The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-06-08
THE RITES OF THE DEAD.
4 DIVERSITY OF INTERESTING
BURIAL CEREMONIES.
Most simple of All the Funerals Arc
Those of the Orthodox Jews-Rit-
uals of the FraternaI Ordcrs-The
knight TempIar Arch of steel.
From Id NeW York TrIbu


knight TcmpInr Arch of steel.
From the New York Tribune.
The burial of the dead, a rite from
which no family can remain exempt
ceremony which is conducted with more
or less pomp everywhere, has been the
subject of discussion in scientific bodies
all over the world in the course of the
last few years. As the great centers Of
commerce and industry become more
densely populated the number of burials
increases. and unless the proper places
are chosen for interment, places where
the conditions Of the soil, natural drain
age and other necessary features are ia
Notable, the results on the health of resi-
urally be detrimental Boards OF health
have taken the matter In hand. Gene
terles have been condemned against the
protests of people to whom the old places
were dear because they held the ashes
of their best beloved, tracts Of land which
had been bought for cemetery uses have
boards OF experts appointed for that
purpose, ana burial places which are
IN use are bound TO maintain certain
them may be minimized.
Despite all these precautions there are
stil many people who believe that The
burial of the dead anywhere and under
any condition is a menace 10 the living,
and that the only proper course is ere
NATION. Inc advocates or the system are
growing in numbers, and according to
the statement made recently by one of
the pioneers of the movement in this
country Its general introduction is
blocked only by sentimentality and fear"
While the burial of the dead may claim
the attention of the scientist because Of
its bearing on the public health, the Cere-
monies connected with IL as practised by
the various classes which make the
metropolitan population is of wider inter-
est. The customs of other countries are
brought here, ana added to these are the
ceremonies and usages of the many fra
ternal organizations the military and the
church.
Perhaps the quaintest ceremony for the
dead which one can find in New York is
the Chinese. 1t is the hope of every fol-
| lower of Confucius that his body will
finally rest in his native land, and its
| burial here is regarded as only tempo
rarY. Incense is burned around the body
and on the way to the burial ground pray
er sticks and prayer papers are scat
| tered in abundance. These have the dou-
BILE purpose of attracting evil spirits who
are fascinated by the aroma and the
gaudy colors and forget the body, which
they would otherwise follow, and also
of holding the attention of the good spr-
its, who recognize in them the faithful
ness of those who remain to mourn for
| the dead one. Costly garments and tooth
some food are placed in and on the grave
and prayer sticks and incense are burned
! there. And when the ceremony has been
| completed, the mourners surrounded by
as many friends as they can afford to en-
q Ill.
| which is the more enjoyable because of
/ the several days of partial fasting which
| have preceded 1t. All this has an unmis-
| taxable Chinese air about it, ana the
| whole ceremony has only one American
/ feature, and that is the carriage show
When the first Chinese funerals took
| place in New York, the plain coffin was
! usually carried to, the cemetery in a
| spring wagon. Following this came an
| other wagon with boards laid across its
| body from side to side. These boards
| served as seats for those who went to the
/ cemetery. II there were too many friends
to be accommodated on one wagon. an
/ other was taken, but the display ended
! there. But the Chinese funeral of the
| present time while IL may retain all the
! prescribed religious customs. is strictly
! American as far as the carriages are con-
| cerned, and like some of his Christian
| neighbors, the Chinaman will spend large
| sums of money and even run into debt
to make a funeral display.
| The orthodox Jews are probably the
| only members of the community who
| to their dead. With them the idea is up-
| permost that their religion teaches that
! death is the great leveler, and that in
! death all men are alike. The corpse Is
taken from the bed and placed on a nal
| let of straw. When, after day. it has
been clothed in a white linen robe SINH
old when they minlstered in the holy Of
| hOiies, 1t is placed In a rough pine box
| and taken to the Gods acre" for bu-
| rial In many instances. a pillow made
of earth in a linen bag Is placed under
the head OF the corpse. This simple cere-
mony may be seen in the thickfy popu-
lated East Side district daily and the
| rabbi who says the prayers at the hour
| Of mourning always calls attention to the
| fact that whatever differences of fortune
| station or condition may exist in life
| death makes all men equal and as EQUALS
| they win be judged.
But the Jews have not all been strong
| enough to disregard the sneers of Chris
tan neighbors. who accused them of dis
J respect for their dead and of miserli-
| ness Rather than point out the ideas
which gave rise TO the practice of sim
/ plcity and economy, some of them have
| been won over to the extravaganza of
| the rest Of the community, and, while
| the simple, transformations funeral can
| still be seen where the lowly Jews have
| their homes, the Jews who live in the
| fashionable parts of the city, and who
/ are members of reformed" congrega-
| tons. have fallen into the ways Of their
| Christian neighbOrs and a long line of
| carriages, costly coffin, great banks of
/ flowers and other elaborate trappings in
| dicatve Of fashionable woe seem TO be
I essential
! In direct contrast with the simple flu
! neral rites of the orthodox Jews IS the
| elaborate display at funerals conducted
/ according to the rites of the Roman Cath
ole church. Those Who have giYeR the