The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1899-02-17
BONES FROM CMDURMAN,
Firs% Consignment of Dorvl4h sheleeons
Arrive In ondOn


Arrive In London.
There has just arrived in London
the first consignment Of dervish skei-
etons from the battlefield Of Omdur-
man, says the London Daily Mall.
There Is no outward and visible sian
IN London OF a brisk market In ana
tomlcal human bones. Indeed, public
sentiment might receive a shock were
d central depot or building to be es-
tabllshed for the necessary traGc and
barter IN skeletons. Nevertheless tho
metropolitan skeleton market Is steady
and lucrative enough, thcuah no sales
are advertised or auctions annoDnced
10 secure a constant supply Of skeio-
'ons up TO the mark Of trada stand,
aros and technical requirements ia not
an easy matter. Fer no bone. however
tlny' MUST be missing, since an incom-
p1ele pony scaffoldlng would be value
less to the medical student. A w,do-
spread belief exists that skeletons ora
obtained from the unclaimed bodies of
Worhhouse and hospital inmates, To
extent this is true, for such
bodies, after use In the dissecttng-
room furnish further useful object
lessons. But the number Of mn.
claimed bodies is small with
the demand for skeletons, 40 that daal-
crs must go further afeld in their
search FOR medical school material, A
big battle offers an obviously large
harvest Of skeletons, and already Soma
of the dervishes killed at Omdurman
nave ound a market in one OF the
I-ondon hospitals. 1t Is only right to
state that there is not the slightest
possible chance Of a British soldier
having been converted into a market
a3le skeleton. Due and careful Dre-
cautions were taken to prevent such a
contingency, so that my surviving
bones from the Soudan victory are
only those of the fighting dervish. One
or the principal dealers in London
states that these fine, athletic dervish-
es make the finest skeletons ever put
on the bone market. It is not So easv
to insure a supply Of ~well-develoned
s~keletons,' he says, "for many Of these
are obtained from the stunted, half
starved type which ends it's davs-un-
claimed and uncared form a casua]
ward or hospital. The deryish offers
a rare opportunity in skeletons. end
'honsh the expense Of transport Is
very great, the type Of skeleton he
makes is sure to command a price
sufflc1ently high to cover the extra cost
Oh freight. Only a small percentage
nave come to London-the rest have
Deen distributed among the other large
European cities, such as Vienna. Berlin
and Paris. Great care has to be taken
III selecting specimens from a BATTLE
held. for those with shattered or brok-
ell bones will not furnish an entire
skeleton. Of course there Is always
a sale for skulls and single bones, but
the aim of those who supply anatomic-
al dealers is to obtain entire and per-
feet skeletons, for these naturally bring
a higher price. After the Franco
Prussian war the skeleton trade bade
fair to be OverstOcked,' and dealers
held back their surplus stock, lest
prices should be too much cut There
was not a single German skeleton Of
fered-it is always the vanquished who
come to an anatomical end. It's a
curious thing" continued the connois-
seur in bones, that the skeletons OF
Frenchmen should be so much whittier
than British bones"