The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-02-24
MURPHY IS ANGRY
Says Taylor's Hotel Peo-
pie Make Murder
Easy.
CONCEALED A VIOLENT DEATH
John Wiley Shot in the Mouth
Yesterday M~orning-Police
Knew Nothing.

Chief of Police Murphy, of Jersey City,
is highly incensed over the action Oh
Proprietor Reed of Taylor's Hotel, in con-
cealing the facts in a mysterious shoot
ing case which occurred in his hotel night
before last. He did not inform the police
and it vas only by accident that they
learned of the affair. They have no means
of telling whether a suicide or a murder
was committed.
This peculiar report was placed on the
desk at Police Headquarters for the in
formation of the newspaper men at 1890
o'clock last night:-'At s this A. M, John
r. Wiley. age 80 years, employed by
Wells Fargo Express Co, residence this
city, was found dead with a pistol shot
wound in his mouth in bed in Taylor's
Hotel. He booked last night as j. X.
Wiley, but did not write his address.
Body taken charge of by Undertaken Nc
Nulty. DR.. Converse notified Feb. %,
$780,,
Ordinarily when a man is discovered lead
in a hotel or anywhere else the police
are notified at once and a report similar
to the above is put on the desk at Police
Headquarters without delay. Chief OF
Police Murphy was seen this morning and
asked why it was that the report was so
long delayed.
ssThat is all the police know of the
matter" he said, "the hotel people were
SO afraid of notoriety that they did not
inform the police of the suicide. we nave
no means of knowing whether 1t was
suicide or murder. The hotel people took
the whole matter into their own hands.
"In future if a person wants to commit
murder all he need to do is to take MS
victim to a Jersey City hotel, shoot him,
place the pistol in his hand and leave.
The obliging hotel proprietor will see to
it that the crime is thoroughly covered
up"
Chief Murphy also gave out this state
ment:-
Sat eight o'clock last evening County
Physician Converse accidentally met
Captain Archibald on a street car and
asked him what he knew of the suicide
in Taylor's Hotel in the morning. Inc
CAPTAIN said he knew of no suicide that
day in his precinct. An inquiry made by
Captain Archibald showed that John X.
Willy, aged thirty-six, chief clerk iof
Wells, Fargo Co., was founde dead IN
room in Taylor's Hotel, at eight O'Clock
Yesterday morning with a bullet wound
in his mouth, and that the hotel people
had notified Undertaken McNulty, VINO
had gone there and removed the body TO
his establishment.
This is an unusual occurrence, to say
the least. Neither the police. the County
Physician or any other proper officer had
| seen the body until after it had been re-
moved from the scene of the tragedy.
There is, therefore, no means of knowing
how the man came to his death; whether
by suicide or at the hands of some other
nerson. The hotel people, however, say
that a maid discovered the deceased IN
bed with a revolver in his hand. There
was considerable blood in the bed, they
allege.
.sThe law says that the County Physi-
clan shall view all bodies in all cases
of violent and sudden deaths in this
county and make it the duty of the police
to notify the County Physician immedi-
ately in such cases. The police never dis
turb a body until after a survey of the
premises has been made and all the facts
gathered so that homicides may not be
covered up as suicides. In this case,
| however the police can do nothing FUR
Their than to take the statement OF the
maid who first discovered the body.
1.-THE law also says that the bodies OF
| all unknown and unclaimed persons shall
he sent to the morgue. TIL hotel people
| avoid this by saving that they knew de-
ceased and therefore sent Tor the under-
taker."