New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1894-04-18
HINDOO CREMATION.
THEY BURN THE BODIES OF THEIR
DEAD IN THE OPEN AIR.

DEAD IN THE OPEN AIR.
A Strange and Sanitary Mode Which Has
Been Practiced by Them For Thousands
of Years-The Blessed State From the
Hindoo Standpoint. .---
Although we are beginning to believe
more and more every year in cremation
and think ourselves accordingly adj
vanced, the Hindoos have practiced it
for thousands of years. The funeral pile
Of rajah sometimes costs laos Of rupees.
A Hindoo body is sometimes burned
when rupees cover the entire expenses.
The rich Hindoo may be somewhat ex-
elusive. The Hindoo masses do every
thing simply and openly. They battle
out OF doors, they pray out of doors, they
cook out Of doors, they die out Of doors
and their bodies are burned out Of doors,
There are three burning CHATS in Cal
cutta.
Awriter to the Pail Mall Budget tells
very entertainingly Of visit she made
to one of the cheapest and most print
tive Of these three.
Just as she entered into the inclosure
where a burning CHAT was in full ope-
ration there was crack-a sharp retort
like pistol. The heat had just broken
through dead mans skull It was the
last human part to protest against the
extinguishment of death.
The funeral pile of a poor Hindoo
looks like an ordinary kitchen yard
wood pile But if you go up close to it
you discover something very like hui
man form, a glowing, charred mass, dis
tinguished from every other shape, ami
mate or inanimate, for the Hindoos lit
orally purify their dead by fire. The
body id burned until absolutely nothing
remains but a handful of ashes, ashes
wholly free from any unclean OF poison
GUS matter. AS the writer was closely
observing the glowing pile a new body
was brought in and the rite begun.
Two coolies carried the body upon a
rude litter, woven from coarse grasses
and held together by outlines Of bamboo.
Two of the dead mans brothers follow
ed, chatting pleasantly. -Four stout
sticks OF wood We're driven upright into
the ground, at the corners of an imagi-
nary parallelogram about six feet by
two. Between these four posts were
loosely laid sticks Of dry, cheap wood.
When the pile was a little more than
three feet high, the body was laid upon
it. A dirty piece Of crash, of the quality
the coolies wear about their loins, partly
wrapped the dead. One Of the brothers
stepped up and poured about four ounces
Of oil over the body. This insured
quicker cremation, but was something
Of luxury and not a universal practice.
The oil must have cost about three pice.
The other brother paid the coolies, who
shouldered the light, empty litter and
marched gayly out.
More wood was piled upon the dead.
A thin stick was lighted at the other
funeral pile, which was low flaming
finely, the second pile was lighted, and
the cremation Of the newcomer was be-
gun. The two brothers appeared very
interested in the igniting and decidedly
pleased when it was accomplished. They
squatted down upon the ground, Just so
far from the pile that they might feel
that their scant, filthy garments were
fairly safe from the sparks, but near
enough to watch all the changing phases
OF the cremation and to see easily when
it was consummated.
They united dirty rag from about
small bundle one of them had brought
with them. They took out small earth
en- bowl. It was clean and shining, and
so was the brass chattee each lifted from
his filthily turbaned head The chattees
held water. The bowl held curry and
rice. They fell to eating with gusto
And, pray, why not? They were eating
to live Their brother was burning to
live-to live in Hindoo paradise. From
the Hindoo point Of view this state was
far more blessed s
The cremation which was in full blast
when the writer arrived was finally
completed. Two distinct kinds Of ashes
were left. The human ashes were care
fully gathered into an old chattee. The
authorities do not allow those ashes to
be thrown into the river, and they are
never thrown there in the presence Of
Europeans. The ashes of the wood were
swept swiftly away. The bits of Wood
not quite burned were fugally collected
to be utilized in the next pile. -. :.
The correspondent also tells Of visit
to a burning CHAT after shutdown.
might, " she goes on, ''is the time Of
Hindoo leisure, as indeed it is of most
primitive peoples. The Enclosure was
crowded with burning piles. =.
1--WE sailed down the Ganges. The
outlines of the attendants of the dead
and Of the funeral pile were sharply
silhouetted against the black background
OF the dark night by the flames Of the
grewsome death fires And from that
part of the shore sacred to Hindoo wor-
ship came the shriekng and the songs
OF many thousand half mad devotees.
In primitive part of interior India
once saw q maharajah's funeral pile.
It had cost positive fortune. It was
built of expensive spicy woods and sat
urated with costly oils. 1t was richly
gilded, and the dead was wrapped in
0mhrOidare6 Si1koD s1,oo&e To-. ,,;1o,