Omaha daily bee., 1909-03-21

AHA SUNDAY BEE: MARCI
Republic by the cemetery association. This
group Of graves. where the soldiers OF the
union sleep. covers a high knoll. on the
very top Of which is a pedestal on which
stands a figure Of a volunteer private
soldier, with his musket at rest. on every
side Of the knoll are soldiers graves, and
the resting places Of those who had families
are about the sides and base OF the knoll.
Here again is found the disintegrattng
marble, for all the markers furnished by
the government are Of that material.
Not fa~ from the Grand Army of the Re
public plot is the Masonic triangle, and
within its lines sleep the departed brothers
of that fraternity. Surrounding the tri-
angle are the lots Of prominent Masons,
wherein themselves and their families will
eventually lie.
Some Private Decorations.
At almost the southwest edge Of the
plotted part Of Forest Lawn is the founda-
ton for the proposed G. n. Dietz mauso-
leum. 1t is 17x22 in size and when finished
the structure will have cost in the neigh
borhood Of $4,000. Exclusive of the cost Of
the ground. Not very far away the die Of
the @. w. wattles monument rests on
skids. This die Is a handsome one, Of
white marble and weighs eighteen tons.
The base for this monument had been
placed last fall. but one corner was cracked
when the attempt was made to put the die
upon IL. This made It necessary to send to
Georgia for a new base.
Standing at what is known as Kountze
Circle. the most elaborate burial plot in the
whole plan. one can read on every side
names of families that have taken their
place in the written history Of Omaha.
Massive, but plain, stones OF many shapes
are all about and there are also slender
and bulky shafts and crosses and globes.
Close around this section are to be found
some monuments that have been considered
worthy of being pictured and written about
In Park and Cemetery, a magazine de-
voted especially to the subjects indicated
by its name.
Work of Art.
Perhaps first in artistic merit among the
smaller monuments is the Leavitt stone.
II is an exact duplicate, except as to the
base, Of the tomb of Sclpio Barbatus, CON
sui, b. G. 29S, which once stood on the
Appian' way and which was discovered and
rifled of its contents in 1880. The Sclpio
sculpture Is now in the Vatican at Rome.
Because Of its shape and carving the
Leavitt stone attracts a good deal of study.
The Barton mausoleum, at the apex of
a winding road, is a marked feature of
Forest Lawn scenery, and a little way
down the same road is the Edward Rose
water monument. 1t is of oval shape, sim
pie In conception, but one of the most
| chaste designs the eye can rest upon. II
is Il sarcophagus without ornament or a
hint of decoration, but has been photo
graphed and written about by the maya,
zines devoted to cemeteries and parks.
Both the Leavitt and Rosewater tombs
are of granite, as are a vast majority OF
those in this and other cemeteries in this
latitude.
Cemeteries of the Jews.
Pleasant Hill, located just this side OF
Forest Lawn. on the high ground, is q
Jewish cemetery, in use since 1872, com.
1 prising ten acres. Here about $50 inter
i ments have been made, largely Germar
Jews. Reversing the usual order of things
4 the beginning of this cemetery became the
\ nucleus of Jewish religious activities II
Omaha, and Temple Israel is one granC
result.
A Adjacent to Pleasant Hill Is q buryin,
ground for Hungarian and Polish Jews, 70
the people of the Hebrew race insist o,
\ being buried in national groups. There 4
= also a Bohemian Jewish cemetery and
burying ground for Congregation Sere
! Zion, one for Congregation Beth Hame
dros Hagodel, one for Congregation B'na
Israel and Fishers farm cemetery, tire
T. and a half miles south Of South Omaha.
Jewish burial customs, especially amon
"A the orthodox Jews, are still on the oil
order. The corpse is wrapped in clean, ne,
linen. alike for rich or poor. Each con
gregation has its own burial casket, 1
which the body Is placed to be taken to tn
cemetery. Arrived at the grave side, lum
-, Der 10 already at hand for the making q
~ a plain pine box, into which the body
transformed for burial. The casket whic
~ carried the body to the cemetery is take
n back to the synagogue and may thus serv
IN for a generation or even longer. Elemer
al tary principles and sanitary consideration
"a govern the doings of the orthodox Jews
"a all things, from the day Of birth to tn
day Of burial.
q Interments in all the Jewish cemeterit
he OF Omaha do not, according to good judge
10 number greatly over 1000.
az Inherited from the ormOn
an On a hin west of the center of Florenc
IN but in the city limits. is a burying grour
an that is ancient, as time has been countt
here. Originally started by the Mormon
while resting on their way to the promise
N' ~" SNoIs " war dlsp uStu by mar
residents in the vicinity in other year
- Settlers in and about Council Bluffs we
'a In the habit of burying in this old Gem
terry, and from a wide area of the III,
thinly settled country came dreary lit
-, professions to this resting place Of of
~ neers. From 80 or whereabouts up TO IL
bodies were given sepulture In this Gem
81 terry, but about the last named year Il
authorities Of Florence. who control II
ground, forbade any further burlals e
cept in the case OF families owning 10,
~ and the permits now issued are few a,
far between. Only last year representativ
OF the Mormon church made proposals
the Florence city fathers to contribute
share OF the expense necessary to put
Iron fence around the five acres and othe
.T wise place the burial plot in presentah
shape, so that it will be preserved as II
It Is very likely that the Mormon off
H. will be accepted and the hallowed memoir
~ of other days thus he perpetuated. II