The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-04-09

rTee-SOlQlerS' Home frOJeCt.
Captain Charles C. Pierce U. S. A.,
chaplain under General Macarthur, and
who came to this country from the
Philippines with General Lawtons
body, and who is soon to return 70
those far-off Pacific isles. spoke last
evening in the Penn Avenue Baptist
church, of which his brother Rev.
Robert +. Y. Pierce, D. D., is the
pastor.
After preaching a truly eloquent
sermon on the practical evidences of
Christs beautiful life and influence,
Rev. Mr.. Pierce made an appeal to
the congregation in behalf of two
works in which he is especially inter-
ested, namely, the maintenance of
free cemetery which has been already
established in Manila, and the prospec-
tive establishment of a Soldiers Home
in that city, modelled after the lines
of the Y. NJ. c. A. buildings in this
country Among other things he said
II should like to give YOU few
incidents that came under my personal
| observation ana which / am ready TO
stand by, showing the necessity of
this free cemetery in Manila. / was
approached one day, away back in
October 1898, by young native whose
old father had died and who wished
me to conduct the 'bcnediction.' as
| they term the services over the grave.
| asked him why he had not gone TO
his own padre, he being a Catholic.
| He informed me that he had, but that
| the latter demanded 81, which
the young man said was the reg
ular fixed charge demanded by the
clergy, and as he had only 81 he could
not obtain the PADRES services.
might mention that this young man
earned just $l2 a month and was the
sole support of his family.
CONDUCTED THE SERVICE
Realizing the condition of affairs I
| agreed TO conduct the services, but
| when we arrived at the cemetery We
found the gates locked. The sexton,
who was working inside. informed me
that the padre had the key and that
if we wanted to get in We would have
to find him. | sent the sexton after
him. but the man came back shortly
without the key and said that the
padre had told him that no free bur-
| ials could be made in that cemetery.
Well, / had been standing in a tenn
perature of about 1?0 degrees and l
was pretty hot, but this made me
very much hotter.
| Il asked the man to take me to the
padre and I'd explain things. He took
| me down the street a short distance
and there l met the padre, and fat,
! sleek man he was. He explained that
the law was that all burals, except
those of the poor, were to be charged
for at s. apiece, / explained that these
| people were poor, but he replied that
| the body was in q box. If there was
no box, and the body was just thrown
into the earth, the family were con-
sidered poor, but if there was a box
they were accounted able to pay the
| fee.
II must say that his last remark
made me hotter yet, and l Strengthened
up with something of the spirit of Paul
of old in me- and told him that | was
an American and that in my country
the rich and poor We're buried alike.
and that 1 wanted that key, though
there was to be no funeral fee. | got
the key, and the funeral was held.
ION another occasion this same padre
refused to open the cemetery gates for
a poor little child who had starved to
death and whose funeral services |
| was to conduct. But | secured the SER
vices of warm and open-hearted
American officer of the old school this
time, and the key was forthcoming
very rapidly. This time there was no
box, and the excuse the reverend
gentleman had made was that no paid
record of the death had been made on
the books of the church.
THING OF THE PAST.
This condition of affairs, however,
is now a thing of the past, and we
have secured a cemetery of our own.
! and, in this, Roman Catholics, Metho-
distS. Baptists or men of any other de-
nomination are buried, and the burial
is free. What We need now is an en-
doWment for this cemetery, so that it
can be maintained"
| The speaker then told of the plans in
view for the establishment of the Sol
diers' home; how it was to be a place
TO which the soldier boys might go to
while away their leisure moments,
away from the other influences which
are always on hand to drag them down.
such building is necessary" said
ne, IF we want these young men to
come back to their homes as unsulied
and as God-fearing as they left them"
He spoke of the announcement he
was meeting with in his appeal, and
hoped that there was some gentleman
in Scranton who was willing to give
81 900 toward the work.
At the conclusion of his remarks
special collection was taken up for the
two objects spoken upon, and pledges
for large amounts were received from
several.
Rev. Mr.. Pierce spoke yesterday
morning in St. Luke's Episcopal
| church and leaves the city this morn