Grave...

The recent desecration of the gravo in St. Mark's Churchyard and the theft of the body of the late A. T. Stewart have brought this infamous business of body-snatching before the public in various repulsive forms. The robbery of the Stewart grave, however infamous as it was, is not the worst form of this horrible business. That robbery was an isolated case, having no connection with others, planned by particular individuals for aparticularpurpose,nainely,the extortion of a ransom from the friends of the dcceased. They were willing to take the risks of comparatively light punishment for the large reward whicli they supposed would be offered by the wealthy estáte for the return of the remains. It is not likely that the robbers were professionals, or that they carried on this ghoulish business as a means of livelihood, for in that case any other body would have answered their purposes, and would have exposed them to little or no risk. The recent confession of one of a gang of grave-robbers at Zanesville, Ohio, however, presents a phase of the business which will strike the public with horror. This man Evans, after being accidentally discovered and lodged in jail, made a f uil and f ree confession, which goes to show that grave-robbery is a regularly-organized business in the West, with its methods of transportation, scales of prices, and its regular sources of supply and demand ; and if in the West, why not all over the country? The details of his confession show that he has been engaged for several years in the business of bodysnatching. The average price received by him for a body was $2, but in this case he was to have had $20 - he had four botlies in liis wagon -wlien arrested. A few woeks ago he entered into a regular arrangement witli a medical college at Colurnbus, Ohio, to supply it with bodaes at a stated price. He was not alone in Lis operations. Of his two confederates, one was a young man named Hilliard, whose business it was to be on tlie watch for funerals, and secure the name, age and sex of the person who had died, the time of the funeral, and the exact spot where he was buried. The other confedérate was an assistant to Evans, who helped unearth the bodies. In the case in qnestion, Evans and his confederates dug up the bodies of two men, a woman, and a young girl, and wero engaged in transporting tlicm to a medical college when arrested. If this wero an isolatod case the public would breatho more freely, but Evans' confession shows that it was only one of a series of operations that have been going on for years. - Chicago Tribvie.