Show I DIED UNDER THE ALTAR Death of an Unknown Woman In a Chnrcli Her Groans Fears of the Superstitions Special toTHE HnnALD Examiner Dispatch NEW Yonic Sept 23 An unknown woman was found dying in the cellar of the Roman Catholic Church of the Sacred Heart at Mount Vernpn West cheater county Saturay nightHalf an hour later she was dead The church is located at the corer of Second street and Fiftlj avenuE in a fashionable fash-ionable neighborhood ItMs imposing edifice of brick and stone that cost STafoOO Rev Farther James T Coles is pastor of the church About 9 oclock Saturdayevening he entered en-tered the edifice to make preparations for the Sunday service As he approached the sanctuary he heard groans from a direction direc-tion he could not quito determine Again the groans filled the church This time they EC jmed to come from directly under his feet Passing behind the altar where there is a door to the cellar he made up his mind thatspme one in distress was there Father fCoes hastened to summon some of his parishioners who reside near by and by the light of a lantern they entered the cnurch and passed down the steps to the ceuar The groans had ceased only the sound I of heavy breathing was now heard There close to the bottom of the steps on a heal of evergreen bows that had been used to decorate the church last Christmas lay a young woman Her face was ashen pale and her curs were tangled in the cedars Her dark eyes closed j as the lantern light shone on them She was speechless Tenderly Ten-derly the people liftedher and carried the obviously dying irirlinto the church Father Coles sent sneedily for Dr Good win and then administered the last sacrament sacra-ment for the dying Before the doctor reached the jburch death hal placedthe unfortunate creature beycnd his aid She had not spoken a word after being discovered discov-ered eredOn the bed of boughs where lihe bad lain was found a russet leather satchel containing contain-ing a pocket book containing SIS in bills and silver and a key which fitted the padlock pad-lock on the cellar door of the church The bank bills were damp and mated together as if they had ben rained upon The cellar cel-lar of the church is damp and mouldy The girl seemed to have been of French descent but there was nothing on her b which i she ft bo identified She seeinec to be about twentyfive years old Her face was emaciated but showed traces ol former beauty No one knows who the woman was or where she came from but the mystery will be probed to the bottom The finding of the woman will relievo the minds of superstitious people who for nearly three mohthfViave imagined that the Church of the Sacruu Heart was haunted There is a well at the back of the church Just opposite the cellar door there is a window win-dow letting ligt and air in the cellar On dark nightsthe villagers ling near the church have felt their blood run cold whcii they hear the creaking of the wheel at the church well and people walking past the edifice on moonlight evenings have been started by seeing a whit tace looking from the cellar window Evidently the woman had in some way fitted a key to the padlock on the cellar door and could enter or leave at will By direction of the coroner I doctor made an autopsy He found the body in an extremely emaciated condition The stomach did not contain a particle Of food but gave evidence of inflammation which had perhaps been caused by the excessive use of alcohol Both lungs were in a badly diseased stale having severdf large cavities in the upper part |