Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1876-03-14

menacing, sullen, almost savage hope
less hind night which never dreamed Of
the day. SO somber and solitary, 80
unearthly, though earthly, was all this
weary. winding way. bordered With
gloom and mystery, that it was
positive relief when we reached the
great ossusrp. Here, at least, we're
the representatives OF what had once
been life; for in these long, wide CALLER.
les, these subterranesn streets and
courts, are gathered the bones Of 3000,-
900 human being-tbe yellow harvest Of
time, Of pestilence, and OF revolution. In
these dismsl coulisses stand silent at last
the actors Of many fearful tragedy OF
French history; bat out OF those eyeIess
sockets stares such strange look of
watching and waiting and fellowship that
1t almost seems as though they are ready
to rush back on the stormy scene, aud
take up again the roles OF the conspira-
tor and revolutionist. This gigantic
Golgoths, this mighty magazine OF death
is arranged with frightlul regularity and
system. II seems to me that it forms q
sort Of ghastly complement to the city
overhead The great passages are nam.
ed after the streets and boulevards whose
course they follow, and suggest, by the
contrast Of stiffness, darkness, immuts-
bihty, the uproar, the brightness and the
rash of the busy day above. They sug-
gest, with more overpowering force, the
great, dread mystery Of death which for
ever underlies our life Here, beneath
beautiful churches, fragrant With incense,
gorgeous with pictures and marbles, be.
meath altsrs bright with tapers and
cleaning with golden vessels and cruel.
fixes, are chapel like chambers, cut 10
the rock whose air is heavy with the odor
OF mortality, whose ceilings are dsrkly
frescoed With smoke, on whose rough
columns are solemR inscriptions in black
lettering, whose walls bear crosses OF
skulls, set in mosaics of bones. There
is even shown here a singular collection,
arranged by celebrated surgeon, Of dis
eased bones-s sort Of osseus hospital
The catscombs we're consecrated ss q
burial place before the first revolution,
bat the bones-brought frem the various
cemeteries by night in funeral cars with
religious rights-were shot down a shaft
aRd left in a mighty indistinguishable
heap. 1t was not till the time Of Eapo-
leon-the man Of men to bring order out
Of chaos and to discipline even death
that the present system was adopted and
the mass Of eommingled mortal re-
mains ranged into ranks, Since
then inscriptions have been placed
over every new section, telling when
and from what cemetery they
we're removed. This is all the distinction
now. Here only is real equality and fra.
tornity. Here, side by side, are heads
which once toiled at the great problems
Of science aud humanity, and heads that
once plotted small thefts and ASSESSING
tionsi heads that once wore coronets,
heads that once fell under the knife OF
the guilotine, heads once pillowed on the
breast of princes, heads that have lain on
the black slab Of the Morgue. Here are
skeleton hands that we're once soft and
fair and glittering with Jewels; strong
hands, snce dripping with blood; Gun.
ming hands of musicians; rude hands of
executioners; feet which marched in all
the campaigns of Napoleon. feet that
trampled the weary ways OF want, feet
that have gone on pious pilgrimages, feet
that have danced at the Mabille. Pomps-
dour may here have mingled her bones
with those Of some gentle Sister Of
Mercy" ab t