Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1884-07-17
BOLD GRAVE ROBBERY.
rpE STEALING OF john MAYS ROD,
Il Barbsrous DisempoweiInent OF tho Remains
| of tno Cousnohocken murderer--No clue
L % the iAnilfN PaItIea HIacnNnreu


Barbsrous Disembowelinent OF tho Remains
of tno Cousnohooken Murdersr--No clue
to the Guilty Parties discovered.
tenantless grave In the potter's field
is Norristowp's latest sensation. Less
than week ago tho grave was closed over
tho gashcd remains OF John May, the
German shoemaker Of Conshobockep who,
after numbering his lj-year old daughter,
stabbed himself to death. The body has
been surreptitiously disinterred, and afte:
undergoing further mutilation has been
carried from its last resting place, whittier
only the grave robbers know.
This last act was added to the tragedy
early Wednesday morning or late the night
before. The grave, which is the only new
ono in poverty's burial ground, was placed
| beside the fence on the eastern side OF the
potter's field. 1t is about thirty feet
| from the only headstone that is to be seen
| in Oil the place. On tho further side Of
| the rough wicket fence is the cornfield Of
Joseph y Brien. His 12-year.old son was
| in the cornfeld near the grave yard Wed.
| pesday morning, when he noticed three
laths torn from the wicket fence, and was
surprised 10 see blood stains on tho fence
rails. Looking TO the ground he then
discovered the footprints of two men on
| the plowed earth. lie followed the foot
| steps Tor about ten or twenty PAGES and
traced track Of blood which had evident
| ly trickled steadily down. He went back
| to the fence and crept through the rails.
An open grave instantly caught his eye.
Beside the mound of earth which had been
thrown up near the gaping grave was a
long, white pine box, the lid of which had
been forced open. The box was empty.
Pools of blood stained the ground around,
and near by was human heart.
The little fellow ran over to his father s
house aud told of what he had seen.
Shortly afterward a crowd Of men sur
rounded the spot. 1t was apparent to
| all that an outrage had been committed
under circumstances of disgusting bTu
tality.
Tho rude coffin in which the German
shoemaker had been buried, had been dug
from the grave. The lid had bsen forced
| open by an old rusty hinge that was found
near by, around one eud of which were
tied several rags with which the grave.
| robbers protected their hands in pryine
of the lid. The body was gone, but
before being taken away from the spot II
he'd been disembo weled. Pools of blood
surrounded the grave and marked 8
track toward the place where the fepc,
was broken, as il the body had beer
dragged there, and thence across the corn
field.
The robbers had left sticking 10 tn,
mound of earth the shovel with whict
they had opened the grave. A part Of tn
handle was broken, but on the portion o
II which remained were stamped the letter
"P. Il r." This affords the only clew T.
the perpetrators of the dastardly act. Thl
police officials Of Norri.town, who devoteC
all day Wednesday to thorough investiga
ton of the case, are convinced that th
crime was not committed by residents 0
that borough. The chief of police be
lieves that after leaving o. Brien's 6 cornflal
the burden was carried out High street I
Sandy street, and that IL was the
dragged short distance down an W
graded thorOughfaTe called Ford street, TO
spot where a wagon vas in waiting, whic
carried the body to oConshohocken. "Tha
place." the chief said to Record reporter
sis outside of our borough although on
potters' field is open to the poor of Con
shohocken. Everything convirces me ths
the men who committed this outrage cam
from there. In the first place l am salts
fled that the body was not taken for scer
tiiic purposes. The hacking manner i
which the internal organs were removc
do not indicate that the body could hav
been taken for dissection, and the metho,
Of lifting the coffin from the grave show
me that 1t was not done by professional
body soatchers. believe that there wa
no other motive for the deed than reveng,
or spite.