St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1898-09-03
LONDON uNDERTAKERs
A~.-t. or rout, Declared to be Ruin
Ing the Dus1ness-A V1ctims
Tale OF Voc.

Some of the London undertakers-
and presumably some of their provin-
cial brethren too-are just now full
of q sense of injustice. They compalin
that business is being ruined by the
agent or tout, and they call upon all
seli-respecting gentlemen of the pro-
fession to rise up. rs it were. and abol-
l ish the intruder. The particular un-
dertaker who recently told Daily
Mail reporter about the trouble is a
practitioner of credit and renown,
who tells you, with justifiable pride,
that he has been in his present prem
ises for 30 years, and that his father
before him conducted interments with
neatness, decorum and dispatch. As
rule he is an undertaken of engaging
Icheerfulness, but when our repre-
sentative called to see him he was
wearing an expression of deep solem-
nifty that fitted in nicely with the
trappings of woe displayed around the
shop.
"Come in. sir" he said, swallowing
a sigh, "and I'll explain. BE careful
Just wait and Ill move il aside. Oh.
it's an empty, sir; misfit. as a matter
| Of fact; a trifre small. but good bit
| of elm. Now. il you'll sit down I'll tell
YOU how the business is being ruined.
| You see. there nre number OF men
| in London who are no more under
takers than you are. and they are ruin
ing the legitimate people like our
selves by touting and working as
agents on commission. In this neigh
borhood lit was Bloombury) there are
a number of hospitals-for instance,
the fit hospital and the children's-
and If you were to visit any of those in
stitutioms you would find that as the
relatives and friends of the deceased
enter the building they are accosted
by these agents, who offer to get them
the best and cheapest undertaken in
London. In many instances the Offer
is accepted, and of course the tout
draws his commission. At one hos
pitai the agent charges ten per cent.
which is disgracefully extortionate
for one won't pay it, and lots of Other
nndertakers are like me, and mean tt
fight it. At another hospital the tout
gets 2s cd on every order and place.
the job with some of his own pals
Perhaps you'd hardly believe it, sir
but there's man as cleans my win
dows, and he does a bit of-amateul
work OH his own. Whenever he hear
Of a job he gets II mt starvation fig
ure. Then he comes to me, buys ;
coffin at trade price, hires chea!
coach and borrows n weeper or ha
band. That's his outfit. and he make
perhaps 30s or f2 on the job. Now
ask you, is that fair to the trade ??
Here he frightened little and
looking cheerfully at pile of tin.
collins on the shelf. said:
"Thank goodness. Sunday burial
have been knocked on the head. Sun
day was a rare day for the amateur
i There's a grocer's assistant down thi
way who used to do a ayroaring trade o.
Sundays. but since they stopped 'er
he's finished, because he can't get on
all the week. Still. we've got heap I
contend with. Look how coroners' off
GERS go on. They're always making
) bit by arranging with the relatives I
remove the body and find nice chea
undertaken. It's scandalous. that
what it is. and until we have societ
; or the law compels all undertakers
! pay an annual license fee of f5 every
body will be doing a little bit at it.
ii An awful gloom had settled upo
him again, but as he rose to put on hi
4 coat he said with some show of brisl
ness: Now. it you'll excuse me, 81
!, I'll go. Fact is I'm just going to ru
round the corner to measure an ol
/ customer of mine. He's put lot {
;. work in my way and now he's gone II
= going to look after him."
: Slowing the tape carefully in tt
i tail pocket Of his somber coat he weI
4 slowly out.-London Mail.