Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-07-27

more. According to a model of the
towers shown by the superintendent OF
the place, there is stone floor inside the
tower, level with the door, and in this
stone floor are spaces cut, about a foot
deep, and arranged in three circles, to
receive the bodies. The outer. circle is
for men, the next for women, and the
third for children. In the center is an
enormous pit or well into which the
bones are cast after they become dry.
No one ever enters this place but the
bearers of the dead, and the priest.
Strangers are not allowed within the
gates during a funeral procession, and
women relatives never come inside the
walls with their dead. Just before the
bearers begin to ascend the inclined
plane which leads to the frowning iron
door they halt, and the friends, APP
preaching the bier, take the last look,
for they can go no farther. Also at this
point a dog is brought, and caused to
look on the face of the dead. They de-
cline to say why this is done, and the
superstitiOus reverence of even cultured
Parsees for the dog is very strange.
They all keep dogs-there is not Par
see house on earth without dog. When
the dead is carried inside the bearers
are frequently forced to hurry out to es-
cape harm from the hungry vultures,
which Immediately begin to strip off the
flesh. The Parsees say that in one hour,
unless the birds are gorged, there is not
a shred of flesh on the bones.
There are strange tales whispered
through the city of Objectionable rela-
tives being carried too soon to these
awful towers, that cries have been heard,
and once form was seen battling with
the hungry birds. If man dies in the
forenoon his body is taken away at four
p. M; if he dies during the night he is
removed at ten a. m. There had been
no dead brought the day before, al
though there are about eight hundred
bodies taken to the towers yearly. Con-
sequently, the birds were very hungry.
A large number of them were perched
on the rim of large tower, and, as we
appeared, began to turn their hideous
heads and flap their dusky wings with
delight, and whet their beaks on the
stones, evidently expecting a human
body for breakfast.
We were requested to stop when with
in about thirty yards of the towers. No
strangers are allowed to go nearer.
caused all conversation to cease, and
listened, that might know if it was a
place of silence. | found it was. No
sound from the busy city reached us;
no voice, or roll of passing wheels; only
the faint, solemn murmur of the distant
sea and the boding flap of the vulture's
wing. While standing there listening, I
saw huge vulture perched on palm
tree smoothing its plumage, and two
large feathers came slowly down to the
ground. Disregarding the rules of the
place, L dashed forward and secured
them as mementoes of my visit. One
of them will find a home in my study
and the other will be on the table of
certain editor, to be used for writing
solemn obituaries. We were informed
that a funeral was approaching and
must withdraw. So went outside and
passed along the wall to the southwest
angle, where l could get a view of the
upper part OF the tower, where the body
was to be left. After few moments l
saw the vultures begin to grow restless,
looking into the tower. Suddenly they
plunged out of sight. and I knew their
feast had begun.-Bonsboy (India) Cor.
Chicago Times.