Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1915-05-15
BODY OF MISSING MAN
FOUND THIS MORNING
Said to be That Of Party Who Left
Hotel Sunday Morning.
SUICIDE THEORY DISCOURAGED
Belief is That Miller Fell Overheard
Reaching for Oar That Got Away
From Him.

The body OF white man which has
not as yet been absolutely identified.
was found floating in the Severn river
this morning, near old Fort Madison,
on the grounds of which the Naval Ex-
eriment Station is located. The BODY
is now at local undertaker's estab-
lishment. and probably will not be dis
posed of until Monday, rs inquiry is
being made of different sources to es-
tabIish identity.
One thing is certain, and that is that
the body is that of the man who left
the local harbor last Sunday morning,
in small row boat, presumably to
visit the ships of the midshipmen's
practice cruise squadron, lying at
anchor in the Bay.
This party arrived in the city on Sat-
urday, registered at a local hotel un-
der the name of F. B. Miller, and told
the clerk, and others about the hostelry
thate was detective from Buffalo,
N. Y, and came here in search of two
men and woman wanted in that city.
That is all that was learned of the
stranger.
In conversation with the hotel clerk
he said he said he thought he would
go out for boat ride on Sunday, but
as he admitted that he knew very lit
tie about the handling of rowboat,
he was urged not to venture out very
far in the river, because of the rough
ness of the water, aud the danger at
tached thereto.
However, he hired boat and started
off and apparently rowed some dis
lance out in the river toward the bay.
The boat was seen by the keeper of
Greenberry Point Lighthouse, 1-2
miles from the city. An oar was float
ing nearby it. The craft was picked
upsby launch from the battleship Mis-
souri, The theory was at once ad-
vanced that the man either fell over
board in reaching for the oar that had
probably got away from him, or else
committed suicide.
When the mysterious disappearance
of the man became known, it was re-
ported that he wore pin of the Ma
sonic order, on his vest, but when the
body was found today, there was no
such pin about the clothing In the
meantime, the Annapolis lodge of Ma
sons opened communication with the
Masonic order at Buffalo, but as yet
have received no reply to their letter.
The coat and hat of the man was
found in the drifting boat, and there
was nothing about either of these
articles, nor the clothing on his body
to establish Identification. 1t is likely,
however. that the initials -. B. c."
embroidered on a handkerchief found
in the hip pocket of the trousers may
furnish working clue. There were
no letters, or cards in the clothing, the
only other thing being ST note.
The fact that the body is that of the
man who registered at the hotel, was
established by the clothing, las the coat
found in the boat was of the same
material as the other garments
The body of the man was found
floating near the shore by a son of Mr..
Benjamin Suit, of Eastport, who for
merly lived near the experiment sta
tion. Police Justice William r. Min
nick, acting as coroner viewed the
body. He decided that the man came
to his death by accidental drowning.
But the case is strange one, as the
man boosted that he was q good swim
msr, although admitting that he knew
little about the handling of boats.