The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-12-31
rnnisI,ment of a Corpse.

The following account of the revival in Eng
land ofa custom supposed to be extinct in civ
ilized countries, we take from the London
Morning Star. The idea of p,.nishiag with in
dignity the lifeless remains of one whom mad
ness OR despair has driven to self-destruction
has in it something so monstrously barbarous
that we had supposed it to no longer have a
place in community claiming to be Chris
&an. 1t seems, however, to still find favor with
English juries. 1t will be observed that the
writer of the following evidently considers the
omission of the stake part of the ceremony as
all that was necessary to bring it up to the
standard of English humanity and propriety:
Now for the first time within quarter of a
century, Norwood Cemetery was last midnight
the scene OF the burial of the corpse of felo de
Sc without Christian rites. The coroners' iury.
which last evening at six o'clock found that the
commercial clerk, William George Williams
had committed the crime of self murder i'm
posed upon Mr.. Sargent Payne the necessity
of issuing his warrant for the burial of the
body by torchlight between that time and
midnight. The las. verdict of felo de Sc re-
turned at Guys hospital was in the case of
person that died there twenty years ago, and
on that occasion the horrible form of driving
stake into the body was gone through The
ghastly ceremony was performed in the burial
ground adjacent to the hospital, and is said to
have been almost the last instance in which
that OBJ olete barbarism was exercised in Lon
don. Lest the the tradition should be, by any
misconception, carried out in the present case.
the coroner expressly ordered that no stake
should be used, i1'.ft
About nine o'clock last night common mar
ket cart, drawn by an old horse, emerged from
the hospital gates. The end of a deal coffin
hung over the tail-board, and the name "Wil-
!ams, written on it with a piece of chalk.
showed that it contained the body of the sui
eide. In the course of an hour the cart, with
Its burden, was drawn up on the highway
alongside hedge at Norwood. The night
Matchman az the cemetery was called, and in
formed of the business on hand The func-
uonaries at the cemetery were just going to
ped, and were completely taken by surprise by
the production of the warrant for an immed-
date burial SO late at night for case of the
klnd had not occurred there for twenty-sfx
years. Mr. Gardiner, the superintendent, sent
messengers to the neighboring house, and was
fortunate enough to find two grave-diggers
there. THESE men We're promptly set to work
TO dig grave at the southeast corner of the
cemetery, beneath some lime trees. When the
grave was deep enough the cart, which had
been left out on the high road was driven into
the grounds. The men unceremoniously lifted
the coffin from the cart, and guided by the
Pickering light of the lanterns, carried it to the
roughly-made grave. The excavation was long
er than the coffin, and at either end near the
bottom, a candle was stuck into the earth,
where, screened from the wind, which blew.
strongly and whistled through the trees, they
cast siekly light upon the yellow clay. Tho
CONN was lowered int0 its place by means of
Lopes, the earth was instantly shovelled in and
Stamped down, the lights were put out and all
was over.