St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-11-16
THE BUCKLEY CASE,
The College and Hospital AuthorI.
ties sails Under n CIoul.

There are no new developments concern
ing the alleged mutilation of the corpse of
John Buckley, who died at st. Barnabas'
hospital Thursday. aud whose body found
its way to the diSSccting room of the Min
nesota Hospital college. where the bones.
viSera and the brains were removed, and their
places filled with sticks and blocks OF wood.
before Its delivery at Conolly'S morgue,
where it still lies. y. G. l.. Snyder,
superintendent of the poor, states that
early last week Buckley was brought to
him by a Mr.. O'Leary, who asked that he
should be placed in the hospital as PAID
patient, and who guaranteed the payment
of his expenses for week. The super
intendent drove Buckley TO the hospital
where he told the matrOn that he would
be responsible for payment of the hospital
charges for one week. From what can be
learned it is inferred that the matron
understood that Buckley was a city
patient. and therefore friendlesS. The ply
scians connected with the hospital college
thought that an opportunity had presented
Itself for the securing of subject for sci
entic purposes. The law provides that a
Lody must be taken to the mOrgue and al
lowed to lie twenty-four hours for identiti-
ment must have been overlooked, for on Fri
day Di. Stewart one of the college professors.
applied at ConOlly's morgue, with a
requisitien fer the body. signed by DR.. Van
Cleve, the city physician. He was in
formed that the body had not been re-
ceiyed at the mergue. and further that DR..
Van Cleve had no authority whatever in
the premises. He went away. and Satur-
day the body was brought to the morgue.
but not before the friends of
the deceased mad instituted certain
INQUIRIES that threatened to lead to an eX-
pose. Then the body was turned over, the
places of the bones being filled with pieces
of wood and the skin Sewed together with
black thread. DR.. Stewart says in regard
to the case.
I'm case of this kind after certain length
of time, if no friends call for or ourg the
body. the corpse goes to the college for dis
section. But in the case Of this man Buck
ley the corpse WAS not dissected. 1t was slm-
PLY a post-mOrtem examination, although ]
admit it was severe one. The disease of
watch he died was of a complicated nature,
and we had TO cut the corpse somewhat in
order to get at the facts. In the left leg near
the gro n was tumor which we had to cut. "
1t is quite pertinent to ask in this connec-
ton. what right is possessed by college
professors and students to institute a post
mortem examination without the request of
friends. If an inquest is needed the
county coroner is the proper person to order
and conduct it. The matrOn says that DIR.
Van Cleve, the city physician, telephoned
that the body should be turned over to the
college, and the undertaken states that a
requsition signed by his name was pre-
scented. 1t is rather curious that the
city physician should order an inquest
or an examination. and this phase of the
case will bear inquiry. There is another
question which should be investigated if
possible, and that is as to how many times
the city physician has ordered ''inQuests
of this kind upon bodies. and how many
bodies have found their way to the hospital
college in violation of law?