Year: 1876

rious manner; and the complication was


rendered all the more intricate, firstly.


by the fact that nobody corresponding to


that OF the missing woman could be


found in any of the London dissecting-


rooms; secondly, by a similarity between


the dress of the missing woman and that
OF the hospital patients; and thirdly, by


both women having possessed baskets (in
which they hawked smallwares) exhib-
iting close likeness to each other, al
though that of Walsh had no cover,
whilst Welsh's basket had lid. Thus
TO similarity in nation we must add a
confusing similarity in name, in dress, in
occupation, and in certain possessions.
And although strict inquiries revealed
differences in the habits, physical ap-
pearance, and bodily conformation of the
women, and in their respective birth
places, yet obviously the case was one in
which, unless additional evidence was
forthcoming either to confirm or refute
the doubts rs to the identity of Welsh
with Walsh, the prisoner Ross would
clearly profit by the conflict of evidence
and the ends Of justice might ultimately
be defeated.


One remarkable circumstance in the
history of the murdered woman at length
assumed the position OF crucial test. 1t
was conclusively proved that Caroline
Walsh had very perfect front teeth-an
admitted unusual feature in an aged wo-
man. Caroline Welsh, on the contrary,
had no front teeth, and, moreover, rs
was proved by an examination of her
/ hn 4 i
viously been obliterated-through the
modifyingprocesses which are well known
to occur, especially in the aged-for a
very considerable period The scientific
evidence clearly established this latter
fact in the history of Caroline Welsh :;
and rs the existence of the prominent
front teeth in Caroline Walsh was as
firmly established, the guilt of the priso-
ner Ross was brought home to her, al
though, indeed, the fate of her victim re-
manned mystery more easily guessed at
than solved.


Sometimes the researches of the scien-
tist actually in the first instance lead
to the clearing up of disappearance.
thus, the examination of a skeleton
found deeply imbedded in the sand of
the sea-coast at certain Scotch water
place showed that the persen when liv-
ing must have walked with very pecu-
liar and Characteristic gait in conseq uence
| OF some deposits of rheumatic kind which
J affected the lower part of the spine and
pelvis. The mention of this fact induced
Il search through some old records of the
town, and resulted in the discovery that
a case of mysterious disappearance had
been duly noted the subjec. being a
person whose mode of walking had made
him an object of attention, and whose
fate, but for the obscrvant eve of the
anatomist, might have remained wholly
unknown.


One of the most famous cases in which
medical science has aided the effects of
the law in determining the identity of
human remains was that known as the
Waterloo Bridge murder. This case ex-
cited much interest and curiosity at the
time (lS57), and (as in crime of tho
most recent date the chain of circum-
stances which led to the discovery that a
murder had been committed shrouded
the matter still more impenetrably in
mystery. A carpet bag which had been
dropped over Waterloo Bridge, London,
with the obvious intention of disposing
etiectually y and silently of its contents in
the Thames landed instead on one of the
buttresses of the bridge, a few yards above
the current. When examined the bag
was found to contain portions OF a human
body, the pieces, consisting OF bones with
flesh attached, numbering twenty.three
in all. 1t formed an important object
of inquiry to ascertain whether the iden-
tity of the remains could be determined,
with view to connect them firstly with
any known case Of mysterious disap-
pearance; while their due examination
might in the second instance lead to the
discovery of a crime, by afording some
clue as to the probable nationality, rank
in life, profession, or trade, general cir
cumstances, and mode of death of the
victim.


Pieced dextrously together by medical
experts, the portions contained in the
bag were found to be those of one and
the same body; but the head, large
portion of the spine, the hands and feet,
and some parts of the chest were want
ing-these missing parts being exactly
those by means of which the human sub
ject is usually and most readily identi-
fled. But notwithstanding these serious
gaps in the continuity of its structures,
the mutilated frame was discerned to he
| that Of full-grown man, whose height
must have been at least five feet nine in
ches. To this first conclusion the cx-
perts were led by careful measurements
of the existing parts OF the skeleton, to-
gether with relative measurements in
place of those parts which were wanting.
The body was further found to present
no peculiaritics, the result of either nat
ural malformation or diseased action,
whereby any clue TO its more particular
identity-as in our preceding example
could be obtained; but it presented evil
dence to show that the remains were
those Of man OF very dark complexion,
the hair covering the body being of n
black color. The examination detected
the presence of stab or punctured
wound in the left side of the chest, be
ycen the third and fourth ribs; and
what perhaps formed the most impor-
tant result of the inquiry consisted in
the fact tnat the experts were able to
pronounce, from the character of the
wound, that it had been inflicted, in all
probability, during the life OF the indi-
vidual. The surrounding highly suspi-
cious circumstances of the occurrence
undoubtedly favored this latter suppo-
sition, while the clumsy and unscientifc
manner in which the remains were mu-
tilated-the bones being sawn through
| nnnr the inints instead of bcinn i isa ri i,c