The evening world., 1909-03-01
Health and Police Authorities
Enraged by the Hoax
Worked Upon Them,
TO MAKE MANY ARRESTS.
Circulars Advertising Fluid
Distributed When Woman'S
Body Was Taken Out.

The gruesome comedy OF the body In
box was carried along toward con-
clus!on to-day by the opening OF the box
and the verfcation OF the suspicion
that a human corpse was in It. DR..
Bense, of the Board Of Health, feels
fairly sure that the whole mystery
Is the connection Of press agent EN-
ployed In the interest OF new EN-
balming fluid. II this proves to he true.
the men responsible for the attempt
to make use OF the Health Department
and the police for advertising purposes
will have a lively time sde.s,epping
the laws on the subject of keeping
bodies from ltral and moving them
without permission Dr. bensel is mad
clear through.
The box was taken on Saturday from
the undertaking rooms OF Theodore
Palumbo at No. al Mulberry street A
man representing himself as a dis.
charged employee Of Palumbo reported
to the Health Department that there
was a body in a padocked box at Pal
umbo's and something ought TO be done
about 1t. Palumbo professed not to be
lieve that there was body In the box
He said 1t had been put in his hands
for safekeeping by Francesca TocCi, a
dealer In musical instruments at No.
52O Broadway.
Tocci SAID that the box had been con
fided to him By Or, Giacnto Vetere,
who was the inventor OF a new embalm-
ing fluid. But he was sure there wasn't
any body in the box. The box was o.
irO. Ii was three feet deep and four
wide and nine feet long and the Id was
fastened down By three huge padlocks.
10 which there were no keys. All day
Sunday the box lay at the morgue u
Willard Parker Hospital, whence bodies
suspected OF dangerous contagious ten
denotes are always sent.
To-day DR.. Walter Bensel and his as
sistant, Or, Alon2o Blauvelt went down
to Willard Parker and superintendent
the smashing of the pad.ocks and the
opening Of the box.
Inside the iron shell was a fine ma
hogany cGsket. Inside the casket, which
was orna:ely lined with satin was the
nude body OF woman, about forty
years old, at death, wrapped in a linen
sheet. 1t was perfectly preserved
Il don't know who the woman was"
said DR.. Bensei, when he came ont
u don't know whether she died in A
hospital or at her home or whether
her body was dug mp from grave. 1t
doesn't matter. The Sanitary Code pro.
vIdes that body must not be Kept
from burial more than four days with
out permit-and that rule, w''ch has
very satisfactory penalties aAached,
has certainly been violated
While Dr. Bensel was talking, Pa.
Jumbo, the undertaken, came up in a
cab. With him was a man who looked
strangely like the picture Of Dr.. Netere,
the inventor of the marvellous cmbalm-
ing fluid. DR.. Neter. II it was he, began
handing out circulars telling of the
merits OF his mixture
Ordered eaiumbo to Report.
When DR.. Bensel heard of this he got
red In the face and bit his lip. He called
Palumbo TO the side OF his big red
automobile and addessed him thus:
'Palumbo, | want you to come up TO
my office and | want you 10 get there
quick. want you there in half an
hour or III send out and have you
brought there. And you had better
bring your smooth-looking friend along
with you, too"
81, 81" said the undertaken, who
was apparently disturbed by the
severity of the Health Department
mans tone. shall l come in your au-
tomobile. now?'
NO you shs'n't," roared DR.. Bensel.
~ don't want either OF you in my car"
The Health Department automobile
went snortng off uptown and the rusty
cab with the TWO eXploI;ers OF the
peerless embalming fluid logged dis
consulate behind.