The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1896-04-18

L.
/ .s@@MNDkV displayed. This is
/ nMM nv the New York Of
r. flee of a suburban
| cemetery, where are cremated the bodies
lof those who prefer that their remains
shall be consumed by fame rather than
to let nature take it's course in coffin
six feet under the sod.
A reporter dropped into the Office
1 : and had talk with the young man in
charge. It was too late on that after
/ noon to witness cremation, but ordtn-
arily the crematory people are glad to
have spectators when the interesting
process is going on.
T. Economy is always considered by
most people, and cremation is cheap.
1 1t is also clean, and what is cleaner
FLOR last resting-place than a white
metal vase? .
i "You know how much you would
have to pay for plot at Greenwood"
4 said the young man. AT our crema-
1 tory SIS will buy niche in which you
may place an urn large enough to hold
1 the ashes of an entire family"
i There is something sentimental in
/ the ashes of 1.-TWO souls with but a
4 single thought" being put together, but
4 what a fate for man to know that his
\ ashes must some day be mixed up in
the same jar with a mother-in-law, who
had previously mixed up herself~in all
his domestic jars! Luckily there are
no rules against buying a row of inches.
i This, however, is more expensive, and
n the line Of names on the separate urns
i suggests the search for a name on the
bells Of flat-house. Yet there are
often as many as twelve inches bought
Il in row. Each niche is decorated by
.salthe cremation company every Mem
q or1al Day. It Is on this occasion that
the crematory has it's greatest number
of visitors.
When the young man was asked
what class of people favored cremation,
he replied: mo particular class of
people do. In New York, the Germans,
perhaps, are the most numerous ad-
vocates of it. It appeals alike to the
poor and the wealthy. The cost to Gre
mate an adult is s35, and S25 for a
child. An urn large enough to contain
the ashes of one person can be bought
for $6, and this, with the price of a
niche, does not bring cremation beyond
the reach of the poor man.
What are the urns made Of? Most
ly of bronze and white metal. Here
is beauty of serpentine stone" The
beauty" was only twenty inches high,
but it cost $45. There are about a
dozen different designs in urns.
Often a dead persons relatives may
desire to keep the ashes in parlor
vase. The young man was asked if all
the ashes of those cremated were kept
at the crematory. "Just about one
half are," he answered. "Some are
taken away and placed in safety vaults,
and some are always kept near the
person who most loved the deceased in
life. I know of one lady who always
carries the ashes of her husband wher-
ever she goes. They have been to Eu-
rope and back several times, and have
had many trips to the seashore and
mountains.
'No one but myself ever handles the
ashes after they leave the fireman.
They are sent to me from there, and I
seal each jar and keep them here until
they are sent for or until I have too
many on hand. In that case I notify
the relatives. If they want them
transferred to an urn I do it by means
of this great glass funnel. Do they
all pass through the same funnel? OF
course; what's the difference? I clean
it after each separate lot of ashes"
He then went over to the big office
safe, and, fixing the combination lock,
opened the iron door. There were ex-
posed row of black jars about the
size of ordinary tomato cans Each
jar was sealed with black wax and
tape,. and pasted on the front was a
label. The young man took out one
of the jars and set it on the hand Of
a woman who wore uumDe I'VE glove.
She held it easily and reaa the label.
Inside Of the jar was all that remained
of a large-sized man who had been Gre
mated three weeks before.