The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1876-03-14
BELLEVUE, BOSSIER PARISH LOUISIANA

races and flights of steps FROM the south.
or you drive in by carriage road at the
northern entrance, and read as you pass
the gate the inscription, which tells YOU
that the costly road was made at the ex-
pense of the soh Of the first baronet, Sir
Jaaashidje, in honor of his fathers men,
DRY. After driving quarter of mile
you proceed on foot up a long, rocky
ascent till you come to gate with the
warning: None but Perses may entetp'
But the prince had unsealed the en-
trance, and, in company with the cour-
teous secretary Of the Parse governing
committee, went in, and found a little
way on my right stone chapel or house
OF prayer, where the Parses who attend
the funerals perform their devotions.
From this spot. there is most en-
chanting and unequalled view over
Bombay, which every European visitor
should see if he can. While sat here
model of Tower of Silence was brought
and explained to me; the same identical
model which had interested the prince,
and the explanation was given by the
same exposition. As l listened, two
c6rpses, one of which was that of
mohed, or priest, were brought UP the
rocky ascent, each followed by about one
hundred Parses, in white garments.
The biers were carried by four men, and
two others followed, who alone are al
lowed to enter the towers. The Parses
who walked in the procession had their
garments linked two-and-two, and this
had mystic meaning. :.
The towers are circular, and are SO
well built that the Oldest has stood for
200 years without requiring to be re-
paired. They are formed of huge
stone slabs, well cemented together,
and the largest cost 100000. If it
may be assumed that the four other
towers cost on an average 100000
each, we should have tenth of
million invested in these buildings alone.
Add that Sir Jamshidje gave 100000
square yards of land and betrayed the
expenses Of road, and some idea may
be formed Of the cost Of the whole GEM
etery. In the circular external wall
there is but one aperture, about five
and half feet square and thirteen feet
from the ground, and to this the car
riers Of the dead ascend by a fight of
steps, and there take in the corpse. The
outside wall is from Is to 40 feet high,
according to the inequalities of the
ground on which the tower is built. In
side is circular platform, depressed
gradually toward the center, where is a
wall of about ten feet in diameter. The
surface Of the platform consists of fiuted
grooves laidout in threeseries, with circu-
lar path surrounding each series, to which
communication is obtained by straight
path leading from the aperture in the
outer well to the we'll in the center of
the tower. This straight path inter-
sects the circular paths, and is about
two and half feet broad and then
three feet
The Qorpses are deposited in the
grooves, those d men occupying the first
series, those of women the second series.
and those Of children the third. All the
bodies are absolutely nude, to fulfill the
saying, "Naked came I into the world.
and naked shall l 60 forth" and in half
an hour from the time they are put in
the grooves every particle of flesh is
stripped from the bones by numerous
vultures that inhabit the spot. The
skeleton is left to bleach in sun and wind
till it becomes quite dry. Two carriers
of the dead then enter with gloves on
their hands and provided with bags, with
which they carry the bones to the
central we'll, where they are cast and
crumble into dust. There are perfora-
tions in the wall of the well, through
which any moisture caused by rain or
otherwise passes and descends into two
drains at the bottom of the building,
where it passes through charcoal, and SO
becomes disinfected and inodorus before
it reaches the sea. There is a ladder in the
well by which the carriers of the dead
descend when it is necessary to clear the
perforations from Instructions. The
lust in the well accumulates SO slowly
hat in forty years during which the