Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-06-01
Body of Craven,
Victim of Dwight
Sinking, Is Buried

Boston. May 31.-Without the
knowledge of District Attorney Ar
thur X. Reading of MiddleseX county.
who had been conducting an inVeSti-
CATION in regard to its alleged mutili-
alton after death, a body recovered in
Vineyard Sound after the sinking
April 6 of the rum runner John
Dwight was buried Tuesday in Old
Calvary Cemetery. Boston, it became
known today. The body. identified
as that OF James A Craven. of
Lyndhurst. y. j.. had been kept in
a tomb at the Cambridge Cemetery
for six weeks pending the outcome
of the district attorneys inquiry.
Indictments against Thomas G.
Craven of New York and others
in connection with an alleged mil
lion dollar rum plot were returned
in that city Tuesday. On Monday
a man who gave the name of Thomas
r. Craven visited the offices of the
assistant district attorney in Cam
bridge On the same day man
giving the name OF Morton r. Craven
went to the office of the Cambridge
city clerk. had the original record
of death changed and was given 4
permit TO remove the body from the
tomb.
L
was made necessary by the fact that
the body originally had been identi-
fed as that OF James \. Cronan of
Cambridge. When the bodies of the
eight known dead from the John
Dwight's sinking were laid out in the
mortuary at Vineyard Haven a man
who said he was Martin r. Cronan OF
| Cambridge identified one as that of
his brother. The body was shipped
to q Cambridge undertaken. On the
day set for burial Cambridge police
officers went to the undertaking
| rooms to take fingerprints and gen.
eral description. They found. they
reported. that the hands had been
charred. making it impossible TO take
prints: the eye sockets had beeA
filled with a white plaster. and the
face had been painted over. Later
Martin r. Cronan went to Edgar
| town. Martha's Vineyard admitted
| that he had made a false Identified
ton and requested n new death GER
| tificate. He said his real name was
Martin r. Craven and that the body
was that of his brother, James A.
Craven. He said his reason for
seeking a new certificate was TO en-
able his brothers widow to collect
! $4,000 life insurance.
The incident admittedly had much
TO do with the starting by state au
thorities of an investigation OF the
John Dwight incident. The hull or
the vessel was located and examined
by divers. but no evidence was found
TO solve the mystery. On Tuesday
federal authorities announced in New
York that at the time OF the sinking
of the vessel James \. Craven was
,-ro,y, 70 have 500 600 in his DOS
session. The money was carried in
a leather bag. The bag wcs found
floating, empty. IN Vineyard Sound
after the sinking.
Apparently under the impression
this morning that the body of the
john Dwight victim was still in the
tomb at Cambridge, District Attor-
new Reading declared he would not
allow the body to he given up until
he had conferred with L. s. District
Attorney Robert o. Harris in view
of the developments in New York.
Later the district attorney said that
he might have told the medical ex-
arniner that he had no further OBJ
lection to burial. but that he had
never given the authorities any for
NAL notification that his InveStiga-
ton was ended.
The Board OF Health OF Cambridge
issued the order for the removal of
the body on Monday afternoon. Of
ficials of the board said the permit
was issued after Attorney William
II. Lewis had produced letter from
District Attorney Stanley P Hall
of the district in which Vineyard
Haven is situated. SAYING he had no
objection 10 the change o. name.