Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1882-10-21

round corporation. a burgundy -tinted
nose. and and general exterior of a
coutented mind, and as he entered the
editorial den be offered US a good segar,
lit another, and said:
-" How about this local cremation
scheme
well, how yourselt?'
The fact is" said the stranger, re-
dectively, 8 | had a pretty tough ex-
perieuce with one of those oadaver roas-
ting coucerOs ouce. aud | thought may
be you might like to make an item of
the facts 50 as to warn the people here
IN time"
Fire away"
Well. you see, it was 10 New Or
leans. Ny wife died there, aud as a
cremation company was having good
deal of boom there just then. she made
me promise to have her spirit sent up
through their fiue. as it were Said she
thought it would be nice aud melancholy
for me to carry her ashes around with
ms wherever | went-in vase you uu-
derstand"
"Aud you complied ?"
Well, yes. 1t was her last wish.
you know, aud besides l thought it
might be useful in kinder preparing her
for the here-but never mind that now.
| sent the remains around to the compa-
ny's office III push-cart, got receipt,
saw Maria touched off. go to speak, aud
two days after that they returned me a
beautiful majoica jar full Of ashes, seen
ted with forget-me-Hot, the stopper tied
in with pink ribbon"
+" That was pretty"
Yes; | was very much pleased at
first, but | had to keep the bottle out of
sight after awhile, though, because peo-
pie were all the time opening the ja' i,
under the impression that it contained
preserved ginger or chow-chow, or
something"
. That must have been unpleasant"
UnpleasaDt-well,I should smile
[ mean should ,cecp. Why. actually.
one day while was living in New York !,
came home and found Dew servant
girl polishing knives with the remains
just think If it."
= Terrible. sir, terrible "
But, what | was going to say was
this. About year after my wife was
kindled-l mean crematcd-I was in
New Orleans again, and l happened to
meet this superinte0dsn Of the refractory
ore-l should say the corpse-buruing
furnace-at banquet and he got so full
that had to see him home. On the
way we stopped in place or two for a
steadier-you know how it is-ard the
result was that he got very communica
tive about his company-in fact, give
the whole business away
q" Did, eh.'
Eyes, sir be squarely owned up
that they didn't burn up the bodies at
ali. He said they just dropped 'em
through hole in the bottom Of The fur
mace, took 'em out the back way at
night, and sold 'em to the medical stu
dents
Gracious and the ashes }"
" Mule ashes, SIR; nothing but mul e
ashes They would just cut up some
old mule carcass. the superintendent
said, pitch in enough to make bad
smell. and then sell the ashes to the
grief-stricken relatives at S25 bottle
terribly cheeky. now, wasn't it,.
=" And all this time you had
Had been carrying that old jar Of
mule ashes all over the country, just i'm
agine how mean | fclt."
" You threw it away then
"Well, no, aid the widower. as he
winked out OF his left eye. :" the more |
studied ever the matter the more con-
cludci that mule ashes weren't so much
out Of the way after all You see. poor
Maria vas 90 asful stubborn woman-
tremen i Gus stubborn and-yes,
kinder thought mule a-hes would do
mighty near as woIl. all things consider
ed.'
And heaving the resigned sigh Ct one
who had succeeded in brsciLg up under
great so' row, the anti-cremation,Sts smiled
softly, Ut another cigar aud walked
out -Sin Franciscn Press