Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1912-03-13
A New Detective
Method
By NJ L PoMERoy
copyright by American Press Assoc
citation. ISL.

worked % an entirely new metnssa
Of procedure IN criminal cases. the
sense OF smell True dogs have track
ed persons by this sense. but they
have not. so far as know. Distinguish
cd between intiiyidnaiS
Nv attentioa had been drawn TO the
matter by reaFting the following
Ever, human lfeiag has specific
odor Of his own. by which be can be
recognized by parsons Of sensitive
smell The case Is mentioned OF q
nan who. bllndfoided. coaid pick out
each individual IN q company of TWEEN
ty by his odor The smell IL not born
with us. but develops gradually I'LL
about the age Of fourteen, after which
II remains unchanged Members of
family have kind Of common odor,
which exists even when they have
lived apaF; fof long time"
I cut out what I had read and put II
in my pOcketbook. where II remained
for some time. Being detective 1T oc-
Cured to me that here WAS a new
field Of criminal demonstration that
had never even been opened con-
suited with Psychologists about reduc-
ing the idea 10 practice, but gained
nothing of real value from any OF
them. Finally accident put me Ia a
way to make the frst step
was called In on the following
case: In 1862 Edward Nolan. man
with a wife and two children. went to
the civil war. After one OF those bat
ties In whics large number Of uni
Identified bodies were shoveled into
trenches or buried under headstones
marked Unknown" the soldier. Ed
ward Nolan. disappeared. His nsne
was reported among the killed. and no
doubt was entertained that be was
dead. Since no one was found who
could vouch for his death bis widow
declined to marry again for some
years after his supposed death.
Nolan's father during the war made
great deal Of money In army con
tracts. He died without will and
without issue. and the fortune by the
law of inheritance descended to his
two children. both boys and both mi
nors- Ten years after the battle in
which Nolan was understood to have
been killed his widow married again.
Her husband. Thomas Chadwick. took
the management Of the estate belong
ing TO the Nolan boys and did what
he liked with IT. Then Mrs. Chad.
wick died
One day man appeared who claim
ed to be tho departed Nolan. II he
were what re claimed TO be the prop
erty his father had left belonged to
him One o: his boys had died. The
other was In delicate health and left
the management OF the property In his
stepfather's hands. where II had been
since the aeath OF Nolan senior.
Chadwick was thrown into an uncom-
Portable state OF mind. for II Nolan
could establish his claim 10 the prop
erty Chadwick mus, not only give 40
it's management. but render an ac-
counting Since he was unable to &C
count satisfactorily. be would be in
trouble.
Nolan put his cnse-that IL. collect.
ing proof Of his idcntity--in my hands.
He refused to state why be had not
shown up before. but l inferred that
another woman than his wife was the
cause. The only point Of law involv-
ed was his Identity With the son of
the Nolan who died leaving fortune.
As Is usual In such cases. those who
knew anything about the real younger
Nolan stood on opposite sides Of the
question Solan's letters. written
when he was young man. were pro-
duced and compared with his hand
writing at The time OF his reappear-
ance. Some experts pronounced them
TO have been written by the same per
son. while others said they had not
Pictures taken when he was boy
were compared with his face, but
there was little resemblance, though
IT was admitted that they might have
been Nolan's likeness.
l failed to find any proof that the
man was Nolan. Had he accounted
for himself from the day OF the battle
the difficulty might have been over
come. As II was. saw no way TO
establish his claim.
One day man came TO me and
said:
Il understand a man has turned I'D
claiming TO be Ned Nolan. who went
to the war and was killed at the bat.
tie OF Gettysburg knew Nolan well,
and can toll IL this man Is he with
out looking at him. Nolan had
murky smell TO him. once took I'D
bis hat and noticed the odor in the
lining. 1t vas quite strong. Any one
could smell IT."
selected dozen men and lined
them up. placing Nolan the ninth from
one end, the third from the other.
Then blin1foided Mathews. the man
who said be could Identity him, and
introduced him into the line. He put
his face up against the bodies Of eight
men SUCCESSFULLY without n nausa Int