The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1890-08-07
BURIAL OR CREMATION.

What to Do with the Living and How to
Dispose Of the Dead. - -.
From the Troy Press:
There are two serious questions
that confront thoughtful men. What
to do with the living, and how to dis
pose of the deadG Let us give a few
thoughts to the latter. What shall
be done with the bodies of the dead?
Various plans have been adopted in
the past centuries, for example en-
balming and dessication, which has
lately been revived by the New Maui
solemn company. But the usual
methods since the dawn of history
have been burial and cremation. Both
have their advocates. Cremation
would not be thought of in the coun-
try with its abundant room for
cemeteries. 1t applies chiefly
to crowded cities where it is a prob
lem now to secure a resting place for
the many who die every week. 1t is
an ancient custom, practiced among
many nations in the past. In the
Greek and Roman classics the funeral
pyIe, the ashes of the dead, the ciner-
airy urn and the columburlum are "a
familiar as grave, coffin or cemetery
with us. some fifty years ago the
crowded condition of the public ceme-
teries in London forced the attention
Of public men to some other DISPOSE
ton OF the dead. Bodies were buried
under churches and in the church
yard, so that it. became sanitary
question, affecting the health of hun
dreds that lived in the neighborhood
The cemeteries originally laid out or
the confines of the city were en-
croached upon by the increase of pop
ulation around them. The great Paris
cemeteries are blamed for many dis
eases to whom their near neighbour
are subject, the drainage, the watel
supply and the air are all in danger O
contamination, while the planting O
trees is not sufficient preventive
Bishop Potter leans strong
ly toward cremation. But DR.
Crosby writes briefly that he is no
Gan advocate OF cremation" DR.. Hal
does not like it, while Rose Terry
Cooke writes, II consider cremation
heathenish."
The great majority of men in thi
country at least favor burial-th,
hiding away of the body in the eartl
or rock. This was the custom of tn,
Hebrews. The earliest record o
burial is when Sarah was laid by
Abraham in the cave at Machpelah
and it has been practiced by many
nations. We are creatures of habit
We do as our fathers did. 1t would
be hard to change this custom, around
which SO much sentiment fingers
The form of the body is dear to us
We believe it is the temple of the
| Holy Ghost, and our Savior assumed
it when he came on earth. We like
to think that it retains that form il
its last resting place. The scientist
may be right when he says it is only
question of time when the body viii
disintegrate to ashes, to which crema
ton reduces it in a few hours.
The Waco Day has the following
editorial squib:
"a Boston girl, whose verses were al
ways declined with thanks hit upon
a unique scheme for having them pub
lished. She would send line or 6
verse from one of her poems to the
query column OF some paper and ask
from what poem such a lire came, the
name of the poem and that of the
author. A friend, also rhymester
would send the querist's own poem tc
the paper, with the desired informa-
ton, and, of course, it would appear
in print. The querist would do the
same for her FRIEND and so on, unit
between them they had most OF their
illusions printed.
Whether this was printed by the
Day as an invitation for fall poetry OF
as an excuse for not knowing the
true ring OF the genuine article is no
known. For its part the STATESMAN
still has in mind an event of tire,
years ago when some one sent in {
product of Tennysoh's brain, signei
anonymously, and asking criticism o
it, and distinguished physician an
swered, tearing it all to pieces. The
M. d. according 10 our notion was ex
actly right about it, but the instance
is only cited to emphasize the fac
that true poetry is mighty unsartir
quantity.
Primary, Secondary or Tertiary permanently cure
IN so 10 80 days. We eliminate all pol-un from tn