The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1900-07-31


Bring About - Funerals Better Con
Quoted Under the New system at One
third the Cost Of the Old.
| ~ Ut in the far West they've
II starting a cemetery. They
shoot man. In the eifete
East they do the thing differently.
There land is bought aud improved by
company of capitalists and perma-
nent residents are lured to the spot
! by much the same method used in
disposing of suburban building sites.
The modern cemetery is an excellent
real estate investment, benefit to the
railroads, and profitable to the general
public, living or dead. Many bus
mess men, recognizing it as a good
thing, push it along; yet it is an
amusing fact that most of the capital
lists Interested in the cemetery bus
mess still cling to time-honored tradi-
ton enough to feel themselves a trihe
embarrassed by their situation.
My reason took me into the bus
mess, said n well-known business
man to New York Sun reporter,
but. can't to save my life help feel
ing ashamed of il. \ cemetery is such
queer property"
Sentiment isn't commonly supposed
to be the strong poiut of the average
American. but when it comes to flu
nerals, sentiment has interfered might
| lily with the famous American business
spirit. The burying business in Eng
land and on the Continent of Europe
is commercial enterprise, in the
hands of various corporations aud sub
! lect to the usual laws of trade and
competition. The Burial Company.
| Limited, under one name or the an
| other, fourishes, prospcrs an cheer
| fully advertisers in all conspicuous
/ places. One can have funeral of
any grade at bottom prices, and no
one seems to consider 1t his duty to N
dead friend to pay for his funeral i've
| times what 1T IL worth. For once
| American sentiment has stood I'm the
way of common sense and public con
| venlence, but change is making IL
| self felt.
The railroads have revolutionized
cemeteries. In old days, when even
the ordinary roads were often i'm
passable, il was necessary to locate
the graveyards under the very shadow
of the churches With improved
| roads and vehicles came cemeteries
separated from the churches, but stlll
| so near the towns that the growth OF
the town would necessarily wipe out
the cemetery. Year by year come
teries moved farther away from city
| limits, but never far enough. New
York has at least dozen burving
! grounds that when located were sup
posed to be beyond all chance OF IN
terference by the city's growth, but
are now ingulfed by it. Even the
more modern cemeteries, that were
| considered absurdly far from town,
are being elbowed and jostlcd, and
roads are cut through them by un-
sentimental officials
As long as the old-time funeral sys-
tenn was adhered to ii was necessary
to have the cemetery within driving
! distance. Hence the complications.
| Now, improved facilities for trans
| portation have made it possible to dis
pense with the dreary line OF car
riages, and consequently TO locate
cemeteries beyond all chance of mo-
| lestation. The advisability Of locating
| cemeteries far from any possible city
| line has been recognized all through
| the country, and almost every large
city has already made provision for
such city OF the dead, or is planning
! 1t. Funeral cars are in readiness at
! the city rail way stations, and railway
! comnAnles make every arrangement
| for ne convenience of funeral parties.
| A railroad man who is interested in
the new cemetery and burial move
ment throughout the country talked
about it to Sun reporter the other
day.
ut was an experience with an un-
| dertaker shark that first called my at
tention to the cemetery business, he
! said. 81 was an executor for n
wealthy man who died The wife
died few days later The two were
buried together, and the family ar
ranged the funeral after the usual
fashion. a few days later the bill for
| funeral expenses was sent TO me
! Sli00-for the double funeral. ] paid
| 1t, of course; but ! did a lot of think
| ing about it, and began inquiring in
TO the subject. The more + inquired
the more Disguised with the system
was. ] found that other business
men felt as I did about it, and that
there was n movement abroad TO fur
nish something better. / went in for
! It, found il fair business proposition
and public service.
1T is only a question OF a few years
until the revolution will be complete.
You know how it was in tho old days.
a man died. His widow and imme-
diate family were too much overcome
by grief to hagglo over funeral ar
rangcmentg Some one went to tho
nearest undertaken aud put The thing
into his hands. lie would attend TO
everything, certainly, and he did.
Everything was correctly done. At
the proper hour the undertaken turned
| up with long face and the required
number of camp stools; managed the
services, provided the carriages
Everything was according torulcs laid
down by custom, and the undertaken
charged what he pleased. The bill
was paid. les mean man that
squabbles over bill for funeral ex
pensos. The whole programme was
immeasurably droary, and for the man
with little money tho bill added greatly