New-York tribune., 1907-12-29
KNOW MEADOWS VICTIM.
THO IDENTIFY HER BODY.
Harrison Police Think They Hare
TnInobIe CIezU to Mystery.

considerably in solving the Harrison mystery
was furnished yesterday by Mrs Margaret
Wright. who conducts an employment asenO'
at No 447 Bloomfield avenue, Montclair' mrs'
Wright. after viewing the body of the "oilaA'
said she was positive that the victim was 'iie
ear,a woman who applied at her office Tor d
place on December Il.
Mrs Wright said that her visitor SAID she
was Mrs. Annie Nevins and explained thal she
lived in Brooklyn. but was staying tenpordllS
with friends in Newark. She said she had ioi
merry been a housekeeper for Two men IN
Brooklyn and wanted to get similar pace III
Newark Before locking at the body AitS'
x1-,ieht examined the clothing Of the victim IN
the possession of the police. She positlVeiy
identified the red Jacket, although she was not
sure as TO the color Of the skirt.
later in the afternoon Detective Sergeant
Drapeu of Orange looked at the body OF F'e
victim and said he was absolutely certain sho
was Miss Agnes O'keefe. who was erapioSeo as
q maid by several families in Orange until ABOUT
a year and a half ago. Drabell SAID the "oiiaii
was given to intemperance.
The detective said that the identification oy
Mrs Wright of Montclair, might IN all prona-
bilitv be correct The closest associate that the
dead woman had, according to Draoell' was II
Miss Nevins niece of Thomas NeVins, formerly
a wealthy contractor of Orange NeVlhs' Inc
detective said went to Ireland several years ago
and subsequently died there. He thinks 'hat
Miss O'Keefe was ct one time employed IN tha
Nevins household and that might account for
her having given the name OF Nevins TO Mrs
Wright He said there was not the sushles'
possibility that he could be mistaken IN his iden
tffcation of the dead woman.
Thomas Flanagan an elevator attendant III
n Newark department store positively idenu-
fed the body as that of a woman he had seen
in a Chinese restaurant in Newark on Christ
mas Eve He said he took particular notice
Of the womans clothing, and was sure that the
clothing found by the police belonged TO the
woman he had seen.
strange mystery surrounds the disappear
ance OF Miss Alice NJ Harvey. a nurse EN-
ployed at the country home of J. Oakley Hobby
Of Prospect street. White Plains. who left there
on Christmas Day to do some shopping and has
not been seen since. Miss Harvey formerly
lived in East Orange. y. J., and this led 10 the
report that 1t may have been her body which
was found in the pond at Harrison
Lieutenant Price. in charge of the Manhattan
Detective Bureau was visited by two women
late yesterday afternoon who refused to give
their names. They said they knew the Harvey
girl and that they had come from White Plains
10 go TO Harrison. Detective Mugge, OF the De-
tective Bureau. sent with the women TO
Harrison. where they looked at the body. The
dered woman. and that she was not Miss Har-
vey
Detective Sergeant Drabell said last night that
he had learned that Miss Okeefe had had
an operation performed. which. he thought. ac-
counted for the on the abdomen or the
victim He said he would again view the body
10 day. taking with him one or two OF the SER
want girls in Orange who had been friends or
the woman.
Yesterday morning woman's hat was found
on the bank of the Passaic River near where
the body was found. The hat had apparently
been in the water for some time 1t is believed
that II Aoated to where II was discovered. The
hat has a tooue shape. It is trimmed with fur,
similar 10 that on the ruT and collarette found
near the body and with two large white
feathers.
It's recovery completes the wearing apparel OF
the victim with the exception of the shoes and
underclothing. which are thought TO be at the
bottom of the Passaic River.
There was also found near where the body lay
mart of a letter which had been torn. and of
which only some of the words were decipherable.
The opening salutation was Dear Cora" and
some of the passages that could be made out
were: Pray God that you may yet be saved:
you will yet be restored to the loved ones; 'if
YOU would meet me-; 'I will you" AS the
letter had been in the water and had been
trampled on. no signature could be made out.
Another piece of evidence which may in some
way be connected with the is in the form
OF a heart shaped pearl pin with silver wire
border on which the initial as" The pin
was found by Alfred Van Ripper. of Harrison.
yesterday morning, and the police think it be-
, longed the victim.
The presence of a Brooklyn detective at the
morgue in Harrison last night gave rise to a
story that the Brooklyn police are working on
a clew that may solve the mystery.
A constant stream OF women and girls passed
in and out of Walsh'S morgue yesterday. gaz-
ing at the body of the victim. Many of these
went there through curiosity, and invented all
sorts of plausible stories to get by the door
keeper. They had sisters, daughters, aunts and
other relatives missing, whose description cor
responded to that of the victim but on viewing
the body they went away satisfied that it was
not that of their relative.
It is understood that DR. Converse. county
physician, has retained the United States Labo-
ratories Company, OF No. 4J East 42d street
Manhattan. to perform autopsy on the body
of the murdered woman and to make chemical
analysis of the organs after they are removed
The trunk that Kirkman the boatman, who
is held suspicion, left Mt the Jersey City
house. where he had boarded for seven months
was opened yesterday and found to be empty
The opinion of the Jersey City police is that
Kirkman knows nothing of the supposed crime
His reputation is excellent. and when he left
the boarding house he said he was going TO
| work the boat and was glad to get employ
weeks.