Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-09-18
GIRL FOUND IN
RIVER ENDED OWN
LIFE, IS BELIEF
Kearny Authorities Say Miss
Alice Hopper Was Melancholy
from Inconsistencies.
HER DRESS WEIGHTED
DOWN WITH STONES
This Fact at First Gave Rise
to the Theory of
Murder.

That Miss Alice Hopper adopted
daughter of Mrs. Sarah Hopper, of 1873
Windsor street, Arlington, whose
body was found floating yesterday in
the Passaic river, near the plant OF
the Standard Bitulithic Company,
Harrison. committed suicide is the
opinion of the Kearny police, who,
under the direction of Chief of Police
William Tolen, of that town, conduct
ed an investigation.
Dependency because she could not
return to England, her former home,
is given as the motive for the girls
act
On the strength of this report, DR..
A A. Mutter, who is the acting dep
uty county physician. today declared
he would issue burial certificate.
He will, however, confer with DR..
Charles H. King. county physician of
Hudson, before issuing the permit.
The body is still at the Harrison
morgue. 1t will be moved from there
as soon as the permit is issued
stones weighted Down skirt.
The girls body, partly submerged
by the weight of stones enclosed in
her skirt, was seen floating in the
river by Frank Bowers and Albert
Knecher, of Harrison, who were
working on a scow by the Standard
Bitulithic Company's dock at Harri-
son.
The two men towed the body to the
Harrison shore. After it had been
drawn UP OH the bank it was found
that the skirt had been folded back
and the bottom tied about the waist,
making a bag-like compartment all
about the body, that was filed with
many rocks.
The Harrison police were at once
notified. There was no difficulty in
aseertaining that the body was that
of Miss Hopper as a signet ring and
her clothing gave them that informa-
ton. The body was removed to the
Harrison morgue, where the identi-
flcation was later made complete by
John Lever, a cousin of the young
woman Miss Sarah Hopper, a sis
ter of the girl, later visited the
morgue and viewed the body. She
was so overcome that she was taken
home in a hysterical condition.
Believe She May Have Been Lured.
There is a possibility, according to
statements by the young girls friends
and relatives. that Miss Hopper was
lured from her home Saturday night
and taken to the neighborhood of the
park and later thrown into the Pas
sale River weighted down with the
stones with the belief that she would
sink to the bottom and not rise again.
In either case, however, whether the
young girl committed suicide or was
foully dealt with, the stones did not
prove heavy enough to keep her body
at the bottom of the river long.
Miss Hopper was the adopted
daughter of Mrs. Sarah Hopper, of
the Windsor street address, who is
now visiting friends in England. The
girls real name was Robinson. She
and her sister Sarah were adopted by
Mrs. Hopper following the death of
their mother several years ago.
For no apparent reason, Miss Hop
per left her home Saturday night at
tired in a dress of gray material
without hat or coat, although it was
very cool. When she did not return
after several hours the relatives noti-
fed the Kearny police, and search
was made for her at once. In the hope
of obtaining a clue, the authorities
even searched the bank of the Passaic
River, but obtained no information.