The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-05-13
MURDER WILL OUT"
Revelations of tho Perpetrators of a
Crinae After Many Years.

rs OIL inc EeTpctFakOTb va a
Crime After Many Years.
On the 18th of April last an old woman
| named Ann Marker died in Gloucesert.
N. j., aged sixty. Up to a short time be-
| fore her death she sold truck on Second
| street, his city. In her possession was a
piece of faded black ribbon and a plain
gold clasp which had belonged to her
| aunt, and were associated with a fear
| full tragedy that vas one of the house
hold histories of old Kensington.
On August u, 1892, Peter Helm. a we'll
known cooper was at Warders' wharf, on
| the Delaware, below Coates street, early
| in the morning to get saome hoop poles
| that were sleeping in the water. He was
poking them with a boathook when, to
| his surprise and horror, there came to
| the saurface the face of a woman. Aided
| by others he drew from the water the
| body of a girl who in life must have been
| very beautiful, with long brown hair. 1t
was apparent that she had met her
death by violence, for there was a ter
rible cash in her throat, and long tresses
| of hair had been torn from her head.
The dock was a solitary place after
| night, but sailmakers in Chester's loft
had worked until late that evening, but
had heard 40 cutlery, SO the conclusion
was that she had been killed elsewhere
and brought to this place. Medical ex-
| animation proved tina she had been the
| victim of a criminal assault, and had
| died defending her honor.
At that time the river front was a very
! dangerous locality at night. In the nu-
merous taverns that swarmed on Water
| street could be found men who had been
| pirates with Tardy, the LafitteS and
| Harry MpGt9hQ and Wara naD3bie OF any
atrocity, and privateersmen out of work
were common and quite as bad.
| fed as tina of Elizabeth Reeves, age
| twenty, who lived with her mother, a
dressmaker in Coombs. alley. Her char
| a member of Christ Church. Her ex-
| IRENE beauty had attracted much ad-
young man named Garland, who was in
Reading at the time of the murder. The
wretched Dogberries, who were the police
duplicating anybody. SO the poor girls
i body was buried in st. Peters.
mhomaI eaF 5 !, he was quit 2 in wf buslneas
time to its investigation. He soon had a
Reeves received a 1ettr with a Western
post-mark, enclosing a fragment of rib
bon and a small clasp, which she at once
| ter's neck at the time of her death. There
was no explanatory, writing
Garland at once started West, but after
six months .~persevering search wa no
wiser han before. and taking passage
ldown the Ohio in a fiat boat was lost
overheard, ard so ended his life.
Mrs. Reeves had made a modest living
at needlework until two year after her
daughters death. when she became an
In 1877 she received another. letter form
the West. containing a sum Of money, but
Until her death n fESo5. The writer evi-
IDENTIFY knew her circumstances, and this
suggested an associate. in his city.
brother got another letter, and this
cleared up the mystery of his niece's hor-
rible taking off. The writer said ne was
the story of crime in which he had been
an actor. He was of good family in
Philadelphia, but wild in his youth, and
under the influence Of liquor capable OF
He knew and admired Miss Reeves, but
she would not speak to him. With the
assistance. of a woman and another man
she had been enticed to a house near
FIJI ho" crime ane wa.soc mn 1naaass The woman
still lived, but the other man died on the
scaffold years before. In a few words
remorse and penitence. A few lines in
another hand stated that the first writer
was dead.
Al once an inquiry sprung up. John
Belsterling. then Mayor of the Northern
Liberties, being a prominent actor there
old families living near Mrs. Reeves
home, was supposed to be a sister of the
criminal, and further Identification of the
family was confirmed in popular belief
by the fact that they. subsequently sold
all their real estate here and went to
eg 4 close and and i lasfeastiisi search was
made for the woman accomplish, and 1t
was not until 1882, when a wretched
creature, DYING of yellow fever, then
prevalent, told DR. John. Gegan, 8 we'll
known physician of Southwark. that she
was the one that aided in h muredr.
Tradition has 1t that her name was III
rich. but she did not disclose the name OF
the chief actor.-Philadelphia Times