The San Francisco call., 1897-08-20
DUST, NOT ASHES,
FOR THE DEAD
Father Prendergast Lectures
at st. Mary's on
Cremation"
He Declares That Not a Scin-
tilla Of Evidence Justifes
the Practice,
A Theory That Evidence of Crime
Might Be DestrOyed-Value of
Fossil Remains.

true scientific teaching"
That sentence apuy expressed the bur-
den of the whole of the lecture delivered
by the Very bev. J. J. Prendergast, V G.,
last evening at st. Mary's Cathedral. The
subject on which he spoke was "Crema-
tion, and the lecture was delivered in be-
half Of the Children's Day Homes, under
the care of the Sisters of the Holy Family
Only few vacant seats were left in the
spacious editice, even the galleries being
comfortably filed.
Father Prendergast began his theme by
touching on the historical side of the
question. As a natural consequence, the
annals OF Greece and Rome came in for
consdera bic threshins.
why do not those who tell US crema-
tlOn prevailed in ancient Greece and
Rome," he said, "tell US the whole story
Why is 1t that they do not explain that
the rich classes were the only ones who
cremated their dead, and that the bodies
OF many OF the poorer people were often
thrown into the sewer outlets? Because
such would not serve their purpose.
1t has been said that the early Chris
tlans first followed the prevailing prac-
lice, but that has been proved to be un-
true. They put the bodies of the dead ir
catacombs. On the other hand it has
been argued that the reason why they did
not adopt the practice was on account of
religious prejudice, AS they adopted many
other OF the pagan practices. 1t is we'll to
remem Der that not all pagan practices are
essentials of paganism. The pagans built
temples, and SO did the Christians. Many
things they did had descended bv con-
slant use from the times of the earliest
Inhabitants OF the globe, and Christians
had as much right 10 them as anybody"
The lecturer explained that the Jews
had buried their dead from the earliest
times, and that In the rites of Chris tianity
itself there had never been anything
incompatible with the highest intelli-
gence. He believed that the one cardinal
reason why cremation had been rejected
was because ii was not in accordance with
Christian harmony, sentiment or faith.
Even so late as the French Revolution an
attempt 10 revive it signally failed.
christians believe in three divine
institutions" he asserted, "the patri-
archal, the Mosaic and the dispensation of
the gospel. 1t must therefore be admitted
that the Christian practice as regards the
burial of the dead is in accordance with
Christian faith, for that mode OF dspos
inC of bodies was used in patriarchal
times, in the time OF the prophet and
unde the direct reign of the Son of Cod
With the statement that he had at
tempted 10 give the audience a merely
historical review of the case, Father Prem
dergast next took up some of the argu-
ments in favor of cremation. The first
was the theory that cremation prevents
the danger OF being buried alive. The
priest here became sarcastic and admitted
without reserve that it did-that man
might be held for the ideal fate OF being
roasted alive. =
Why" he exclaimed, "Pliny, the
Roman writer, assures US that manv men
supposed to be dead recovered from cata-
/, l..
be cast upon the funeral pyre, and, - in a
sadder tone, that many recovered the
use of their faculties too late, and miser-
ably peris ed, struggling in the flames"
The next thing considered by the lee
turer was the practicability of disposing
of the urns which held the ashes, if crema-
ton came to be universal custom. He
did not think they could always be taken
home, for many Of the poorer classes have
no homes. Neither did he believe they
could be placed in some large building,
for they would all have to be placed near
the ground so that relatives and friends
could come and bring offerings of flowers
20 place before the urns and in the case
of a city like San Francisco where there
are sixty or seventy thousand families, an
enormous building would have TO be had
Hundreds of years hence what would be-
come of the ashes was conundrum. He
thought they would have to COMPROMISE
be where they could be taken away, or the
ashes desecrated by any of the wicked
minded.
The next theory to receive the verbal
lash was that the poisonous ef1uvia from
the bodies of the dead permea ted the soil
and the air, and so endangered the health
OF the living. This he declared to be the
argument of paramount I'm por ,ance made
by the advocates of cremation. He in
tended 10 consider it candidly, and in so
doing asserted that he thought the theory
very leaSy.
why have not the various cities from
the Atlantic to the Pacific the health
authorities. risen and declared against
burial before this if such a theory is
true?" he uueried. "There is not even a
scintilla of evidence that any ef1uvia en-
dangers the life of the living. Here is
large city, San Franc SEQ, with three
cemeteries The effiuvia, If any, must
permeate the City constantly. But this
is a healthy City, and the records, dug up
when the question OF removing the ceme-
teries was agitated, show that the wards
nearest the cemeteries have the lowest
rate OF mortality OF any.
at has been scientifically demonstrated
that good Mother Earth is the most DOW
erful dlsin fectant known and also the
most rerfect. AS regards the removal of
the cemeteries farther away, that is all
right for other reasons, maybe, because
we now have cheap and convenient trans
portation TO the suburbs.
Father Prendergast here asserted that
there is one good argument against Gre
nation from a scientific standpoint, and
that was that by the exhum alton of
bodies many crimes were brought to light
and in some cases the evildoers punished.
In a case of poisoning he asserted that
cremation would destroy all evidences OF
crime. Scientists be believed should also
be very glad that burial prevailed in
ancient times, because fossil bodies had
afforded valuable evidence OF the age of
man. To fuIure scientists this would also
/ old true.
Taxing the subject up from a religious
standpoint in his peroration, the lecturer
declared that from the Catholic point of
view the body of man was not tent or
covering, but an integral part OF him, the
same rs his immortal spirit. The body
had been promised the hope OF glorious
resurrection and 10 subject it to any in
dignity was wrong. The bodies OF the
sants had been venerated. 1t was, there
lore, good that the bodies Of the dead in
all cases should be. From sentimental
standpoint, Father Prendergast delared
fhaf a.