, 1877-12-14
Progress of Cremation.


its recent report enumerates the instances
in different countries of the adoption of
the new method. In 1869, q woman Of
35, whose body weighed 116 pounds, was
reduced in furnace at Padua to 6
pounds. In the same city two men were
next year burned, the corpse of one
weighing 80 pounds, and that of the
other 90, these being respectively reduced
by fire to ashes weighing only BOG and
4.06. In the last of these cases the cost
was only the small sum of 2s. 4d. The
body OF woman, 70 years OF age, at
Bresau in 1874, who weighed 70 pounds:
was burned in 70 minutes, at the cost OF
3s. In 1874, the bodies of two young
women of 26 and 90 were burned at Dres-
den, and reduced respectively to $40
pounds of ashes and 4 pounds, and the
Operations occupied 70 and 7S minutes
At Milan, man of rs was cremated In
1870, leaving pounds of ashes after W
minutes ignition and woman, whose
age is not stated, was cremated at cost
of 70 shillings. At Washington, Penn,
the similar combustion of man, Baron
de Palm, aged 81, cost 3Os., all labor in
cluded, and occupied 120 minutes. Again,
in Milan, 1877, there was case OF u man
of 72, who was reduced to ashes IN 90
minutes, the expense not stated. Since
March, 1877, cremations are allowed in
Italy, on an order from the project, if,
after due conference, no objections are
raised by the provincial sanitary coun-
Gil. Before that day the permission of
the government had to be obtained. The
chief Cremation Society in Germany
at Berlin--is reported to be in flourish
ing condition, and has contributed large
ly to the funds for the Crematorium
about to be erected at Gotha or Coburg.
The system most in favor in that country
is a modification of the regenerative one
of DIR. Siemens, of London. The tenn
perature of ignition is about 1,4O0 de-
grees Fahr., beyond which the ashes are
apt to become fused. In Austria the san
itary council has long ago submitted a
carefully prepared opinion to the munc-
ipical authorities, with request that
cremation might be made permissive,
but no answer has been received; and it
is supposed that this is due to some pres
sure having been exercised by persons
in the highest circles having an antip-
athy to cremation. There are several
cremation societies in Austria, but their
endeavors are for the present confined to
the collection Of contributions, Gin order
that certain number of orations and re-
ports be made" In Switzerland there
are several associations for promoting
cremation, that of Zurich including 400
members, and it is hoped that new
sanitary law will soon be passed legaliz-
ing the practice, but for the present the
government holds that the ground is not
yet sufficiently cleared for its interfer-
ence. The Cremation Society of Holland
is described AS extending over the whole
kingdom, and has branches in several
towns. There is fund for erecting Gre.
matoria, cremated out of gifts and lega-
cies, and a yearly donation from the gen
eral board. The society also publishes
a small periodical giving information as
to the course of the movement. At pres
ent the law is that corpse should be
buried in coffin. In France 'no prac-
tical steps have been taken toward the per.
formance of cremation there; neither does
fair opportunity seem to have occurred
for testing whether the law will permit
cremation;" but, of course, the want of
opportunity is simply the fault of the
public, not of the system. In the United
States seven societies have been formed ;
and in Brooklyn and Chicago arrange
ments have been made for the erection of
suitable buildings. There is no law to
forbid cremation, and three cremations
have taken place, one being that of the
body of the Baron de Palm mentioned
before.