San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1894-09-27

their profession. They were about
to enter college for the purpose of
studying medicine, and thought
that if they could lay hold of a
corpse and dissect it before they got
to school, they could pose as big
guns or as a kind Of authority
among the other students, in the
matter of human anatomy. AS
they could get no pauper's corpse
they tried their best to learn from
me the whereabouts of some
newly inferred negro body.
OF course l could not give
them the desired information,
knowing full we'll what they pro-
posed doing in the event that
they found a newly made negro
grave. So matters stood until one
day they saw our negro employee,
who conducted the funerals of the
colored people, on his way into the
country to conduct a funeral. The
negro had no idea of what the two
young fellows were up to, and he
told them about an old negro
woman who had died and where
she was going to be buried. That
night after the funeral, the two boys
drove out to the grave yard in
an express wagon, with picks and
,shOvels. 1t was nearing midnight,
and the graveyard was far from
any house, so these tyro body
snatchers had nothing to interrupt
them in their work. Fearlessly |
they shoveled out the dirt and then
they reached the coffin. Up they |
drew the heavy box, took out the
corpse and dumped the coffin back !
into the grave. The dirt was
shOveled over the empty box, the
corpse, in its undertaker's robe,was
placed in the express wagon, and |
the boys drove hurriedly to town.
"They had joint office, or
stndy, on the main street of the
place, with an only door opening
on the street. Slowly they APP
preached the office when some
young fellows whom they knew
passed by. The boys pulled their
hats down over their eyes and
drove around the block. When
they reached the door a second
time, they saw a man approach
ing them from each direction, and
of they drove again. A third and
fourth time they tried to carry
their stolen corpse into their Of
flee, but, each time some
people met them just at
or near the office. The boys were
in mischief of a pickle. 1t was
fast growing daybreak and if the
body was not disposed of at once,
they would surely be detected and
their families disgraced if nothing
worse. So they made one more
attempt to smuggle the
corpse into their office, when 10, a
butcher cart broke down before
their very door, and two men were
trying to repair the damaged We
hicle. What were the boys to do?
Surely they were in a fix now!
One of the fellows solved the
problem by suggesting that they
dump the body in cave near their
house. This was done just as day
was breaking, the horse and wagon
were put up and the amateur body
snatchers retired for a short nap.
at just had to happen that some
little negro boys found their way
to the cave and began throwing
stones into the opening. On look
ing closer, one little picka-
ninny was frightened almost in
to falling into the hole,
by the sight of the corpse.
The alarm was given and the
coroner drove by my shop and |
called out to me, come along Bur-
nett; they've found a corpse in a |
cave out here | went along, and |
when we got there a man was let
down anu the body was brought
up. Imagine my surprise when
saw that it was the corpse of ne
gro woman in undertaker's robes.
Then in second, the whole thing
dawned in my mind. Those fell
lows dug out that negro woman
we buried yesterday afternoon
thinks | to myself. said nothing
to any one; still the matter leaked
out somehow and the grand jury
took hold of it, but things were
eventually hushed up.
"I'll tell you those boys were de-
termined chaps" continued Mr..
Burnett in the endeavor to adorn
the tale with moral. "When fell
lows take such an interest in their
studies or profession as to run the
risks these boys ran, they mean
business. One of these young men
i l.. IL l.. 4 L