The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-11-26
HAS HE KILLED HIMSELFY
TEL E0RAPHER sTETENs MISSING
FROM POLICE HEADQUARTERS.

N'
Days nsrore Their wedding Buried In Hor
BRIDAL Gown-stevens Never Got Over II.
George Francis Stevens. for thirty years a
telegraph operator at Police Headquarters, has
disappeared. 1t Is believed that he has COM
mitted suicide, although there is little TO war
rant the belief, except that nothing has been
seen or heard OF him since last Friday, when he
was at his post in the basement of Police
Headquarters. For twenty-five years the mans
life had been saddencd by II love tragedy. aud
those who were close to him say that OF late
he had been moro melancholy than ever. Three
days before. his marriage with the daughter of
Matthias NJ. Danstr, u notorious gambler of the
seventies, tho young woman died. Stevens
never recovered from the blow. and although
II occurred Il quarter of a century ago, he would
talk of II with his intimate friends and show
as much emotion as though 1t were a recent
bereavement.
Around Police Headquarters. where he was
very popular. Stevens was called "Chauncey,"
from "A fancied resemblance to DR.. Depcw.
When at Police Headquarters last Friday
afternoon he complained then OF not feeling
well, and finally got up from his desk and said
to ono of the other operators.that no was going
out to soc n doctor. 1t has since been learned
that Stevens went from Mulberry street to the
Judson Memorial building. In Washington
square, where he once.had rooms. He went to
the clerks office and taking n large packet of pri-
vate papers from his pocket, selected twoIetters
from among them and handed them to the clerk.
One Of the letters was addressed to Albert L..
Dove at 185th street and Walton avenue. The
d, other bore no inscription.
Mail this one to Mr.. Dove II any inquiries
are made about me-" he said, 'and put this
other one in the safe. Open it yourself IL any
thing happens to me, or IL anybody comes here
to ask IL you have seen me-"
Mr.. stevens vouchsafed no further informa.
ton, and he clerk put both of the letters in
the safe, saying nothing about the matter to
any one. When inquiries began to be mado
for Mr.. Stevens he sent one of the letters to
Mr.. Dove, who is Stevens's cousin, and turned
the other over to tho proprietor of tho Judson,
who opened 1t. The letter was as follows:
Albert na1 %anny p bago SHOULD nf ia5t hhap s,raot to ann me- M infNIm
avenue. II anything should happen to me in
the DAYTIME tine send ', Word rt.t to George e BENJAMIN s.
:s:GEoReE FRANCIS sTrvasSs."
Mr.. stevens lived With Mr.; DOVE a, the I'D,
missing man came home on Friday afternoon.
complaining Of feeling Ill. On Saturday morn.
i,n ns he , left sas,t the house S nos saying s.m he was las. going to
Dove didn't believe that Mr. d"' stevens had
sibie. He was more inclined to 6siieve that he
wa, STAYING with friends
S Snsaee eessS c' Hi His % deserfpt %an' has Sa' b asH' 9 tsis,
stHpn in t iSs city G has b sea asked sEefy TO PO have os hEs
subordinates make careful inquiries and to
Mr.. stevens was a great church worker and
was n member OF the Methodist church. He
in the time of Mayor Fernando Wood. stevens
had been len r in The department n NJ about ten years
ward BECAME his betrothed. Miss Danser was
the daughter of Matthias NJ. Danser, known in
York.
Danscr had been a blacksmith. but wander
Ing into the faro bank one night he won a little
money. and became so infatuated with gaming
that he threw up his business and devoted all
Ills luck was phenomena He efI played yed s othor
peoples banks" until he had q small fortune.
t Then pd he opened ned a gambling l house of his own on
sporting men at the time that ."Danser was
~f Fro@ m tho Bo tssrsr b 1nan ne @ HSS,a et to Broad slesd
% way; and h for tw ,n G;arr years ear, ran q II, a half honn q
a T6e largest lsro oe one, M WI G,tie Was apa aifts o. @ r sns rsT ios
fashionable gamblers. was at $40 Broadway
II ahs the sm si1s aa Sas was was f qa sas sstFe ebisd Ess s. si nd,
groes and river front sports. In another place.
said th Pnn Ss m had St ,s ) dhSS5Cso'aaE us stnset tho It c iva
war. Gamblers had full swing at ei.t that time,
Saa NO ehS Sns s4 he ss% It a With ma his m riSns to take
Ranser; despite lite, his ISL @s66ree " !, was an osten;
5 hauling 4Gg HR bstw e aa 5000, fsSP! and s sioS.ooo sE N BANK nk
1t was related Of Danser that one morning q
bootblack stole 81 900 out OF his change pocket.
cause he cared ANYTHING about tho money. but
an additional reward OF $500 if he got the thief.
stolen p1S af money. fG SG sn9 vent p1E to an the sT Tomb Ss and sna
1ectured the boy, scpndly on the error Of his
own account Danser hired a lawyer for the boy
Danser had none of the sentiment which in
opired him to help the man who had robbed him
when it came 10 plucking a novice at the gam
only once in his career did anybody get the bot.
dur Sr n faro box aae on + hiS Sn sna ssn s@S,se rang IN sh en- =
ing him out of $500 before, he discovered the
game and nAy won iR his last dI dollar from fn1 bim rnAn !"
The robbery of Danser,s house on July II,
The gambler GnsSerG lived Pa at So ' west Eleventh Se the street t@sti
with his wife and daughter. Mrs. Danser and
Vocations They we're Ghristiasn Women nn'1 and
spent little of the vast sums of money that the
> On tho morning Of July il two men dressed
ms laborers called at the Eleventh street house
Repairs to the main at Broadway and Houston
street made it necessary, they said. Mrs.
and a,Sdhi they as stnrted ap pps @eh T for the ce snisP.'T1S en;
minutes later. as she sat sewing In the parlor,
t@s m a gag ran IN her In and mdn hound Ond her nra hand and d foot Sai
the house. FIVE other men who had been let in
Down tnS hq %nd s by ,ns iI bsr, t TSo kn tSa %eS Mis- tSss Dsnssf
tokiii both women unless!they told where Danser
Kept his money. -
Less than an hour before tho rambler had
gone down town carrying $24,570 in his pocket.
There wasn't n cent in the house. and although
the thieves went through the rooms. destroying
the furniture and ornaments with hatchets, they
got nothing but $4,000 in bonds, which were
registered and consequently useless to the
thieves.
Danser died in August, 1876, leaving a for
time OF 800, 900 to his wife and daughter.
Three months later Mrs. Danscr died. and the
entire fortune went to Miss Danser. According
10 nm arrangement with her mother, Miss DAN
ser was To use the money left by her father in
charitable work.
After the gamblers death the two women
spent their whole time in relieving poor and
distressed people and helping struggling
churches and religious societies. Miss Danser
went on with the work after her mothers
death: and while pursuing it met stevens, who
was Interested in n number of charities.
The couple bocamc engaged. and carly In Feb
quarry, 1877, In" Rev. H.. +. Ice OF PottstOwn,
Pa, was summoned 10 marry them. Stevens