The Evening critic., 1883-01-17
BONES OF THE DEAD
HEROES BURIED AT ARLINGTON

Exhumed by Grave-Robbers for the
Purpose of Furnishing Auato-
n,icaI Museums aud Dealers with
sfseIctons-How the Work In Car
ried On.
Tho recent wholesale grave robberles at
Philadelphia have found parallel In this
locality, in which vandalism of the very worst
description has been practlced by nendish
ghouls In the furtherance OF their CHASTITY
schemes:- 1t may be well to preface recent
transactions with the occurrences OF several
years ago. At that time the commanding
officer OF Fort Myer (then Fort Whipplel, which
is situated on the across the-riyer heights
overlooking Georgetown and adjoining one
end Of the soldiers cemetery at Arlington,
was informed that suspicious and fighty
lights had been seen In the small hours OF the
night, when darkness ruled supreme, moving
about among the green-mounded
sepuIchres Of the Dead
heroes, and that dull tlIuds, indicating an ac
tive use OF pickaxes ana shovels, had also been
heard. Acting upon the information an order
was Issued instructing the guards to keep an
eye on the mysterious transactions, and to re-
port promptly any unusual occurrences In the
cemetery. The vigllant sentries did not have
long TO walt, for upon the same night that the
order was promulgated guardsman who had
Just uttered in stentorian tones the watch cry
"Twelve o'clock, and al's welll'' and while
the shout was yet receding and echoing as II
went through the neighboring ravlnes and
and among the stately trees, which add pic
turesqueness to the cemetery, the sentinel OBJ
served the
Pickering of Mysterious Lights
within the walls which surround the "Silent
CITY," The fact was promptly reported TO the
corporal OF the guard, who In turn made "a a
later similar events occurred, and n uetach-
ment of the guard made a reconnaissance In
tho hope of capturing the ghouls, who were
undoubtedly unearthing skeletons for some
anatomical institutions, but without success,
as the diggers "doused their gllms' and es-
capped in the darkness, and many shadowy by
ways for which the locality is noted. simil ar
efforts to capture them proved fruitless, and
the matter was eventually dropped, the
ghouls possibly proceeding with their vile
work in a portion Of the cemetery. which could
not be overlooked from the signal fort.
From Information received by aCRrTIo re-
sion was arrived at that the dastardly wretches
were again at their
CHASTITY and ReprehensibIe Work,
furnishing skeletons which have been
whitened by the mystic brush of time to deal
ers In specimens Of anatomy, to be articulated
and exhibited as the skeletons OF various
ancient Indian warriors are exhibited, in
glass cases, in the United States Medical Mu-
scum.
Drawn partly by curiosity and partly by a
desire to furnish correct Information CRITIC
reporter embarked few evenings since In
carriage for the heights an mission OF In
vestigation. Passing through the fort, naught
was heard but the steady tramp OF the senti-
mel as he paced his lonely post and the distant
city bells Ginning the hour. Proceeding
through
The Deserted Fields Beyond,
the horse was made fast to tree and the
scribe and his companion finished the quarter
Of milo journey to the southeast corner OF
the cemetery wall on foot, whore halt was
made. Then quict search was instituted for
the location described by an old colored man,
who declared that he had ''seen de debbil his
self walkin' aroun' 'mong de graves wild light
all round him." The spot was finally found
and the watch began.
Nearly an hour had elapsed since a distant
voice had sounded upon the frosty air, "rwelve
o'clock and all's welI," when tho patient
watchers beheld distant CLEAN, which
Looked Weird Enough
amid the tall and sighing trees. 1t appeared
| to dance for a moment and then disappeared.
| Thoughts of grim phalanxes OF bony lgures
parnding in steady array across the silent
sarily ensued until suddenly the dull thud,
thud, thud OF pickaxes were borne to the ears
| Of the peppers, and as the gimmering light
| again became visible, the voices of mon talk
ing in an undertone were distinctly heard
The Ghouls Were at Their Work
| of fresurrecting the bones of those who had
fallen while being "stormed at by shot and
| she'll" short stay in the vicinity sufllced
| the statement made to the reporter had been
verified by observation.
On the return to the haunts Of men coun-
tryman driving very slow horse to dilapi.
dated wagon, loaded with the summer pro-
| duct of his farm and several pairs of poverty
stricken rabbits, was overtaken on the road
and interrogated as 10 events In Arlington
| Cemetery, which had just been witnessed.
| 'pye hearn great deal about them strange
| sights and sounds I'm the cemetery" he said
| San I've seen some of 'em, too. Only the
| tother night me an my wife was comm home
| from town when we seed lights a.movin' about
over the graves. They looked like big fire
| balloons"
SIN what part OF the grounds do you gen
| orally see the lights?" asked the reporter,
| "Indeed, sir, never stopped to look per-
tik'lary. I'd Just put the whip to my hoss
| and git all the run that he had In him. Bu
| I've hearn the culled people that lives about
there say they have heard digging and seer
flashes In the end of the cemetery where the
| Confedrit soldiers are buried. Then my cou
sin that lives on tother side of Arlington, mex
the Long bridge, told me that he has now ant
then seen strange wagons a-drivin down thu
road 'helter skelter toward the bridge at very
late hours in the night"
By this time the Aqueduct Bridge had beer
reached, and the conversation ceased. Th'
countryman and his steed pursued their SLOW
and tedious way over the rattllng planks o
the bridge, while the lively livery y-stable mai
soon crossed the structure and started dowi
the cobble stoned street at rapid pace, sool
reaching the stable, and leaving the scribe t.
wend his way homeward to dream over tn
strange occurrences of the night, with swarthy
whiskered grave robbers and dark lanterns II
| tho forp