Burke And Hare: 8 Facts About The Bodysnatchers Who Weren't

Almost all sources from the time and the confessions that the men themselves and others involved made agree that the first body that Burke and Hare sold to Robert Knox had died of natural causes.

There was a lodger in the household known as "Old Donald" who passed away. However, he still owed £4 in rent, which seems to be around £375 in modern terms. Not happy with just having to swallow the loss, the two men conspired together, weighed down Old Donald's coffin so that it seemed like the body was inside and instead took his remains to Dr Knox's assistants.

The exact amount of money paid was enough to cover the rent owed to Hare with a little on top and almost the same for Burke. A slightly incautious buyer on Knox's behalf allegedly made a comment, surely not knowing what it would result in.

This junior representative said that Knox "would be glad to see them again when they had another to dispose of."

Whether anyone raised any suspicions or thought to question the fact that the duo ended up bringing at least 16 cadavers back to the same people is not known, although Knox was never prosecuted once the crimes came to light as it was decided that he had no real way of knowing the way the bodies were being procured.