The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-01-15
CLUE FOR THE POLICE
Important Statement Made
by Miss BarroWcliff
Yesterday.
HER CONDITION IMPROVED.
The Route She Took After Leaving
Mrs. Smiths House on the
Fateful Night.

Miss Barrowcliff is much better today.
She is resting easily and her temperature Is
normal. She said more to the nurse yester-
day than at any time since she has been at
the hospital In the morning she heard the
church bells ringing, and realizing that it
was Sunday, asked the nurse if she was
going to church. She said:-
s'No, dear; am going to stay with you
all day"
"Then think you ought to go to church
this evening, !" said the patient.
The nurse, seeing that she was much inn
proved, ventured to put to her the same
question she has asked so often
s'Do you remember how you got hurtP
miss Barrowcliff's face bore a puzzled
look for about a minute, and then 1t sud-
denly cleared and she said
81 remember that when | left Mrs
Smiths house l went towards the board
walk to go to Lena's house. took that way
because it was less muddy than the other. l
got almost to the walk when | must have
fallen. l remember being carried here, but
nothing more"
This is the clearest statement that she has
yet made.
WARDEN osBoRNE's OPINION.
Warden Osbornes theory is a good one.
He has always stuck to the theory that she
was carried to the place where she was found,
and that the assault upon her was committed
bv some vagrant This board walk which
Miss Rarrowcliff mentioned was built by the
Pennsylvania Railroad. and runs from the
Marion Station to West Side avenue. A
sidewalk runs along West Side avenue to the
board walk Sip and Stuyvesant avenue
were both extremely muddy upon the night
of the assault. Therefore nothing would be
IL D-r.- All xyt1fa1e
perfectly familiar with the locality, to get to
Wylie street, should go via West Side avenue
the board walk and Tonnele avenue and
thus get dry footing all the way Rear or
the board walk is a large sign, with an ele-
waited platform in front OF 1t. Under this
many tramps and tie-counters lind com
Portable shelter from the cold. For long
time they have used this as sleeping place
every night.
ATTACKED FROM BEHIND.
Warden Osborne believes that when she
was opposite this place she received blow in
the back of her head from the fist of one OF
these vagrants The confusion on the back
of her head leads him to this conclusion. He
believes that the fiend then choked her, grab
bing her from behind. 1t will be RENE mbered
that the finger marks on her throat were un-
der her chin, proving conclusively that she
was grabbed from behind, as, if she had been
seized from in front, the marks would have
been on either side OF ner neck. hhsAnS
choked her. he dragged her to the shelter
mentioned and kept her there until after
midnight. Fearing that if he kept her there
the crime would be easily traced, he carried
her along Corbin avenue, on which there is
no house between Sip avenue and the board
walk, and placed her in the lot. She
partially recovered consciousness there, and
struggled and he felled her with a glancing
blow from a rock which he hurled at her,
causing the ragged cash in her forehead
| This is the most reasonable theory yet adj
vanced.
AS to her statement to the effect that she
remembers being carried to the hospital, this
has been substantiated by Patrolman Foley,
who reported that she opened her eyes In the
express wagon and appeared to recognize Tor
an instant what was going on about her.