The New York herald., 1871-11-05
4 Herald Commissioner Makes an
Investigation.
What Become Of the Funds Who Arc Re-
spOnsiblc! and What Should Be Done!
The HOdel Trustees and How They Are
Elected f"-Tammany Repeating Ri
vailed in Mulberry Street.-The
Roads, Graves, Gravediggers
and Mortuary Chapel.

sasinesa
There seems to be considerable dissatisfaction
anong the Cathoilcs Of this city ana vicinity
win the way the Affairs OF Calvary Cemetery have
Been for long time ana are still being managed.
Yumerous complaints on this score have been re-
eeivcd at the HERALD once, and many prominent
catholics VINO care more for their religion and the
welfare OF everythln under the charge Of Its servi-
tsss than for any clique have called upon the
HgRALD to make the whole subject Of the manage.
nent Of the cemetery the groundwork for .
shOrougn investigation The following letter il 0
4eslmen of the many complaints that have been
Dourtng in upon the HERALD for weeks past:-
NEW YORK. oct. 6, ISL
10 THE EDITOR or THE HEkALD:-
SIR-Haying an interest In the disposition OF the
funds which are derived by the authorities Of the
CaIhOlic church from various sources, called
~ the office OF Calvary Cemetery during the past
week and asked Tor copy OF the last annual report
made Dy the trustees OF ST. Patrick Cathedral
! was politely Informed that the report 1Or the
past year had not been printed. | asked II the re-
ports were not usually printed. and was answered,
yes. further asked II the Legislature did not re.
quire that All annual report should be rendered. and
WAS told that there Was not any such requirement.,
that the reports were merely made Tor private cir
cuation. Now, sir If the Catnolic pubic will Only
consider that this self constituted and irresponsible
Board or Trustees have the management OF some
SIX millions OF their property, and may say, rule
Of several European Kingdoms. Iventtlre to assert
thai they Will not rest content win sucn mode Of
which has been more tnan quarter OF q century
under the direction Of this board, and what is It's
ssaae visited 1t last week, after an interval OF
twelve years from o l0rmcr visit, ana the only lnl-
prOvements could see were good macadamlzed
circular road ooonteons planting Of willow trees.
and more numerous array or broad marble slabs
for hcadstOnes, With a lew fine Obelsks. or course
the trustees are not expected TO decorate the
ground with such mausOleums and private vaults as
may he seen ia GREENWOOD, but there are plenty OF
other opportunities Tor Them snow their tstheuc
talents There trees lining the circular road
~ q
Urnament; the avenues are III q rude state, without
any gravel on them, without stone steps al the
ascending grades, without border OF lockwood,
Without amy evergreen trees The grave mounds
are generally unsodded, and WIN soon sink TO the
ngurc she ground. The Office Is dismal one story
ol1ck building, without any architectural pretcn-
facing the road. IL should be rnstlc-shaped cot
Sagc, with neat porch and Overnangng caves, In
stead OF The dirty dngy thing It Is. The mortuary
chapel Is but little improved. The entrances To the
cemetery are IN keeping with the rest OF It. There Is
no neat gateway under an arch, sweeping from
Of 1t, as we Should expect to find.
With all these drawbacks, however, Catholics, as =
body win not consider burial In any other ground
- orthodox, although the two best monuments LII
Greenwood arc those oI Catholics. 80 the trustees
age, and are Indifferent as 10 their complaints. The
ground OF Calvary Cemetery, TOR purposes OF burial,
y perhaps unequalied In the vicinity OF New YORK
m It's natural qualities. IL Is free OF stone, OF sand
and insects, pcing a lighL clay, and it Is wen
adapted by ITS position OF hlil and slope for embei
Nili tne trustees now tell us what they do with all
ihc money derived from the sale OF lots therc3 IL
surely is not spent In Keeping the ground IN good
Tnen there IS the Provincial Seminary, at Troy,
Sor which collection y taken up every year
throughout not only this diocese, hut believe, III
the six dioceses Of the province. What becomes
Of All the money collected for ltf There are never
uaorc tnan fifty students In it. The annual collection
ln this diocese alone should guess TO be over forty
IAOusand dollars. Let US allow $3.50 year Tor
zach. and what becomes OF INC nalancer Besides;
their sustcnance when ordained priests The money
cannot be swallowed up by the faculty Of the semi
nary IN salaries rent or repairs, or by The libra
n; for this institution, when compared with May
nOoth in Ireland, not to mention the seminares on
Susntits. Of necessary materials. Its Professors,
Coo, are nearly all foreigners both In language and
GOnntry. Perhaps Mr. Dimes Carolln, on behalf OF
lhe trustees when he has read this, would cDgntcn
nnA and thousands Of mis- fellow Catholics. who do
not believe in taxation without representation;"
J. III. CORBY.
A HERALD commissioner few days ago was in.
strueted to look into the management OF the cemc-
sery by the trustees, carefully 10 weigh all the facts
and faithfully to report upon everything connected
with the place which might come under his notice.
ana which might in any way tend to throw ad.
nissonal light upon what many Catholics are dis.
posed TO call disgrace to the Catholic name. To
~ shis enectualy 1t necessary TO start where
great many OF the complaints to the HERALD
ssart-with . funeral bound to Calvary from the
CITY, Ho was thus enabled to see for himself
whether all that was said about she disgusting
sghts anG exhibitions which some people allege to
be an everyday occurrence on the road to the
cemetery was or was not exaggerated. When he
started there were carriages enough to load
three boats IN the procession, and already three
pthcr funerals were IN waiting 70 be trans.
sorted across the East River on the ferry SO
Of course ali had 70 watt and a rich harvest was
rcaped by the rumscers In the ncighbornood, VINO
drove brisk trade IN their villanOus nuids as
hardly one man In the procession remained In the
fhau butvn
one got 0uS 70 take gust ono drink which gene.
rally meant about six drinks. Indeed, the drivers
knew jast when and where to stop without getting
any special orders 10 do and the occupants oil the
n 70 Ws made q ~
travelled over the same road to deaths door at least
zen times every Day during the past ten years Of
carriages were ali 'mourncrs.n
OVER THE RIVER.
The Williamsburg aide OF the r1vcr was reached in
an hour and hall after the erryboat left the New
dszen funerals extended along the dusty road.
which wound IN and out, and over causcways and
oadly constructed bridges over series Of dismal
mats and filed In morasses, where the long grass
Msct can 6c imagined than tnat winch extends on
either side OF Newtown Greek. IL Is utterly devoid
tnas Calvary Cemetery was reached many Of tue
m0urners were stupened with liquor and were In
. condition In which 10 mourn would be An i'm
possibility. No cemetery at home or abroad can
CALVARY CEMETERY
Tor ugiiness for the bad repair In winch II Is kept,
and none can begin to be wealthy mine TO those
Who control II this which IS devoted " the
burial OF the Catholic dead OF the diocese OF New
York. long, circular road winds through the
cemetery, which has been macadamized and Is IN a
yair condition tar as the roadway IS concerned;
but there is not tree TO cast ITS shade along the
entsre distance or tins winding road. where there
are any trees they have been planted IN the old part
OF tne cemetery by the relatives OF those buried In
ne pi0ts, and no thanks to the trustees or Calvary
cemetery; and by the way, these trustees ale
1 nc 1,s, same who form She body OF trustees who
g,ty. No hell ~ rung as in Greenwood to greet u
INIT Mvrs PROCESSION rs II enters the grounds, for the
goou sn suMcicnt reason that bell has not been
nvsueu ior tue purpose; and tho gateways are
paIn W nlucousuess, resembling the entrance TO q
Iarm stable III Illinois or Kansas more than the en-
MAncc 70 cemetery devoted 10 the purposes OF q
Dopuiation OF 250,00o Catholics, and where the
value OF the grounds and properly amounts 10
about eight Million dollars.
The lnfcrsecting avenues are in Ia horrrd state
particularly IN wet weather. wnen after leaving ihc