Dealings With The Dead Volume I Part 1

Dealings with the Dead.

Volume I.

by A s.e.xton of the Old School.

"THE BURIAL SERVICE."

This is a very solemn service, when it is properly performed. When I was a youngster, Grossman was s.e.xton of Trinity Church, and Parker was Bishop.

Never were two men better calculated to give the true effect to this service. The Bishop was a very tall, erect person, with a deep, sonorous voice; and, in the earth-to-earth part, Grossman had no rival. I used to think, then, it would be the height of my ambition to fill Grossman's place, if I should live to be a man. When I was eight years old, I sometimes, though it frightened me half to death, dropped in, as an amateur, when there was a funeral at Trinity.

I am not, on common occasions, in favor of reviving the old way of performing a considerable part of the service, under the church, among the vaults. The women, and feeble, and nervous people will go down, of course; and getting to be buried becomes contagious. It does them no good, if they don't catch their deaths. But, as things are now managed, the most solemn part of the service is made quite ridiculous. In 1796, I was at a funeral, under Trinity Church. I went below with the mourners. The body was carried into a dimly-lighted vault. I was so small and short, that I could see scarcely anything. But the deep, sepulchral voice of Mr. Parker--he was not Bishop then--filled me with a most delightful horror. I listened and s.h.i.+vered. At length he uttered the words, "earth to earth," and Grossman, who did his duty, marvellously well, when he was sober, rattled on the coffin a whole shovelful of coa.r.s.e gravel--"ashes to ashes"--another shovelful of gravel--"dust to dust"--another: it seemed as if shovel and all were cast upon the coffin lid. I never forgot it. My way home from school was through Summer Street. Returning often, in short days, after dusk, I have run, at the top of my speed, till I had gotten as far beyond Trinity, as Tommy Russell's, opposite what now is Kingston Street.

A great change has taken place, since I became a s.e.xton. I suppose that part of the service is the most solemn, where the body is committed to the ground; and it is clearly a pity, that anything should occur, to lessen the solemnity. As soon as the minister utters the words, "Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty G.o.d," &c., the coffin being in the broad aisle, the s.e.xton, now-a-days, steps up to the right of it, and makes ready by stooping down, and picking up a little sand, out of a box or saucer--a few more words, and he takes aim--"earth to earth," and he fires an insignificant portion of it on to the coffin--"ashes to ashes," and he fires another volley--"dust to dust," and he throws the balance, commonly wiping his hand on his sleeve. There is something, insufferably awkward, in the performance. I heard a young s.e.xton say, last week, he had rather bury half the congregation, than go through this comic part. There is some grace, in the action of a farmer, sowing barley; but there is a feeling of embarra.s.sment, in this miserable ill.u.s.tration of casting in the clods upon the dead, which characterizes the performance. The s.e.xton commonly tosses the sand on the coffin, turning his head the other way, and rather downward, as if he were sensible, that he was performing an awkward ceremony. For myself, I am about retiring, and it is of little moment to me. But I hope something better will be thought of. What would poor old Grossman say!

A s.e.xTON OF THE OLD SCHOOL.

Dealings with the Dead.

BY A s.e.xTON OF THE OLD SCHOOL.

No. I.

Throw aside whatever I send you, if you do not like it, as we throw aside the old bones, when making a new grave; and preserve only what you think of any value--with a slight difference--you will publish it, and we shouldn't. I was so fond of using the thing, which I have now in my hand, when a boy, that my father thought I should never succeed with the mattock and spade--he often shook his head, and said I should never make a s.e.xton.

He was mistaken. He was a shrewd old man, and I got many a valuable hint from him. "Abner," said he to me one day, when he saw me bowing, very obsequiously, to a very old lady, "don't do so, Abner; old folks are never pleased with such attentions, from people of your profession. They consider all personal approaches, from one of your fraternity, as wholly premature. It brings up unpleasant antic.i.p.ations." Father was right; and, when I meet a very old, or feeble, or nervous gentleman, or lady, I always walk fast, and look the other way.

s.e.xtons have greatly improved within the last half century. In old times, they kept up too close an intimacy with young surgeons; and, to keep up their spirits, in cold vaults, they formed too close an alliance with certain evil spirits, such as gin, rum, and brandy. We have greatly improved, as a cla.s.s, and are destined, I trust, to still greater elevation. A few of us are thinking of getting incorporated. I have read--I read a great deal--I have carried a book, of some sort, in my pocket for fifty years--no profession loses so much time, in mere waiting, as ours--I have read, that the barbers and surgeons of London were incorporated, as one company, in the time of Henry VIII. There is certainly a much closer relation, between the surgeons and s.e.xtons, than between the barbers and surgeons, since we put the finis.h.i.+ng hand to their work. And as every body is getting incorporated now-a-days, I see no good reason against our being incorporated, as a society of s.e.xtons and surgeons. And then our toils and vexations would, in some measure, be solaced, by pleasant meetings and convivial suppers, at which the surgeons would cut up roast turkeys, and the s.e.xtons might bury their sorrows. When s.e.xtons have no particular digging to do, out of doors, it seems well enough for them to dig in their closets. There is a great amount of information to be gained from books, particularly adapted to their profession, some of which is practical, and some of which, though not of that description, is of a much more profitable character than police reports of rapes and murders, or the histories of family quarrels, or interminable rumors of battles and bloodshed. There is a learned blacksmith; who knows but there may spring up a learned s.e.xton, some of these days.

The dealings with the dead, since the world began, furnish matter for curious speculation. What has seemed meet and right, in one age or nation, has appeared absurd and even monstrous in another. It is also interesting to contemplate the many strange dispositions, which certain individuals have directed to be made, in regard to their poor remains. Men, who seem not to have paid much attention to their souls, have provided, in the most careful and curious manner, for the preservation of their miserable carca.s.ses. It may also furnish matter for legitimate inquiry, how far it may be wise, and prudent, and in good taste, to carry our love of finery into the place, appropriated for all living. Aristocracy among the dead!

What a thought. Sumptuary considerations are here involved. The rivalry of the tomb! The pride--not of life--but of death! How frequently have I seen, especially among the Irish, the practice of a species of pious fraud upon the baker and the milk man, whose bills were never to be paid, while all the sc.r.a.pings of the defunct were bestowed upon the "birril!" The principle is one and the same, when men, in higher walks, put costly monuments over the ashes of their dead, and their effects into the hands of a.s.signees. And then the pageantry and grandiloquence of the epitaph! In the course of fifty years, what outrageous lies I have seen, done in marble! Perhaps I may say something of these matters--perhaps not.

No. II.

Closing the eyes of the dead and composing the mouth were deemed of so much importance, of old, that Agamemnon's ghost made a terrible fuss, because his wife, Clytemnestra, had neglected these matters, as you will see, in your Odyssey, L. V. v. 419. It was usual for the last offices to be performed by the nearest relatives. After was.h.i.+ng and anointing the body, the guests covered it with the _pallium_, or common cloak--the Romans used the _toga_--the Hebrews wrapped the body in linen. Virgil tells us, that Misenus was buried, in the clothes he commonly wore.

Membra toro deffeta reponunt, Purpureasque super vestes velamina nota Conjiciunt.

This would seem very strange with us; yet it is usual in some other countries, at this day. I have often seen the dead, thus laid out, in Santa Cruz--coat, neckcloth, waistcoat, pantaloons, boots, and gloves. I was never a s.e.xton there, but noted these matters as an amateur. Chaplets and flowers were cast upon the dead, by the Greeks and Romans. The body was exhibited, or laid in state, near the entrance of the house, that all might see there had been no foul play. While thus lying, it was carefully watched. The body of every man, who died in debt, at Athens, was liable to be seized by creditors. Miltiades died in jail. His son, Cimon, could not pay his father's debts; he therefore a.s.sumed his debts and fetters, that his father might have funeral rites. Some time before interment, a piece of money, an _obolus_, was put in the mouth of the corpse, as Charon's fee. In the mouth was also placed a cake, made of flour and honey, to appease Cerberus. Instead of c.r.a.pe upon the knocker, some of the hair of the deceased was placed upon the door, to indicate a house of mourning. A vessel of water was placed before the door, until the corpse was removed, that all who touched the dead might wash therein. This is in accordance with the Jewish usage. Achilles was burnt on the eighteenth day after his death. The upper ten thousand were generally burnt on the eighth, and buried on the ninth. Common folks were dealt with more summarily. When ready for the pile, the body was borne forth on a bier. The Lacedemonians bore it on s.h.i.+elds. The Athenians celebrated their obsequies before sunrise. Funerals, in some of our cities, are celebrated in the morning.

The Greeks and Romans were very extravagant, like the Irish. If baked meats and Chian and Falernian cost less than in more modern times--still sumptuary laws were found necessary. Pittacus made such, at Mytelene. The women crowded so abominably, at the funerals in Athens, that Solon excluded all women, under threescore years, from gadding after such ceremonies. Robes of mourning were sometimes worn; not always. Thousands followed the bodies of Timoleon and Aratus, in white garments, bedecked with garlands, with songs of triumph and dances, rejoicing, that they were received into Elysium.

After the funeral, they abstained from banquets and entertainments.

Admetus says they avoided whatever bore an air of mirth or pleasure, for some time. They sequestered themselves from company. It is particularly stated, by Archbishop Potter, that "_wine was too great a friend of cheerfulness to gain admission into so melancholy a society_." If Old Hundred had been known to the Jews, it would, I dare say, have been considered highly appropriate--but their good taste was such, that I much doubt, if, in the short s.p.a.ce of eight and forty hours, they would have mingled _sacra profanis_, so very comically, as to bring champagne and Old Hundred together. The Greek mourners often cut off their hair, and cast it upon the funeral pile. This custom was also followed by the Romans. They sometimes threw themselves upon the ground, to express their sorrow. Like some of the Eastern nations, they put ashes upon their heads. They beat their b.r.e.a.s.t.s, tore their flesh, and scratched their faces, with their nails. For this, Dionysius says, the women were more remarkable, than the men.

Burning and embalming, the latter of which was a costly business, were practised among the Greeks and Romans; the latter much more frequently, among the Eastern nations. We talk of getting these matters thoroughly discussed, ere long, before the s.e.xtons' board, to see if it may not be well, to bring them into use again. I will send you the result.

In regard to the use of wine and other intoxicating drinks, at funerals, we much more closely resemble the Lacedemonians now, than we did some thirty years ago. When I was a boy, and was at an academy in the country, everybody went to everybody's funeral, in the village. The population was small--funerals rare--the preceptor's absence would have excited remark, and the boys were dismissed, for the funeral. A table with liquors was always provided. Every one, as he entered, took off his hat, with his left hand, smoothed down his hair, with his right, walked up to the coffin, gazed upon the corpse, made a crooked face, pa.s.sed on to the table, took a gla.s.s of his favorite liquor, went forth upon the plat, before the house, and talked politics, or of the new road, or compared crops, or swapped heifers or horses, until it was time to lift. Twelve years ago, a clergyman of Newburyport told me, that, when settled in Concord, N. H., some years before, he officiated at the funeral of a little boy. The body was borne, as is quite common, in a chaise, and six little nominal pall-bearers, the oldest not thirteen, walked by the side of the vehicle.

Before they left the house, a sort of master of ceremonies took them to the table, and mixed a tumbler of gin, water and sugar, for each.

There is in this city a worthy man--I shall not name him--the doctor's and the lawyer's callings are not more confidential than ours. He used to attend every funeral, as an amateur. He took his gla.s.s invariably, and always had some good thing to say of the defunct. "A great loss," he would say, with a sad shake of his head, as he turned off the heel-tap. I have not seen him at a funeral, for several years. We met about five months ago. "Ah, Mr. Abner," said he, "temperance has done for funerals."

No. III.

The board of s.e.xtons have met, and we have concluded not to recommend a revival of the ancient custom of burning the dead. It would be very troublesome to do it, out of town, and inconvenient in the city. I have always thought it wrong to bury in the city; and it would be much worse to burn there. The first law of the tenth table of the Romans is in these words--"Let no dead body be interred or burnt within the city." Something may be got to help pay for a church, by selling tombs below. When a church was built here, some years ago, an eminent physician, one of the proprietors, was consulted and gave his sanction. Yet more than one of our board is very sure, that, on a warm, close Sunday, in the spring, he has snuffed up something that wasn't particularly orthodox, in that church.

The old Romans were very careful of the rights of their fellows, in this respect: the twelfth law of the tenth table runs thus--"Let no sepulchre be built, or funeral pile raised within sixty feet of any house, without the consent of the owner of that house." They certainly conducted matters with great propriety, avoiding extravagance and intemperance, as appears by the seventh law of the same table--"Let no slaves be embalmed; let there be no drinking round a dead body; nor any perfumed liquors be poured upon it." So also the second law--"Let all costliness and excessive waitings be banished from funerals." The women were so very troublesome upon these occasions, that a special law, the fifth, was made for their government--"Let not the women tear their faces, or disfigure themselves, or make hideous outcries."

It was not unusual for one person to have several funerals: to prevent this, however agreeable to the Roman undertakers, the tenth law of the tenth table was made--"Let no man have more than one funeral, or more than one bed put under him." There was also a very strange practice during the first Decemvirate; the friends often abstracted a finger of the deceased, or some part of the body, and performed fresh obsequies, in some other place; erecting there a _cenotaph_ or _empty_ sepulchre, in which they fancied the ghost of the departed took occasional refuge, when wandering about--in case of a sudden shower, perhaps; or being caught out too near daylight.

For the correction of this folly, the Decemvirs pa.s.sed the sixth law of the tenth table--"Let not any part of a dead body be carried away, in order to perform other obsequies for the deceased, unless he died in war, or out of his own country." It was upon such occasions as these, in which an empty form was observed, and no actual inhumation took place, that the practice of throwing three handsful of earth originated. This usage was practised also by the Jews, and has come down to modern times. Baron Rothschild (Nathan Meyer) who died in Frankfort, July 28, 1836, was buried in the ground of the Synagogue, in Duke's Place, London. His sons, Lionel, Anthony, Nathaniel, and Meyer, his brother-in-law, Mr. Montefiore, and his ancient friend, Mr. Samuels, at the age of ninety-six, commenced the service of filling up the grave,--by casting in, each one of them, three handsful of earth. Not satisfied with carrying a bottle of sal volatile to funerals, the women, and even the men, were in the habit of carrying pots of essences, which occasioned the enactment of the eighth law--"Let no crowns, festoons, perfuming pots, or any kind of perfume be carried to funerals."

Burning or interring was adopted, by the ancients, at the will of the relatives. This is manifest from the eleventh law, which prohibits the use of gold in all obsequies, with a single exception--"Let no gold be used in any obsequies, unless the jaw of the deceased has been tied up with a gold thread. In that case the corpse may be _interred_ or _burnt_, with the gold thread." A large quant.i.ty of silver is annually buried with the dead.

It finds its way up again, however, in the course of time.

Common as burning was, among the ancients, it was looked upon, by some, with great abhorrence. The body to be burned was placed upon a pile--if the body of a person of quality, one or more slaves or captives were burned with it. When not forbidden, all sorts of precious ointments and perfumes were poured upon the corpse. The favorite dogs and horses of the defunct were cast upon the pile. Homer tells us, that four horses, two dogs, and twelve Trojan captives were burnt upon the pile, with the dead body of Patroclus. The corpses, that they might consume the sooner, were covered with the fat of beasts. Some near relative lighted the pile, uttering prayers to Boreas and Zephyrus to increase the flame. The relatives stood around, calling on the deceased, and pouring on libations of wine, with which they finally extinguished the flames, when the pile was well burnt down. They then collected the bones and ashes. How they were ever able to discriminate between men, dogs, and horses, it is hard to say. Probably the whole was sanctified, in their opinion, by juxtaposition. The bones might be distinguished, but not the dust. Such bones as could be identified, were washed and anointed _by the nearest relatives_. What an office! How custom changes the complexion of such matters! These relics were then placed in urns of wood, stone, earth, silver, or gold, according to the quality of the parties. Where are these memorials now! these myriads of urns! They were deposited in tombs--of which a very perfect account may be found in the description of the street of tombs, at Pompeii.

No. IV.

The Greeks, when interment was preferred to burning, placed the body in the coffin, as is done at present, deeming it safer for the defunct to look upwards. To ridicule this superst.i.tion, Diogenes requested, that his body might be placed face downward, "for the world, erelong," said he, "will be turned upside down, and then I shall come right." The feet were placed towards the East. Those, who were closely allied, were buried together. The epitaph of Agathias, on the twin brothers, is still preserved--

"Two brothers lie interred within this urn, They died together, as together born."

"They were lovely and pleasant in their lives," said David, of Saul and Jonathan, "and, in death, they were not divided."

Plato says, that the early Greeks buried their dead, in their own houses.

There was a law in Thebes, that no person should build a house, without providing a repository for the dead therein. An inconvenient fas.h.i.+on this.

In after-times they buried out of the city, and generally by the way-side.

Hence, doubtless, arose the very common appeal, on their tablets--_Siste Viator!_ On the road from Cape Ann Harbor to Sandy Bay, now Rockport, are a solitary grave and a monument--the grave of one, who chanced there to die. Our graveyards are usually on the roadside. Sometimes a common _cart-path_ is laid out, through an ancient burying-ground. Such is the case in Uxbridge, in this Commonwealth. This is Vandalism. s.e.xtons, who have had long experience, are of opinion, that the rights of the living and the decencies of life are less apt to be maintained, wherever the ashes of the dead are treated with disrespect. Burying, by the road-side, has been said to have been adopted, for the purpose of inspiring travellers with thoughts of mortality--travellers in railway cars, perhaps! The first time I visited St. Peter's, in Philadelphia, I was much impressed with the tablets and their inscriptions, lying level with the floor of the church, and vertical, I supposed, to the relics below--but I soon became familiar, and forgetful.

Every family, among the Greeks, who could afford it, had its own proper burying-ground--as is the case, at the present day, in our own country, among the planters and others, living far apart from any common point.

This might be well enough, where the feudal system prevailed, and estates, by the law of descent, continued long in families. If the old usage were now in vogue, in New York, for instance, what a carting about of family urns there would be, on May day! Estates will pa.s.s from man to man, and strangers become the custodiers of the dead friends and relatives of the alienors. It is not unusual to find, on such occasions, a special clause, in the conveyance, for their protection, and for the perpetual _tabooing_ of the place of sepulture. The first graves of the Greeks were mere caverns or holes; but, in later times, they were capacious rooms, vaulted and paved--so large, indeed, that in some instances, the mourners a.s.sembled and remained in them, for days and nights together. Monuments of some sort were of very early date; so were inscriptions, containing the names, ages, virtues, and actions of the deceased, and the emblems of their calling. Diogenes had the figure of a snarling cur engraved upon his tablet. Lycurgus put an end to what he called "talkative gravestones." He even forbade the inscription of the names, unless of men who died in battle, or women in childbed.