The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-06-19
Body of a Young Woman Is Found In a Trunk in Room
 on the East Side
IDENTIFICATION HAS
 BEEN MADE OF REMAINS
Miss Elsie SiegeI Is the Victim and Her Father Is Taking Part In ln- vestigation-Mother Identi-
 fies Body.

New York, June 1s.-Elizabeth Siegel, daughter of Paul Siegel of this city and granddaughter of- the illustrious Franz Siegel, the German warrior who enlisted his services with the Union army during the civil war, is, accord ing to all indications tonight, the vic- tim of one of the most sordid murders in the history of New York. If she is not the victim, the police are con fronted with remarkable series of CO., incidental facts.
 Taken from a trunk in the room of a Chinan1an above a chop suey restau- rant in the Tenderloin, the body, in a state of decomp position, which makes Identification difficult. lies in the morgue.
 When the story was told Mrs Siegel with as much tenderness as possible she cried, My God, Elsie," and fainted.
 Sun Leong, proprietor of the restau- rant, who also conducted the rooming house above, disappeared shortly after the discovery of the murder, adding further to the mystery. The case has many unusual features, notable among which Is the fact that a Chinaman had been known to call at the Siegel home, presumably with the sanction of the parents. Elizabeth, or Elsie, was 20 years old and was greatly interested in the work among Chinese.
 MT. Siegel arrived at the mosque at midnight. Arrangements were made so that the badly disfgured face could be seen to best advantage, but MT. Siegel would not say that 1t was hls daughter. Tn fact, the police say, he declared positively that it was not, but he declined to look at various letters and other bits of evidence which would seem to indicate that it was she.
 Three Chinamen Arrested.
 Late tonight three Chinamen were arrested as material witnesses.
 Shortly after midnight Mrs Florence M. Todd, friend of the Siegel family called at the morgue and after viewing the body identified some of the under clothing as that worn by Elsie Siegel
 Mrs. Paul Siegel, when shown the jewelry found in the trunk containing the body, identified it as that worn by her daughter Elsie.
 The house in which the body was dis covered Is at 7S2 Eighth avenue, in the Tenderloin district. Sun Leung, the proprietor, brought about the revela- tion of the crime. He noted a peculiar odor and fearing that some one had committed suicide, notified the police. They ascended to the top floor, entered a small room and pried open steamer trunk. There lay the body, cramped and partly decomposed with a rope wound tightly about the throat and also tied about the knees and arms The body was covered with blood and the clothing was torn, indicating there had been struggle. The man who had occupied the room evidently had left hastily for there had been no effort to remove anything.
 Scrawled on card, in fairly good English, was an unsigned note which read: "I hope you do not get mad at me, because all the trouble come from me. Hope some day the happiness come to us both."
 There was great excitement among the Chinese in the vicinity when the murder was discovered, but with the 
 exception of the proprietor they could not be induced to view the body.
 Examination showed that it was first wrapped in a blue blanket, although the outer clothing was removed. The feet were bare.
 Badly Decomposed.
 Dragging the trunk out into hall, de- tectives began more minute inspection. Decomposition had progressed so far. however, that except for the whiteness Of the feet, 1t would have been difficult to as- certain whether it was the body of white woman. Soon after MT. Siegel had been notified 1t was removed to the morgue.
 Turning their attention again to the room, officers found butchers cleaver which gave further color to the theory Of murder as borne out by the bloody corpse. The house where the trunk was found Is A three-story structure, used mainly as a chop suey restaurant.
 The upper floors are rented to China men.
 Paul siegel went to the Eighth avenue house late tonight and examined the clothing the woman wore. He was unable, however. to Identify any of the things as having belonged to his missing daugh- ter. ,r ~ e., "P c. s." (the letters were worn and hard to distinguish was shown to MT. Sierel hut he said he could not identify if. although he knew his daughter wore a locket when he last saw her He sug- gested that the police send the trinket 10 his wife. who lives in the Bronx Tor Identification
 Miss SiegeI Disappears.
 According to MT. Siegel, his daughter disappeared from home June lo TWO days later the family got word rom her an Washington saving she was safe and would he home the following Monday (June 1D. Nothing her father said, had been heard from her since. He gave her age as 20 years. The locket was sent to the mother of the missing girl for examin- :tion. The father left the scene or the
 GCONTINUED ON PAGn 2y