Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-06-30
A REMARKABLE INSTANCE OF
RESUSCITATION.
and Mourned as Dead Finally
Cheats the Coroner.

at Second and Glrard avenue.
Laat summer Mace and his mother lived
at Thompson and Adrian streets, and was
employed by the firm of Stead 4 Murphy
as a laborer. On q Wednesday in the lat
part of August be was ordered with two
other employees to 60 to Queen street
wharf, on the Delaware river, to load rosin
into one of the firms wagons. While
busily engaged at the work, aud standing
on the cap log of the dock. Nice lost his
balance and fell backward into the river.
1t was about o'clock in the afternoon
and the cry of man overheard brought a
great crowd of wharf lOungers and long
shoremen to the scene. The body remained
in the water unusually long and a small
skiti-load of rescuers We're about abandon
ing the search, when it was suddenly
sighted off the bow, doubled like a bail.
and caught with boathook Just as it was
sinking again. As soon as it was hoisted
to the dock eager hands attempted to re-
suscitate the apparently drowned man.
They rolled him over a barrel and ex-
hausted every other means ordinarily
used in similar cases, but without success.
\ doctor was summoned and, after max
ing an examination, said very positively
This man is dead" This was enough
for Nace's fellow workmen, who hurried
off to convey the news to his mother and
friends uptown. The policeman who rang
the patrol-hox said simply: "Send the
wagon to Queen-street wharf for the body
of drowned man." When it arrived the
patrol Sergeant and his crew found crowd
surrounding the body, but no one present
who knew who the dead man was. His
official inquiry developed nothing more
than that the man had been fshed out of
the river and that the doctor had pro-
nounced him dead
The body was placed in the wagon and
taken to the Second District Station
House, where it was laid with little cere-
mony in the stone corridor facing the cells.
The day Sergeanfs dispatch to the Cen
trail Station, based on the Patrol Sergeanfs
report, was; Coroner wanted at Second
District; body of an unknown man
drowned at Queen-street wharf"
While Samuel Mace was numbered with
the unknown dead in the police report.
his aged mother, surrounded by sympa-
thizing friends and relatives, waited in the
little uptown home, expecting every mo-
ment the arrival OF his body. His fellow
workmen, in their haste to convey the
news to his mother, had thoughtlessly left
the police without any information to es-
tablish his identity. and the distracting
scenes of grief had dispelled any after
thought in the matter from their minds.
When the night force came on at the
Second District, the Sergeant and turnkey
We're notified that the body of drowned
man was in the corridor, waiting the Cor
oner's wagon to be taken to the Morgue.
This Second District Station House is pc
culiarly built, having its cells separated
from the main building by narrow stone
passage that opens at either end in the
yard. Over the entrance to the corridor a
dim gaslight burns at night. That night
there were no prisoners in the cells.
About o'clock, when the turnkey, who
was sitting in the passage, heard slight
noise, like some one moving in the corri-
dor, he was puzzled, and listened intently.
The second time it came more distinctly.
and had the unmistakable sound of foot
step on the stone floor 1t startled him.
and his fear was increased when he remem-
bered that there was nothing inside
nothing but the body of the man fshed
out of the river. Mastering all his courage,
he approached the wicker gate, and. peer
ing through, he saw the figure of a man
standing upright in the dim light. The
next moment the turnkey ran wildly
through the building, upsetting the Ser
Seants nerves and tobacco, and CRYING:
That body is up and walking around ~
The Sergeant laughed at him, but the
turnkey declared that in his single glance
through the wicket he had seen the I'M
known dead man standing at his full
hight, with both arms outstretched, and
his one eye fixed vaguely on the uncertain
light toward which he was cropping.
Pshaw~ said the Sergeant, still ridi-
cuing the story, you've got 'em or else
you're dreaming"
The turnkey insisted that he was telling
the truth, and the Sergeant consented to
investigate. They had no need to go far,
for already in the stone passage the Gun
known dead" was slowly feeling his way,
wi that same bewildered movement and
stare, while from his lips came the almost
inaudible questions: as this a station
house? If it is, what was l brought here
for ?"
why, you were brought here for
drowned" answered the turnkey at long
range.
The unknown looked at him vacantly
for 4 moment and then seemed to suddenly
comprehend. ooh, yes" he said, II re-
member now. My name is Samuel Mace
| slipped on the dock, didn't /? Every
thing was blank after that until l opened
my eyes and saw that dim light in there.
l looked at it for long time trying to
make out what it was, and finally | says to
myself: Samuel Mace, you amt at home,
and was getting up when mans face
looked in and was gone before | could
wink"
Mace was given nourishment, and by 10
o'clock was sufficiently recovered to be put
on a Third-street car at Christian street
and sent home. Getting off at Thompson,
he walked the rest of the way, and as he
approached his door noticed groups of
neighbors standing around and an under
takers wagon at the curb. He hurried
through the crowd, and a woman screamed:
It's his ghostw The next moment he
strobe inside, and catching a glimpse of
him, his old mother tainted. The under
taker had just been saying that he had
been to the Morgue, but could find no
trace of the body. Initial steps had al
ready been taken to collect death benefit
of S113, due Nace's relatives by the Pru-
dental Company. The following morning,
while yet a very sick man, he read the fol-
lowing paragraph in a morning paper:
Gan unknown man was drowned at
Queen-street wharf yesterday afternoon.
His body was rescued and taken to the
Morgue. Nothing was found on him that
would establish his identity, but his left
eye was closed, probably through an ac
cident."
This was all that was ever written of the
case, and probably all that ever would
have been had not Samuel Mace, with wit
nesses and references, one night last week
told the story to Press reporter himself.
pria HrraI