The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1894-03-31

taxes place.
The first ambition of every Chinese is to
have splendid coffin. A poor Chinese
will half starve himself and his family for
years that he may daily hoard few leash"
toward the sum needed for the purchase of
the coveted casket. When the coffin is
really bought it is brought home with great
ceremony. 1t is given the place of honor
in the house, and is regarded as the most
valuable piece of furniture in the establish
ment. Among the poorer classes it is Gus
tomary to buy very thick coffin. No
self-respecting Chinese family-apd the
Chinese are the most self-respecting of all
nations-will bury parent until they can
do it with more or less Mongolian magRia-
ceuce, Hence, in China, death by no means
implies immediate burial
When a Chinese dies his neighbors come
in and help the women Of the family to
make the shroud, The body is put in its
coffin. Then the funeral ceremonies begin,
if there is money enough, If there is not,
the coffin Is put back its place of honor
until the family finances pick up,
The day of the death, Or the day after,
the relatives not living in the house and
the friends come to pay the last duties of
respect to the deceased, When the visit
Ors arrive they are shown into room in
which are all the women and children of
the establishment.
These latter set up dismal howl, in
which the visitors join or to which they
listen sympathetically. When the tympa-
mum of even Chinese ear begins to ache
the guests are ushered into another apart
ment, where the men of the house give
/ them tea and refreshment The refresh
ment varies according to the means of the
family. In the house of the rich it is a
dinner After the visitors have drunk and
eaten they are bowed out by one of the
klnsmen oil the dead.
A wCl-conducted Chinese funeral is the
most gorgeous sight in Asia. 1t may seem
to us little tinselly, but that is mere
matter of taste And |, who make bold
to like the Chinese, cannot claim that they
have superabundance of taste. At the
front of the funeral procession walk the
noisy musicless musicians Then come
men (they may be friends, they may be
coolies) bearing the insignia of the dignity
of the dead, if he had any. Next walk
more men, carrying figures of idols, UNI
brellas and blue and white steamers. Af-
ter them come men carrying pans of per-
fume.
Just before the coffin walk BONES, Chi
nese priests Over the coffin a canopy is
usually carried The casket is borne by
about score of men. Immediately behind
the coffin walk the children of the deceased.
The eldest son comes first He is dressed
in canvas and leans heavily upon stout
stick. He is supposed to be too exhausted
by grief and fasting to walk without the
aid of his staff. The other children and
natives follow this chief mourner. They
are clothed in white linen garments. White
Is the mourning color of the Danes, of the
Burmese and of the Chinese. The women
are carried in chairs in the Chinese funeral
procession. They sob and wall at inter-
walls and in union.
When the burying place is reached the
BONES begin chanting mass for the dead,
and the coffin is put into the tomb. When
the coffin is laid in its final position large
oblong white marble table is placed before
the tomb On the middle of it is set a
censer and two vases and two candlesticks,
all of as exquisite workmanship as possible.
Then they have paper cremation. Paper
figures of men, horses, garments and a
score of other things are burned. They
are supposed to undergo a material resur-
rection and to be useful to the dead in the
Chinese heaven. The tomb is sealed up
or closed and an entertainment concludes
the ceremony at the grave.
The forms of Chinese toaibs vary some
what according TO the province in which
they are built, and very much according to
the means of the relative who undertakes
the expense With the very poor tho OOf-
fin is placed upon the ground, earth and
lime are packed about it aud rude grave
is formed. With the rich vault is built
in the form of horseshoe. If the dead
was of note or position the decorations Of
the grave and of the coffin are very elabor-
ate There are thousand interesting
things to he said about Chinese mourning
about the ceremonies commemorative of
the dead and about the funerals of the
Chinese royal family. But they cannot be
put into paragraph or into column.
Some Happy Accidents.
From the American Asrioululrist