The sun., 1895-05-09
SHOTS OVER THE RARITAN.
,,rsEhRCHERs FOR JoHNsTuMPSs
BODY NOW TRr POWDER.

A. Nothing Come. 60 the Surface, They 60
mach 20 C,airvoynut,. Dig More uoies,
.,a sound More Wells Air~sIshea
Lime In . Bottle Doosn't Work. but
rhero Arc Lots OF Thing. to TRY Yet.
c,.,rvoyance has again been called on to aid
a.. ,hs search for the body of Joseph w. Stumps,
-. porth Amhoy man who disappeared % mya-
..,,on.ly a week ago Tuesday. THE SUN on Mon
s.v nrinted an account of how two clairvoy-
..,. NJ New York had been visited, ono
:, whom said that the body of tho man
s,d been buried, and tho other that IL
h.d been thrown to the bottom OF n deep
holc and stones piled on top OF IL All day on
sunday the friends OF the missing man worked
.s.lously digging up the earth in vain. Tho
,ody wasn't found. and In spite Of the fact that
.,erythng seemed to show that tho man had
h.cn drowned in the Raritnn River. they still
ahmed their faith to the clairvoya ants and dug
m the earth by tho cubic yard.
The failure to get results on Sunday cast a
asmper on tho spirits OF tho men who had up
hold the New York fortune tellors, but their
t,th was as strong as ever. Monday was spent
doing little except talking. though q few did pa
troll tho shore of the river In hope that tho body
might come to tho surface. But 1t was done in
+. .balf.heartcd way. because. oven IL tho body
VAS in the water, they were sure 1t was held
down by weights
Monday night Duncan Curric. A. B. Ford, and
A. Carter, each of whom believed in the powers
Of the clairroyants held n meeting. and it was
decided to dynamite the river. Tho body. Of
course, was not there, but 1t would satisfy
the demands of Andrew Alcorn. Ii. Z.
Pickersgill. and few others who maiu-
tained that Stumps had walked Off tho dock
nrrin In Ia AnN1r 1Y,il
came to this city to got tho dynamite. He says
he went all over town. but no ono would sell
him any. Failing to get the dynamite ho went
to a clairyoyant, brand-new one, and ex-
planned the case to him. Tho clairvoyant told
him he could fix him up.
"Takc fruit jar, a pint jar" said the clair
voyant. land fill it seven-eighths full of mir
slack lime. Put In water and seal the jar. Then
take boat and row to tho spot where you think
the body is and drop the jar in after having put
Il tin,oa a sack with weights attached; SIT mo-
because the lime and water in the nirtirbt ias
will generate u gas that will explode and the
concussion will cause the body to come to the
Currie put down his good dollars for the
advice M and has1sned back to Perth Amboy filled
T IN a boat half filled with jars Of air
Stacked lime and water. When they got
the boat was stopped and n Jar carefully done
Instead Of waiting there motionIess for results.
Curre got scared and pulled away for dear life,
expecting each moment to be blown into the air.
wen, down, own:,.~.,.A"so ,D '
-That's the reason the thing didn't work"
So another. and another, and still another jar
was sent to the bottom Of the Rartan. and still
nobody came to the top Then Currie went ashore
and got pail OF water and put a jar in that as
an experiment, but no results came from that
either.
The failure didn't shake his faith in clair
royance or that of Ford or Of Carter. 1t merely
proved to them that the first clairvoyants were
right and the body was not in the river. Yet to
satisfy the demands Of the unbelievers they ap-
piled one more test They would shoot can
The Garfield battery was called on to fetch the
pride Of Perth Amboy. a brass cannon, a little
larger than yacht gun possibly. that will stand
ahalf pound OF powder without bursting. Amid
awondering crowd of fifty or sixty searchers the
guE was trundled down to the dock. and four
members of the battery solemly loaded the fear
Inspiring piece. and there was n pop somewhat
louder than that OF blundcrbuss. and all was
9gist;; sixty pairs OF eyes sazed across the
Whirlpool. LOO feet away, to SEQ the body come
up, hut mono came.
~ told you i wasn't there" said Currie.
But the crowd wasn't satisfied yet. The gun
was pick ked up and carried TO a point on the
times the ronrcd ITS little roar. and seven
times the crowd umpet, but it was all for
Taught, Tor no body appeared.
Then the people OF Perth Amboy, whose faith
In clairvoyance had faltered little. believed
anew. and u number started to hunt for holes
again: \ deep hole mp toward the tramp house
that had been searched the week before was
again dragged by the excited crowd. Nothing
was there. Next they went to n well over which
was an iron cover SO heavy that it required
three men to lift 1t on edge. 1t was suggested
that a feeble old man like Stumps could not
have replaced it when at the bottom Of the hole.
But advice was laughed at bv the believers in
Sln'hSv9yaIt 1,h E magic and they dragGe,, the well
sides, the well had been searched three days
AT this point an urchin came running up
ereathless to tell them that a black derby hat
nea sr.,e been nj found ti2ntinE on the river;
dlor the river on n run.
Then some one remembered that Stumps
Sasn last seen wore an old brown SLOUGH hat.
IRON the well is deep hole where the cows love
Wwallow 1t contains from Is to 10 inches Of
MUDDY water. This WAS dragged.
A. lherts well mp on the knoll" cried one OF
nsparty; let's drag ;hat."
oI.. Inc crowd started or At n run: The well in
guest sues,on Is one that supplies neighboring ten
ttmeht house. Over it is a house about ten feet
xs,ar sa which M Is kept locked all the time when
get ge 1HhE ne ev bio 11e 1tSrvea ,Gr ne
him M At the door.
val, ,,why Why. yaw COON to ma well ?'' she said. Ma
vel goot. Drink all time"
pses. see wouldn't give them the key. so they
wSSksa wSis up the well house and tipped i over
sear %aaer afm maaea sni wo
way way found there either. Another sink hole
TssN visited and dragged with the same result
Avn ddaS1 a council OF war was held. 1t was
y, uec.aed that part of the crowd should 20 back
s,.!n the tramp barn and search through that
Hs rta.u ana the rest would go to Gregorys yards,
Chele LAY the old steamboRt Long Branch,
SStpsnSceilor St Perth Amboy. and others. No trace
h..oay was found anywhere, however. and
NE search ended for the day.
n.ae-lay nSday Is the ninth day since Stumps disap-
ytasG, trsa,GI., and il he was drowned. according to
Ttsh..ohh me body should come to the surface.
I'm, oahks OF the river will he patrolled all day
VIII viii ana ana II the body Is not found clairvoyance
VAL nave gained great victory.