school At New
Haven. and offered to sell MIN her body for dis
section after death. A. she wanted cash in al
vance. aud IA the Doctor was willing to pay only
on ufllNfID, luH huIEhll WIS ll'l flhN'N MS
adventure was related 10 Bassrt'. who rn-
marked TINT Il they coud coinu across = body
they could nuke stake" by tnklug It
up To- New Haven. adding, ia Joking
way. that he guessed he would kill her and ~"ll
her for capital Ia hegin with Perhaps THIS
suggestion oi the value of bodirs led TO the
commission Of the crime the details - which
Mrs. Alexander gives in her rcmarkanls story
on tho evening " the 10th of last Mny. the
woman snys. Bass"u invited Suffering Jack 90
tnke supper with him in the "ld ~'nch shop.
The inyit.tion was agrepicd anu me- sneS' ,ls
him. sum of scventy-nve cents in his pocket
between and Q O'Clock In the eyening Bessott
suggested to Jack that he mood not feel under
obligations to Keep awake II h. was sleepy.
aud acting on the Suggestion Jack was soon
bottle Of chlorpform saturated a sponge, and
held Il under the slcrpng mans no-r. Aiier
the chloroform had cvnporatcd bnsseit again
nostrils When the man ceased breathing Bns
sett cut the cont collar and ripped the garment
Than the shoes e were removed. Tic coni and
shoes were buried 10y Bass"ti and the woman
under an nld heuhnuS" in th" rear 90 the build
ing IN which they lived. Busscit next went 70
m adjoining room and brought out m empty
npur barrel into y hich he crowded the cori-l
crushing thu kr "s Aown uprn tir ~. .n oI.i"r
10 max" Nh" b." 'y =" into ;b" small space. Tao
harrel was a. rnA"i ilio corner az tho room
an the occu pants retired.
Enrly ncN, morning rp~sott procured n crp-
cer's .u,ered wagon. and. tukiue th" dead nal
Andcr drove tQ New Haven and to M" office II
DR.. sanford Hero he compelled the woman tl
To- iilN door Wlllt lF sat m tNH NNffl w. ANA
attempt - dispose u tlg body Tor dis. elton 10
the medical school Toe Doctor a-h"u uor
wherc she rot the body, md horol .i"ithui -h"
md her husband found It under their n.lrW.
She said tha, she had no physlcian's ccrilnrte
showing TINT the p|rson died u natural d"ntll
sRS sRS wEe Sskad Dr SS"Sb %ba, r',qseu r IT.
with II. He told her 10 tnke II hHrk
t. 'ae pla@9 dm,IG w6srH w, she t2gnJ 5aI H. Ts'y
ctr r,uiious route 10 Derby thence to Birmint:-
hmm. n'ross the Housni9nie river, and ihr ugh
shelton 20 lonesome place on villa, j. suDwu
as the Old river rond. Hero they halted cio-c
by u ravino. lifted the barrcl from the wagon
AMI started II roiIihg, unWh Ur uHnk. aver
which Bassott smoothed over he traehs and the
marks made ia the sand. and the couple drove
/ back 10 Bridgeport hy rnundnloui way urriv-
ing late in the eveing. This Is IN" st1ry tne
After hcnrine her story the Chiefof Police
! tory where the couple had lived and found the
! coat and shoes buried where the woman sall
they could ind them, on saturday afternoon
! tho same officers took the wunnn and drove 10
/ New Hnven To- the Office ~ DR.. sanford whn
recognized the woman as the same who tr'Gt -
| sell him subject Then they tried to follow
tho same road Bassat and the woman
| had taken when returning tn Bridee.
port and after some, difficulty found
Vine. 'TTh The ofirSrs. fo!owlns I the Wv Woman
directions. found the barrel where had lodged
against n stone down among the underhrush.
| ono Of the heads was partly gone and from the
I opening portions ot the decay INK body ui SUIT
| tering jack protruded. Witnesses were called,
! the barrel was placed in the wagon and carried
10 the nearest farm house-ahout half mile
awqy-whcrr It was envcl ped with blankets
! and the party returned 10 Bridg"pori
Thus far the woman - story hal hecn faith-
! fully rorrobornted in the main points. But 'he
! inquest which wns held yesterday muWln;
| over the romans showed that in one important
particular the woman was far from the truth,
| \ brass ring taken from the body WIS identified
as onr which Jurk always Wore; the same Wit
ness declared the shoes dug up 10y the officers
nt East bridgeport tob jack =. sur" tpdeath: -
tho cont found with tho ehors WINS thought 10 lN
| his: and the pantalpons found on ia" body
were a pair the witness had seen Jack weur.
| The body was dncaycd beyond recognition.
But It came ont that Jack could not have
| bncn killed on the night ot the luih
Of May for four witnesscs sworo that lh"y saw
him alive Rs late as July. on" tcstiiyug tuHt lN
WAS with the murdered man ON the morull-nt
! July ~. The woman positively asserts that jack
wns chloroformed 10 death ON the might of
May 10. ,noarly two months previously. Sho
| claims 10 have nssSted her memory of tho
nights work by Keeping mcmorlnda. At tho
| inquest the woman appeared entirely solf- pos.
scSsed, coOllY looked around the room tOyol
| with the little three year -old girl she brought
with her and seemed to be easy in mind. She
| is about 35 years old.
| Bassett wns informed yesterday morning 81
tho finding Of the body and of tho story the
woman had told Jailcr Wclls hrokr the news
to him, but he refuses to say how Bassott re-