The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1890-08-07
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS..
Tom Arter Tells Why the Present System
is Wrong.
From the Nacou Telegraph


"a South Carolina paper contains an
advertisement for bids from undertak-
ers who will agree to conduct funerals
reverently. Telegraph Of Sunday
morning.
lsNow, that's business. Talk about re-
form in city politics, in State and alli-
ance politics, where they "fix" govern
ors and reform here and there, but
show me where reform is needed more
than in our present mode of burying
and marrying.
A modern funeral means that you
must spend lots of money, and mod
ern marriage means that your friends
must spend it.
When funeral strikes a poor man
these days he is not only compelled to
give up what he has saved, if he has
saved, but that he must go in debt at
the expense of the living. To keep up
with the prevailing style there must be
big show, a lot of unnecessary car
riages and number of other expenses,
and it is often the case that the head Of
family thus striken is at loss to
know (which brings the most sorrow,
taking care of the dead or taking care
of the living. No head of the family
dares to have funeral at his house
unless there is the usual and necessary
amount of pomp and display. If he
did otherwise, he would be talked
about scandalously and put down as
toe mean to live.
Two modern funerals in one family,
close together, will throw an average
man in debt for ten years, and yet the
only consolation in it is that the corpse
was laid away fashionably. Your grief,
according to the modern way, is mea-
sured by the amount of money you can
spend on the funeral, or how far you
can go in debt. No style, no grief. You
must have lots Of carriages, not only
for yoor friends, who are sincere in
their sorrow, but for a crowd who care
nothing for the contents of the hearse
in front, and who have attended the
funeral merely for the free ride to the
cemetery; but you dare not fail to pro-
vide the carriages for them. You would
be talked about for years to come.
What is wanted is somebody with
grit enough to break away from such
hide-bound, narrow-minded, heartless
modes, and start the old way of seeing
the loved ones laid to rest peacefully,
reverently, and without all this cold
blooded pomp and show. It's pity
that the funeral Of to-day should be
made circus of, and means OF max
ing people poor, instead Of solemn
occasion.
There must be thoughts of the living
who are entitled TO some rights, and
the man who takes the bread out Of
the mouths of the living who are de-
pendent upon him, that he might
make big display over the dead, is
no man at all.
There is no need of all such pomp. I
believe in following the dust to the
grave, and I believe in simple cere-
mony when the cold clay is committed
to the last home, but I enter my vigor-
Gus protest against a long sermon or a
discourse on the virtues of the depart
ed. Those who care anything about it
know how good or how bad was the
deceased in life, and there is no use in
a minister worrying a crowd with a
record of good things done by some
body he never saw, perhaps. Sonle
preachers take special delight, when
they get funeral crowd into their
churches, of re-opening wounds and
making them bleed afresh in public.
They seem to delight in causing these
public exhibitions of grief by recalling
the most pathetic incidents in the life
of the cne gone before.
There is lots said in these funeral ora
tions that is untrue. In my time I
have known people to die natural
deaths when, if the ends of jnstice haG
been served, they should have been
hanged; and yet when the preachers
got through with them I went away
thinking that the wrong man had been
buried or the preacher had lied. It al
most made me lose respect for the min.
istry. Only the other day heard Of a
preacher up North somewhere who
advocated fees for funeral sermons as
we'll as for performing the marriage
ceremony. This means more expense
for the bereaved. The bigger the fee
the bigger the saint. No fee, no vir-
tues.
Now, let US attend modern mar
riage. The delicately perfumed card
that comes to you is no longer mark
of favor and signifying that you are
one of the good friends OF the family,
but a bid for any present you may see
fit to give. In the old days you were
never invited unless the bond Of friend
ship was strong, and when you attend
ed all that was expected Of you was
your presence, a kiss for the bride, a
shake of your hand for the groom, and
God -bless-you for both.
Nowadays you are expected to assist
the family in setting up the young
couple in housekeeping by donation
of a lamp, set of furniture, spoons
knives and forks, butter dishes, or
something of that sort. I always look
with suspicion upon the wedding lnVl-
tations sent to my house. Whenever
one comes we cut down the ice bill and