The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-12-24

+ ers- Several OF them have not been used
. for long while -Four persons. whose bust
ness il is TO DO this. carry IN the corpse
/ They are followed by two men with Ions
I boards The Tower OF Silence. 70 which
/ they come, cost $3.50. 90. and - twenty-five
/ feet high, and Z7s feet around. and with
/ out a roof The four carriers OF the dead
/ and the two bearded men come TO the
door OF the tower. enter and leave the dead.
/ 4here are three rows Of places for the
dead the outer row for the men. the mid
die row for the women. the inside row
for the children. The Nfeless bodies are
I LETT exposed as far down as the waist
I As soon as the employees retire from the
Tower OF Silence. the vultures, now one.
7 now Two, now many, swOop upon the
/ lifeless form These vultures MI the air
with their discordant voices We saw
them in long rows on the top OF the white
washed wall Of the Tower Of Silence
In few minutes they have taken the last
particle Of flesh from the bones. There
+. had evidently been other opportunities
for them that day. and some flew away
as though surreited- They sometime
carry away with them parts % body. and
Dc is no unusual thing for the gentlemen
30 their country seats 10 have dropped
into their door yards 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 Tie
rainy season. and charcoal DO their work
OF cisintegration and disiufectiou. and
then there are sluices thar carry into the
sea What remains Of the dead. The veal
thy people OF Aalabar EiI have made
strenuous efforts 20 have these strange
towers removed as a nuisance. but they
remain, and viii no doubt for ages Ee-
main.
talked with learned Parsee about
these mor-lary customs He said. Il sup
pose you consider them very peculiar. bur
the fact IS. we Parsees reverence the el--
ments Of nature, and cannot consent 20
oerle them We reverence the FIRE. and
therefore viii not ask 10 20 burn our dead.
We reverence the water and do not ask 10
TO submerEe our dead We reverence the
earth, and will not ask IL 10
bury our dead. And so we let The
vultures take them away" He con-
frmed ne in the theory that the Parsees
act on the principle that the dead
are unclean. 10 one must touch such a
body The carriers OF this Tomb OF
Silence must not put their hands on the
form Of the departed. They wear gloves
lest somehow they should be cortami-
mated. When the bones are 10 De removed
from the sides Of the tower and put in
the well at the center. they are touched
carefully by tongs Then these people be-
side have very decided theories about the
democracy Of the tomb. No such thing
as caste among the dead. Philosopher
and boor the affiuent and the destitute
must go through the same Tower Of Sill
ence,' lie down side By side with other
occupants. have their bodies dropped into
the same abyss. and be carried ont through
the same canal and float away on the
same sea. No splendor OF Metropolis. No
sculpturing Of mausoleum. No pomp OF
dome or obelisk. Zoroaster's teaching re-
suited in these Towers Of Silence" He
T. Fr 4
and naked you must go out"
As I stood ~ the close OF dsy in this
garden on Malabar Hin and heard the Zap
Of the vultures wings coming from their
repast, the funeral custom Of the Parsee
seemed horrible beyond compare, and vet
the dissolution Of the human body by any
mode Is awful. and the beaks Of these
fowls are probably no more repulsive than
the worms of the body devoUring the
sacred human form in cemeteries. Moth
ing but the resurrection day can undo the
awful work Of death, whether IL now be
put out Of sight by cutting spade or fly
ing wing.
Starting homeward, we soon were tn the
heart Of the city. and saw a building all
afash with lights and resounding with
merry voices. 1t was a Parse wedding.
in a building erected especially for the
marriage ceremony. We came 10 the door
and proposed TO 90 in. but at first were not
permitted IlFN saw We were mot H1T-
sees, and that we were not even natives.
So very politely they halted ms on the
doorsteps. This temple Of nuptials was
chiefly occupied by women, their ears and
necks. and hands afame with Jewels. OF
limitations Of jewels BY pantomime and
gesture as we had no use OF their vocabu-
larry, we told them we were strangers and
were curious to see by what process Par
sees were married. Gradually we worked
our way inside the door. The building and
the surroundings were illumined by hum
dreds Of candles in glasses and lanterns.
in unique and grotesque holdings. CONVEX
sauOn ran high, and laughter dubbed over
and all was gay. Then there was a sound
Of an advancing band OF music, but the
Instruments for the most part were
strange TO our ears and eyes. Louder and
louder were the outside voices, and the
wind and stringed instruments, until the
procession halted at the door of the tenn
pie and the bridegroom mounted the
steps. Then the music ceased, and all the
voices were still. The mother of the bride
groom, with a platter loaded with aro-
mates and articles of food. confronted her
son and began to address him. Then she
took from the platter bottle of perfume
and sprinkled his face with the redolence
All the while speaking in a droning tone
she took from the platter a handful of
rice. throwing some of it on his head
splitting some of it on his shoulder, pour
ing some of it on his hands. She took
from the platter a cocoanut and waved
II about his head. She lifted a garland of
flowers and threw it over his neck, and a
bouquet of flowers and put 1t in his
hand. Her part of the ceremony com
pleted, the band resumed its music, and
through another dopr the bridegroom
was conducted into the center of the build
ing. The bride was in the room, but there
was nothing to designate her. Where is
the bride? >" | said. where is the bride2'
After a while she was made evident The
bride and groom we're seated on chairs
opposite each other. \ white curtain was
dropped between them so that they could
not see each other. Then the attendants
put their arms under this curtain, took a
long rope of linen and wound it around
the neck of the bride and the groom, in
token that they were to be bound to-
gether for life. Then some silk strings
were wound around the couple, now
around this one, and now around that.
Then the groom threw a handful of rice
across the curtain on the head of the
bride. and the bride responded by throwing
a handful of rice across the curtain on
the head of the groom. Thereupon the
f c,rrtaf, 5ronned and the brides chair wa {