The San Francisco call., 1897-04-17
Authentic Letters Are
Received From the
Supposed Victim.
Now the Mystery of the Body
Found in the Trunk Is
Deepened.
II Is Poss. Bile That the Murdered
Man Was Joanes Prosper Cha
zal of France.

CHICAGO. ILL, April 16.-Oliver Pike,
the supposed victim of the Salt Lake
trunk mystery, is alive in California and
has written to his mother at Fayette,
Ohio, where his body was supposed to be
buried To the Fayette Record he has
also written that he has been living under
the name of Harry Price since leaving
Puget Sound and is now at Redlands. The
letters to the newspaper and his mother
are regarded as authentic.
The temperance of Pike deepens the
trunk mystery. On March % of last year
Phillip Cries and Charles Haas of Austin
purchased large box at auction from auc-
tioneers who were selling large quantity
of unclaimed freight for the Chicago and
Northwestern Railroad. Two days after
the box was opened at Austin and found
to contain a medium-sized green trunk,
bound with iron strips. The space be-
tween the trunk and the sides OF the box
was packed with sawdust. Several layers
OF white oilcloth were wrapped around the
trunk. Within the trunk was zinc box,
the cover soldered tight. This box was
also wrapped in oilcloth. Within the in
ner box was found the decomposed body
of man. 1t had been bound with a light
rope so as to fit com pactly il the box, and
some chemicals had been placed around
1t 10 destroy the flesh.
The box was shipped from Salt Lake,
Utah, on the morning of February %,
1885 1t was left al the freight office of
the Union Pacific at that place the day
before by man giving the name of &. NJ.
Mo rgan, and was billed to G. NJ. Morgan,
146 Jefferson street, Chicago. The freight
was prepaid and the shipper took train,
ostensibly for this city, the same day. 1t
was shipped as household goods and
weighed $40 pounds. The box arrived in
G icago February 16 and remained in the
Chicago and Northwestern freight depot
until July 26 1893 It was unclaimed and
notices sent TO the address on the box
eiicited no reply. On that date it was de-
livered to the warehouse belonging to the
auctioneers, where it remained for nearly
three years. Oa February it was de-
cided to sell the box at auction, 20 get
back the freight and storage charges. a
notice was then sent to the consignee at
Salt Lake that be would be given until
February 28 10 pay the charges and re-
deem it. No reply being recei we'd, the
box was sold, and the discovery of the
body followed.
The address ct 166 South Jefferson street
is the home of Mrs. Frederick a. Mueller.
She knew nothing OF the man Morgan,
who shipped the box, except that an ex-
pressman had called few weeks before
the box was sold and asked for G. NJ. Nor
gan. An examination OF the body cis-
closed the fact that the skull had been
fractured in two places, plainly indica ting
a murder. The blows were supposed TO
have been struck with a hatchet.
Two clews were followed by the police.
Henry Devere and Bas Marcel, two French
men living here, told story OF the disap-
pearance of a friend of theirs, named
JoaIes Prosper Chazal, at Salt Lake, dur
ing February of 1893. No trace of him
has ever been found. ChazaI was a native
of Lyons, France, and was we'll to- do.
The two men identified the body as being
that OF their friend, and strongly main
tanned that rything pointed 10 the cor
rectness of their suspicious that he had
been murdered for his jewels. of which he
always wore collection of great value.
The second theory was that the body
was that of Oliver Pike, and that he had
been murdered in Seattle. Wash. His
relatives identified the body and had it
taken to Fayette for burial. He disap-
peared from Seattle July 3, 1892, and was
never heard from until a few days ago,
when he wrote to his relatives. 1t was
thought that Pike had been murdered
from damaging evidence he possessed
concerning the operations of an insane
asy um at Steilacocm, Wash. An inves.
tigation was made, but no definite proof
was ever established that Pike had be en-
done away with by the suspected persons
at the Steilacoom Asylum, and the m after
was dropped.
Mrs. a. L. Mosher and C. G. Goriot
cousins of Pike, were seen last night in
Ravenswood. They have been in COM
munication with the missing mans
mother, and stated that she believed her
son was still alive and that mistake had
been made in the identified ion of the body
found in the trunk at Austin. Presents
had been received by Pixies sisters pur-
porting 10 come from him, and he had
also sent photograph. Still the strange
actions of the missing man in the past
three years have made many of the rela-
tives doubt whether he is really still
alive. They attribute the report that he
is at Redlanus and the writing OF the
letters TO the men who are interested in
the money which the missing Frenchman
left on deposit in Salt Lake bank.
In letter received by Pixies mother
he stated that he would return to his
home in Fayette, Ohio, some time in
June. His cousin, Mr.. Goriot, intimated
that Pike had gotten into some trouble
ont in Washington and had q purpose
in wanting to lose his identity for time.
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