St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-06-03
THE RIPPER oUTDoNE.

Burke and Hare Murdered Six
teen Persons in Eight Months
and Sold Their Victims Bodies.
Pittsburg Dispatch.
The recent mysterious murder in New
York and revival of the Jack the Rip
per- sensation recalls the odious
memories Of the famous murderers
Burke and Hare, of Edinburgh, Scot
land, who atrociously murdered no less
than sixteen peasons between January
and October of the year 1928. The
tragedies and the unearthing of the
murderers form story without paral-
lei in any age or country. While the
Jack the Ripper affails will go on
record among the most remarkable in
the annals of crime, they as yet do not
equal those of Burke and Hare, either
in number of victims, time in taking
place or execution.
William Burke was an IriShman who
located in Edinburgh at the lodging
house kept by William Hare. One of
the latter's boarders. an old pensioner,
died, and Hare conceived the idea of
abstracting the body from the coffin
and filling it with stones. After the
practically empty coffin was buried
Burke and ne carried the body to the
college of surgeons in the city and sold
it for 81 los. Delighted with the sue
cess of their experiment, the two then
began the famous series of murders for
the sake of the money which the medi-
cal institution, curiouSly enough, was
ever ready to pay without asking ques-
tons.
The first victim was a middle-aged
woman named Abigail Simpson, who
was enticed to Hare's place, made drunk
and suffoeated. They received $40 for
her body. The next was all Englishman,
whose body readily commanded as
much money as the other. Then a
nameless old woman ledger was smoth-
cred with feather pillow and another
$40 earned. Margaret Patterson,a hand
some young girl, was the next, and
within four hours after death she was
on the dissecting table and .eS in the
pockets of her executioners. An old
woman and her deaf mute son came to
lodge at Hare's. They were treated to
liquor. put in bed that night. and the
next in herring barrel, in which they
were carried to the college an d disposed
of at Els.
About this time transient customers
became somewhat scarce, and the fiendS,
with appetites now thoroughly alive,
fell back on their regular dodgers. The
UrSU 10 go WAS Ildll KUOWn as Joseph
the Miller" for whom they received the
customary SO. A woman of the town
came next. She was murdered single
handed by Hare and brought
him 9S. A cinder gatherer, known
as ''Effie," was another partnership VIC.
tim. She was euticed into stable,
dosed with whisky, smOthered, and her
carcass paid them SO. One night Burke
met policeman taking half-drunken
woman to the lookup. The intelligent
officer was induced to give her up under
a promise that she would be we'll taken
care of. So she was. Her body brought
the pair another $40.
The next was harmless idiot, who
was smothered-e10 more was the re-
suit. Ann McDougall, a cousin of
Burke's wife, followed-e10. Then two
more dodgers, Mrs. Haldane and her
daughter, fell into their hands, with the
result that SIS were added to the treas
ury. A poor washerwoman was the
next, and another woman named
Doherty makes up the sum total of their
victims, and the one through which
their crimef were discovered.
Two other dodgers, MIR. and Mrs.
Gray, who had steadily refused to be
tempted into drinking with the land
lords, heard quarrelng one night, and
the next day the wife found the last
victim under heap of straw in Hare's
bed room. Hare escaped and was never
caught, although he returned to Edin-
burgh many years afterward. Burke
was captured, however, and soon after
ward hanged.