The Sun. — 1859-07-25 (London, England)

FRIENDLY SOCIETIES IN SCOTLAND.  A report by the Registrar of Friendly Societies in Scotland has been presented pursuant to the Act 18th and 19th Vic., cap. 63, and printed by order of Parliament. In the course of this report the writer, in the true antiquarian spirit of old Jonathan Oldbuck, notices the existence of " burial clubs" among our Roman conquerors, and shows how much the law of Scotland is founded on, and how largely its principles are derived from the Roman law. He refers to a work of Mr. Kenrick, on "Roman Se pulchral Inscriptions," bearing on the subject of burial clubs. Mr. Kenrick says :—" As I have not seen the existence of burial clubs among the Romans noticed in any work en Roman antiquities, I will give some extracts from a monument referred to. It was found at Lanuvium, a town of ancient fame for the worship of Juno Sospita, about 19 miles from Rome, on the Via Appia. The inhabitants of this town appear, out of flattery towards the Emperor Hadrian, in whose reign the marble was erected, to have formed themse'Nes into a college for paying divine honours to Diana and Antinous ; a singular combination, which shows at once the degraded condition of the people, and the heartless formality of the established religion which could be prostituted to such a purpose. The privilege of forming a college, or, as we should say, a body corporate, was most sparingly conceded, and most jealously restricted under the Emperors, who dreaded all secret associations as nurseries of treason. With this primary object of forming a college of the Cultores Diana et Antinoi, they combined that of a burial club, not forgetting the festivities which formed so important a part of all acts of religion among the Romans. To prevent disputes, the laws of the association were inscribed on marble, and probably set gupooidn wine etewmapsletoofbethpertewseondted amphoraeittioest.heAelnnbb a new ofo member, the sum of 100 sesterces (about 15s. was t be paid as entry money, and five asses (litte more than subscription. N2vder)epnerotmtoonttahkeasplaceoftenerthan an Theirmeetings once a month. If any one omitted payment for (so many) months (the marble is here mutilated) no claimit tby willeoul. I d ben casemade,of the d eventheoatuh of oneghhehadwdhiorechtaedd (pli i2dss.his) wesubscriptionallotted f 0 rr ebgi su lfaurnl ye r, a 130 e x 0 p esnessetse,re eouts of which, however, 50 were to be set apart for distribution at the crethation of the body. The funeral was to be a walking one. If any one died more than 20 miles from Lanuvium, and his death was announced, three delegates from the college were to repair to the place where he had died, to perform his funeral, and render an account of it to the people. Fraud was to be punished by a fourfold fine. Twenty sesterces each were' to be allowed to the mgh a, el:lax nptdae nk r. „se is , place logatoei eic ne more oaarden db thane reen delegates f r thelfoofmr tLr aadeath un ah who e ahl ae dd certificateperformed atthteestfeudnebrayl rites2tllonini w sent,i miles ses to perssoe seven Roman einntidwzens, on the production of which the usual sum for the expenses was to be granted' Jf a member of the college had left a will, only those named in it could claim er he died intestate, the quinquennales anything. were to direct how the funeral should or magistrates of the municipium, and the people gn If ally, take place. If any member of the college in the condition of a slave should die, and his body, through the unjust conduct of his master or mistress, should not be given up for burial, his funeral should be celebrated by his bust being carried in procession. No funeral of a suicide was to take place. There are many other rules tending to preserve order and promote good fellowship, but these are all which relate to the burial club." This curious document is an additional proof how much ancient life resembled modern life, when we obtain a view of it, as it were, intus donzique, through the medium of its monuments.