Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1884-10-18
A FUNERAL PYRE.
Cremation of Hindoo Rsjah ut Etretat
France.
Iparis Morning Newal


Etretat has sensation in the death Of Q
real Hindoo Prince. This parsonage was
the Rajah Abu Sahib-K oanderao. who
lately arrived there from Nice with suite
of twelve persons, all natives of Hindos-
tan. The Rajah left his own country in
search of medical relief from tumor in
the throat, which some months ago already
threatened his death. The renown Of
French surgery had reached his ears, even
in his palace on the shore of the Ganges.
After having been comfortably settled ut
Nice for some time he was suddenly forced
to leave by the advent of the cholera. His
condition had become worse instead OF
better, and long list of doctors had
proved their inability to cure him.
When the moment of the supreme agony
approached, and his servitors knew that
he had not ten minutes longer to live, they
lifted him up from the bed and laid him
down upon the ground, for, according to
the precepts of Buddhism, the soul of the
dead must first come in contact with the
soil before it can 60 forward to the next
stage in its march towards perfection. A
stone jug was placed under the head Of
the dying Rajah, and thus he breathed his
last.
The relatives and domestics of the de-
ceased Prince declared that his body must
be burned according to the Hindoo rite.
They applied to the Marie of Etretat for
permission to carry out this rite. That
functionary was at first much perplexed.
There was nothing in the manual of magis-
trates that related to cremation; neither
the Code nor the Constitution mentioned
it. He finally, however, telegraphed to
the Project of the Department.; the Project
consulted the Minister of the Interior, and
the funeral rite was authorized.
The decomposition of the corpse had
been very rapid and the case had become
an urgent one. The Marie merely exacted
of the Hindoos the greatest discretion.
On Tuesday night, in presence of that
worthy magistrate and of several doctors
(among them DIR. Kennedy, an American)
the body was carried down to the beach at
the foot of the high cliffs, where a funeral
pyre had been prepared by the Hindoos.
1t was in the form of a couch and was
composed of alternate layers of fagots and
chips, the latter being well saturated with
oil and petroleum. On top of this was
bed of hay, and upon this reposed the de-
parted Rajah. Then the fagots and
saturated chips were piled up still higher
and the torch was applied at the summit
The process of combustion lasted from
| two O'Clock to six in the morning. After
it was over, the friends and servants Of
the deceased performed divers ceremo-
MES. The ashes were divided into three
parts. One was cast to the winds; the
second was thrown into the sea, and the
third was gathered into an urn and will
be taken home to the native country of
the Rajah.
A few of the habitues and residents OF
Etretat were present at the spectacle, but
| a much larger number hurried down to
the beach soon after rising from their
beds to view the remains of the funeral
pyre and to gather some mementoes of
the event. A little of the ashes was still
visible, and the soil about the spot still
gave forth an unusual heat.