The San Francisco call., 1904-07-24
EXPLORER STANLEY BODY DENIED PLACE IN WESTMINSTER ABBEY
BECAUSE WALHALLA IS CROWDED WITH BONES OF NOBODE
Movement Now on Foot to Clear
Temple of Its Unworthy
and Unknown Dead.

LONDON, July 23-'T VIII not be
buried In Westminster" said Sir God
frey Kneller, as he lay dying, TO his
friend Pope, they DO bury fools there"
It was In 172s that Sir Godfrey deliver
ed himself Of this contemptuous opin-
ion OF those inferred in England's IA
nous WaIhalls, but it is worth recall
ing now for the reason it is largely be-
cause the abbey contains so many
bodies and monuments Of those whose
only claim TO distinction is the fact
that their dust lies there-a goodly
number Of them buried since Sir God
frey passed away-that entombment
within its walls has been denied 10
Stanley, whose right 10 be numbered
among England's great and heroic
dead cannot be disputed Not but
what the pious dean with whom rested
the final decision could still have made
room for the renowned explorer had he
been so minded.
Had Stanley penetrated darkest Al
rica with q Bible and q bevy Of mis-
sionaries, instead Of with a rife and
armed followers, undoubtedly his NOR
tai remains would have been welcomed
&c the abbey, for many lie there whose
only claim TO remembrance was their
eminently orthodox piety. AS recently
as 1899 Minor Canon Troutbeck, a
member Of the ecclesiastical staff Of
the abbey and chaplain in ordinary to
Queen Victoria, was buried in one Of
the cloisters. Think Of it! Stanley ex-
Guided with the intimation that he was
not quite great enough TO be deserving
Of such an honor and a minor canon
admitted as abundantly worthy Of it.
PATRIOTIC PRIDE.
10 other place appeals so strongly to
AngIo-SaxOn patriotic pride as West
minister Abbey. It is regarded as the
sacred shrine Of those who have done
most 10 make England great All who
enter come under the spell Of its magic
charm. Within its hallowed walls crit
fcism seems as sacrilegious as would be
strictures passed on such wondrous
works OF nature as Niagara Falls or
The Grand Canyon OF Arizona 1T
seems wrote Washington Irving, las
il The awful nature Of the place
presses down upon the soul and bushes
The beholder into noiseless reverence.
We feel that we are surrounded by the
congregated bones Of the great men Of
past times who have filed history with
their deeds and earth with their re-
rCWn"
That is the way everybody feels
~ feels that he ought TO feel-about
Westminster Abbey and the trans
atlantic visitor modestly attributes his
Uufaniliarity with most Of the names
he sees inscribed on tombstones, mon
uments and tablets TO his own ignor-
snce Of things he ought to know in
English history. But as a matter Of
fact among these "congregated bones"
those that carried really great men
through this world are far outnumber-
ed by the osseous relics Of those who
achieved merely temporary fame,
mediocrities and nobodies. THE ab-
hey" writes Rev. William J. Loftie,
one OF the few historians Of it who
dares 70 tell the truth about it, sis
fun OF memorials OF second and third
rate celebrities"
ONCE OPEN TO ALL SORTS.
The mortuary chambers OF the abbey,
now SO jealousy guarded that even
-
IN the past thrown open wide to all
sorts Of strange and dubious folk. In
this supposed shrine Of the immortals
meet the good and the bad. the great
and the petty, the noble and the ig-
noble, the famous and the Infamous,
much as they do in any ordinary grave
yard. A motley gathering it would
make If the ghosts Of those commence
rated in the abbey should assemble
some night 70 take stock Of one an
other Unless sojourn in the other
world begets much greater charity than
is usually found in this, there would be
much shifting and fitting Of dis
tinguished phantom noses and dis
gusted exclaimations Of How the
deuce came you here?" Wilberforce
might ind himself hustled aside by a
pugilist; Pitt might be moved TO de-
nounce a swindling Secretary of
State; Wolfe might be confronted by a
spy; Tennyson might find himself in
the company Of a writer Of scurrilous
verses, and on the outskirts Of the
crowd there might be found lowering
oivines, minor poets, pages Of the
backstsirs, a plumber, a butler, a
starcher and all sorts Of long forgotten
obscure people.
AMONG THE IAIN1ORTALS.
That prizehghter is buried in West
minister Abbey is widely known, be-
cause Il happens 10 be mentioned in
the official deanery guide, which every
visitor buys, and many are the ejacu-
lations Of pious horror that have been
uttered over such scandalous desecra-
ton Of this most famous OF all sane
tuaries Of the dead. But John Brough-
ton is really much more worthy of such
honor than many who are inferred
there. He was a notable man in his
way. He fought his way to the top of
his profession and by pluck and hard
hitting maintained himself there for
several years. He lived to a green old
age and was long employed as a verger
in the abbey before he died in 1883. He
wished to have the words .-Champion
Prizefghter Of England" which con-
stituted his claim to fame. inscribed
on his tombstone. But the dean of the
abbey would not permit it, and on the
"a blet TO his memory in the West