RISE OF THE RESURRECTIONISTS IN GREAT BRITAIN 125 



which required about three weeks during summer, and longer 

 in the winter. They were then buried with the surety they were 

 unfit for dissection. Such a type of construction still stands in 

 the burial ground at Crail, located on the coast about twenty miles 

 northeast of Edinburgh. Strong iron guards (mortsafes), which 

 resembled a cage, were also used over some graves; the metallic 

 guards were firmly set in a stone base. The time that it took to 

 construct one of these protective gadgets tended to neutralize its 

 usefulness as a body might be snatched before it was completed. 

 The use of iron coffins constituted the best deterrent against the 

 machinations of the resurrectionists. Although the lid could be 

 easily broken by the blows of a sledge hammer, the noise which 

 attended such an operation prevented its adoption. 



The anxiety which pervaded the populace in respect to body 

 snatching was taken full advantage of by the funeral directors of 

 the period. They advertised that many hundreds of dead bodies 

 would be dragged from their wooden coffins during the winter 

 and used for anatomical dissection. To quote one of these from 

 Guttmacher ('35): "The violation of the sanctity of the grave is 

 said to be needful, for the instruction of the medical pupil, but 

 let each one about to inter a mother, husband, child or friend say 

 shall I devote ,this object of my affections to such a purpose; if 

 not, the only safe coffin is Bridgman's patent wrought-iron one." 



It was possible for a clever group of four or five resurrection- 

 ists to unearth close to 400 bodies annually and readily dispose 

 of them to the anatomical schools. The total income from such 

 sales might amount to 1,500 guineas, about $7,665. When divided, 

 it made a sizeable yearly income, for each member, when con- 

 sidering the pound sterling evaluation at that time. This was 

 outside of the money which could be made from a by-product, 

 namely teeth. These were in great demand and commanded fancy 

 prices (Ball, '28; Guttmacher, '35). 



Sometimes, a cadaver would be delivered by a student in- 

 termediary, particularly when the populace was aroused over 

 some recently discovered incident of body snatching. From a 

 hide-out in his home, the subject would be transferred to school 

 or hospital at a propitious time. A hired coachmen, in such an 

 instance, might sense the situation, and threaten to drive the 



