EARLY HISTORY OF ANATOMY IN NEW ENGLAND JgQ 



they were excused from all lectures during this interval. When 

 indicated, bodies were concealed in superstructures built on medi- 

 cal colleges: in domes, belfries or observatories. These spots were 

 reached by means of a ladder through a trap door in the floor. 

 Closure of the latter made the above appear inaccessible. A per- 

 manently installed, but hidden rope and pulleys permitted ca- 

 davers to be hoisted up and down at will. Wide chimneys with 

 fireplaces were built in dissecting-rooms which were used to hide 

 subjects when necessary. A block and tackle were likewise at- 

 tached to the upper part of the flue for quick elevation of one 

 or more cadavers. Chains were used on the pulleys rather than 

 rope so that fires could be built when it was suspected that a 

 search might be made; such suspended subjects suffered no harm 

 except a little smoking. Receptacles, containing bodies, were 

 placed in basements and covered with firewood. 



One incident which developed outside of any medical school 

 occurred in Ipswich, Massachusetts on a January night in 1818: 

 a light was seen in a cemetery when snow was falling. Later, when 

 it melted, a hair ornament was found, with a peculiar design, 

 known to have been on the body of a young woman who was 

 buried there a few days previously. An investigation was made: 

 not only her grave was empty but also those of seven others 

 which had been interred that fall and winter. The technique used 

 in this resurrection was faulty in two respects: no shaded lan- 

 tern had been employed and the body had not been wrapped in 

 a tarpaulin so that, in transportation, the comb had fallen on 

 the ground (Waite, '39, '45b). 



The detective work, in this case, led the investigators to the 

 doors of a local physician, Thomas Sewall. On his premises, were 

 found the identifiable parts of three bodies which were being 

 used to teach a group of students fundamental operative surgery. 

 He was indicted on three counts but one was discontinued on 

 plea of his counsel, Daniel Webster, that it was inaccurately 

 drawn. The surgeon was tried and convicted on the remaining 

 two and fined a total of $800, probably the largest monetary pen- 

 alty ever leveled against a body snatcher in the history of anat- 

 omy in this country. In this case, he happened to be an amateur 

 instead of professional. The event was sufficient to ruin the doc- 



