The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1871-08-31
COMMUNICATION,

| The following communication in relation
to the death and burial of W. J. Sullivan, q
member Of the order of Odd Fellows at Mad
ison, has been sent to us for publication
MADISON. Wis, Aug. 10th, 1871.
| Mr.. Editor Having read in the TELE
GRAPH notice of, and the comments of your
correspondent, on the burial of WI. Sulli-
van, late of this city, also the reply of Rev.
j. W. Valley, desire to give you the facts as
they are.
Mr. w. j. Sullivan was prominent mer-
chant and one of our best citizens-al-
ways ready to give literally of his time and
means to any enterprise that had for it's OBJ
Iject the prosperity of our city. He was q
Catholic, and as such gave literally to aid in
building and furnishing their large and COM
modious church.
After mature deliberations, believing he
had right to think and act for himself, In
dependent of the arbitrary rules of church or
priest, he united with the Lodge end En-
campment of Odd Fellows in this city. This
brought upon him the wrath of the church,
During his last illness his church friends
paid him little or no attention-the Priest
only visited him when sent for by his wife
few hours before his death. He informs us
that Zone hour before his death he, in the
presence of five respectable witnesses, Prot
estant and Catholic, disavowed all connection
with the order" There was but one protes-
tant present and he declines to give any in
formation. We will concede he did, it is no
way binding on us.
Mrs. Sullivan being Catholic desired her
husband buried as such, but when this was
refused, proposed to bury him in the Protes-
tant grounds, but her Catholic friends ad-
vised her not to do SO, but to bury him just
outside of, but close to the consecrated
ground of the Catholic cemetery-that the
secrated grounds-it was only conforming to
a rule of the Church, to which she consented.
We, as Odd Fellows, protested against his
being buried without any service whatever,
and as they would not give him respectful
burial claimed the right of burying him our
consult with Mrs. Sullivan, but were told by
those who claimed to speak for her that she
desired us as Odd Fellows, to take no part in
the service, that her mind was fully made up
and we had no right to int1ude upon her in
her grief We therefore yielded to what we
supposed to be her wishes. Mr. Valley says
sit was optional with his friends to bury him
in the Potter's field or the Protestant ceme-
terry" If by " his friends he means his
family, they were influenced by members of
his-Mr. Vahey's-church to bury him in the
Potter's field. If he means the Odd Fellows,
they were not consulted but refused any
rights or voice in the matter. Mr.. Vahey
further says Sin the former (the Potter's field)
they deposited the remains of Sullivan"
Who does he mean by "hey?" Were "they"
not members of his own church, Surely 1t
was his own church that had entire control
and management of the burial and of the re-
mains from the moment of his death till they
were deposited in the grave selected by Mr..
Valley himself on the side of deep rayine
or gully. entirely unfit for such purposes. He
further says, Sin all probability they would
have remained there but tor the fact there
was some money coming from the Odd Eel
lows to the wife of Sullivan" This insinua-
ton is unworthy of any man claiming to be
priest of God. Money had nothing to do
with it. 1t was while standing by that dishon
ored and almost unapproachable grave, cho-
sen by Mr.. Valley himself, so different from
what had been represented, that she first re-
sllzed the disgrace to which she had submit
ted. The pure and holy love of good wife
could not let the remains o. loved husband
rest in such dishonor. Forsaken by the
church she had revered from childhood, the
remains of her husband refused christian
burial for no crime, with no relatives here but
brother and her young children, where
could she look for friends and sympathy in
her time of need with as much confidence as
to that great brotherhood of which her hus-
band was member She came to us, but not
in vain. The friendship, and sympathy and
kind Offices refused by the church were freely
given. AT her own request, the third day af-
ter the burial in the Potter's field, the re-
mains of brother Sullivan were removed to
our beautiful Forest Hill cemetery, where
they were re-buried with the ceremonies OF
our order.
HOPE LoDG e.
At the Republican County Convention held
of tho Court Houcn 10 ct Co41 4ho d;fFo