The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-15
SOME OPENED TOMBs.
shaI1espeare's Corpse Escaped DIsin =
terment,

NCEmGhts
From the Chicago Daily News.
OF the three greatest poets of the Chris
tian orld-Shakespeare, Dante and Mil
ton-the first alone has escaped disinter-
ment. All temptation to look once more
on his remains has been crushed by the
anathema on his tombstone:
Good frende. for Jesus sake, forbeare,
To digg the dust enclosed here;
Blest be We man that spares these stones
And curst be he that moves my bones"
Dante was buried at San Francisco. in
Ravenna. A cardinal of Pope John XXI
ordered Dante's bones burned and later a
mausoleum was built for them, but the
suspicion arose that the body was not
there and in repairing an old chapel in
the original church of San Francisco a
wooden box was found containing a skele-
ton corresponding to Dante's hight and
stature, with an inscription by a monk
stating he had removed the body there in
1877 for safekeeping.
Milton did not escape He was buried
and in 100 years the spot was forgotten;
search was afterward made and the grave
found, but the church forbore to disturb
the sacred ashes. However, a publican, a
pawnbroker a surgeon and coffinmaker
got in the church, pried open the leaden
hair and acced like Doors generally.
The relic-hunting superstition which
swept over the church like a flood in the
fourth century was responsible for the
dissertation of many graves. Kings have
suffered most. Henry " of England, to
prove to the people that Richard II was
really dead and had not been murdered
had the body dug up and carried, face
exposed, to Langley. In the days of Hem
ry V the remains were again disinterred
and carried 10 the royal tomb in Westmin-
ster, where the unhappy monarch now
lies besides his wife, Anne of Bohemia.
BY accident the tomb was opened IN the
last century and the bones and skull ex-
aDlined. If the rumor that Richard was
murdered by a blow on the skull be true
the skeleton was not his, for the skull
was in perfect condition.
Henry ~ was buried in 14l3 by his own
direction in Canterbury cathedral and the
tomb was opened in 1922 to set at rest a
historic doubt. When the coffin was open
ed, nearly four centuries after it had
been closed, for few seconds before the
air caused the face to collapse the few
who we're present saw the face Of 1.-THE
cankered Bolingbroke" as he looked when
he died, in the scene which Shakespeare
has so patheticaly described. The face
was perfectly preserved.
His warrior son. Agincourt's hero. rests
at peace in the stately tomb prepared for
him by his wife, Katherine Of Valois who
was said to have been, on her arrival In
England, surprisingly beautiful. Her
tomb. however. had a different history.
Either in penance for her cisobedience to
her husband-she having gone TO Windsor
for the birth Of her son in spite Of the
prophecy, which turned out true. that
Henry Of Windsor snail lose what Harry
Of Monmouth won"-or IN remorse for the
messalliance she made In wedding after
ward Welsh yeoman Of the guard. she
ordered that her coffin should be "meanly
appareled." Her grandson, Henry VII,
laid the coffin beside that Of her royal hus-
band when he assembled the throne. The
common coffin, however. moldered away
and the skull was visible. covered with
its yellow and parchment-like skin. A
century ago the dean ordered that new
coffin be made and the body properly hous-
ed The new coffin was thrust into vault
and not many years ago the vault was
opened and Dean Stanley, thinking Il
would be a good time to see II the body
was In good condition. had the coffin
brought out. II crumbled TO pieces and
the body-for the skeleton still had some
flesh and tendons on twas seen. The en-
folding cerements had crumbled TO dust
and nothing remained but some fragments
OF ccrecloth add the silk cushion on which
the head had rested A solid oak coffin
was made, the body inclosed and rever-
entity Inferred near that OF her royal hus-
band.