The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-06-15

words found In Genesis ILL, 10, and which apply 10
thou shalt return" Why, then, any pomp, glitter
or display The soul has lett the body ana gone 10
earth earthly" and to this Il is incumbent upon
the living to show reverential love and regard Tor
proper respect consistent Win ,rGy so ssa,a
and unworthy OF the intelligence OF the age In
which we live.
know what extravaganza in money as well as In
manner now obtains at city funerals we will state
where the deceased, young lady OF about twenty
five years OF age had her face painted by an
artist to cover places backened where mortidca-
ton had set in; her hair cured and decorated by
a professional hairdresser; her wedding dress,
en- tratne, conspicuously wrapped around her per-
son. her hands encased in delicate white kid
gloves and holding q BRIDAL bouquet; flowers on
her coffin, beneath 1t and on the moor for seve-
raj ieet around, forming q perfect labyrinth OF
hearts, broken columns, &C, &c, and over and
around all these were burning myrads OF gas jets
darkened for the occasion by closing the windows
Hundreds OF persons were there who never knew
the deceased or any member Of the family, but VINO
came out OF mere idle, morbid curiosity and to
hep TO MI the scores OF carriages composing the
funeral cortege.
Now is all this rhythm fact, is 1t decent Can
1t be proper TO make an exhibition OF the dead as
we would OF the latest style OF bonnets In MILL
ner's window or statue In an art gallery or some
rare, wild animal in a cage Most assuredly not;
and the sooner the practice is discontinued the
Besides which the expense attending these fune-
rails Is simply enormous, and IN very many cases
FAR beyond the means OF the family whom recent
less fashion calls upon to make the unSeemly dis
play. Many there are who run into deDt on
these OCCASIONS and their regrets Tor the departed
are curousy mingled into regrets at the costiness
OF his exit In the matter OF carriages alone there
! is an nnJustihabe amount OF money spent winch
to indulge in. short time ago the Catholic
church oil this diocese, we believe, promulgated an
order limiting the number OF carriages to attend
funerals OF persons dying in their faith, which was
as respectful to the dead as 1t was considerate to
the living.
And pray, why should not people who attend
funerals go in their own carriages or hire them for
the purpose When they. go to or return from q
friend s house on other occasions they do not
pect the host or his representatives to provide
The custom, too, Of strangers attending funerals
Is an Objectionable one and should be corrected
What right has an entire stranger whom you
would not, as a matter OF course, invite to your
probably crowd out your friends from gaining en-
trance beneath your roofr In England better
custom prevails. There none come TO the
house on such occasions except those In
vited, while the church, If there be ser
vice there, and the cemetery are open to all.
BY this means confusion which, more or less,
always occurs at large assemblies, Is avoided; the
FAMILY OF the deceased is not indecately intruded
upon. and perhaps -afforded expense is not IN
The Jewish rites OF burial are, in many respects,
worthy OF consideration by other sects. Win
tial particulars the same as the poor
mans. With both all ostentation Is scrupuously
the grave are OF the planest kind, and when the
tenement OF the soul is deposited in its last resting
place here on earth--SO beautifully and Slgnin-
canty called by them their bet cihdyeent (house
OF the livlng)-no martial music, discharge OF mus
kerry or other grandiOquent demonstrations are
eyer permitted to intrude upoin! the soemnity OF
the scene. SEMIOCCASIONAL.
WASHINGTON, D. c. June IS, 1873.
Plain Answer Desired to q Plain Cues
ton.
To THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD
AS you open your Sunday columns to the discus
sion OF biblical and theological questions l avail
myself OF them, not for the purpose OF captious or
so-caled infdel augmentation, but to get from
some OF your orthodox readers plain and une-
qu1voca answer to q sincere and conscientious
question. II it has ever been asked or answered
before have not had the good fortune to meet
with II in my reading. We are told by our orthO-
dox friends that in Adams sin and consequent fall
the penalty OF eternal DEATH or its synonym, eter
nal punishment, was entaied on the human race;
and as this sin was an infinite sin against the In
finite law Of an infinite God, there could be no pos
sible forgiveness for it communication OF the pen
atty and that nothing less than infinite punish
ment could satisfy the demands OF violated infinite
justice. To satisfy this demand therefore, which
could not be done by man except by the SUITE ring
decreed, we are further told that Christ took
the penalty upon himself; that He literally sub
stituted Himself IN ihe place OF tne sinner, ana
omnpOtent Creditor. In other words, that which
man, the transgressor, owed and had to pay In all
It's length, breadth and terrible entirety Christ,
for man and in his place and stead, assumed and
undertook, and did pay as fully and completely and
OF His own Individual creation. The law affixed
the penalty and Christ assumed II, not by commu.
tation OF time or by limitation or extension in de-
gree or otherwise OF bodily or spiritual agony but
by substituting Himself In the place OF man under
the same curse or its fearful consequences,
bounded, If bounded at all. by the limits and
was doomed TO endure II and would have endured
1t but for this act OF substitution by the Saviour
Now, what was that penalty Eternal Danish
ment from the presence OF God, and consequent
eternal, lrrevocable punishment and suffering
now or Will He IN the ceaseless ages OF
the great hereafter suffer the same penalty
said to have been decreed with devils and 1ends
whether In the body or the spirit, by the Creator
against the poor, lrail work OF His handsS Ii lie
did not, does not and will not so suffer, what then
becomes OF the asserted doctrine OF the atone
ment, with all that is involved in itf If to the
ner in his own person, no modification or limta
tion OF his punishment could be conceded without
violating the lnfnte DEGREES OF the Godhead in the
mmutability OF His purposes, could 1t be possible
that a substitute was supplied, even though the
son OF God Himself, and that by the endurance Of
all the agony OF which the minds OF men or angels
could conceive, and limited to the space OF some
thirty odd years, lie could discharge debt for the
payment OIL which, by the debtor himself, all the
eternities are orthodoxicay declared to be lnsuf-
hclentf INQUIRER.
"Decline of Methodism."
To THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD
Under this heading you have printed a report OF
some OF things that said at the preachers
meeting yesterday and give statistics and also
some reasons why Metnodsm is declining in
Brooklyn. / have thought 1t would not be i'm
proper here to make a few remarks and give
another reason why 1t is declining, &c.
We have In Brooklyn Church Extension
Society," whose object Is to select sites and locate
churches in the interest OF Methodism, wherever