The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1907-09-22
A GruesOme Profession
Work of the Man Whom We Need When We Are
Past All Other Needs of Man.

BY Harry F. Aitchison.

!, the present day the old form OF en-
balming is found in use in the rural
districts of the country. 1t Is profess
! sionally called partial embalming, and
consists of simply filling the body cav
I tiles with the preservative fluid. Ii an
! embalmer desires to preserve body
/ f0Y a long time he removes all the
! blood from the body, but as the body
| has a much better appearance with
the blood still in it, this is not done
unless it is necessary. There is alb
solutely no possibility of a person be-
! ing buried alive if the body is en-
balmed, as one tablespoonful of the
| liquid used would be, sufficient to kill
d man, and ordinarily at least two
quarts are used, thus eliminating any
| fear of this occurrence. All stories OF
persons coming TO life after being
placed in a coffin in the modern days
| are absolutely fakes, pure and SIM
| pie, as such happening is plainly
| impossible.
The undertaking business has been
| wonderfully free from trust methods,
and there is at present no undertak-
ers' trust in existence. The articles
the undertaken needs in his business
are manufactured by different firms
independently. The samples carried
by a travelling salesman for an under
takers supply house are rather start
ling to the uninitiated. Collins are
manufactured of wood of various de-
grees of excellence according to the
price which the purchaser desires to
expend. Cedar is one of the best and
most commonly used woods, but is
also quite expensive. Collins are man.
ufactured in many patterns both plain
and elaborate, and are usually richly
upholstered. Each supply house has
in their employment a force of expert
epgravers whose work is to. engrave
the handsome plates which ornament
the caskets of the more wealthy pur-
chaSers.
Undertakers' Drummers.
OF course it is impossible for a
drummer to carry samples of collins
with him about the country, but there
are many things which he can carry.
Among his outfit are the clothes for
the dead. The dead mans suit con-
sists of a white shirt and collar, a
vest and a coat, the latter being con-
tinued into a long skirt. This suit is
simply tied at the back, and as moth
ing but the head and shoulders of the
wearer are visible, this skirt does not
show. The undertaken has to keep
these suits in stock. They are in
variably black, but vary considerably
in quality and price. 1t is not always
that an undertaken is obliged to fur
nish the suit for the dead person, but
it ofteRtimes happens that a man will
die suddenly and the discovery is
made thatthe has nc black suit. 1t is |
then that a man is. buried in the most |
expensive suit he has ever worn. Of |
course, the undertaken has other
clothes in stock for women, they be- |
ing of the form decreed of that sex |
when living.
- Conducting.
The undertaken has many things to |
do besides embalming. To the under |
taker the average set of bearers are |
amateurs and are not to be trusted |
at any time, and as funeral conducting |
is one of the important branches of !
the work, the art of picking out COM |
plete set of bearers is not an easy |
one. When it becomes necessary to |
carry casket down a flight of stairs, !
as is often the case, the men in the /
employ of the undertaken do it, for |
the pallbearers are unable to make the /
necessary turns or hardly do the car |
rying. There is probably nothing so |
difficult to carry down stairs as cot |
fin, as it has to be done with dignity |
and without apparent effort.
Many papers are devoted to the in
terests of the undertaking profession.
In them are advertised the latest ar
ticles and inventions in the way of |
undertakers' supplies. One of the lat
est on the market is a clever devise t
for the lowering of the coffin into the
grave. The old way, which is still in
general use, is to lower the casket by
means of heavy leather straps. When
the bearers do this the casket usually
tips and sways. This latest lowering
is operated by powerful
spring and lets the coffin down just
as easily as an elevator descends in
a building. The straps unhitch auto
mahcally, and are wound up again
when the coffin is safely deposited in
the earth. The apparatus is placed
over the open grave and is very use
full invention which will probably come
into general use