Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1902-01-16


Funds.
Now York Evening Post.-Behlnd
the Ieper hospital in the san Id
FARO district Of the city OF Havana
there lies an old cemetery. Few OF
the many visitors to that city kno"
MAT there is such a place; still FEWER
mass beneath its yine-coyered portal.
Thousands visit the Colon cemetery
with it's massive gateway and us
beautiful monuments; not one IN
thousand sees that city of the dead
which was established by Blshop
Juan De Espada in 1906. For twenty
five wears it has stood unused for
burial purposes.
In old Roman days, in the time OF
the funeral pyre, it was customary to
gather the ashes of the incinerated
dead and place them in funeral urns.
These were sealed and deposited in
inches in the walls of special build
tngs or Enclosures, to which was APP
nIied the name of columbaria, for the
reason that their appearance sug-
gested a dovecote. The general idea
of the cOlumbaria has been preserved
and, though unusual, is far from
unique The more modern system
dispenses with the burning and de-
nosfts the cofined body in inches only
differing from those of the Roman
days. essentially in their size. This
is the system of the Espada cemetery
In Havana.
Heavy Gate Bars Way.
The opening of a strongly locked
and heavily barred iron gateway gives
massage into a high-walled Enclosure
of some three or four acres in extent.
Neither monument nor standing tomb
stone breaks it's fiat and grassy area.
A grass-grown pathway leads straight
across the plat to the mortuary chapel
upon it's northern side. All around
are the walls, four to five yards IL
height, showing four tiers of round
topped inches, some open and some
closed and sealed. Midway the west
ern wall a gateway opens upon a sec
ond Enclosure of similar area to the
first, though of different arrangement.
A brick-paved wallway crosses it
from east to west, bisecting a series
Of interior walls which extend through
it's greater length. If my memory
serves me, there are six of these struc-
lures, alternately open and arching
the pathway. Here, too, the surround
ing walls and the interior structures
show the four rows of inches. A lit
tie counting and a rough calculation
gave the total number in both in
closures at about 10000.
The ground Immediately around the
chapel, in the outer yard, is largely
occupied by the horizontal slabs which
mark the resting place of those whose
rank. wealth or influence has secured
for them a special interment. Here
lies the body of a bishop, and there
lies one whose corOnated coat of arms,
carved in relief on the marble in
dicates a strain OF royal blood. Many
of the stones are broken, all are
weather stained, bordered with I'M
trimmed grass and weeds For the
graves of many who lie here there is
no one to care. Of Spanish birth, their
friends and kindred have returned to
their homes across the sea.
Burial Places are Rented
Many of the wall inches stand empty
by reason Of an established custom,
prevalent in these countries, of rent
ing burial space for time only. At
the expiration of that time the bones
are removed to large uncovered re-
ceptacle along the southern wall, where
they constitute a CHASTITY heap, seen
only from the top of the wall The
vacated space may then be filled by
succeeding tenants or by one whose
payment insures repose so long as the
place continues as a burial ground.
In some of these now vacant inches
beds of dried grass and discarded
clothing indicate their use by the liv-
ing. There is no doubt that many of
them were occupied as sleeping places
suring the days of the Recommendation
under Weyler.
Marble tablets, often exquisitely
carved, seal the openings of the inches,
taking the place of the now more gen
orally used mausoleums, monuments
and headstones. Here and there some
wreath or other floral memento, at
tached to the tablet, shows that even
for quarter of a century of sleep in
this unused burial ground some dead
are lovingly and actively remembered.
Here and there an English name ap-
pears, but they are very few.
Shoot Decorators of Graves.
In one of the walls in the western
section a niche is shown in which once
lay the body of man who. in his life,
had grievously offended group of
students in the University of Havana.
After his burial some of these stu
aents manifested their bitterness by
the foolish prank of Decorating the
tablet which sealed the tomb or their
enemy. They were caught and SEN
fenced to death. A tablet on the face
of building near La Punta. in
Havana, states that they were there
executed, shot by the bullets of Span
ish soldiery. Today one of the special
sights Of Havana is the beautiful stu
dents monument in the Colon GENE.
tery, and the anniversary of their
death is public holiday.