Cremation of the Dead

In Berlin an apparatus is also in course of construction, and a pamphlet has lately been issued by the Association for Burning the Dead there, which is intended to combat any prejudices that may exist against the adoption of the practice. At a recent meeting of the council representing the Jewish congregations of Berlin, a motion was brought forward and adopted by a large majority, to take immediate steps for the introduction of cremation in one of the Jewish cemeteries.161 The wholesome practice is also being warmly taken up in other large towns.

The chief works upon the subject which have been hitherto published in Germany have been those of Drs. Trusen,162 Küchenmeister,163 and Reclam.164 The last work is a very complete defence of the system. Mr. Steinmann has also published a work upon the best kind of furnace.165

In America the same active propaganda is going on in favour of incineration of the dead, and the New York Incremation Society have applied to the Legislature of that State for an act of incorporation. Amongst the promoters are to be numbered some of the most distinguished men in America. The Society accepts the obligation of burning the bodies of its members, unless objections are raised by the relatives of the deceased. A German Society has also been formed in New York. Both Societies have progressed considerably in point of numbers, and the system of reduction to be chosen has even been decided upon. The chief work on the subject hitherto published in America is that of Professor Frazer,166 and must have considerably enlightened the nation as to the true merits of cremation. It is not very long since a Persian gentleman in an Eastern State, who wished to burn the remains of his dead wife, was personally assaulted by an ignorant mob and compelled to resort to ordinary burial.167 But several cases of cremation of human bodies have been performed in America.168

In England several attempts have been made from time to time to popularise the idea of burning the dead. Perhaps the earliest literary production in its favour was that of Sir Thomas Browne.169 Amongst later productions is one by Dr. J. Jamieson, written entirely from an historical point of view.170 Another work was issued in 1857 by a 'Member of the Royal College of Surgeons,'171 and papers have also occasionally been written in various periodicals. Several articles favourably treating it from the religious side of the question have also appeared.

The benefits of cremation have been persistently brought before the authorities of London, and by none more energetically than Dr. Lord,172 but as a matter of course nothing could be done, as a suitable means of cineration was not at hand.

The only practical work which has ever appeared in England is that of Sir Henry Thompson,173 the first part of which appeared in the 'Contemporary Review' of January 1874, and the second part in the March number. It treats of the question entirely from the practical side, and it will be impossible to understand the full merits of cremation without perusing it. Its appearance has marked a new era in the history of the question, and the whole of the foreign press are unanimous in its praise. Indeed nearly every European nation has now translated it for itself. It has awakened in our land an interest which cannot possibly subside, and its arguments have found a willing confirmation in the minds of thousands of all classes. There can be no doubt also that the kind of apparatus chosen by Sir Henry Thompson, after several crucial tests, will prove the most suitable one which can be devised.174

The Cremation Society of London, which is intended as a parent society with which others in any part of the land can be affiliated, was founded on January 13, 1874, by some of our most representative men, and shortly after a declaration175 was issued to the public which had the effect of proving to the founders of the Society how very prevalent and how widely spread was the antipathy to the present mode of burial. The aim of the Society is to promote the substitution of cremation for burial, by diffusing information on the subject, by co-operating with foreign Societies, and by raising funds to obtain an apparatus of the most approved kind, together with a suitable site, so that, for those who desire the performance of cremation after death, ample means should be available for the purpose. The letters of adhesion to the scheme which have been already received have come from every class of society, from Peers to the humblest commoners.

Chief in its favour, in point of numbers, after the general public, come physicians and surgeons, and after these ministers of religion of all shades, Fellows of Colleges, officers of the Army and Navy, &c., in about equal degree. The number of ladies who have joined the movement is considerable, and some of them have proved the most active members. The Preliminary Council of the Society includes names of the highest standing in the country in Science, Literature, and Art, and the list is continually being extended. There is every prospect now of being able to accomplish the object sought by the promoters. Some preliminary negotiations were entered into with a large cemetery company, but came to no practical result, the board of management 'not being able to lift their eyes to the dignity of the subject.' Steps are being taken at the present moment to enlist more contributing members in the Society, and to enable it, with augmented funds, to purchase a site for itself whereon to erect a suitable apparatus. Several donations, one of considerable amount from a well known philanthropic lady, have been received by the treasurer.

CHAPTER VI

CREMATION, ANCIENT AND MODERN

It is not my intention to describe the funeral rites of the ancient Greeks and Romans &c.,176 because the practices of some Eastern nations at the present day somewhat resemble them, and it will consequently be sufficient to refer to some of these. Moreover, descriptions of cremation in classic times may be met with in every encyclopædia. Full details of these ancient forms of sepulture will also be found in numerous antiquarian works.177

For a similar reason I will not describe the burning of the bodies of Williams and Shelley.178 The ceremony was moreover somewhat harrowing owing to the impossibility of obtaining proper materials for the purpose. It will be more interesting to the reader to furnish him with a description of a still later instance of cremation; I allude to the burning of the body of the Rajah of Kellapore at Florence in 1873, and I quote here the description of the affair as given by Dr. Pini in the Gazetta di Milano.

At the hour of midnight the mortal remains of the Indian prince were carried to the banks of the river. The funereal pile consisted of a heap of wood, about five feet square, firmly fixed and secured to the ground by seven bars of iron. A second heap of wood was thrown loosely around. After certain religious ceremonies, the pile was powdered with camphor and other aromatic substances, and the dead rajah was laid upon it. The body was anointed with pure naphtha, the features covered by a mask of some greasy substance, and all the limbs covered with resinous matter, betel-leaves, perfumes, and powdered sandal-wood. The corpse was then covered with more layers of wood, alternated with inflammable substances, and the next of kin to the prince set fire to the pile. Although the flame was fanned by a strong wind, the body was barely consumed at seven o'clock the next morning. At ten, when the fire had almost entirely burned out, nothing remained but a heap of ashes. An Indian priest collected a small quantity from the centre of the heap; the remainder was thrown to the wind, in the direction of the current of the Arno.179

Let us now see how cremation is performed at the present day among the poor in India.180 The Madras correspondent of the 'Medical Times and Gazette' thus describes the mode practised in Madras: —

The actual process of burning here is simple and effective, and well suited for people amongst whom fuel is one of the dearest of the necessaries of life, besides being subject to a tax, which has been greatly mitigated by the present governor. A bed is prepared; it is said in the old books that it should be as long as a man with his arm extended above his head, a fathom wide, and a space deep; it is also said that it ought to be on rising ground, so that the water poured on the ashes may easily run off. On this bed is laid a layer of wood and 'bratties' – that is, cakes of dried cow-dung, which in this country is the most frequent form of fuel. The body, which is brought on an open bier, is laid on this, and covered with fresh layers of wood and bratties. Fire is set to the heap, which is then covered with a thinnish layer of earth. The process, which lasts altogether twelve hours or more, is divisible into two portions: – First, the fire is allowed to char and smoulder, out of the free access of air, till all the heap becomes a glowing red-hot mass, just as in charcoal-burning or ballast-burning at home. But after the fire has penetrated the whole heap it is poked up, the air admitted, and there is a thorough blazing fire, which goes on burning till all the fuel is turned into ashes, amongst which are discernible some of the hardest bones – as the malar, temporal, and shafts of the long bones – semi-vitrefied.

The above describes a funeral of the poorer kind, but in a late number of the 'Bombay Times' appears an interesting account of the burning of the body of Mr. Veneyekras Juggonath Sunkersett, an eminent citizen of that city.

The funeral procession from the house of the deceased was sufficiently large to demand a special report. Not less than a thousand persons figured therein, 'every family in the caste having furnished one or two of its male members to swell the melancholy cortège.' Bareheaded, and dressed in white garments, the procession marched slowly on. First came an array of link-bearers; then, also surrounded by lighted torches, and borne aloft on the shoulders of six men, the corpse was carried, preceded by Brahmin priests chanting a monotonous dirge. Arrived at the burning-ground – a spot to which admittance is made difficult – the body, lying on a bier, was deposited on the ground, the torch-bearers forming a circle around. The bier consisted simply of split bamboo sides and arms, with a rush bottom, and was subsequently broken to pieces and burnt. The object of depositing the bier on the ground was to allow all present to take a last look at the features of their friend and leader. Many simply salaamed, others knelt and appeared to pray, while others indulged in tumultuous ululation.

During the time occupied in these last farewells, the men attached to the burning-ground had been busily employed in erecting the funeral-pyre; and the corpse was at length lifted off the bier, and placed on the pile. Officiating Brahmins then anointed the body with a mixture of which the principal constituent was ghee. Hard by was piled a heap of fragrant sandal-wood, split into thin faggots, and these the relatives of the deceased laid one by one upon the body, the priests all the while reciting prayers for the dead.181 This ended, the servitors of the dead-ground built up the pyre to its proper height with common firewood. All being ready for the final ceremony, the Brahmins lit a small fire of sandal-wood, and, having consecrated it, gave a flaming brand to each of the kinsmen present, whose duty it was to light the pyre. Then the flames shot up into the air, a canopy of smoke overhung the spot, and all was over. The mourners dispersed, and by midnight nothing remained of our well-known citizen but a handful of white ashes and a few calcined bones.

During the past year the remains of the Hon. Narayan Wassadeo, a member of the Legislative Council of Bombay, were solemnly burnt on the burning-ground at Sonapore, and the ceremony is thus described in the 'Times of India,' Aug. 6, 1874: —

The body was placed, after it was recovered from under the ruins, on the floor of a large apartment at the rear of one of the wings of the house; and the female members of the family, seating themselves around it, gave themselves up to uncontrollable grief. The unhappy widow was overwhelmed by the dreadful calamity which had befallen her. A great number of the leading members of the European and various native communities called and took a last look at the remains as they lay covered with a white robe, the lower part of the face being alone exposed.

The procession started at about 7 P.M. The bier, composed of two long pieces of bamboo, with a couple of cross-pieces, and covered with a rich white shawl, was upheld by the deceased's eldest brother and three of his most intimate friends and relatives. The sacred fire, which had been kindled with due ceremonies at the house, was carried in front in a brazen vessel by the deceased's son. The funeral was largely attended, not only by members of his own caste, but by those of other castes and denominations. When the procession reached Sonapore the bier was placed on the ground while the pyre was being constructed. Men with short crowbars made six holes in the earth, and in each of these was placed a rough piece of timber about four or five feet high. The posts, ranged two and two, were about a yard distant from each other. Three logs about six feet long each were placed on pieces of wood between each pair of uprights, so as to allow a free draught under the whole. A number of smaller logs were placed on these large ones, and were covered with sandal-wood, which made a sort of bed for the reception of the body. While this was being done, a number of torches of sandal-wood were being carefully ignited by the deceased's son at the sacred fire, which he had brought with him for the purpose. Prayers were said while the ignition was in progress. All being ready, the bier was brought to the side of the pyre, and the body was divested of all covering, except a cloth around the loins. It was then lifted on to the pyre, which was by this time between three and four feet high. The upright posts confined the body on either side, and prevented the possibility of its rolling off. Small blocks of sandal-wood, of various lengths – from six inches to two feet – were placed lightly on the body. The deceased's son then took a brazen vessel full of water, and carefully sprinkled a circle on the earth around the funeral pile. He next seized a brand from the sacred fire, and applied it to some dried leaves, or similar combustibles, placed under the pyre. That did not set fire to the pyre, however, and was not intended to be more than a compliance with the ceremonial; the brand was red, but not blazing, and a spark or two only fell from it. The relatives were then, as is usual in such cases, led away from the pyre by the friends around, so as to spare their feelings as much as possible. When they were taken a few yards off, and their backs turned to the pyre, large logs, similar to those at the base, were placed over the body, which now became completely concealed – all but the feet, which were left exposed either by accident or design. The friends applied matches to the sandal-wood brands, and, when they blazed up, set fire to the combustibles. Owing doubtless to the dampness of the ground, and occasional drops of rain, it was a matter of some difficulty to get the mass to burn. Cocoanut oil was thrown on the wood, and screens were held by men so as to regulate the draught; and, after a long interval, the pyre blazed up fiercely. In three hours only a handful of ashes remained of him who was but that morning the influential leader of the Hindoo community, full of life and hope.

The above two cremations may be regarded as sumptuous ones, and far above the means of the common people. With the latter an incomplete burning was often performed with revolting results. Descriptions of these failures have frequently been given by travellers of more or less veracity. The matter was lately taken into consideration by the English authorities, and this has led to the suppression of such imperfect cremations.

By the order of Sir Cecil Beadon a cinerator was erected at Calcutta for the burning of human bodies; and various regulations were issued with the view of abolishing the ancient system of imperfect cremation. The funeral pyre was not absolutely prohibited within the limits of the city; but the disgusting custom of throwing partially-consumed bodies into the river was at once put down. Sir Cecil Beadon also forcibly suggested that all bodies should be taken outside of the city, to be burned in some suitable place set apart and enclosed for the purpose. Against this excellent proposition a fearful outcry was raised, and the municipality was induced to confine the suggested improvement to building the cinerator on the site of the old burning-ghât, on the banks of the Hooghly. At first the Hindoos objected to use the cinerator; but, on finding that it involved no interference with their religious rites or feelings, they partially acquiesced in its use. The cinerator built at Calcutta was not quite a success; but the bodies were consumed to ashes, and the fumes carried away through a tall chimney or stack.182

I am informed by the Sanitary Commissioner of Madras, that the Cinerator183 erected by the authorities is scarcely ever used, but he is of opinion that if the Siemens principle of a furnace were exhibited before the educated Hindoos they would very probably adopt it.

Here is another extract explanatory of the reform just alluded to.

From the Health Officer's Report to the Bombay Municipality we find that the cost of fuel for cremation is exceedingly heavy; and that a body cannot be consumed under four hours. 'On more than one occasion bodies have not been totally consumed, the relations having brought too scanty a supply of firewood.' In this document we also find a recommendation 'that a cinerator be erected at the burning-ghât, which would be at the disposal of the poor on the payment of a small fee. By this means the Hindoo community would get accustomed to it, and would see its advantage. A body would be put in at one end of a closed vessel, which in its transit through the cinerator would be exposed to intense heat, and after a certain time drawn out and opened. The ashes of the deceased would alone remain, which could be carried away and kept.'

As it may prove interesting to some reader, I will now give a description of a cremation ceremony of the very highest class, as performed in Siam, in which country, as has been stated elsewhere, only those dead are buried whose survivors cannot pay the fees of the priests. It is said to be from the pen of a lady184 who was a resident for several years in that country, and is an extract from a paper of hers which appeared in a late number of 'Lippincott's Magazine.'

Burning is now, and has been for centuries, the universal custom in Siam – preferred, it is supposed, because of the facility it affords for removing the precious dust of the loved and lost. In old, aristocratic houses I have seen arranged in the family receptacle massive golden urns, containing the ashes of eight, ten, or twelve generations of ancestors; and these are cherished as precious heirlooms, to descend through the eldest male branch.

The time, expense, and character of a burning depend mainly on the rank and wealth of the parties, though the ceremony is always performed by the priests, and always within the precincts of a temple. The only exception is in seasons of epidemics or when the land is laid waste by famine. Among the better classes the dead body is laid unmutilated, save by the removal of the intestines, in a coffin, and it is more or less carefully embalmed, according to the time it is to be kept. If the deceased belonged to a private family of moderate means, the burning takes place from four to six days after death; if he was wealthy, but not high-born, the body may be kept a month, but never longer, while the remains of a noble lie in state from two to six months, according to his rank; and for members of the royal family a still longer period intervenes between the death and the burning. But, whatever the interval, the body must lie in state, and the relatives make daily prostrations, prayers, and offerings during the whole time, beseeching the departed spirit to return to its disconsolate friends.

When the time for the funeral has arrived, the body is laid in a receptacle on the summit of a stately pyramid, the form and material of which indicate the wealth and position of the deceased. It is thickly gilded, and the receptacle lined with plates of solid gold when the body has belonged to one of royal lineage and well-filled coffers. The last is quite as essential as the first to a gorgeous Oriental funeral, since for rank without money an East Indian has ever the most profound contempt.

Both requisites were fortunately united in the person of the queen-mother of King Pra-Nang-Klau. At the funeral of this aged queen there was such a display of Oriental magnificence as rarely falls to the lot of Western eyes to witness. The embalmed body lay in state under a golden canopy for eight months; the myrrh, frankincense, and aromatic oils used in its preparation cost upwards of one thousand pounds, and the golden pyre above twenty thousand. The hangings were of the richest silks and velvets, trimmed with bullion fringe and costly lace, and the wrappings of the body of pure white silk, embroidered with pearls and precious stones. Incredible quantities of massive jewellery decked the shrunken corpse, and a diadem of glittering gems cast its prismatic radiance over the withered features. Tiny golden lamps, fed with perfumed oil, burned day and night around the pyre, while every portion of the vast saloon was decorated with rare and beautiful flowers, arranged in all the various forms of crowns, sceptres, temples, angels, birds, lanterns, wreaths, and arches, till Flora herself might have wondered at the boundless resources of her domain. Day and night musical instruments were played, dirges wailed forth, and prostrations perpetually performed; while twice every day the king, attended by his whole court, made offerings to the departed spirit, beat his breast, tore his hair, and declared life 'utterly unendurable without the beloved one.'

All this was kept up for eight months, and then the scene changed for one of festivity. For thirty days, during most of which time I was present, there was a succession of levées, concerts, and theatricals, with feats of jugglery, operas, and fireworks; and then the embalmed body, surrounded by perfumes and tiny faggots of sandal-wood, was consumed by fire, and the ashes collected by the high-priest or his deputy in a golden urn, and deposited, with other relics of royalty, in the king's palace.

How very different from the above is a cremation amongst the North American Indians (the Cocopa tribe), on the Colorado river! Here is an account of one published in a late New York paper by an eyewitness, Professor Le Conte.

A short distance from the collection of thatched huts which composed the village, a shallow ditch had been dug in the desert, in which were laid logs of the mezquite (Prosopis and Strombocarpus), hard and dense wood, which makes, as all Western campaigners know, a very hot fire with little flame or smoke. After a short time the body was brought from the village, surrounded by the family and other inhabitants, and laid on the logs in the trench. The relatives, as is usual with Indians, had their faces disfigured with black paint, and the females, as is the custom with other savages, made very loud exclamations of grief, mingled with what might be supposed to be funeral songs. Some smaller faggots were then placed on top, a few personal effects of the dead man added, and fire applied. After a time a dense mass of dark-coloured smoke arose, and the burning of the body, which was much emaciated, proceeded rapidly. I began to be rather tired of the spectacle, and was about to go away, when one of the Indians, in a few words of Spanish, told me to remain, as there was something yet to be seen. An old man then advanced from the assemblage, with a long pointed stick in his hand. Going near to the burning body, he removed the eyes, holding them successively in the direction of the sun, with his face turned towards that luminary, repeating at the same time some words which I understood from our guide were a prayer for the happiness of the soul of the deceased. After this, more faggots were heaped on the fire, which was kept up for perhaps three or four hours longer. I did not remain, as there was nothing more of interest, but I learned on inquiry that after the fire was burned out it was the custom to collect the fragments of bone which remained, and put them in a terra-cotta vase, which was kept under the care of the family.