The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-03-24

live together in the chummiest way
tilial devotion is the real religion in
China. All China is one huge family, and
the emperor is the Great Father" BY
the way, Great Father is what the North
American Indians call God.
And the Chinese consider their emperor
a god. There is one more reason why all
Chinese funerals are greatly alike, China
is a land of ceremonials and the smallest
details of those ceremonials are described
by the "Leke,N or book of rites. To dis
obey the least rule of this great national
manual is a crime, and a severely punished
one. In two respects only does one Chi
nese funeral differ from another The
first is in the amount of money spent, and
the second is in the period after death at
which burial takes 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 a few
cash" toward the sum needed for the
purchase of the coveted casket. When
the coffin is really bought IL is brought
home with great ceremony. II is given
the place OF honor in the house, and is re-
garded as the most valuable piece of fur
niture in the establishment. Among the
poorer classes IL is customary to buy a
very thick COIN. No self-respecting Chi
neSe family-and the Chinese are the
most self-respecting of all nations-will
bury parent until they can do it with
more or less Mongolian magniicence.
Hence, in China, death by no means i'm
plies immediate burial
When Chinese dies mis- neighbors
come in and help the women Of the fam
lily TO make the shroud. The body is put
in its coffin. Then the funeral ceremonies
begin, ii there if money enough. If there
is not the codn is put back in 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 Wis
TORS arrive they are shown into room
in which are all the women and children
of the esta blishmeut.
These latter set up dismal howl, in
which the visitors Join or to which they
listen sympathetically When the tym-
panum of even a Chinese ear begins to
ache the guests are ushercd into another
apartment, where the men OF the house
give them tea and refreshment. The re-
freshment varies according to the means
of the family. In the house of the rich il
is dinner. After the visitors have
drunk aud eaten they are bowed out by
one of the kinsmen OF the dead.
A well-conducted Chinese funeral is
the most gorgeous sight in Asia 1t may
seem to US little tinselly, but that is Il
mere matter of taste. And I, who make
bold to like the Chinese, cannot claim
that they have a superabundance Of
taste. AT the front Of the funeral process
sion walk the noisy mUsicless musicians
Then come men (they may be friends.
they may be coolesJ bearing the insignia
of the dignity of the dead, if he had any
Next walk more men, carrying figures of
idols, umbrellas and blue and white
streamers After them come men carry
ing pans of perfume.
just before the coffin walk BONES. Chi
nese priests. Over the coffin canopy is
usually carried. The casket is borne by
about score of men. Immediately be-
hind the coffin walk the children OF the
deceased. The eldest son comes first. He
is dressed in canvas and leans heavily
upon a 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 intervals and in
union
When the burying place is reached the
BONES begin chanting mass for the
dead, and the cohin is put into the tom b.
When the colin is laid in its final position
large oblong white marble table is