The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-05-29
BURIED ALIVE.
Sickening Tale of Our Hospital
Dead.
A Man in the Charity Wagon
Revives.
He Attempts to Get Out OF His
Coffin.
The Driver SmOthers Him.
Full Details and Statement OF
Witnesses.
The Driver SmOthers Him.

spread with great rapidity, was by repetition
given that credence which at first the enor-
nifty Of the crime denied it.
The report that man had knowingly been
buried alive was enough to shock even the
strongest nerves, but as detail after detail was
given, q thrill of horror ran through this
suburban district unlike that ever before pro-
duced.
Naturally there is an instructive dread Of
death in every one, but paramount to this is
the greater terror of being buried alive.
Human invention has been taxed and scien-
lists questioned as to the most available
means Of preventing this fearful and appalling
end, but in the case recited below, no hand
other than that sufficient to stay cruel mans
hand would meet the exigency.
On Thursday evening we published the
following as the statement made by c. H.
Beggs on Wednesday evening, in the Central
Police Station:
He &c. HBeggs) was in one of the ceme-
teries (which be did not say, and his atten-
ton was attracted to funeral cortege made
up of wagon followed by three or four
women The driver of the wagon lifted out
coffin and was about depositing it in the hole
prepared for it, when the occupant of the COT
i'm kicked off the lid and cried, "For Gods
sake do not bury me alive !"
The driver picked up brick, and crying.
"You -, 1 have q doctors certificate
that you are dead, and I am going to bury
YOU" struck the corpse either stunned
or killed him, and the burial went on.
The statement came to us secondhand and
inquiry elected the fact that Beggs of his
own knowledge knew nothing Of the matter,
and that his assertions were based on the say
so of third parties.
The police took the matter very cody and
did not seem to think it worth working up,
and the whole thing was generally looked
upon as 80 good thing by Beggs."
It is probable that the statement Of Beggs
was all the information the police had of the
affair, but other rumors in connection with it
reached our reporter, and thinking it we'll
worthy, Notwithstanding tho assertions Of
the knowing ones around the police station
that it was 50 good thing by Beggs," and "a
frst-class haox," he star ted on
An investigation,
determined to sift it to the bottom, and find
the foundation for such startling report
Our reporter traced the rumors to their
source, and step by step followed up the
clue they gave, and by degrees developed
facts that would be incredible were they not
SO we'll substantiated by the testimony Of
many competent witnesses.
On Tuesday, May 25sh, Geo. Banks, q
colored youth nineteen years of age. native
Of Tennessee, died in the SMALLPOX Hos.
pital Of smallpox. The proper certificate of
burial was given, and on the. evening of May
26th, the coffin containing the body of Geo.
Banks was placed in charity wagon No. 1,
driven by Jim Connors. to be conveyed to
'the Potter's Field" Locust Grove, situated
on Sixth street, between Locust and Freret
On the occurrences on the way to the GENE
terry we do not propose to comment, and
simply give the staten ents of Witnesses
The only conclusion which these state
ments lead to, is that Geo. Banks, when he
left the Hospital was not dead, but was in 9
comatose condition, and that he was, know.
ingly.
Buried Alive.
Melinda Smith states: / was in q neigh
boris house on Locust street, between FIRST
and Second. The charity wagon, No. l.
stopped, and thought it had broken down. A
friend called me out into the street to see.
went close up to the wagon, and there saw
two coffins-one for q baby, the other for q
grown person.
The coffin for the grown person was open,
the lid being partly off. I saw distinctly the
man on the inside Of the coffin moving his
hand, trying to push off the lid. The driver
took the cushion off his seat and put it on the
mans face, and sat on his head. In this pc.
sition he still sat on him while he was going 9
souare. and between Second and Third streets
he stopped again and took q hammer and
| tried to nail down the lid. Here the driver
took the babys coffin and put it on top the
mons feet, and then sat on him again.
| The driver, when 1 first went up to the
wagon. in an angry tone. said: " What DO YOU
want?" and l said, II want to see." He
answered, "Get away from here, before l slal
you in the mouth" I said, "You are carry
ing live man to the grave yard. de theI
drove On. / followed the wagon to the grav'
ward, but we were not allowed to go in. Th'
driver is tall white man and wore white
hat had red face, and / have seen hin
often passing the door; would know hum
/ saw him.
Mary Thompson, lives on Locust street
next door to the above, states: was put
ting my washed clothes on the line, o.
Wednesday, about half-past ?. M and
noticed the Charity Wagon No. standing 1
the street in front of my house. l went on
to see the cause, and when got up to tn
cart saw man in the coffin, with his fet
up, trying to get up. The man then raise
his arms, put out his hands, and tried to g
! up out of the cofio, but the driver pushe
him down back into the cofia with gree