Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-10-29
HUMAN RIDDLES
That Have Vexed the World
By JOHN ELFRETH WATKINS.
Alexander I. Stewart-What
Became of His Corpse3

In 1928 there landed in New York an
Irish immigrant youth Of twenty. who,
in the Emerald Isle. had studied for the
ministry. but had decided that he was
not fitted for the cloth.
His name was Alexander Turney
Stewart. When he put foot upon the
Land Of the Free" he had no definite
plans for his future, and after drift
ing about for a while became q teacher
in a select school Of our metropolis.
Reaching his majority, he returned to
Ireland for his share of the small for
tune his father had left. Then he re-
turned to New York, opened q Broad
way store for which he paid $3.50 a
year rent. His capital amounted to
$4,000. He slept in the rear OF his shop,
which proved to be the nucleus of the
greatest dry goods establishment in
the world. During the early years of
the civil war he built a store costing
So. 100000 and employing 1000 persons.
numerous mills and factories. His in
come was now $4,000. 900 a year.
He spent vast sums In philanthropy,
sent whole shipload of provisions to
relieve the great Irish famine and dis
patched another vessel laden with -four
to feed the destitute of France after
that country's defeat by the Germans.
His marble 5th avenue mansion was
regarded at the time as the finest pri-
vate house in the world and contained
an art gallery that ranked among the
most valuable in the country 1t was
In this house that he entertained the
Emperor of Brazil and one Of the great
scions Of the house Of Rothschiid.
was interested in building a million
dollar home for working girls on 4th
avenue. and while he was erecting the
village Of Garden City. Long Island.
employees. he died April 10. 1875. He
left a fortune Of $4,000, 900 He was
survived by widow. but no children.
In fact, he had no blood relations
Many legacies were left to his en-
ployes and he made provision for vari-
GUS public charities.
Soon after her husbands death Mrs.
Stewart erected in st. Marks church
yard handsome mausoleum in which
his body was intombed.
In November. 1873. about two years
and a half after Mr.. Stewards intomb-
mont. Judge Henry Hilton. his ex-
ecutor. rushed into the New York po-
Intelligence that ghouls had broken
into Stewards mausoleum. Upon in
9uiry. the police learned that Judge
Hilton had previously discovered that
a sns ss eaa haa been arxs Nth
above the coffin to be removed to an
other place. This false tomb had been
inscribed "A. T. Stewart Family Vault"
in the hope that 1t would deceive
pose appeared eager to carry away the
bones of the dead merchant prince
Only four persons were supposed to
have shared knowledge of this strata
that the slabs removal had been wit
messed by the COnSpiratOrS.
AS soon as the alarm was given the
police investigated the unmarked grave
ghouls had there made excavations
with mathematical precision that
proved their absolute knowledge of it's
location. They had dug down on all
sides to within a fraction Of an inch
of a f1agstone covering the real grave.
The multi-mfllionafre's corpse had
been incased in a casket covered with
black cloth, fringed with gold braid
This coffin had been placed in a 1eaden
case inclosed by heavy wooden box.
The lid of the outer box had been un-
the leaden casket cut open
and the inner coffin robbed of Its
gruesome contents. The famous mer-
when he died and his body was so
emaciated by his fatal illness that 1t
weighed only eighty pounds. and
hence it would have been an easy mat
ter to have carried the body away in
a sack.
The night before this act of vandal-
ism had been performed It had been
dark and rainy. Tho conditions for
such a crime were ideal. The only pos
sible clues to the vandals' Identity
were an iron shovel, a small bulPs-eye
lantern and newspaper that they had |
left behind. A carefully devised police
net Immediately stretched about the |
failed to catch any one will |
ing to state that he had seen or heard |
any suspicious personages or actions |
that might lead to the solution OF the J
It seemed improbable that any |
persons of a character that would have /
engineered such gruesome enterprise |