Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1908-05-04
Was His the Body Found
On Gardiner Shore?
Escaped Patient From Insane
Hospital Missing For Year.
Shirt on Body Like Many Issued to
Patients at Hospital. .

The finding of badly decomposed
and partially dismembered human body
on the west shore of the kennepec
river short distance below the city
of Gardiner on Wednesday afternoon
April 90, which was supposed to pc
that of a young man named Joseph
Silvia who was drowned last Novent-
Der by falling from the steamer RAN
som B. Fuller while she was making
her landing at Gardiner, until when
a few days later another body was
found in boom at South Gardiner
which was positively identified as that
OF Silvia. gives rise to the question OF
whether or not the remains first mem
toned are those of Joseph BoiSVert or
Lewiston, patient at the Insane hos
pital in this city. who made his escape
from that institution sometime during
the night of April 10, 1907, or early on
the following morning. and who has
never yet been located by the hos
pital authorities.
1t will be remembered that BOisVert
was placed in the hospital by order OF
Associate Justice Savage of the Su-
preme judicial court for Androscoggn
county. for observation as to his SAM
ty he having been taken from Auburn
Jail in December, 1906. to which in
stitution he had been committed in de-
faut of $4,000 bonds on a charge Of as
sault with intent to kill and rob.
The crime for which Boisvert was
arrested was an assault on Mrs
Josephine Roy of Lewiston in the fall
of 1906, during which she received IN
jures of a very serious nature. In the
accounts published at that time it was
stated that Mrs. Roy claimed that the
man started after her with butcher
knife, struck her on the head and at
tempted to force her through scuttle
into a grave beneath the kitchen floor.
The man was caught after a lively
chase, and at the hearing which fol-
lowed was bound over to the supreme
court in the sum Of $4,000, and being
unable to furnish bail was committed
to Auburn Jail, where he remained I'M
til he was committed to the Insane
hospital by order of the court.
Boisvert made his escape from the
hospital by removing some of the
guards to window of his room and
dropping to the ground, and the police
were notified on the following morn
ing. but the only clue that has ever
been secured was the finding on that
morning of a pair of slippers on Bow
man street, which were thought TO
have been discarded by him in his
fight.
Search was also made for the man
by the authorities at the hospital, they
being very DESTROYS of finding him
because of the circumstances sur
rounding his committal to the institu-
ton, but nothing has been heard from
him from that day to this, although
soon after his escape he was reported
to have been seen in the vicinity OF
Lewiston.
1t was the opinion of some of the
authorities that the man had possibly
made his way home and had been Sc
GREETED by those who were Interested IN
him. while others entertained the idea
that he had committed suicide, he haV-
ing. while at the hospital, expressed
the intention of jumping into the Ken
nebec river.
The description of Boisvert, given
out at the time of his escape was as
follows: Age, "a years; height feet
s or inches; light complexion ana
light moustachc: gray clothes. The
body found at Gardiner. with the ux-
ception of the remnants of a black
alpaca shirt. had no clothing on 1t, so
of course no identification could be
secured in that way, but the rag
mcnt of the shirt might lead to the
belief that the remains were those OF
BoiSve1t.
one of the authorities at the hospital
in speaking d few days ago of the ind
| ing OF the remains. said that quite a
number of shirts like the one found