The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1900-01-03
ARREST IN
EYRE CASE.
Jim Pierce Tells About
The LadOmus Boat.

WAS arrested 6oUby, nus COut0bSeu tuds bue
boat of Bonshl q. Ladomus. s'oien from
the Alpha Bat House, and found floating
past the Consumers Ios Wharf last We'd
nesday morning was In his possession be-
fore It's recovery. This confession was
made to Chief Berry late this afternoon
after the hearing before Mayor Jefferis.
Pierce explains that he found 1t on Tue
sday morning floating between the Penn
| svlvania and New Jersey shore. He took
possession Of 1t, towed 1t up Chester Greek
and kept 1t until be sent 1t adrifr.
Fierce says that he found the boat on
tho morning Ut December 18th.
This would be nine days before the dis.
appearance Of George b. Eyre 1t Is
strange the theft was not discovered until
Utmost fortnight after the 18th Of Dec
emBsr II the date fixed by Pierce Is cor,
rect.
As was published the police had watched
q man walk down to tho Consumers Ice
Wharf at five o'clock Wednesday morn
Ing. He stood for mOment looking out
on the river aud returned to his house.
This man was "Jim" Pierce. At the
same time the boat tracks were discovered
and u little later Ladomus' boat was seen
drifting close 10 the shore. How much
more that this Pierce has revealed is yet
to be learned.
In the possession Of W. E. Splcer. tho
keeper vi the Christiana Light just at the
edge OF this city, Is the false bottom of a
skiff which may belong to the bout In
which unfOr innate George b. Eyre, of
Chester went away but never returned.
The bottom Is being carefully guarded hy
Mr.. Spicer until some one familiar with
tho boat In which Eyre went away has
sean 1T and passed his opinion as to wheth-
or 1t belonged to the mis- Ing man
IL Was on Tuesday last that Keeper
Spicer picked I'D tho skiff bottom ON tho
riprap which forms the jetty ut the mouth
Of The Chrlstiaua River He had noticed
something which looked like a boat bot
tom on no previous day. but had paid little
at ent,on to 1t. On Tuesday he was re.
pairing u fence, and seeing the object
again, thought he would pick 1t up. 1t
was soine time after this that he oonclud.
cd that IT might be a part Of tho boat OF
the missing Eyre. but no kept his coun-
sci. Numerous people asked him que--
tions concerning the tides aud whether he
thought the body OF the missing man
might be found there, but 1t was only
yester lay that he came TO the conclusion
that the bottom might be important. He
had read articles descriptive o. the boat,
AMI caused him to compare 1t with the
pictures in the paper
gons to bed Tonight thai u reporter reach
ed his home. Two miles riding over a
dark and dangerous road from this city
Is necessary to reach the lighthouse.
Repeated knocking at che door brought
the keeper and, his son to tho window.
He hnd boen watching how closely the
papers had followed the case. When ask
cd If no had any clues, the keeper told Of
his fin aud exhibited ii. The bot'o Ii
tho Relson bottom, such as i put in
cunning or duckng sklif for the purpose
of making place for tho feet. 1t is even
and one half feet lUnG and two feet wide
at the widest part. The top of the boards
are held by thee CROSS pieces and tho bot
tom by five The centre crosspiece on top
is, of course,a rust for tho feeL when row.
ing, and may furnish Il clue to the ident.
ity of he bottom II any of the bpat club
members remember the one In Evre's boat
The centrepieCe has besn- made of piece
of wagon.riin The places for .be spokes
ara plainly shown AMI the piece hhs beon
painted yellow. while the body of the hot
tom is II sort OF drab, which has evidently
been vanished 1t now has tho appear-
| ance ct uight OF natural wood finish.
| Evidently the bottom has some time been
| repaired by putting on this piece of wagon
| Or carriage rim. The job is neat however
and tho whole bottom Is In excellent COIL
dition On the upper rigbt-hand corner
of the bottom the paint has boon worn off.
The bo tom was found just in the place
| WueTC ~ Wbulu ub CkTTiou Nv " UluN CDms
! ing down the river. Keeper Spicer talked
Of tho find.
"Until this time" he said II had
thou Iht the missing man had been run
| down by a steamer, but this appears to
make 1t different. Tho skiff would have
been found by this time. particularly If
this Ia piece to it. In addition the boat
would Of keep above the ice for long
time Evidently the skiff has not been
| mt nd Il and thia hnI not hann aHrifk
very long"
Mr.. Spicer will keep close lookout for
the body ana for other clues to the miss
ing man. He says, however, that II Eyre
was drowned it will DO some time before
the body comes up, on account Of the leo
| In the river.
He Is ANXIOUS that persons familiar
with the boat Of Eyre should sec the bot
tom and express there opinion as to
whether 1t l. his. He will keep it until
the au horitiss in Chester ask for 1t.
Linwood Splcer. tho son of the keeper.
who is also engaged In tho government
service, aud who has tskeu mnch inter-
ct in this case from reading Of 1t In the
papers, agreed with his father about the
boat bottom. He was the one who point.
ell out the different points about 1t and
brought 1t in for examination. He also
disposes OF one clue. He does not believe
the mon who vera seen at Reedy Island
and whom he had been quoted as saying
he believed were Eyre and companion
we o anything OF tina kind. He wns on.
gagged in Ii govern ment survey at Reedy
Island when.he saw the men trying 10 get
clio Q tn some ducks and later trying to
get out o! tho way of u boat. Ha says he
did not see he men plainly enough to
identify them, and hs does not believe
one of them was Ezra becau 9 Eyre IA
supposed to be nm expert boatman, while
DO Ii Of these msn were green hands in
handling boat Thew could not get CLOSE
upon tine ducks and neither could they
readily GIT out of the way OF tho boat that
was approaching.