San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-01-19
FUNERALS IN ENGLAND.
CEREMONIES DENoTINe SORROW AT
A LOVED ONES DEATH.
, performs there,

doaers-The american Funeral Car
riage" Not Popular.
From gay to grave, let ms turn from the
London wedding to the London funeral II
the former Is full of most quaint and
curious customs, the latter is grewsome with
pomp and circumstance Woe Is shown In
somber trappings indeed The queen has set
the example. Her Affections have been full
sore and many. Her grief has been revelod
in most ecstatioally. To those who believe
In the grand words, 81 am the resurrection
aud tho life,n there seems most superstitious
fetch worship In the custom of making pill
grimages to the tomb where rest only the
ashes of the loved one.
or course, tho wearing Of black Is entirely
a matter Of taste and temperament. 1t Is
unknown among many religious sects. But
1t Is out Of the pale Of religion, and under
guidance alone Of individual preference.
Naturally there are those who are SC sad
dened by q death that the bright sun and
bright colors are alike painful to their vision.
To such the chastened character of black
garments alone accord with their feel
ings. Who shall say, then, that this is not
perfectly natural-nay, even poetics But the
extra wide bands of black on letter paper
this seems needless thrusting of grief on
other peoples sympathies.
In the rural districts there are numerous
pretty customs relative to funerals. The
window Of the room In which the death 90
CURED il always opened Immediately the
breath leaves the body to permit the spirit to
take flight. After this the inside blinds are
closely shut. Also the house door is left ajar
on tho day Of the funeral until after the re-
turn of the mourners Because" they say,
Ito shut the door would be to shut out ths
corpse To leave 1t open Is to show a willing
ness to welcome the return of the disembodied
spirit" LII the counties Of Somerset and
Hampshire the usual shroud Of the simple
village folk is a white cotton wadding sheet,
wrapped about the ordinary Undertaking
The collin Is borne on the shoulders of family
friends 70 CEe cemetery, the other mouraers
following atoot
TIE HIRED MUTE" MOURNERs.
In London all is reversed. Only men 40 to
sho cemetery, and these the intimate family
friends Women never go, and retire to
heir chambers for the day to weep silently.
There Is service at the cemetery chapel,
Ind SometlnleS second one at the grave
itself. Only when the deceased has been a
great public man is there a service at the
church ho attended in life, or in some noted
thurch, as st. Paul's, Westminster abbey or
the like, which is called "a mourning func-
Jon" Again there are memorial services
tvery year for noted people
Craps never figures on door handles or
bells. The blinds are down, the door knocker
mufhed, and very often straw is laid down in
the street to deaden the sound of traffic 1t
IS also an unwritten law for the immediate
netghborS TO draw down their blinds Thus
We know that the king Of Terrors" holds
grim court within the house with muf1ed
knocker.
Those who observe olden rites employ
''mutes" to stand one each side the street door
to weep. These 'mutes" are furnished with
long Grape streamers on their hats, and they
weep" for so much the hour
Truth compels the fact that these tears are
often the result Of copious potations Of gin
from pocket TASKS. They seem like pen and
ink sketches, every one droll exceedingly.
This, by the bye, is a Nineteenth century
survival OF custom Of tho early Romans.
Another Roman custom, that Of funeral
baked meats" is still adhered to. Poor in
deed the London family who have no funeral
SaHNuSI pIONlueU LOT JUe InOurQerS.
1t Is regarded as barbarous or American,
font you know" to keep the body less than
; week or ten days. The humid atmosphere
helps this fad" somewhat. Little ice Is used
and often none at all. OF course, in the case
OF contagious disease the law stops in, COM
pelling immediate burial No one can be
buried lacking burial certificate from the
parish physician. Thus the law aids the
physician in a way, Lacking the medical
guaranty an inquest is imperative.
HEAAsB HORSES MUST BE BLACK
Floral displays are even more extravagant
than in America. White flowers, colored
ones and Everlasting" ones, these arc heaped
up in wholesale manner The Everlasting"
ones come from Africa, and are sorts Of drieo
white pinks, sometimes called wrath flow
ers." They are graceful if ghost like bios
SONS. They are symbols Of hope, and are
regarded, strangely enough, as ominous Of
good. Then there are Dresden china floral
wreaths, used on graves; also composition
ones.
The funeral hearSe, called "a car" is open
at the sides, without glass; Or It Is boxed in
quite dark. The American funeral carriage"
is the one with glass sides, but they are not
popular. The hearse Is ornamented with
hugo waving plumes of coal black. The
horses are jet black and have tails sweeping
to the ground. Their names are long and
full. They walk solemnlY and are specially
trained They have to be broken to their
work, as they have originally tendencies to
break over the traces from excess Of animal
spirits.
This allusion will be understood obviously.
The drivers sit up high, with pail of black
yclvet thrown over their perch like seats.
The horses heads have decorations Of huge
black ostrich nlnmes An Enrlish f11nnrnl