Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial. (Wilmington, Del.) 1878-1928, 1923-01-06
HUNT FOR CARS GEMS
LEADS TO CEMETERY
U. S. May Open Grave in Brook
Ign In Search for Russian
Crown Jewels.

New York, Jan. On n theory that T.
a. 10000 worth 81 Russian jewels, .
possibly part Of the Romnnof collection, .
we're smusgled into the United States
two years ago IN coffin, agents Of the
Treasury Department may cause the /
grave "a James Jones In Cypress Hills /
cemetery, Brooklyn, % be opened.
Jones, mossnan aboard tho army
transport Edellyn. died while the ship
was returning 20 this country from
Vlndivostock and was buried by the
government az Cypress Hills on Sep
tomber %, 1920.
William Is. Williams, chief ~ the
Treasury, special agents 10 Now York
hos admitted TINT he wac working ON
Russian Jewel chse" and that he might
/ open n grave he would not comment on a
a report that he would ask a Federal
| Judge on Monday for permission 20
examine JOucs's coffin.
Officers of Cypress Hills cemetery
admitted that the government recently
had reCun ted records relating - q
certain grave AZ the cemetery II was
learned that the grave Ia question ~as
that 81 James Jones.
Stories that the Soviet authorities
were surreptiiiOuFly selling tho Russian
crown Jewels 10 raise money have been
floating about tho world for three years.
As ITO scotch thcsc rImors the Soviet
Jewel Commission showed 20 correspond
ents IN September last IN n building
formerly che law court II Moscow a
dazzling collection represented - -
the RomRnon collection intact. worth
s4OO 200, 900. and including the crown q
Nicholas II, Photograph - this array
have been published hcrc
According % q story publlshed boy
the Chicago. NewF. which Mr. Williams
ssid lac could not confirm or contradict,
sale ~ part ~ tho crown jewels "a
"A New York ring WINS arranged IN 1919
and three men were 20 - 20 RUSSO
. in the crew 81 the EClellyn 20 get them
To reach VladivustOck ~ the Rp-
B pointed time two 81 tho agents deserted
the ship NJ Yokohama and went ahrad
only % find that a group - German nm,
+. Czecho- Slovak officers had go' he lewcls
After fights and double rrosses the gems
: m srven packages. were entrusted %
= American congDirptors still aboard M
=, transport
Z Ono - these. N tho story GOES
r crossed tho rest q the gang and nd IN
= priyc IN the coffin 81 JONES ho hsf
e died AZ sea. II q fact that some reasoi
. never explained customs men searches
n the Edellyn FOR three days after he
arrival al New York on September
i 1920 Thebody Of Jones Wss kept aboar
q twonty-three dsys. and then. ~ no rela
9 tives could ~ found, WAS buried M M
q national plot az Cypress Hills
la the spring Of 1921 somebody Tih
scribing himself Edward Roe. Crener'
D. Delivery Chicago. wrote 70 the Se'
e retary of iha Treasury that he had bee
d doubled crossed in the smuggling
~ 81 900 900 worth Of Russian Jewels IN q
" fall 81 1920
Dr Ia another letter he said the Ne
p, York customs men knew that somefhIr
ID irregular had taken place on Septen
r. her . 1920. a third letter. s-nt m Apr
7e 1921. % the Office of BORIS Bakmetie'
? Ambassador q tho old Russian 20
n ernment in Washington, told ~ q
smuggling plot and the episode ~ q
be coffin. The writer Of this signed hiT
be self Douglas Gordon and offered 70 ~
n, the Jewels 10 the Ambassador for $50 ~
IN The government investigated but fouI
d out nothing.
Recently, 20 the story goes. II IN
er again and discovered that the know
~ movements Of the transport kdeily
At. two desertions in Yokohama, the des
he Of Jones and the customs search he
tailed with the alleged facts a. glv
bv the ANONYMOUS correspondents, V
had mentioned the names Of no Il
and no men.
30 the Treasury Department, avn
'r' that the whole weird story might IA
9. been concocted by would-be swindl
NIX Of the Russian Ambassador. apparen
thinks IL worth while 10 look into