The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1893-04-01

frafar OF .l.e ,3raids ii Naiss-Eatiicr
Missed services.
i~ar away seem the ttnfes and the riEr-
81 the DFuiGs: even under t@e la4Stt tne
at vuletide-tla ta4r OF howlag. fA III
was one uf the 1aust a]slciat)t atd l~T,lgi-
tive of religions, and lis cult Is gIra.iT
shrenlel in mystery, Aetttls rot alpt-
rataer dead. -ilacrE the Hills Of Wales
rihar strange relics If The p.;st rcnain.
There may be 40 ''fTa suaai.ts Of forgot
ten peoples" hut there are legends a1i
customs mad songs and s cIal and rell-
gious rites preserved unchanged from lie
DAYS Of Arthur and 'Ierli- ;ild Talicssia.
There are probably not . few seers who.
like Glendower. ''can summon spirits
from the Vastly deep though whether or
not they will come is yet IA mooted ques-
ton. And as for the Druids. their line is
vet unbroken. and their weird rites are
still celebrated as Of old.
The death occurred at Llantrissant Of
DR.. William Price. who held the distln-
guished Office of archdIuid of Wales.
He was something more than Oh years
| old and might have passed for one OF the
old time bards who perished in King Ed
wards reign so rugged and antique was
his appearance. Six or even years ago,
it may be remembered, an infant that
had been born to him in his old age died.
and its body was publicly cremated Ivy
him with Eru:lical rites. For this he
was arrested ard brought to trial. But
after a hot contest in court he was az
Quilted, and a decree was pronounced
from the bench establishing the entire
legality of this form of funeral. Ac-
cordingly when DR.. Price himself died
a similar economy WAS enacted without
thought of Interference.
The ceremony took place on the sum
mt of a high hill at Caerlan, the very
spot where the body of the infant had
been burned. Several hundred tickets
were issue to the friends n ormer
patients of DR.. Price, emitting them to
enter the il !osure and witness the burn
ing. The h, III first set was Don But
public curiosity rose to SO high a pitch
that, to avoid being overwhelmed by a
mob of sightseers. it was at the last mo-
ment decided to change it to : o'clock in
the morning. So III the gray light Of
that early hour the strange procession
made its way to the hilltop. No mou:n
ing garb was to be seen. The closest
friends of he deceased Druid We're at
tired in the ancient costumes of the
Welsh people.
The body ii DIR. Price was clothed in
the Druidical robes he had Worn in life
and was then placed in a coffin of PEI
fcrated sheet iron. On the hilltop two
stone walls had been built. -four feet
apart, each being about 10 feet long and
4 feet high. A number of iron bars ex-
tending from one TO the other formed g
rude grating between them, some dis
lance above the ground. and upon these
bars the cof..n was placed, the head be.
ing toward the east and the feet toward
the west.
A Clergyman of the Established church
was present and read the ordinary serv'
ice for the dead in Welsh. The vest,
ments of the church contrasted IA.
strangely with the Druidical garb wor,
by some Of the attendants as did tht
words of the prayer book with thu
strange rites. Some slight changes Wet
made in the service, such as the body be
ing consigned to the flames
, Then under and over and all arounf
: the coffin was piled a great lot Of wood
! perhaps a whole cord Of it, and to thi
were added several tons of coal. Man,
. gallons of paraffin oil were thrown upol
it, thoroughly saturating the entire pile
. Then. at about 8 o'clock, two of tn
closest friends of the late Druid cam
, forward from the throng and applies
D torches to the wood, M at each end o
t the mass. In a moment it was all a rag
ing furnace, and the hill literally flare,
like q volcano.
y A brisk breeze was blowing. whicl
famed the fire and carried the flame an
( smoke far into the heavens. For man,
miles the strange spectacle was clearl,
! seen, and thousands of people came flock
ing thither from all parts Of Glamoi
ganshire. Seven or eight thousand G
: them gathered in q ring about the pyre
as close to i. a. possible, and watched
with eager interest all day long.
: Some hours after dark that evenin
= the flames had died down, and there wa
only a dull glow from the Goals. The
/, with long hooks they dragged the cofi
Z from the furnace, when it was disco,
cred that it had been literally burne
through in many places, and when tn
: lid was uncovered the receptacle was al
solutely empty without the faintest trae
y within of the remains. The coffin We
} subsequently conveyed on a bier, TO
! lowed by ali immense crowd, and d
posted on the couch in the deceased
residence, where q few days previousl
he had breathed his last.-New Yor
- Tribune.
The Heavens In the North.
:! From the last days of May TO the er