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McHenry Plaindealer (McHenry, IL), 12 Feb 1903, p. 3

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» GRAVES OF 1,200 HillmARE ROBBED. BY u-: •Sy-- ". I; .? •• ^GHOULS FOR. PAY Wholesale Work of Huraa.n Jackals ./A' w? ,Aro\isesO\itraged ^Residents of In- dian&polis. The moat amazing story of ghoul- 4sh vandalism ever told in connection with any medical college in the civil­ ized world ia being recited by witness- •es in the case against Dr. Joseph C. Alexander, now on trial at Indianapo­ lis on the charge of being the chief in­ stigator of wholesale grave robberies. ' The prosecuting attorney declares ^that he will prove that at least 1,200 ^Treves were despoiled by the human terlal for the colleges of surrounding cities. The body Dr. Alexander is specifi­ cally accused of stealing was that of Mrs. Rose Neidltnger, which had been taken from the coffin and had beer buried again. It was through Rufus Cantrell, a negro, that the truth finally reached the grand jury. The revelation made by Cantrell so startled the commun­ ity that scores of graves were exam­ ined to ascertain if the bodies of rela­ tives remained. Cantrell confessed that more than 1,200 bodies had been taken from graves for the dissecting tables of colleges in Indianapolis and other cities. He said that colleges from New York to San Francisco had been sup­ plied by the gang of grave robbers. Seven men, including the surgeons mentioned, were arrested as a result of Cantreli's revelations. One of the most, pathetic instances of grave robbery referred to the re- led to arrest, he confessed. At the trial there have been admis­ sions made and statements advanced that brought tears to the eyes of a hundred mei> who were brothers or Six cemeteries were desecrated. Twelve hundred bodies were taken. Bodies of women and children stolen. Robberies covered five years. Negro ghouls were employed. Bodies shipped to medical colleges all over the country. Prominent surgeons in Indianapo­ lis implicated. \ cs J2e. Ĵ C^UJSXAM>SP Jackals said to have been employed by Alexander, and that more than 1,200 bodies of men, women and children were pickled in the vats of the medical colleges and were cut to pieces by boisterous medical stu­ dents and the remains dumped into cans and carted off for disposal as garbage. There is no telling how many fami­ lies of the Indiana city have unknow­ ingly and involuntarily contributed their beloved dead to Alexander's chamber of horrors. The outrage is «o widespread and affects so many families--some of them of high social etanding and great wealth and in­ fluence--that a fear is expressed that the medical college itself may be wiped out of existence. The state declares that it will show that it was under Dr. Alexander's direction that a half dozen corpses, stripped of .their shrouds were taken from the vats and thrown into an alley when the Investigation of the police drew too close a scrutiny to the affairs of the college over whose dls- Facts also will be brought to light, it is said, to indicate that Dr. Alexan­ der was the head of the business which developed later Into an estab­ lished traffic in human cadavers, the cemeteries in the neighborhood of In­ dianapolis supplying dissecting ma COLD 8UBJECT; HOT QUARREL. Icemen Have Warm Argument Over Respective Domains. There is a disagreement between Joe Van Horn, the king of Kansas Ice­ men, and Lon Betts, who is the recog­ nized monarch of the Missouri Ice ring. When they met recently in Atchison In front of Jack Brown's liv­ ery stable they engaged in an ex­ change of repartee that was both Iron­ ical and acidulated. Both Betts and Van Horn recently staked off fields of Ice on the Missouri side of the river and Betts accused Van Horn of eucroaching on his (Betts*) domain. Van Horn said it looked as if Betts were trying to get a corner on the ice market, having Btaked off everything in sight Betts remarked that no­ body had Invited Van Horn over into Missouri. Van Horn then said some­ thing and Betts got off a comeback. Van Horn picked out a hot one, Just ready to melt, and handed it to Betts, but Betts threw it back before it had time to go off. Van Horn thereupon wound himself up and set the alarm, but Betts stopped his clock with a moval of the body of Miss Glendora Gales, a beautiful young woman of twenty, "Who had died after a brief illness. The body of pretty Sarah Matthews was another which was taken from its grave and dissected without the knowledge or consent of the girl's relatives. Shortly before Cantreli's arrest he went to a small Indiana city for the purpose of pillaging graveyards there. On his return he found a message from Dr. Alexander awaiting him. The demonstrator of the college wanted a grave robbed that night. Cantrell demurred, but finally consented to ui;dertake the job in spite of his weari­ ness. It was dark In the graveyard. He could not see the face of his victim. He did not care to then. Her identity did not matter to him. But when the body was stretched on a slab in the medical college Cantrell turned on the light. In Its glare he saw the face of Stella Middleton. He did not know until then that she had died during his absence. Then and there, he says, he vowed to end his work. He found a way to notify the relatives of his sweetheart where her body could be found. When his continued exqgsures of the fact well-timed blow from a whip. Van Horn ducked and cleared for action. Procuring a brick he spoke of caving in Betts' face, but Betts drew a knife and said if such a thing was attempt­ ed he would reduce Van Horn to deli­ cate strips of breakfast bacon or make figures on his person similar to those on the'top of a pie. Here kind friends threw a veil over the situation and closed the incident.--Exchange. IT 18 8AD BUT LUCRATIVE. Selling Cemetery Lots Is a Profitable Business In Large Cities. "It is no wonder that I dress in black, for my business is the selling ot cemetery lotB. Is there anything in the wprld more solemn?" The speaker, a fat man, fingering his black tie, resumed: "I don't believe I'd ever make a sale If I wore gay, Joyous colors. For most of my patrons are people who have suddenly lost a near relative- couples that have lost their first child, mainly--and their grief is pro­ found as they conduct this ghastly business of buying graveyard ground, Women In the courtroom from time to time added tneir sobs and at moments even Cantrell, "King of the Ghouls," felt the sorrow and hesitated in his answers to tne brusque ques­ tions of the lawyers. Mason Neidlinger, a witness, testi­ fied that he found the body of the woman whom be had loved for fifteen years thrust roughly in a barrel in tne medical college. Neidlinger was telling the grew- some facts that surrounded the find­ ing of his wife's corpse. He said: "We went to the oarrels. There were at least a dozen of them. We looked into each, the heads of the bodies coming to the surface of the brine the moment that the heavy stone covering was removed. "Finally, after we had examined eight barrels, I saw a face in one that made my heart stop beating. There was a scar on the cheek. I knew that scar. My wife had carried it for 12 years. I ordered the body lifted from the barrel. In a moment the sickening realization came that I bad come to the end of my search--I bad recovered my wife's corpse. "I told Dr. Alexander then, and 1 tell him now, that if this court fails to punish him I will seek just vengeance for his terrible desecration myself. I will take the law Into my own hands." and it is my place to jar on them as little as possible. Hence I wear black and look grave. "My work is sad, but It is saddest of all when old couples--old, child­ less couples--come to me to buy lots. A couple are getting on in years. One will soon be gone. It is necessary to select a lot in time. They make their selection with care, consulting one an­ other wistfully. They consider the view. It is best, they think, to be on an eminence. They consider the sub­ ject of shade. The fertility of the soil, also, is an important question, for they think that they will like flowers to grow on their graves. "I admit," said the agent, "that I make a good deal of money. People, you know, are In no mood for driving bargains when they come to buy their graves, and I take advantage of that fact. But my work is BO sad that it has to be very lucrative to keep me at It" Speaking of the sufficiency of wages. It is noticeable that it was the oper­ ators, and not their workmen; who passed the summer at Newport fathers of girls and women whose graves had been desecrated, and whose bodies were torn from their resting places to form material for the dissecting knives of medical stu­ dents. THE LEGISLATURE Measures Under Considera­ tion in the Capitol at Springfield. GOVERNOR HAS A BUSY. WEEK Holda Numerous Conferences With the Various State Boards in Rela­ tion to Legislation That Is Deemed Necessary at This Session. The members of both houses bf the general assembly have a busy week before them. Now that the house and senate committees have been named, the legislators will begin work in earnest. Many people who have prop­ ositions to present to ths legislature have been waiting for the announce­ ment of the committee assignments before offering their bills, ,and the week will witness an incoming or those who are interested in prospect­ ive legislation. New members are always very fceaV ous in committee work early in the session, and as the new members have been uncommonly well cared ior this session, ana constitute a heavy proportion of the membership of the most important committees in both the house and senate, there will be much activity outside the sessions of the main bodies. Indeed, pretty much all the work to be done during the week will be in committee, for there is no legislation on the calendars as yet, and it is not expected that any- ming of importance will he presented »n the form of resolutions. Governor Is Busy. Gov. Yates has appointed a number of conferences for the week, and mem­ bers of several state boards will be at Springfield to confer with him. As all of these beards are interested in legislative matters tneir presence in Springfield will be significant and will have its influence on what is done later in the session. It is the purpose of the governor to talk about legislative matters with the men who have been called, and they will, of course, discuss the matters in whIMi they are interested with the legislators. The first conference will be held with the state beard of charities. On this occasion it is expected that the question of establishing a state board ot control fbr the state charitable in­ stitutions will be discussed. The mat­ ter of state supervision of county almshouses and jails will also be taken up at t'ais time. On Tuesday the state board of phar­ macy met with the governor, and the proposition to place this board on the dame footing as otner state boards was taken up. Under the present law this board is supported by the drug­ gists of the state, who pay an annual license of $1.50, and the proposition is to do away with this system and make a regular appropriation for the uoard. To Fight Cattle Disease. The state board of live stock com­ missioners met with the governor Wednesday, and the state veterinari­ ans and assistants were invited to at­ tend this conference. They discussed the needs of the commission In rela­ tion to fighting diseases in cattle, and the amount of the appropriation necessary to carry on their work. The following day the state board of health will hold a meeting and have a conference with the executive con­ cerning its recent reoommendatlons to the legislature. Tne board has asked the assembly to relieve it of the work of supervising the practice of medicine in the state, and has rec­ ommended the creation of a medical board for this duty. This board Is in­ terested in the proposed sanatorium for consumptives, and in a number oi amendments to existing sanitary laws. State Arbitrators. The state board or arbitration will have a conference with the governor on Friday, and so will the state com­ mission of claims. Neither of these meetings will have to do with pro­ posed legislati6n, but the work of the boards will be discussed. There will be no conferences Sat­ urday, but they will be resumed the following week', and will continue un­ til the whole list of ooards has been exnausted. The last conierence will be held March 26, when the trustees or the hospital for the incurable in­ sane will be held. It is expected that the coming con­ ference will be of considerable assist­ ance to the members of the appropri­ ation committees of the legislature. These committees will hold daily ses­ sions, and win avail themselves of the information to be had from the vari­ ous commissioners and other officials who will be here. House Committees. Speaker Miller announced the standing committees of the house to Wedding Anniversary. Mr. and Mrs. A. J. Bruner celebrated their fifty-second wedding anniversary at the home of Mr. and Mrs. G. J. Hartley, near Mattoon. They have re­ sided in Mattoon for forty-eigat years. Pupils Aid Library. The pupil managers of the Decatur High School Observer have presented the school a check for $100 to be used for th»vpurchase of the books tor the library. Deeatur Factory Is Unionized. After a week of idleness, entailing a loss of $5,000 in wages to 600 men, the Mueller factory at Decatur was unionized in all departments. Five international union officials were on the ground several days in conference. Fire Alarm System. At a meeting of the city council of Taylorville it was decided to install a fire alarm system to connect with the sleeping apartments of the twenty-five members of the volunteer fire depart­ ment the few members who remained to at» tend the session. The important chair­ manships are- about the same%s, have been anticipated and published lor several days past. C. J. Lindly is chairman.of the com­ mittee on municipal corporations; Ly­ ons. railroads; Rinaker, banks and banking, and Nohe, education. This was the way the tangle over the prop­ osition to make Nohe chairman of the municipal corporations committee was straightened out. Nohe is second man on the committee. 1>. E. Shanahan is on only one gen­ eral house committee--appropriations --but is chairman of the steering com­ mittee. He has almost the same place in the committee as has Mr. Sher- mau, who is on the appropriation and rules committees, but has no chair­ manship. Sherman Declines. The list of house committees as originally prepared by Speaker Miller placed Mr. Sherman on eight commit­ tees. He was chairman of the com­ mittee on hanks and banking, and was a member of the committee on appropriations. Judiciary, judicial de­ partment and practice, revenue, rail­ roads. rules and statutory revision. He had asked J or no assignments, it is said, but. on the contrary, had in­ formed the speaker three weeks ago that he did not care to be placed on any committee. In conversation with the speaker he reiterated bis request, and on be­ ing shown the list of committees on which he had been placed ht&drew his pencil through all except appropria tions and rules, stating that he did not have the time to give proper at­ tention to the other committees. Sherman Men Fare Well. As a rule the Sherman men fare well in the distribution of committee­ ships. Rinaker, Lish, Schlagenhauf, Magill, Bundy. Kerrick, G. T. Turner, Backus. Hardin, Montelius and Pat­ terson have chairmanships. Rinaxer heads banks and banktng; Lish, farm drainage; Bundy, judicial department and practice; Kerrick, military af­ fairs, and Patterson, to visit penal and reformatory institutions. Some of the Sherman men are not satisfied. They do not think they were given as good committee assign­ ments as they should have bad. There was talk among a few of them of re­ signing from all the committees to which they had been assigned, but it is not probable that anything of this kind will be done. Nohe Withdraws for Lindly. The chairmanship of the municipal corporations committee was settled when A. W. Nohe and C. .1. Lindly re­ turned from Chicago. Soon after the speaker was elected he was some way led to believe that Congressman Will­ iam Lorimer would be pleased if Mr. Nohe were named as chairman of this committee. Mr. Lorimer had never said this to Mr. Miller, and had not in any-way In­ timated that he desired the appoint­ ment of any mejnber to any commit­ tee. either as chairman or member. Mr. Nohe stood out for the chairman­ ship. Mr. Lindly wanted to be chair­ man of the committee on railroads." Mr. Lindly and Mr. Nohe went to Chicago. What they said to Mr. Lor­ imer, or he to them, is not known, but when they returned Mr. Nohe with­ drew his application for chairmanship oi the committee on municipal cor­ porations. Some Shifts. The net result of it all was a shift­ ing in a. few places, Lyon going to railroads Instead of to banks and banking; Lindley to municipal corpor­ ations instead of railroads, and Rin­ aker to banks and banking instead of another committee for which he had been slated. The Democratic lists as reported by James P. Wilson, the Democratic lead er, to Speaker Miller was incorporated in the committees just as Mr Wilson had prepared them, except L. O'N. Browne, who was on municipal cor* porations. but was taken off with Mr. Wilson's consent To Control Public Charities. Radical cnauges in the law relating to the state board of commissioners of public charities are proposed in a bill now being prepared by Secretary J. Mack Tanner of the hoard, at the instance of several members of the board of charities. The proposed bill virtually makes the state board of charities a board of control of all state charitable institu­ tions. It extends the powers of the board In many directions. It' gives the board absolute control crer pur­ chases of all supplies for and all con tracts iot by state institutions; gives the state board the right to fix the sal­ aries "of all employes of state institu­ tions; provides that salaries for the same grade of work shall be uniform in all the Institutions, and gives the board power of supervision and con­ trol of all charitable institutions. It gives the members a great deal of additional work to do, and allows the members a salary of $2,500 a year each. All places where insane ai* kept, whether public or private, ami all county alms or poor houses are placed under supervision ana control or the board. Church Meeting. A protracted meeting will be held a\ the M. E. church at Lebanon commenc­ ing Feb.. 22. Dr. L. W. Thrall, the pastor of the church, will be assisted by Rev. C. D. Schumard, presiding elder of the district. Attempts to Ditch Train. Peter Van Oski. 17 years old, was ar­ rested at Valparaiso for attempting tc ditch a passenger train on the Indiana. Illinois & Iowa road by placing a pile of iron on the track. Girl Takes Morphine. Sadie Rose attempted to kill her­ self at Alton by taking a large dose of morphine. Her condition was discov­ ered a short time after she took the drug, and the services qf. a physlciat were procured* to have her life. She will recover. Long Cable. A sew cable for the underground service of the Springside coal mine near Pana has just been placed in the mine. The cable is 7.800 feet long and weighs 1 1-5 pounds to the foot ILLINOIS STATE NEWS ZIONI8TS OBJECT TO PIG MEAT FIERCE BATTLE WITH LUNATIC? Consignment Sent Through Error Causes Trouble in Dowie's City. There was excitement in Zion City when it was known that a consign­ ment of swine flesh had accidentally reached that sacred ' city. A dozen hams sent to a Waukegan meat dealer had been unloaded at Zion City by mistake. A delegation of residents waited on Station Agent Patterson and asked for the hams, but were re­ fused. They threatened him with vio­ lence, but he did not yield. As quick­ ly as possible the meat was sent to Waukegan. TRY TO SWINDLE MERCHANTS Well-Dressed Strangers Fail to Work the Draft Game. Two well dsessed strangers, repre­ senting themselves to be agents for a circus, attempted to fleece some Cairo provision dealers by buying large quan­ tities of meat and other provisions for the circus, presenting drafts in pay­ ment in excess of the amount of pur­ chases and expecting to receive the change in cash. Their plan failed, but not before one firm sent out to Bridge Junction for delivery on the cars that were not there. More Money for Postoffice. Representative Feely has introduced a bill In the house at Washington pro­ viding for an increase in the limit of the cost of the federal building at Oak Park to $55,000. The omnibus public building bill passed last session placed the limit of cost of this building at $35,000, b"t many complaints that the amount is inadequate and many re­ quests praying for a large appropria­ tion for this purpose have been re­ ceived by Mr. Feely.: In accordance with their spirit he introduced the bill, which he hopes to have incorpor­ ated in the public building bill which is to be passed this session. Borden Estate. The will of the late H, Lee Borden was admitted to probate In the Marion county court. The estate is by far the largest ever probated in Marion county, the personal property being given at $900,000 and the real estate at $60,000. Mrs. Theresa BoMen, wife of the deceased, is named as execu­ trix, without bond, and to her the en­ tire fortune Is bequeathed. Deceased had extensive interests in Chicago and New York and other Eastern cities. He owned the large Borden plantation seven miles northwest of Salem. He was the last survivor of the late Gail Borden of condensed milk fame. Fish Hatchery for Chicago. Chicago will have a fish culture sta­ tion if a bill introduced by Repre­ sentative Mann becomes a law. The bill provides for an appropriation of $200,000 for the establishment oi such a station. The plan is favored by anglers, fishermen and fish dealers in the neighborhood of Chicago, who complain that the fish in the lake and streams are rapidly becoming extinct. If Mr. Mann's bill is passed millions of fish will be hatched at the station at Chicago, from wnich point they will be distributed throughout the middle west for the stocking of the lakes and the rivers.1 Confesses Judgment The grocery store of C. F. Cmm at Marca has been closed by Sheriff Thrift on a confession of judgment for $3,500 In favor of William Crum of Clinton. Young Crum bought the stock of Conover & Co., last Novem­ ber, and a few days later he had one of his feet crushed while alighting from a train at Clinton. Since the accident Crum has been unable to return to Maroa. Miner Tires of Life. William Baker, aged 35 years, a coal miner from Lincoln, shot himself in the head in a lodging house at Springfield. He; was found in a dying condition and taken to the hospital, where he died. He left a note ad­ dressed to M. Reinhardt of Lincoln asking him to bury him, and stating that he was tired of life. On his "er- son was found $295. To Sink Coal Shaft The coal mine meeting at Blue Mound awakened considerable enthu- siam. It was voted to proceed with the sinking of a shaft. W. H. Bean was chairman of the meeting, and L. R. Shilk secretary. The company will have a capital of $75,000 to $100,- 000. Various committees were ap­ pointed. Quincy Pastor Receives a Call. The Phillips church of Exeter, N. H., has extended an invitation to the Rev. Samuel H. Dana of Quincy, 111., to become Its pastor. Injury to Rural Carrier. Rural Mall Carrier Simpson Love­ less was thrown from his horse while delivering mail on his regular route out of Matton and was seriously In­ jured, one leg being broken and other serious injuries resulting. He will tie confined to his home for several weeks as a consequence of the accident. Electric Light Ordinance. Mayor Shilling has signed the or­ dinance granting R. E. Pratt and oth­ ers the right to establish an electric lighting plant in Decatur. Finds $2,5(&. An envelope containing checks to the aggregate value of $2,500 was found by a Wabash employe In the yards at Springfield. From the pa­ pers it is supposed that they were lost from some passing train and were the property of one Arthur Pickrell. Gets $1,260 for a Fall. | Mrs. Laura Greene of Upper Alton received a verdict for $1,200 damages against the village of Upper Alton for injuries she sustained by falling on a piece of broken sidewalk. Insane Man Attacks an Officer Whs Sought to Recapture Him. Deputy Sheriff George B. Slmcox of Salem had a desperate hand-to-hand battle with Paul Fink, a former Cen- tralia citizen, who escaped from the Southern Illinois Insane hospital St Anna. Fink had made his way to hie home in Centralia. and when sp»' proached by Deputy Simcox he at* tacked him furiously, but by the aid of several citizens Fink was overcomes SNYDER, NATURALIST. Dr. J. ¥\ Snyder of Virginia, tfeS new president of the Illinois State Historical society. Is a native of St Clair county, Illinois, and a graduate of McKendree college. Until the civil wo: -Q0 J.F.SNYDLB war he practiced law; after that fee devoted himself to medicine, taking up residence in Virginia. He is de* voted to natural history and possesses one of the finest private museums ia the state. Passengers In Peril. A side rod on Wabash engine N6w 607, pulling a fast passenger tram into Decatur out of St. Louis, broke as the* train was passing over the Sangamoa river bridge, near Decatur. The trafa was going at full speed when the acci­ dent occurred. Ends of ties were broken by the whirling steel beam and the fireman's side of the cab was wrecked. Engineer John Edwards ap­ plied the brakes, and with Fireman Fred Dolson, both clinging to the steps on the right side, awaiting de­ velopments. Fortunately the engine and coaches kept the rails and the train stopped as the opposite side of the river was reached. There were many passengers on the train, but few realized their peril. ,. Decatur Y. M. C. A. :• Efforts are being made to erect *. Y. M. C. A. building in Decatur. Ths amount of money still needed is $50,* 000. The association has $20,000 available. There were thirty citizens at a promotion banquet at the 9L Nicholas, at which encouraging ad­ dresses were delivered by J. A. Mont­ gomery, W. C. Outten, J. Fred Give*, Charles Murphy, H. C. Schaub, Robert 1. Hunt, Adolph Mueller, H. L win and A. H. Mills. *1A • < ' r . . • Jl. ;£- Railroad Taxes. The various railroads in Montgoiji- • ery county will pay taxes as follows this year: Cleveland, Cincinnati, Cl^U ^ cago and St. Louis, $11,390.29; WSp V bash, $5,393.23; Illinois Central, $4, i 211.86; Toledo, St. Louis ft Wester*, $3,369.49; Jacksonville ft St. Louis,; $2,521.69; Chicago, Peoria ft 8t Louis, $271.22; Quincy, Carrollton 4k-\ Western, $34.30. * Coal Company Quits. The Alton coal company, a well-' known Alton business house, bas sua- pended business. The difficulty ill getting coal during the present fuel famine is the cause of the suspension!. The stockholders decided to wind up the business affairs of the company and to go out of business. The com­ pany has been iu business ii^.AK^a. many years. •; K. P. Anniversary. Marion lodge Knights of Pythlaf^ will celebrate the fortieth anniversary of the order at Salem on Thursday evening, Feb. 19, with a banquet and. smoker; Teaehera' Convention. ^ * The convention of the Tricountp' teachers' association of Alexander, Massac and Pulaski counties will held at Mound City Friday and 8ata|* day, Feb. 13 and 14. I. O. O. F. Special. A special" session of the Illinois" grand encampment, I. O. O. F., wilt be held at Centralia on Tuesday, Fell, 16. The degree team of Ashley ea» campment will confer the degree upon forty candidates at this session. Casket for Dog. "Old Towser," the old. faithful com­ panion of Judge J. M. Pace of Mount Vernon, has died, and as a mark ot affection the judge has prepared * copper-lined coffin in which to fcWY the dog. , Serioua Accident. Claude Kippal, a boy of 5 years, was the victim of a-peculiar accident at Springfield. He fell while carrying *„ bottle in his hand in such a manned that when the bottle broke a shar> piece penetrated his wrist. The enjr tire arterial system of the wrist wajfc severed and most ct the tendons also,- He may lose the hand as a result Swallows a Tooth. Frank Yanden Boom of Qulacf t» suffering from .ailments jfeJT •wallowing a false tooth.

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