, 1874-06-06
supplement vail foz5ow.
OF THE
COLONIAL COUNCIL
FOR ST. CROIX.

MONDAY the LIST of June 1874, IL O'Clock
noon, the Colonial Council held an Extraordi-
nary Meeting.
The Members were present with exception of
1st and 3rd Member for Chrstiansted (Lemming
and JolIife), the former in consequence of indis-
position, the latter from press of business.
The minutes Of the last Meeting were read.
The Chairman notified that he had received
a communication from the Presidency, accord
ing to which the Government of the Danish
Yves india Islands had in behalf of His Majesty
the King nominated Reverend Willemoes as
2nd Crownmember in lieu of Mr.. Anthem who
had retired.
Reverend Willemoes was present and handed
In his patent Denomination, which was examined
and the 1st Crownmember (Du BOis) reported
that it was in due order; where upon the Chair
man declared Reverend WillemOes entitled to
have a seat and vote in the Council as End
Crownmember he having previously been a
Member was not required now to sign the for
mular of oath.
Before proceeding to the Order of the Day
the Chairman gave the word to the President,
who had d communication to make to the Coun-
oil.
The President: The Council will remember
that in one of the last Meetings the honorable
3rd Member for Chrstiansted's Country Dis
trict Latimer) had put a question to him re-
garding the grave-yardS in FrederikSted. He
(the President) knew that this matter had
for some time caused a certain degree Of SEN
sation among a part Of the public, and also
that the case was misunderstood. He would
therefore give an explanation founded upon
the essential part of the correspondence and
other documents, which had reached quite a
bulky size, to a great extent however of i'm
pOrtant materials. The position Of the English
Episoopalian and the Roman Catholic oongre-
cations with respect to their cemeteries is
looked upon by many in the Western part Of
the island asa case of great hardships, armstrong
terms such as unjust and perfectly illegal had
been made use of in connection with it.
There are two different points involved in
this matter, the one relating to the fees paid
to the Danish Church for the opening of the
grave, and the other to the fees to the sexton,
or as be is also called the.grave digger, both of
which fees are considered unjust, in as far as
they are demanded from members not belonging
to the Danish congregations, aud whore the in-
terment takes place in the special cemetery
Of the English Episcopal and the Roman Oatho-
lie congregations.
Now, as regards the question of the sections
right to certain charges, which have been fixed
at different times by special regulations, this
right is perfectly in accordance with the COM
mon Danish laws. The principle on which the
charges are framed. may not be in harmony
with the views and feelings of the present age,
but it was established in these islands with
the rest of the Danish Jaws and has continued
in force ever since. The first known regula-
ton of this kind bears date 20 November I77O,
but was recorded only in 1920, a circumstance
not without influence on.the question. 1t treat
ed only of the sexton in Christiausted, but by Re-
solution Of the w. I. Government it was in that