The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1880-04-20
ABOUT RESURRECTIONISTS.


the methods resorted to by anatomical
teachers for the purpose of obtaining
subjects for dissection. From the year
1900 until the alteration of the law In
1882, the Resurrectlonlsts, or Body
Snatchers,' y In England were almost the
only sources of this supply; they were
| persons generally of the worst character
IL we except the watchman Of that time
who were set to guard the burial grounds
all of whom received regular percent
age on the sum obtained by the Resur-
rectionists.
The public were for many years aware
of church-yards being robbed; 1t was
known to be effected with wonderful
rapidity and dexterity, but the naodus
operdndi was never fathomed by the
public; and, curiously enough, no acci-
dental circumstance occurred to furnish
the explanation. Even the members of
the medical profession, with a few
exceptions, were kept in ignorance of it,
so careful were the resurrectionists to re-
move all traces of their mode of work
ing after completing their task.
1t was generally supposed that the
body-snatcher proceeded as novice
would have done, by removing all the
earth with which the grave had been fill
ed, and having arrived at the coffin,
forced open the lid so as to remove the
body. But this would have occupied
time, ,and increased the chances of detec.
ton. To avoid this they only cleared
the earth away above the head of the
coffin, taking care to leave that which
covered the other end as far as possible
undisturbed. The lid of the coffin was
then broken with crowbar, rope slip
| ped under the arms of the corpse, and
| the body carefully withdrawn. The
clothing was then replaced in the coffin,
and the grave refilled. BY this means,
in shallow grave with light soil, the
body-snatchers could remove corpse In
about fifteen minutes. Silence was es-
sential to their success, and in gravelly
soils they had peculiar mode of sling
ing out the earth to prevent the rattling
of the stones against the iron spade.
AS soon as the body was raised 1t was
placed In sack, and then carried away
in closed carriage. In sending them
from the country to London they were
packed in crates and hogsheads. The
bodies were never directly conveyed to
the dissecting- room. The students would
often take them TO their own rooms, and
hota hat IN, fha pII To-, H.,
the coachmen being well paid for their
work. Some times the driver was exor.
bitant In his demands, and was some
what ingenious in enforcing them.
A pupil who was conveying body in
a coach at one time to his hospital, was
astonished upon finding himself in front
of police station, when the coachman
tapping upon the window, said to the
affrighted youth
My fare to SO and so is guinea, un-
less you wish to be put down here"
The reply without hesitation was,-
"Quite right, my man; drive on"
At the opening of new session there
was considerable competition between
the different colleges as to which should
get the most bodies, and the rivalry oc-
casionally led to revolving scenes and
riots. At one time two Resurrection
lists, having gained access to private
cemetery near London by bribing the
grave.digger, at times bought away as
many as six bodies In single night
Two other snatchers hearing of this
profitable arrangement, threatened to
expose the grave-digger if he did not ad-
init them to a share Of the plunder; but
he was ahead Of them, and pointing
them out to number of laborers as
body-snatchers come to bribe him, when
the whole party of men pursued them
and they narrowly escaped death. They
ran to a magistrate, and told him If he
would send officer to the cemetery he
would find every grave rihed of its dead,
the grave,digger having sold them to
the body-snatchers.
The indignant people rushed to the
battle-ground, broke open the gates, dug
up the graves, and finding the empty
coffins, seized the grave digger threw
him into one of the deepest excavations,
began shovelling the dirt over him, and
would have buried him alive but for the
active efforts of two constables. They
then went to his house, broke every ar
ticle of furniture In 1t, and dragging out
his wife and children threw them into
a stagnant pool in the neighborhood.
Et,oI, - -