Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-12-06

undertaKerS. were directed to dress and cOfhn
the body. by the railroad company.
The funeral will take place from the late resi-
dence OF the deceased. No. 612 Maryland avenue
southwest, tomorrow afternoon at o'clock.
The Philadelphia BODY SnatcheFs.
STATEMENT OF ONE OF THE GANG.
The gang Of body snatchers arrested in Phila-
delphia. as stated in yesterdays STAR, were held
in $1,000 bonds for a hearing on Friday. The
records OF the cemetery show that in two months
ffty-fve bodies were successfully put In one
grave, and taken therefrom by the resurrection
lists. The colored people, who mainly used the
cemetery, are very much worked up over the
matter. The prisoners were conveyed into court
by back dor, to avoid the angry mob. Louis
n Megargee testified that two keys found on
McNamee fitted doors in the room where bodies
were prepared for dissection at the Jefferson
college. McNamee denied knowing who gave
them to him or what he was to haul, but finally
said he had waited outside the cemetery while
the others brought out the bodies and he knew
where they came from. Robert Chew. when
arrested at the cemetery about half past four
o'clock yesterday morning, began crying and
said he was paid 50 for every body taken from
the cemetery, and that the money was handed to
him by his brother. He did not know how many
graves had been robbed. Sometimes Piert did
the digging and sometimes Levi. He had been
In the cemetery eleven years and the body
snatchlng had been going on for nine years. His
brOther-in-law, Solomon Butcher, now in Mary
land, did it first, then man named Myers and
then McNamee.. Sometimes if the wagon came
and the driver said they were short. the collins
were opened in the receiving vault the corpses
'snatched' and the farce of burying the empty
Collins was gone through next day.
OTHER TESTIMONY.
Detective William Henderson testified that
"Yank, when captured. said that if he had been
on the wagon at the time he would have used
his pistol. Thos. A. Almond, of 1927 Rodman
street. said he had recognized one Of the bodies
In the wagon as that Of James Kennedy who
was buried from the rear Of Clio st. Mary street,
on Thursday last. There Is plot in the ceme-
terry he explained, known as the Homestead,
where any undertaken can have burials of those
who are not lot owners. William Robinson. COL
Ored, OF 1870 kater street, said another body
was That OF his brother, Charles, who was buried
on Monday week from 1920 Kater street. Guy
NJ. Burton, undertaken at 636 Pine street. had
Identified another corpse as Hans JOrgensen
who shot himself. This body was useless for
dissection, having had an autopsy already upon
IT, Robert Chew. the grave digger, explained
that Levi reused him from sleep on Monday
night, saying they had a smallpox body and
asked MIN to lower the keys. That's all he
knew.
The credit Of the arrest belongs to the Phila-
delphia Press. which discovered last spring that
agents of the college were robbing the
cemetery. The arrest was made on warrant
issued on the 18th Of last April. and was
erected by five Press reporters, who discovered
and investigated the grave-robbing, and who
were accompanied by Pinkerton detective. 1t
Is said That Lebanon cemetery has been syste-
matically robbed for years. and that hundreds
OF graves have been despoiled.
THE SCENE AT JEFFERSON COLLEGE,
The Philadelphia Press of to-day says: The
excitement over the disclosures was greatest at
Jefferson College, whose dissecting room reaped
the benefit of the ghoulish practises The col
lege has an attendance Of over coo students.
and when they began to arrive at the building,
on south 10th street at o'clock, they were met
by an advance guard Of newsbOys loaded down
with copies of the Press, which they boldly
fourished in the faces Of the students crying
out, ARREST of body Misunderstanding dis
closures." The men whose eyes were greeted
with this busy phalanx and whose ears were as
violated graves!" and other sentences, in
which Jefferson College was also men,
toned, instantly paused to ascertain
what 1t meant, and in a few minutes they
knew al about 1t. From a congregation of
half a dozen the assembly swelled in the
course of twenty minutes to over 200, and the
sidewalk In front of the college was thronged
with students and the newsboys, taking ad-
vantage ola sensation, and the presence of such
numbers so closely interested in it, seized the
chance and sold papers faster than they could
serve them. The crowd of students thronged
into the corridor: they fought for seats so that
they could read the account with comfort and
some of them stood up against the wall and
perused the story which possessed an interest
for them which it could not possibly possess for
others.
IF there has been any business Of that kind
going on, we know nothing about it," said one
OF the students. 'I'm glad we don't have to
furnish the stifs." ''Its none of our business. 4"
said another one. and then the men INDUCED in
humorous remarks They looked at it in q
light anything but serious. II saw Dr. Forbes. I"
observed one Of the old students, coming
down the street. He was as white as a sheet
and was walking rapidly. l stopped him, but
ne rushed past and said. III see you again. l
called after him that ] trusted he would, and If
he We're sent up. for this business would for
get old differences and pay him a friendly visit
His face turned as red az beet, aud he soon
disappeared in the crowd"
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