Daily Iowa State Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1859, 1857-11-11

1
Ano,her Republican Office Hoidsr Arrssssd
For Crime! n
ROBBING GRAVES OF THEIR DEAD
[ Human Bodies Packed in Government
J Mail Bags from jackson Hall!
ARREST OF THE CITY sEXToN,l
! This is Republican City. 1t is govern
ed exclusively by Republicans. John Went
worth. the leader Of the Republican party
! in Chicago and in Ills, il its Mayer to whom
/ all good Republicans bow, and exclaim in
reyerential awe, 10, the Great Reform
er!"
Republication is here triumphant. 1t
boasts Of all the decency' and 'all the the
respectability' Of the community, and
points with exultation to the purity and
! high moral character Of its officeholders; -
! TO a Mayor who has not been convicted for
drunkenness, for adultry, for stealing mail
bags, nor for obtaining money by fraudu-
| lent devices; to policemen who have not
vet been convicted tor burglary, robbery,
arson. or attempt to murder innocent citi-
gems for rebuking them for beastial exposure
Of their persons To city sexton who has
not yet been convicted Tor robbing graves
Of their dead. 1t passes over in silence,
Republican county officers who hare been
convicted Of this crime Republican sup
porters of Wentworth in the bridewell and
penitentiary for the crime of stealing Re
publican consp!rators out OF the bridewell
and penitentiary, fined for attempting TO
cheat Justice out Of its due. y ct these are
no less Larts and parcels of Republicanisrn
| in Chicago, legitimate results Of Long
John and Reform" 10 triuumphe! is the
cry Of all true and loyal Republicans.
But, another conspiracy has been found
TO break down this Republican administra-
ton ; and another city ofiice-holder is about
To be inundated on the altar where his po-
| lltical prisons and his te deum iaddmus .Joha
mes have been 30 fervently and frequently
offered up.
Night before last, somewhere about that
'witching hour when churchyards yawn
and graves give up their dead, the Rcpub-
lican City Sexton Of Chicago was arrested IN
the act OF stealing human bodies from
graves in the Chicago Cemetery. The ar
rest was made by detectives III the employ
of Mr. Allen pinkerton, who were set to
watch the cemetery some time ago. The
particulars OF the affairs are as follows:
About two weeks ago, four todies were,
in one day, Inferred i'll the Chicago Gene
terry. One was the body of "A fireman who
was killed by an accident at he Rock Island
Railroad depot the others were bodies OF
persons who died about the same time. On
the day following their burial, the grave
digger, Joe, observed appearances about the
graves, which led HIM to suspect they had
been opened 10 satisfy this suspicion. he
proceeded to open the graves, and found
that his suspicious were correct The col
fins had been violently broken open, al
the bodies were gone, with the exception .
that of the fireman, which had evidently
been taken out and afterwards replaced
the grave The grave digger proceeded
once to inform the city undertakcrs, Me RS
Wright & Mcclure, OF what lie bad d4coY
cred, and these gentlemen went to ore O
the city aldermen and laid the faces hefor,
him. knowing the inificiencv of the cit,
police, and that it would hC useless to cx
pect them to ferret out the bbers, the al
derman thought it best TO seek the assis
tam Of the private nee of this city
With this in view, he proceeded 10 consul
with the chairman Of the committee OF
claims and get hiIa to agree that the bill
for doing the work should be reported fo
payment, to the council. 1t was then a
greed between the two aldermen to plac
the Job in the hands of Mr.. Allen Pinkertoi
: OF the North Western Police Agency
was also, and wisely, As the sexual prove.
agreed that the whole matter SHOULD b
4 kept profound secret from Wentworth an
all of his friends. There was even the
reason to susp sct that one of the Mayor
c favorite officers was connected with the TX
a farious affair, (which suspicion the rcsul
shows to have been well founded. IIa
Wentworth or Capt Yates been apprise
OF the steps AIKEN, the public doubt les,
would never have been acquainted wit
:. this precious piece Of villainy.
: Mr.. Pinkerton at once arranged his pla
of operations for the detection and arrest G
I the graveyard robbers On the night q
+; October 29th, six men were first placed o
watch. They We're placed So as to form
Gordon around the cemetery, rendering
impossible that any person could approac
without being seem No discovery wa
made on that or any Of the subsequent
nights until Friday night last After tn
first night, the guard was formed of seve
experienced detectives, who kept their sier
! vigils hour after hour without result Hi
! dead slumbered on in peace, and the sienc
Of their repose was unbroken, save by til
da-hing waves OF I.aEe Michigan.
Prior to Friday night, the sentines La
been placed on the inside OF the cemeter
inciosure On that night, only four dete,
tlves were on duty there, and the plan {
operations was somewhat varied The
{, reached the neighborhood about 10 o'eloe
al night, and instead Of entering the ground
took up position in the north west corn.
7 Of the Catholic cemetery and near 10 eac
r other They were led TO do this from II
tact that on the morning when the 70,
/ graves We're found TO have been robbed, I'll
tracks Of light wagon and of two or moi
mel apparently leading the horse were di
: covered leading out of the cemetery at thu
: point The men causing these tracks ha
entered the cemetery at the north end, an
: proceeding southwark along the east sid
: had emerged upon North avenue, which d
vides the Protestant from the Catholic eel
b etery, and thence gone out upon Clark St
t The detectives therefore placed themselv
in a position to reconnoiter the avenue al
portion of the cemetery at the same tim
The night was unusually dark, and gre
dal ker as it advanced. No object could
seen AT any great distance. This circur
stance was disadvantageous one for Il
l. detectives, but knowing that sinners 10,
~ darkness rather than light, it only prompt,
- them to oreater Wal ri fuinass tLout j.