The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-06-10
SOME CURIOUS FUNERALS.
Nearly All the Result Of Instructions
Left by the Dead.

An 1rishman's Anxiety to Be Present
at His Own Funeral Feast-A Snuff
takers Instructions-A Cortege of
Dust Carts-The Interment Of a sa-
cred White Elephant.
From the ST. Louis Globe Democrat.
The incident reported last week, in
which a New York man of moderate
means left special instructions in his will
that less than $40 should be spent on his
funeral, is not without precedent To
many people the funeral-reform idea has
an almost religious significance, and it is
generally found that those who favor
rigid economy in the performance of the
last offices are those who could the
most easily afford reasonable ex-
penditure, or even an extravagant out
lay. The expression decent burial' has
| special meaning among the poor, and
collector for a fund to save neighbor
| from interment in the potter's field sell
dom leaves house on the block without
at least small contribution. In St.
Louis the funeral fund collecting
idea prevails very generally among
the colored people. In the health COM
missioner's Office, at the city hall, much
folded and soiled burial certificate is re-
cognized as dealing with a deceased col
ored citizen BEFORE it is handled. Very
rarely does colored corpse have to be
buried by the city, and the process of
raising burial fund, although often
slow and tedious, is invariably success
! full.
Excessively cheap and curious funerals
| nave occurred in nearly all states
and even countries. According to the
authorities on the subject, the record for
an Inexpensive funeral is held by a Vir-
| ginian, who disposed of his wife's re-
mains at cost of but a few cents, al
though he observed all the formalities
| secured the services of a minister, and
entertained the mourners. He was handy
with his tools, and made passable coffin
| out OF lum Der on the premises Then
| he obtained permission To dig a grave
| himself in the little country churchyard,
| and persuaded the minister to read the
service without fee. The neigh bors acted
| as pail bearers, and their wagons and his
! conveyed the party the graveyard. On
! the return to the house he invited the
crowd to stop TO supper, and then getting
! out the family Bible read chapter after
chapter, until one after another slipped
! away TO attend TO his milking and chores,
! leaving very few guests TO be en- tertalned
] The man was not poor by any means. nor
was he invariably stingy. But here aided
the feat of burying his wife cheaply as a
| memorable one, and when discussing it
always asked his listeners how the late
| lamented was injured by the economy
| The most amusing request ever made
| by dying man was probably that of a
| very lovial lrishman. Having a glorious
recollection of the fun he had en- Dyed at
wakes and funerals, he was very anxious
that his friends should make the most of
! the opportunity in his case. Hence he
| specially requested that a certain sum of
money should be spent in entertaining
the mourners and RECALLING them with the
! good things of this world, especially of
! liquid character. This was promised,
and the question was asked, should the
money be spent on the way out to the
| cemetery or on the return. Pat regarded
! the inquiry as distinctly superhuous, and
replied with some degree of irritation:
| why, goln' out, sure. I'll be wild We
! then, but | won't be wild We comm back"
The good mans peculiar ideas as to the
! connection between the mortal and spir-
! itual in mankind were duly respected, and
| the boys had an elegant time both before
the procession started and while it was
en- route for the scene of his last resting
| place.
| Clegg, one of the oldest coniurers of
whom we know any details, was equally
| solicitous for his friends creature COM
| forts He expressed a desire to be buried
| in peculiar fashion, and his request was
complied with. OF his very scanty saw
ings quite large percentage was set
aside for the entertainment of sixty of
his bosom friends, who acted as chief
mourners. They arrived early in the day,
] took a last look at the rpmaiDS of him
with whom they had en- Dyed so many
hours of Doisterous mirth, and then sat
down to a funeral feast, consisting of
spiced cakes and an unlimited supply of
home brewed ale. Each wore, as per di-
rections, little wreaths OF holly, gorse
and rosemary, and a small band of fd-
dlers scraped out bright melodies while
the funeral baked meats were being de-
voured and the ale disposed of. BY the
time the funeral procession started most
of the sixty men were slightly inebriated
and the march to the graveyard was far
from digniied The nddlers led the way,
followed by the sixty mourners, with
another chief mourner bringing up the
rear on more or less lineal descendant
of the animal which delivered the his
torieal rebuke to BALKAN of old
IL is but quarter of century ago that
an old lady, who was an inVeterate SNUFF
taker, made it imperative upon her heirs
to recognize her habit a { her funeral. For
years her friends had tried to persuade
her to abandon habit which had become
part of her nature and was a source of
annoyance to all her friends. She was
obstinate as well as wealthy, and not only
kept up the habit to the last, but in her
will called for a snuff funeral. Her direct
heirs were in favor of ignoring the instruc-
lions as evidently the work of mind
! diseased, and allowing the estate to be
distributed by the public administrator.
! The other legatees, however, were loud
in their protests and they finally pre-
vailed. Snuff was scattered over her
body and along the line OF the procession,
while the pail bearers were such inveter-
ate snuff-takers that they readily full
filled their part of the not very select ar
rangement. IL is even stated that the
munster, in order to earn an exception
ally large fee, took snuff throughout tine
entire Ceremony, though it is TO be hoped
that this latter statement is what Pooh
hab would describe as 'mere corroba-
rative details" and not a record of actual
facts.
A very interesting account was pub
lished in a London newspaper more than
forty years ago of the funeral of George
Williams, described as the king of the
chimney sweepers. He died Just before
the first great International exposition
was opened, and his funeral was at