The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1898-01-26

law uOI IOuS dISoi 'u
land and in Scandinavia. Russia fol
lowed with the same system with
delay of three or four days before
burial, but not required by law.
But to Germany belongs the credit
of recognizing the fact that the states
of suspended vital activity, or appar
ent death, is natural attribute OF the
human organization, somewhat like
Information in the lower creatures
that should be guarded against by
strict expert inspections of bodies
supposed to be dead and their deten-
tion in waiting mortuaries until death
was known to have taken place, re-
gardless of the length Of time. Hufe-
/ land was the first to put this concep-
tion into practical form, and it was
incorporated into reforms in sepulture
adopted by Frankfort on-the- Maine in
! 1923. Soon after it was employed by
many other German States aud also by
Austria, where it was further provid-
ed that if the survivors requested it
the heart would be pierced through by
the officials in order to prevent pos
| sible revival in the coffin.
Wherever these systems have once
been established they have never been
abolished. This is strong argument
for their adoption elsewhere: and it
can easily be done now if desired, Tor
all the medical, legal, sanitary and
social problems connected with the
matter have been satisfactorily solved
in the thorough German manner, and
formulated into clear, wise and prac-
tical laws, whose benc6cent operation
for over fifty years has given great
satisfaction to the authorities and
protection and consolation to the peo-
pie. Copies Of these laws would con-
stitute valuable additions to the re-
cords of the board of health and other
medical bodies in the United States,
and they are cheerfully supplied, with
other data on the subject, to appli-
cants through diplomatic channels.
It may interest some Of our readers
to learn the particulars of the German
system, upon which its safety de-
pends. from description of the man
ner in which it is carried out in Mum
ich, where every detail is strictly OBJ
served.
Munich, with 100000 inhabitants,
! is divided into twenty-five burial dis
tricts, to each of which is assigned a
medical inspector of the dead, .
Neichenschauer,) with an alternate,
both of whom are specially qualified
for their duties, and an ,undertaker' S
woman, Neichenfrau,) who is likewise
qualified by technical examination.
and she has male assistant. There
are six cemeteries, each of which has
a waiting mortuary Ieichenhaus.)
The procedures as follows AS soon
as an attending physician announces a
death the family sends for the under
takers woman, who has charge of all
the funeral preparations. She, in
turn, informs the medical inspector.
but does nothing before he appears,
for, in the words of the law, "Nc
corpse must be intcrfered with before
the arrival of the inspector, who is
expected to pay several visits before
granting the death certificate, which
he alone is authorized to give. Tho
body practically becomes the property
of the city until the examinations OF
the inspector are over with and its
probation in the mortuary has ended
Ordinarily in cases that have passeC
through course of disease Of suffi
cicnt duration and severity to cause
death by organic changes, the inspcc
tor. after his examinations have con
frmcd the diagnosis of death, obtain.
the data for completing the certificate
Of death from the attending physician
who appends his signature to it: Tho
undertakers woman makes the tollc
Of the body generally puts on com
plete suit of clothes-and after de
lay not longer than twelve hours. dur
ing which, in the absence of Infection
there may be ceremonies and visits il
the residence, the body is taken to tn,
waiting mortuary and there kept 70
sevcnty-two hours longer, more o
less, according to its state Of prcser
vation, the nature of the disease as t,
infection, etc. Finally, the mcdica
attendant connected with the mortu
airy, after frequent examinations
grants his certificate, informs tn
family of the time for the funeral, an
this takes place from the mortuar