The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1885-08-19
SWINDLING INSURERS.
Supposed Death and Burial of a Woman In
sured for $4,000.
suspicion Being Aroused, the Body Was
Disinterred, and Found to be Six Inches
shorter Dead Than When Living
Other Measures Taken.

PATERSON, y. j., August 1.-THE Coroner
of Paterson, accompanied by the Chief of Po-
lice the Coroner of Hunters Point, Long
Island, and couple of physicians, went to
the Lutheran Cemetery near the latter place
to-day to exhume the body of woman. On
the way to the cemetery Chief of
Police Grant told a representative Of the
Associated Press the following story:
For two years past Il family named Bauer,
occupying highly respectable position in
society, resided at Haledon, near Paterson,
NJ. The Bauers had previously resided in
New York City, and appeared to be people
of wealth. Early in last June Mrs. Bauer
was taken sick. and after ten days illness
died, as certified by the attending physician,
of peritonitis. Mr.. Bauer seemed TO feel the
funeral. The memory OF the late
Mrs. Bauer had almost died
out in Haledon when some strange
rumors got afioat which startled the COM
munity. 1t was learned that Mrs. Bauer's
life had been heavily insured in several COM
panies and some peculiar circumstances sur
rounding her illness and death led 10 the
suspicion that she had been murdered in
order to obtain the amount of insurance and
defraud the companies. The insurances on
Mrs Bauer's life were as follows; Equitable
Life Insurance Company, of New York,
$4,000; New York Life Insurance Com
pany, $4,000; Mutual Reserve Insurance
Company, $4,000; Mutual Trust Insurance
Company, $4,000; Pennsylvania Insurance
Company, S5,000 and Fishkill Insurance
Company Of Massachusetts,, 5000, making
a total OF $50, 600. 1t is understood that the
Equitable and New York Life Insurance
Companies paid the amounts of their policies
before the rumors OF fraud got abroad. The
officers of the Mutual Reserve Company,
learning of the supposed foul play, after con-
sulting with the other companies, decided to
refuse payment until a thorough investi-
CATION had been made The theories ad-
vanced by them were that Mrs Bauer had
been poisoned, or that she had been taken
away and another body or dummy buried i'm
the cemetery. Arriving at the cemetery
the body was exhumed and the
coffin opened. Upon being measured the
body was found TO be six inches shorter than
Mrs. Bauer's height when she was alive. One
of the physicians who had examined Mrs.
Bauer when the applications for insurance
were put in said that Mrs. Bauer had a pug
nose and light hair while the corpse had a
GIecian nose and dark hair but he would
not be positive on all the particulars. DR..
Satterthwait and Cheeseman, of New
York, then opened the body ami
took out the intestines, which they ex-
amined and sealed up. They refused to
give the result of the examination until
they shall have made more careful exam
inatiOn in New York, where the intestines
were taken. The body was placed again in
the coffin and re-intered. Lewis Bauer, the
husband of the dead woman, to whom all
the policies were payable. carries on real
estate agency at $50 Broadway, New York.