The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-12-25


the women of India.
This Parsee on the roadside on cur
way to BIa1abar Hill was the only one
of that religion I had ever seen en-
gagged in worship. Who knows but
that beyond the light Of the sun on
which he gazes he may catch q glimpse
Of the God who is light and sin whom
there is no darkness at alp"
We passed up through gates into
the garden that surrounds the place
where the Parsees dispose Of their
dead This garden was given by
Jamshidji Jijibhal and is beautiful
with flowers of all hue, and foliage of
all STYLES Of vein, and notch and
stature. There IS on all sides great
opulence of fern and cypress The
garden is 100 feet above the level of
the sea Not far from the entrance IS
a building where the mourners Of the
funeral procession 60 in to pray
light is here kept burning year in and
year out We assend the garden
by some eight stone steps. The body
of a deceased aged woman was
being carried in toward the chief
Tower of Silence. There are five of
these towers. Several of these have
not been used for a long while. Four
persons, whose business 1t is to do
this carry in the corpse They are
followed by two men with long boards
The Tower of Silence, to which they
come cost $50. 600, and it is twenty-five
feet high, and 276 feet around, and
without roof. The four carriers Of
the dead and the two bearded men
come to the door of the tower enter
and leave the dead. There are three
rows Of places for the dead; the outer
row for the men; the middle row for
women; the inside row for the children
The 1ifeless bodies are left exposed as
far down as the waist. AS soon as
tie employees retire from the Tower Of
Silence, the vultures, now one, now
two, now many. swoop upon the life
less form. These vultures I'll the
air with their discordant voices
We saw them in long rows on the
top of the whitewashed wall Of the
Tower of Silence. In a few minutes
they have taken the last particle Of
flesh from the bodies There had
evidently been other opportunities for
them that day, and some few away as
though surfeited- They sometimes
carry away with them parts of a body,
and it is no unusual thing for the
gentlemen in their country seats to
have dropped into their doOryards a
bone from the Tower of Silence.
IN the center of this tower is a well,
into which the bones are thrown after
they are bleached- The hot sun, and
the rainy season, and charcoal do their
work of disintegration and disinfec-
ton, and then there are sluices that
carry into the sea what remains Of the
dead The wealthy people Of Of Mala-
bar Hill have made strenuous efforts
to have these strange towers removed
as a nuisance, but they remain, and
will no doubt for ages remain.
Starting homeward we soon were 10
the heart of the city, and saw a build
ing all afiash with lights and resound-
ing with merry voices. Tt was Par
see wedding, in a building erected es- 4
pecial1y for the marriage ceremony. +
We came to the door and proposed to
go in, but at first were not permitted
They saw we were not Parsees, and K
that we were not even natives SO
very politely they halted us on the
aoorsteps. This temple OF nuptials
was chiefly occupied by women, their
ears, and neclzs, and hands afame
with Jewels, or imita tions of jewels. \
BY pantomine gesture. as we had no
use of their voea bulary. we told them
we We're strangers and were curious to [
see by what process Parsees were mar 4
ried. Gradually we worked orr way
inside the door. The building and the T
We're illumined by hum
1reds of candles in glasses and Ian T
terms, in unique and grotesque hold I
ngs. Conversation ran high. and
laughter dubbed over and all
was gay Then there was a sound Of .
an advancing band of music, but the
nstrumen for the most part were
strange to our ears and eyes. Louder
md louder were the outside voices,
md the wind and stringed instruments
lntil the procession halted at the door
81 the temple and the bridegroom
mounted the steps. Then the music
ceased, and all the voices were still
The mother of the bridegroom, with a
platter 'oaded with aromatics and arti-
les Of food, confronted her son and
,egan to address him Then She took
rom the platter a bottle of perfume
md sprinkled his face with the redo
ence. All the while speaking in a
Ironing tone. she took from the platter
handful of rice. throwing some Of it
N his head, splitting some Of it on his
hOulder, pouring some Of it on his
lands. She took from the platter CO..
Oanut and waved it about his head She
fitted q garland Of flowers and threw it
'ver his neck and a bouquet OF flow
rs and put it in his hand. Her part
# the ceremony completed, the band
esumed its music. and through an
ther door the bridegroom was con-
ucted into the center Of the building
The bride was IN the room, but there
vas nothing to designate her Where
5 the bride2' I said, where is the
ride?" After a while she was made
vident The bride and groom were