00_1885 Scrapbook of Newspaper Clippings Vo 2, 2005.120.002

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were consecrated with appropriate religious services.

The consecration services consisted of an anthem by a select choir, an introductory prayer by Rev. Augustus C. Thompson, a hymn for the occasion, by Rev. Cyrus H. Fay; selections from the scriptures, read by Rev. John Wayland, D.D.; an address by Rev. George Putname, D.D.; another hymn by Rev. Cyrus H. Fay; a prayer by Rev. Edmund F. Slafter; a selected hymn, and the benediction by Rev. Cyrus H. Fay.

Always scholarly and interesting, the address of Dr. Putnam was one of his happiest efforts. It had the great merit of brevity, and it said much in a brief space. An extract or two will be of interest. Said Dr. Putnam:

"The spot is well chosen. It lies apart from the great thoroughfares of the world, and yet near the dwellings of those multitudes who are one day to occupy its quiet precincts. Nature has done all for it that we could desire, and consummate science and taste have displayed in preparing it for its uses—no, not displayed; true science and taste never display themselves in such a scene as this; their most perfect art consists in hiding themselves and letting nature reveal herself, that all may be of God, and nothing of man. Whenever man's work comes to look most conspicuous here, it will argue either some failure in the designing artist, or else some defect in our own mental vision.

"Certainly the God of nature has lavishly bestowed here the beauty in which he hath delight. We see not how more or better could well have been crowded within these limits. Whoso asks for more or different may well suspect the sensibility of his own eye and heart, and might traverse the whole green earth unmoved, unsatisfied." — A description of the grounds is well limned: "Here, within the enclosure, the [?]eaving surface is pleasantly diversified,

And mantled o'er with aboriginal turf And everlasting flowers.

"Wooded heights and shaded valleys alternate from side to side. There are grassy slopes, and here, reposing at our feet, the little lake of living water, reflecting the serene heavens. The oak, the walnut and the birch throw their grateful shadows over the paths that wind through the interior, and the southern border is skirted by a solemn grove of evergreens,

Where angels, as the high pines wave, Their half-heard misereres sing.

"These jagged piles of uptossed rocks record a fearful history of old convulsions and a wild war of the elements, and the mosses on their sides and the gnarled trees in their crevices are the emblems of present stability and peace. The chirp of the squirrel and the song of the more timid species of birds, such as shun the haunts of men, testify to the deep retirement of the place. The fountain which breaks cold and sweet at the foot of yonder precipice tells us by its beautiful inscription, in the words spoken at Sychar of old, of that water which, whosoever drinketh it, it shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

"Thus felicitously has the Creator's hand, seconded reverently by an unobtrusive human art, prepared these grounds,

Even as if the spot Had been from eldest time by wish of ours So placed, to be shut out from all the world! So lonesome and so perfectly secure; Not melancholy—no, for it is green And bright and fertile: Peace is here Or nowhere; it could not be more quiet. Retreat within retreat—a sheltering place Within how deep a shelter!" — It may be said that most of the extensive rural cemeteries, like Mt. Auburn, which are to be found throughout our country at the present time, are private establishments, projected and controlled by individuals. They answer the demands of good taste and pecuniary means among a portion of the community, and contribute to the elevation of public sentiment in regard to this subject; but they did not supply the whole want, and afford alike to the high and the low, the rich and the poor, the consolation of laying the remains of their friends in grounds made beautiful as well as sacred by the hand of taste.

It is believed that Forest Hills is the first cemetery of the kind established by any city or town in this part of the country as the public burial place of its inhabitants. Indeed, it cannot be said that the cemetery was established exclusively for the use of the inhabitants of Roxbury, for its proximity to Boston and a large suburban population was duly considered in its establishment, and it was designed to meet in some degree the wants of these, as well as of the municipality by which it was established. — The name Forest Hills was selected from quite a number which had been proposed, and the cemetery, according to an original report, is situated between the Norfolk and Bristol turnpike, Walkhill, Canterbury and Scarboro streets. The topographical features are diversified in a remarkably picturesque and impressive manner by numerous hills, valleys, glades, precipitous cliffs, isolated masses of moss-covered rocks, dales and lakes. A large portion of it is covered with most of the varieties of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants indigenous to New England.

The carriage avenues and footpaths are laid out on the principles of landscape gardening, and in such a manner as to render the approach to all parts of the ground facile and beautiful. The burial lots are 15 feet wide and 20 feet deep, with spaces between them six feet wide. There are borders six feet in width on each side of all the avenues and paths. The avenues are 16 feet wide, and the paths six feet, which are defined by lines of sod one foot wide. The surfaces of the avenues and paths are gravelled and made slightly convex, with a gutter on each side for conducting off the water. —

The main entrance to the cemetery is reached from the highway—Scarboro street—by a broad avenue, curving up a gentle ascent till the gateway is reached. The original gateway was of somewhat imposing dimensions, having a frontage of 160 feet. The carriage way was through an Egyptian portico, copied from an ancient porito at Garsery, on the upper Nile, and consisted of two piers, inside of which were massive columns, richly sculptured, all supporting a heavy cap, with its concave entablature, which was ornamented on the outer side with a large winged globe. This portico was 40 feet in width and 24 feet high. On each side, a little removed, were smaller gates for pedestrians, and near these were small lodges, corresponding in style with the gateway. The gates consisted of high palings, which were alternately surmounted with lotus blossoms and lance heads, and similar palings extended from the gate piers to the lodges. Upon the outer architrave of the gateway, inscribed in golden letters, were the words, "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil," and on the interior architrave the words, "I am the resurrection and the life. Consecrated June 28, 1848."

Something over 30 years ago this gateway, with its appurtenances, was removed, and the present structure, lighter, more graceful, and in all respects more appropriate, was erected in 1865. An excellent idea of this, together with the superintendent's office, may be had from the accompanying illustration.

There are two other entrances, on the southern and eastern sides of the cemetery, and these, with the main entrance, give ingress to one of the most lovely cities of the dead that can well be imagined. The enclosure abounds in the most charmingly diversified natural scenery, and it is not assuming too much to say that art has assisted nature.

From the cemetery one can see the Blue Hills of Milton on the one side, and on the other the range of which Forest Hills itself comprises a part. From the high grounds open and cultivated lands can be seen on all sides, including a view of Franklin Park, with its fine natural and artificial attractions.

Going into the cemetery by the main entrance, three divergent avenues conduct to different parts of the cemetery; that on the right to grounds which have been acquired since the cemetery was first established, but which are no less rich in natural attractions than the older parts of the burial place. Chestnut avenue, on the left, passes over a gentle elevation, and thense through the vale of Lake Dell toward Consecration Hill. On the right hand of this avenue, before reaching Lake Dell, rises a rocky eminence, called Snowflake Cliff, from a beautiful wild plant which grows at its base. From the summit of this rock there is a fine view of the village of Jamaica Plain, of the wooded hills of Brookline, and the country beyond. — The hill rising on the north of Lake Dell is designated as Chapel Hill; and from the eastern end of Lake Dell, Magnolia avenue leads to the summit of Consecration Hill, one of the highest of the Forest hills, and from its top is a beautiful view, where every prospect pleases. From the western end of Lake Dell, and following Rock Maple avenue, we are led around the base of Mt. Warren, and curving around the foot of the hill is a pleasant approach to some of the more attractive spots in the cemetery, such as the pleasant dell at the foot of Mt. Dearborn and Fountain hill. Here there is found a natural spring, ever which is a covering of rough stones, clothed with lichens, moss and other wild plants. On the upper stone is a bronze plate, bearing these words: "Whosoever drinketh of this water will thirst again; but the water that I shall give will be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life."

From the dell a steep path leads up the southern side of Mt. Dearborn, and thence up the western slope to the top. The prospect is not very extensive, but glimpses of the most beautiful portions of the cemetery may be had, with view of Lake Hibiscus, and in the distance the Blue Hills. The Eliot hills take their name from the Apostle Eliot, and are four eminences situated in the northwestern part of the cemetery—but they really form but one hill. A large part of it is of rocky formation, which has been changed to a most beautiful spot, having on its sides some of the most attractive burial lots. From the northern side Brookline and Cambridge may be seen. — Lake Hibiscus is one of the chief beauties of Forest Hills, lying a short distance to the east of Fountain hill, and approached by avenues from different parts of the cemetery. It is supplied with copious springs of water, is irregular in form, and covers an area of something over three acres. In it are two islands, one of which has a copious spring of never-failing water. It is reached by a rustic bridge over which willows are trained, and about the island there is a growth of birches and other trees and shrubs. The island is a favorite resort for visitors. The supply of water in the lake is very abundant, and there is no danger that it will become a stagnant pool or expose a dry basin, even in seasons of great drought, for the pond is so excavated and walled up to the grassy banks that it shows a clear expanse of water. It is a most attractive feature in the scenery, affording a relief to the eye after dwelling on the dark green foliage of other parts of the cemetery. Around the lake are a number of beautiful lots, as well as magnificent tombs, chief of which is that of Maj. Joseph H. Chadwick.

somewhat similar in design to that of Mr. Dwight, and although it is not so massive, is more elaborate in its ornamentation. On the base on each of the six faces of the turret is a shield for inscriptions. The spire is surmounted with a large gothic cross; and, if there is a fault to be found with this monument, it is in the fact that the execution is not so good as the design.

On the summit of Mt. Warren, the united lots of the Warren family are situated. One of the monuments is a marble block, on the front of which is a beautiful alto-relievo of Christ blessing little children, which was done in Rome by an Italian sculptor. — A monument bearing the name of White is a marble sarcophagus, finely wrought, with an ivy wreath in the centre of the top and ivy twining along the verge; the cornice is supported by richly sculptured brackets of Italian marble.

On Citron avenue and Spirea path is a monument over the grave of K. Nishibayashi, a Japanese minister who died in Boston a few years ago. The monument is a peculiar one of Scotch granite, covered with Japanese characters.

One the lot of Dr. H.E. Marion of Brighton is a fine monument, on the pedestal of which is a fine carving of the holy mother and the young Saviour, in Italian marble, which was much admired when on exhibition at the World's fair.

On Pine avenue is a large and beautiful lot bearing the name of Perkins. This lot is a most attractive one, enclosed by a hedge of arbor vitae, within which are walks and flower borders, and in the ear, under a rock which forms the back part of the lot, and shaded by evergreens, is a secluded nook for a chair. The centre of the lot is again enclosed by an iron paling, within which is a monument of polished granite, consisting of a massive base, on two sides of which, in basso relievo, are winged heads surrounded with clouds, and on another side is an inscription; this base is heavily moulded and finely wrought and standing upon it is a large plain cross.

On Violet path, which leads toward the summit of Mt. Dearborn from Red Oak avenue, are the monuments of Read Taft and Charles M. Taft, that of the former being of white marble, a tablet with sculpture at the top representing two angels kneeling before an urn; while that of the latter is a massive sandstone pedestal, ornamented with scroll work and surmounted by an urn. — Farther up this hill, on Sweet Briar path, is the burial place of Gen. H.A. S. Dearborn, who did more to bring Forest Hills into existence than any other man. On the lot is a handsome marble base bearing the name, and on the base which supports it is the inscription: "Erected by the Workmen of Forest Hills Cemetery to Commemorate His Many Virtues." But a few steps from the lot is the Dearborn monument, which was erected by his friends and fellow-citizens. It is an elegant corinthian column of white marble, on a base which extends by scrolls on either side to smaller pedestals bearing funeral urns. The shaft is of convex flutings, the capitol elaborately and well wrought and surmounted by a funeral urn, with flame.

In the lot of William Cumston is the statue of a child standing in the attitude of attention, with eyes raised, as if listening to a call from above, with the arms crossed in resignation on the breast. The drapery is beautifully disposed.

In the lot of Eliza Dudley is a charming little statuette of a child asleep, with its head resting on a lamb, and on the pedestal is inscribed, "Our Little Frank."

One White Oak avenue, in the lot of Charles Blake, is a slab on which is a representation in relief of an angel bearing away a child, with the touching inscription, "Our Darling Eddie."

The original price of a lot in Forest Hills, of 300 square feet, without being in any way prepared, was $50; but upon payment previous to a certain date a reduction of 10 per cent. was made to the early subscribers for lots. This price for lots in their natural condition was subsequently raised to $60, and again to $75. In some parts of the cemetery it was absolutely necessary to trench the lots in order to prepare them for use, and in all cases it was deemed advisable, so that this was adopted as the regular mode of preparing the lots. The expense attendant upon this varied in the different portions of the ground, some lots being unexpectedly expensive on account of rock being found below the surface, and others cost but little. The first year or two the cost of preparing each lot was charged to its proprietor, or he could cause it to be done at his own expense under the direction of the superintendent; but the expense was so unequal as to occasion dissatisfaction, and the commissioners determined upon the better plan of ascertaining the average cost of preparing the ordinary lots, and engaging to prepare all at that price, assuming the risk of any extra expense.

This method proved very much better for the improvement of the grounds as well as for the proprietors, for it opened all parts of the cemetery for the choice of lots, and it gave the proprietor an opportunity of having his lot prepared at a reasonable cost. The price of a lot at Mt. Auburn, in its natural state, was originally $60, from which price it rose in the course of a few years to $150, without any improvement, and at the present time so great is the demand for lots in that famous burial place that the price for them is almost beyond the reach of moderately endowed people.

At the present time, in Forest Hills, the lowest price of a lot, which affords accommodation for four tenants, is $200, including perpetual care. From this bottom price upward, lots can be had for almost any price, according to size and location. The highest price ever paid for a single lot was $18,000, by Capt. J. B. Thomas, the sugar magnate; and there have been frequent purchases of lots ranging in price from $1000 to $5000.

For single graves, when the increasing popularity and the great natural attractions and advantages of the cemetery are taken into consideration, the prices are indeed reasonable, being in all sections fronting the avenues $25, and on the inside sections, $20; and those places of interment are kept as scrupulously neat and clean, and have as much care lavished upon them as the most pretentious lots. But, of course, in all instances, there are other charges to be added to these, such as the opening of a grave at the time of interment, and these vary according to circumstances. Thus, for opening a grave for a person over 5 years of age, $6; for children between 2 and 5 years, $5; under 2 years, $4. For opening and sealing up a tomb, in a private lot, $8. For brick graves for adults, $25, and for graves of extra or smaller sizes the prices will be charged proportionately. For the use of the chapel a fee of $10 is charged. — At the present time Forest Hills contains 62 avenues and 152 paths. The avenues are named after trees; the paths, with a very few exceptions, bear the names of flowers and shrubs. The most notable of these exceptions are found in Nesutan and Wabon paths. The former is named after he Indian who aided the apostle Eliot in learning the Indian language and in translating the Bible into that tongue, while the latter is in honor of the Indian chief at Nonantum hill, in Watertown, where Eliot established the first Indian school and church. — To give a full description of the various monuments which adorn these avenues and paths would be an impossibility in an article of this nature, yet some reference to them is necessary.

There is that of Edmund Dwight, on Walnut avenue, which is an octagonal pointed gothic structure, of dark sandstone, most elaborate in design and finely wrought. On each of the faces are panels with pointed arches, above which rises a spire or pinnacle, ornamented with crockets and surmounted with a small cross.

Robert B. Forbes monument, on the summit of Consecration Hills, has a granite base, with marble panels, surmounted by a granite obelisk, and in the lot, over the grave of an infant, is a handsomely wrought horizontal marble slab, which bears a touching inscription.

The monument over the remains of Maj. Townsend, a paymaster in the army, who died in 1853, and was for a long time a resident of Boston, his native place, in a plain marble pedestal, on which rests a finely sculptured eagle, with outstretched wings.

In the lot of William F. Weld, on Mt. Warren, is a white marble monument, three cherubs in alto-relievo, reading a scroll inscribed with the names, of three children who lie there buried, and it is surmounted with a vase of sculptrued flowers. At the foot of the graves are an urn and two lambs, and within the marble border is a profusion of flowers.

On Chrysanthemum path, in the lot of George H. Everson, is another attractive piece of sculpture, representing a child reclining as if asleep on a quiver of arrows, while one hand grasps a bow. The figure rests on a handsome pedestal, which bears an inscription.

On Cherry avenue, in the lot of Nathaniel Snow, is a fine monument, consisting of a pedestal and shaft, elaborately finished. On each side of the pedestal are shields of scroll work, and at each corner an inverted torch; the shaft is octagonal, with gothic panels and rich gothic ornaments at the base. It is surmounted by an urn wreathed with flowers. — An elegant monument is that of Jonathan French, of white marble and highly finished with gothic ornaments. The pedestal has a richly sculptrued cornice, and in front is a shield with scroll work, at the bottom of which are branches of oak with leaves and acorns; at the corners are inverted torches, and on the pedestal rests an arched tablet or block with gothic panels and crockets. It is surmounted by an urn, draped and wreathed in flowers, and it is, on the whole, one of the finest monuments in the cemetery.

On Fountain avenue, nearly mid-distance between Lake Hibiscus and the field of Machpelah, and erected by Mrs. J.L. Loveland, is a beautiful monument. On a handsome marble pedestal is a small statue of a femal weeping over an urn wreathed with flowers, and beside which lies a funeral torch. The pose of the figure and the expression are good, and the work well executed. On the pedestal are graven the words, "My husband and child."

There are a number of separate tombs in the cemetery, but unquestionably the finest of all is that of Maj. Joseph H. Chadwick, until recently president of the board of trustees. It is situated on Fountain avenue, fronting on Lake Hibiscus. — Though Forest Hills cannot boast of being the place of sepulture of so many eminent personages as its sister cemetery, Mt. Auburn, yet it contains a wealth of honored dust sufficient to give it more than a passing name. Here lie the bones of Gen. Joseph Warren, who

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gave up his young life for his country at Bunker Hill; of Gen. William Heath of revolutionary fame; of James Walker, sometime president of Harvard College; Gen. Henry A.S. Dearborn, ex-Govs. William Gaston and Alexander H. Rice, Hon. Marshall P. Wilder, and those noted Boston journalists, Charles O. Rogers, William W. Clapp and Horace Beaver. Here moulder the bones of Rev. Ors. Gordon, Alonzo A. Miner, James Freeman Clarke, and Jacob M. Manning, as well as that noted anti-slavery agi[t?]ator and friend to the slave, William Lloyd Garrison. Here are buried the philanthropic Andrew Carney, whose best monument is the noble hospital which bears his name; the sculptor, Martin Millmore, and Carl Heinzen, the great humanitarian; and here, too, sleeps his last sleep that worthy naval hero, Admiral John A. Winslow, and many others who fought nobly for the preservation of the Union in its hour of peril.

This cemetery is a favorite one at the close of life's drama with members of the theatrical profession. Here on Arethusa path lies Edward Loomis Davenport, the best American actor of his day, and beside him his faithful wife Fanny, in whom in domestic and professional life he had a worthy ally. Over their remains, placed by the loving hands of their daughter Fanny, is a chaste and tasteful monument in white marble, representing the trunk of a tree which has just been felled, around which are wreathed oak and ivy leaves, while from the ground at the base springs a cluster of ferns and lilies finely sculptured.

On Harebell path, and but a short distance removed, lie the remains of Davenport's old friend and sometime manager, Thomas Vaughan Barry, the best local stage manager Boston ever had, and an actor of great ability.

In N.P. Lovering's lot, one of the most beautiful to be found in the whole cemetery, is the statue of a child reclining as if asleep, its head resting upon one arm, the expression of the face being very sweet, and the pose easy and natural. On the base are the words "She is not dead, but sleepeth." And, indeed, the sculptured child looks as if she was sleeping, so natural is the work, which was done in Italy.

A touching piece of sentiment is found in the lot of Samuel Wadsworth, where there are four little headstones over the graves of children. Each bears four rosebuds in relief; the first one with one broken bud and three still on the stem; and so each succeeding one with an additional broken bud, until they are all severed.

In the lot of Oliver Ditson, on Rhododendron path, is a fine marble statue of St. John, the work of Thomas Ball.

A very striking and original monument is that which marks the resting place of Martin Millmore, the sculptor, which is the work of French, and represents the angel of death interrupting the sculptor while at work on the figure of the sphynx.

Marshall P. Wilder and George L. Randidge both have imposing monuments.

On Green Briar path, in a lot bearing the name of Weeks, is another touching and suggestive monument over the grave of a child. On a handsome pedestal is a small piece of sculpture, which represents a little child reclining, with flowers in her hands, and a bunch by her side. In her hands, and a bunch by her side. The pedestal is inscribed "Little Emma," which is followed by the words of the Saviour, "Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of Heaven."

On Eglantine path a shield of white marble, surrounded by a richly wrought wreath of ivy leaves, will attract attention. It bears the name of Montague.

On Germania path is the monument of Kilby Page, a massive Egyptian base, with panels, supporting an obelisk. It is of finely wrought granite, and is a handsome work.

On Cherry avenue, in the lot of S.S. Lewis, is a monument which will surely attract the eye. It is a large tablet, resting on a base, with scrolls, at the head of three graves, enclosed with marble slabs. On the upper part of the tablet are

On Aster path is the grave of William H. Curtis, who was a careful and plodding actor, and well remembered from his long connection with the Museum and other Boston theatres.

In the Field of Menoah are the graves of three actors: Nicholas Trenchard Davenport, one of the original members of the Boston Theatre company, under the management of Thomas Barry; William H. Norton, long connected with the stage in New York, Philadelphia and Boston, and Owen Marlowe, remembered by all as one of "Our Boys."

In the cemetery, too, are the remains of Charles Kuppitz, one of the most thorough musicians and skilled orchestra leaders ever in Boston; of Edward Shales, who essayed to be an actor, appearing at the old Tremont Theatre as Richard, Shylock and other Shakespearian characters, though never a permanent member of the profession; of George K. Goodwin, a theatrical manager, while as lot owners there are Louis Aldrich and Isaac B. Rich, manager of the Hollis Street Theatre.

Every visitor to the cemetery will be struck with the beauty of the monument in the lot of Mr. Rich, which is in a charming locality on the corner of Beach avenue and Petunia path. Few monuments to be seen around are superior to it. On a tasteful granite pillar stands an exquisitely sculptured female figure of life size in the act of scattering flowers on the graves beneath. The features are in sorrowful repose, and the draperies most gracefully disposed. In the inclosure are buried the first and third wives of Mr. Rich and several children.

At the time of its consecration, the cemetery comprised in all 71 acres 2 7-10 rods, and the cost of the same was $27,894.66. By the last annual report, which is brought down to the first day of March of the present year, it is ascertained that the grounds of the cemetery proper amount to 210 3/4 acres of land, with avenues and paths, reservoirs, fountains, water pipes and drains, chapel and office buildings, greenhouses, bell tower, gateway and lodges, bridge, receiving tomb, superintendent's cottage, six tenement houses, blacksmith shops, tool houses, carts, stables on Canterbury street and Union terrace, about seven acres of land on Bourne street, also a house and about 37,000 square feet of land on Morton street. And outside of this, the corporation owns a great deal of other property in bonds and securities.

It will be borne in mind that when the cemetery was first established it was owned by the city of Roxbury, and governed by a board of commissioners. On the annexation of Roxbury to Boston, a new act was passed by the Legislature, "To incorporate the proprietors of Forest Hills cemetery"; and this act provided that the city of Boston is hereby authorized and required to transfer and convey, immediately after the organization of this corporation, to said corporation all the right, title and interest in the lands which have been purchased for the said cemetery, and in and to all other estate, property and things purchased or otherwise obtained and acquired for said cemetery, which said city acquired under and by virtue of the provisions of an act entitled "An act uniting the cities of Boston and Roxbury," passed in the year 1867, and any moneys standing to the credit of said cemetery upon the books of the treasurer of the city of Roxbury at the time when the act of annexation above mentioned took effect, and all other interests, moneys, or rights, relating to said cemetery, which said city acquired under said act. And said corporation shall hold the said property and estate for the same uses and purposes and charged with the same duties and liabilities, for and subject to which the same were formerly held by the city of Roxbury, and are now held by the city of Boston, and all rights which any persons have acquired in said cemetery shall remain to the same extent as if this act had not been passed.

Since the passage of this act the management of the affairs of the cemetery has been vested in a board of seven trustees, of whom Maj. Joseph H. Chadwick was until recently the president. One great feature in connection with the cemetery is that every lot is sold under a guarantee of perpetual care, and from the gross sum paid for a lot a certain proportion is turned over to the perpetual care fund for this specific purpose. By this provision the relatives of the dead here buried are relived of the work of attending to the grass, and hence it is next to impossible to find a last resting place which is in any sense in an uncared-for condition.

To rest in Forest Hills it is not absolutely necessary to become a lot owner, for the most ample provision is made for single graves in the Field of Machpelah, the Field of Manoah, the Field of Hath and the Field of Ephron, all of which are beautifully located in different parts of the cemetery. Indeed, the trustees give every possible attention to the care of single graves, and do everything in their power to encourage those whose means will not admit of buying a lot, but who feel just as much interested and hold just as sacred the little plot which they can call their own.

In the grounds are a number of structures, such as a receiving tomb, a chapel and lodges, necessary to the perfect equipment of the cemetery; and Beech Avenue lodge, recently completed, has already proved of great advantage to those ownig lots and purchasing single graves in that part of the cemetery, and its use as a resting place and protection from the weather is greatly appreciated. — Up to January, 1896, the total number of interments in the cemetery amounted to 28,830; and the total number of lots up to the 1st of February of this year was 4572.

The first regular interment at Forest Hills was that of Samuel Hamlin, which took place on the 30th of July, 1848; but previous to that the remains of Gen. Dearborn's family and others had been removed from other grounds to the cemetery.

It may be finally said of Forest Hills that it partakes more of the nature of a highly kept and beautifully laid out park than a burial ground; and a more beautiful spot it would be difficult to imagine. — The present board of trustees of the cemetery consists of Messrs. L. Foster Morse, president; Gorham Rogers, William A. Gaston, James B. Forsyth, Charles M. Clapp, Phineas Smith and Robert Thurbur. Mr. Arthur R. Potter is the secretary and treasurer and Mr. William J. Hargraves the superintendent, he recently being chosen to succeed Mr. John G. Barker, who had been superintendent of the cemetery for 10 years.

CEMETERY MAN HELD AS VANDAL [?] 17. 1912 — Thomas Tirrell, sixty, of No. 5 Alden place, Jamaica Plain, was held in $300 in the West Roxbury District Court today for a hearing Tuesday on the charge of mutilating a statue in the Forest Hills Cemetery.

The complaint was made by Special Officer Charles Henry of the cemetery police. He testified he saw Tirrell, employed as a laborer in the cemetery, breaking the statue of a horse mounted on a pedestal of a statue at the entrance to the cemetery. The head and legs were broken off.

Henry S. Adams, superintendent of the cemetery, said Tirrell was a good workman, and testified that a number of special officers had been put to work to catch the vandal or vandals who on previous occasions destroyed three other statues.

Tirrell admitted breaking the statue of the horse. He could not say why he did it.

Boston Herald of Friday May 25 1928

Crypts of Man Behind in His Alimony Seized — HACKENSACK, N.J., May 25 (AP)—Two crypts at the Fairview mausoleum have been seized for non-payment of alimony. The wife of Emile Jacobs in 1925 obtained an order directing him to pay her $10 a week alimony. When payments became many weeks overdue, her counsel obtained a chancery order for the sequestration of whatever property of the defendant could be found. Search revealed the two crypts registered in Jacob's name.

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BOSTON EVENING TRANSCRIPT, SATURDAY, MAY 12, 1900

IN A WHITE OIL-FLAME Oscar L Stevens — Cremation Is Rapidly Becoming General in This Country — Growth of This Method of Disposing of the Dead Has Been Remarkable Since 1884—How Curious Literature Spread the Idea—Modernization of Methods Brought Refinement and Solemnity—Changes in Boston Cremation Facilities — Stowed away in the midst of one of the American monographs which form a part of the social economy exhibit at the Paris Exposition is a little paragraph, and a table or two, which may perhaps be little noted by visitors there, but which are of considerable significance in this country. They tell of the growth of cremation in the United States as a means of disposing of the dead. They are only a statement in outline; for the monograph, which was prepared by Dr. Samuel W. Abbott of the Massachusetts Board of Health, had to deal with the whole subject of "Public Hygiene and State Medicine, Past and Present, in the United States." But they show a spread of the practice which is surprising, considering the brief time since cremation was almost unheardof in this country.

That was only a little over twenty-five years ago. It was in 1873 that a small group of people in New York began to agitate the desirability of cremation in place of earth-burial, and it was 1876 before even the first rude crematorium was built. yet since that time ten thousand cremations have taken place in this country, the first crematorium has even been long in disuse, and to continue its work twenty-five modern crematoria have been established, scattered over the United States. The number of cremations has increased from one or two a year for the whole country to very nearly two thousand a year for the same territory. Here in Boston, since the first crematorium was opened at Forest Hills its record has increased from 87 to 1894 to 230 in 1899, and now Mt. Auburn Cemetery has been obliged to erect a crematorium in order to meet the demands of its proprietors, who no longer favor earth-burial.

This general increase has been in the face of sentiment, tradition and religious geeling, and the controversies which it has aroused have been of the bitterest. But from the first, the idea was fostered by means of societies, some of them, like the New England Cremation Society, having merely the propagation of the idea as their aim, and others, like the Massachusetts Cremation Society, being regular companies organized to provide the means of cremation. That first public agitation in New York in 1873 amounted to little more than the signing of a document by a group of believers, declaring in favor of cremation, and for some years the interest was with difficulty kept alive. Efforts to form a joint stock company there failed at first, owing to the financial panic, and in the early eighties, when some progress had been achieved, one crematorium turned out to be of such inferior workmanship that it collapsed during a wind storm, when partly constructed.

But the idea had been put forward, and from New York it spread. The society there set the example to its successors by keeping the matter alive through pamphlets and treatises, urging the hygienic reasons for dissolution by fire. A periodical devoted to the spread of cremation was established, keeping the news and statistics of the subject always before its readers. Addresses, delivered before the society or under its auspices, were printed for general circulation, and as time went on the history of the introduction of cremation in this country, itself a good argument in favor of the practice, was printed and widely distributed.

Some of this early literature was rather grewsome, to say the least. Take the paper mentioned above. It did not scruple to vary its treatment of the favorite subject form a manner that was becomingly serious to one that was jovial, even jocular. It had its various departments, editorials, dissertations, addresses, news and statistics, even jokes, all bearing on cremation, and it may be said that the joke-maker, once let loose, did not have to go far afield for his material when dealing with the subject of dissolution by fire. The title of one article, "From the Diary of a Corpse," gives an idea of one way in which the journal attempted to convert its readers from the custom of earth-burial. Pamphlets were also issued by the society, showing by means of illustrations the effects of earthburial. But after the first years of the agitation it was not necessary to resort to such startling means of winning converts. Familiarity with the methods of cremation, especially the modernization and refinement of these methods, seem to have been sufficient to win a constantly increasing number of believers. Germans, in particular—being naturally, perhaps of a somewhat materialistic turn of mind—from the first showed a leaning toward cremation, and were among the most active in the propagation of the idea. The paper referred to above was published by a Ger[man?], and more Germans than native Ameri-

cans were cremated in the early years of the operation of the New York crematory.

It is interesting, by the way, to note the nationality of the persons whose bodies have been cremated at the institution in cosmopolitan New York. Of 1588 incinerations up to October, 1895, the nationalities represented were as follows: German 832, United States 526, English 49, Austrian 32, Swiss 33, French 26, Irish 15, Italians 9, Hungarians 13, Danes 8, Scottish 7, Belgians 4, Dutch 6, Indians 4, Cubans 6, Australians 2, West Indians 1, Asians 1, Canadians 2, Scandinavians 5, Russians 4, all others 2.

The history of the beginnings of cremation is interesting, but the main facts have been made known pretty generally by the pamphlets distributed by the cremation societies, and the accompanying table shows in outline what has been accomplished. A word of explanation may be needed about the crematorium at Washington, Pa. This was put up by a certain Dr. Le Moyne in 1876, three years after the New Yorkers began their agitation, and remained the only crematory in the United States until 1884, when a company in Lancaster, Pa., erected and opened a public crematorium. That of Dr. Le Moyne was intended for the incineration of his own body, but as a means of education, he allowed its use for others, and the first twenty-five cremations in the United States were performed there between 1876 and 1884. The table shows how the list has grown subsequently. It may be noticed that except in California there is no crematory to be found west of St. Paul, Minn., or south of St. Louis, but this is only natural when it is considered that the interest in the subject, as well as the need for its introduction, is the greatest in the thickly populated sections marked by the large cities.

One of the interesting features of the management of crematories in Europe, as distinguished from those in this country, is that in European cities there is a general tendency toward having the crematoria controlled by the government. In several cities the municipality owns and conducts the crematorium, and paupers are entitled to cremation therein. The crematoria in Paris have been controlled in this way since 1892, when a cremation society petitioned the Government to burn the bodies of soldiers falling in battle, with the idea of preventing epidemics. Zurich, Switzerland, now controls its crematorium, but the building was constructed for a society, and then turned over to the city. The crematorium at Gotha, Germany, which for twelve years was the only one in that country, is also under public control. The system is held to be of advantage to the community in the disposal of the pauper dead, and those from hospitals and institutions. Some of the other European cities which now have crematoria are Nuremburg, Berlin, Heidelberg, Copenhagen, Bologne, Hamburg, Manchester, Liverpool, London, Glasgow, Milan and several others in Italy.

In the United States there is already a great variety in the styles of buildings put up for cremation purposes. Some of the best have been low structrues of stone, plainly trimmed with material of a different color, but some have been of the most elaborate mosque-like form, with a tendency toward domes and minarets. Others have been almost rude in their plainness, one in particular being of plain brick and granite, round in shape, with a low roof, and apparently no attempt at the beautiful in form, style or surroundings. The tendency with the later crematoria, however, has been toward buildings which should combine beauty with fitness, and be located in the midst of surroundings which should suggest tranquillity and rest. Take for instance the magnificent crematorium at Troy, N.Y., put up as a memorial to Gerald Earl, son of a wealthy manufacturer. It is in a secluded part of a cemetery, beautifully situated on high land overlooking the Hudson, from which it may be seen afar. In the first crematorium in New England, that opened just outside Forest Hills Cemetery at the very end of the year 1893, and the establishment just opened in Mt. Auburn Cemetery at Cambridge, the same effect in surroundings has been deemed of much importance.

The way in which Mt. Auburn cemetery took up cremation shows something of the increase in popularity of that form of disposing of the dead. A crematorium was provided there merely to meet a growing demand for it, not because the proprietors or others interested had any desire to foster cremation at the expense of other methods. Yet in the ordinary nature of things, the cemetery had found it necessary to provide not only lots for earth burial, but vaults and tombs as well, according to the varying preferences of those who had dealings with it; and as the popularity of incineration increased, the new method had to be recognized. The old chapel, unused since the completion of the new building which could be conveniently made over into a crematory, and the work of remodelling begain in the fall of 1899. The exterior, of granite, was left untouched, but all the woodwork of the interior was pulled out, and replaced entire with ornamental fireproof brick. From the spacious chapel on the main floor, which will be used in connection with cremations only,

to the waiting-rooms in front of the furnace doors below, everything is of fireproof brick or stone, even to the stair railings. Even the slates on the roof are nailed to terra cotta. In the arched and vaulted chapel there is space sufficient for niches to accommodate urns for almost 50,000 bodies, whereas the total number of earthburials in the cemetery up to this time have been but few more than 32,000. Thus the chapel will in time become a columbarium of extensive proportions, and as the charge for each urn space in edifices of this sort ranges from $100 to $150, the rentals would doubtless provide a fund sufficient for the maintenance of the building.

Down a winding stairway from this columbarium-to-be one finds one's-self in the furnace room, wondering how anything could be more suited to its purpose, and at the same time less repugnant to those compelled to follow the body of a dear one thither, than that clean, plain, brick apartment. Only the two iron doors of the furnaces are suggestive, but the guide, opening one of them, shows merely a clean vault of fireproof material, with no apparent opening through which fire could come. The consuming element here is an oil flame with which air under pressure is mixed, filling the chamber with an intense but perfectly clean flame, which literally dissipates the body into vapor, except for a small quantity of ashes from the bones. Nothing could be cleaner. Much care has been taken at Mt. Auburn to get rid of all noise which might mar the solemnity of a service at the crematorium. The building itself, situated on the slope of the hill a quarter of a mile from the entrance, is removed from any ordinary sounds from the street; and the coffin once placed on the altar in the middle of the chapel has merely to be lowered, as it rests there, to the floor below in order to be directly in front of the furnace. Unchanged, it is lifted easily into the retort; the iron door is closed; and then a heavy screen of fireclay, lowered into place just inside this door, shuts off sound as well as heat from the interior. The necessary engine and air-compressor is placed a hundred feet away from the furnaces, at the foot of the slope, in order that no noise or jarring from the machinery shall be audible to those participating in the service, and the engineer can pass between the engine-room and the furnace-room by means of an underground tunnel. The doors separating the space behind the furnaces from the rooms in front are all double, for the sake of shutting out noise. W.T. Sears of this city planned the interior changes in the building, and considerable assistance in the installation of the furnaces were given by Professor R.H. Richards of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The Forest Hills crematorium has much of the refinement and completeness of that at Mount Auburn, or rather will have when pending improvements are made. The Mount Auburn building, coming after the other, was enabled to profit by the other's experience, and while its arrangement of retorts and its methods are practically the same, it has made a special effort to get rid of noise and jar from machinery. It is necessary to start the heating of the retort before the brief funeral service which is customary at the crematorium, and the noise from machinery meanwhile is often objectionable. The proprietors of the Forest Hills institution have all that is to be desired in the way of peaceful and secluded location, for their building is in the midst of a little tract of pine woodland not far outside the rear gate of the cemetery, and at a distance from any other buildings; and this summer they are at work making changes in the building which will not only enlarge the facilities for services there, but also remove the machinery to an underground room where its noise will be imperceptible from the room where services will be held. The blower which furnishes the blast of air for the oil flame, the oil pump which brings the oil underground from a subterranean tank under the lawn seventy or a hundred feet distant, and the small steam engine which gives the power, will all be transferred from their present position in the room behind the two retorts, where they are now separated only by a single door from the room in which services are held. An electric motor will take the place of the engine, except in winter.

But services so far have been held of necessity in the small room in front of the retorts. Now a large and beautiful chapel is under construction, opening from the other side of this room, and six or eight times its size. This chapel will be in the Grecian style, tending toward the Corinthian order, and with mosaic flooring like that in the retort-room. It will be lighted in the daytime by the windows around the upper part of the walls, and at night by four electric candelabra. Its outer door will be at the opposite end of the building from the present entrance, will be reached from the street by a new driveway, and will be sheltered by a lofty porch, which on the interior of the building will allow space for a choir gallery and room for a small organ. As one enters the room from this main doorway, he will find the clergyman's desk in the apse at the left

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hand end, and the doors leading to the retort-room in front of him, one at either end. The chapel will probably be provided with moveable chairs, for the company which follows a body to the crematorium is usually a small one. It will take about two months to complete this hall and the other changes now contemplated, for below the chapel the basement is to be made into a handsome columbarium, with nearly a thousand niches for urns.

These niches will be in alcoves, arranged on either side of a braod aisle to lead from a point opposite the entrance to a point under the apse of the chapel. The niches in the alcoves will be chiefly for individual urns a foot in height, perhaps. Then at the foot of each alcove the wall-space will afford niches for whole families, if desired. Under the apse, at the end, the space will be reserved for urns placed indiscriminately, with no niches for special distinction. This pace will probably be shut off from the rest of the columbarium by ornamental gates. There will probably be gates, also, hung on the Doric columns which will stand in the opening of the alcoves, for locked gates closing each alcove would make heavy locks on the individual niches unnecessary, and the design, according to the architect, Mr. Peter J. McEwen, who is making the changes in the building, is to render it impossible for anyone to approach a niche nearly without calling on the attendant to unlock some barrier. Ordinary visitors will not be expected to enter the alcoves.

References was made above to the effort of New England cremation societies to secure appropriate locations. It is interesting to notice, also, the care taken in other ways to avoid any offence against tender sensibilities or good taste. In some of the more distant establishments, neither the same care is taken to avoid noise and other similar annoyance, nor is the same respect

accorded the dead. In some places a body has to undergo the trying process of removal from the coffin and a swathing in alum-soaked cloths before being placed in the retort; but here in New England such a thing would not be tolerated, and it is the unvaried custom to place the body and coffin in the retort just as they are received at the crematorium. The only stipulation is that a simple wooden coffin shall be used. The ash from coffin and clothing is then easily dissipated by the air blast, so that none remains to mingle with the pure white ash of the body after the retort has been allowed to cool.

The same refinement is sought in the columbaria now being constructed. Investigation among other similar buildings through the country showed, in many, a tendency toward cheap and somewhat gaudy effects which were not considered desirable. The trouble is that were careful regulations are not observed, individual niches are arranged according to the sentiments and tastes of the particular group of mourners interested in them. These may differ widley for different niches in the same building, and the result is an arrangement of flowers, stuffed doves, satin linings, mementos and emblems, which may be all right individually, but in the ensemble appear almost sacrilegious. The effect is even worse when, through the influence of time, some of the stuffed doves begin to droop, the flowers fade, and the once shining satin gets dull and grimy. The feeling of the proprietors here seems to be that effects of this sort must be avoided at all costs, and that there must be some attempt at uniformity in the arrangement of niches, in order to insecure an appropriate dignity in the general effect.

Probably the most elaborate columbarium in the country is that in the Odd Fellows' Cemetery, and owned by their association, at San Francisco. The building is entirely separate from the association's crema-

torium, which is also a handsome structure and is circular in form, with the regularity relieved by four uniform porches or wings equidistant from one another. One of these, the main entrance, opens into a magnificent rotunda in which are tables and chairs, with potted plants standing about the walls. A glance upward in the rotunda shows three circular galleries, one over the other, while underneath the galleries there are entrances to the four quadrants of the building divided off by the porches mentioned, all the wall spaces being filled in with niches of varying size, and the interior of the building lighted through ornamental windows, some of them memorials. Some idea of the amount derived for maintenance of this building may be gained from the fact that it contains about six thousand niches, and that the price for their use ranges from $10 to $750, according to size and location. And at this rate, all ornamentation on the fronts is an added expense of from a dollar or two up to $200.

TABLE OF CREMATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES, 1876 TO 1898 —

Crematories.	Date Estab-lished.	1876 to 1883.	1884.	1885.	1886.	1887.	1888.	1889.	1890.	1891.	1892.	1893.	1894.	1895.	1896.	1897.	1898.	Total.
New York City (U.S. Cremation Co.)..	1885	..	..	9	77	67	83	106	160	187	186	232	243	296	330	331	466	2773
Buffalo, N.Y.............	1885	..	..	1	8	17	16	23	30	38	27	30	31	41	28	44	40	374
Troy, N.Y.................	1890	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	4	10	14	15	12	10	18	14	13	110
Swinburne Island, N.Y..........	1889	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	2	..	60	28	8	1	1	3	3	106
Waterville, N.Y..............	1893	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	1	1	6	5	4	4	21
St. Louis, Mo.................	1888	..	..	..	..	..	21	20	42	60	64	72	87	96	86	118	109	778
Philadelphia, Pa............	1888	..	..	..	..	..	14	28	31	51	62	68	74	88	85	78	114	693
San Francisco, Cal. (Odd Fellows').....	1895	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	66	101	214	260	641
Boston, Mass.................	1893	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	1	87	88	135	160	167	638
Cincinnati, O.................	1887	..	..	..	..	11	21	34	45	43	34	42	38	66	46	71	59	510
San Francisco, Cal. (Cypress Lawn).....	1893	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	42	111	88	70	54	65	430
Chicago, Ill....................	1893	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	6	42	66	54	82	130	380
Los Angeles, Cal............	1887	..	..	..	..	7	5	12	17	29	41	37	38	37	37	34	58	352
Detroit, Mich.................	1887	..	..	..	..	3	10	14	24	21	33	47	22	31	29	44	51	329
Pittsburg, Pa..................	1886	..	..	..	14	9	11	8	9	13	14	13	10	13	14	16	23	167
Baltimore, Md................	1889	..	..	..	..	..	..	3	5	12	16	22	15	11	17	21	14	136
Lancaster, Pa..................	1884	..	3	36	14	13	6	1	3	1	3	5	2	1	1	1	2	92
Davenport, Io..................	1891	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	6	7	13	8	8	9	23	17	91
Milwaukee, Wis...............	1895	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	21	34	30	85
Washington, D.C..............	1896	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	25	38	63
Pasadena, Cal..................	1895	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	4	14	13	24	55
Washington, Pa...............	1876	25	13	1	1	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	2	..	..	..	..	42
St. Paul, Minn.................	1897	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	2	11	13
Fort Wayne, Ind..............	1895	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	5	1	6
Middletown, Conn. (Asylum).........	1897	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Mt. Auburn, Mass. (Cambridge)..........	1900	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..
Totals.............................	..	25	16	47	114	127	190	249	372	471	561	674	831	1017	1101	1391	1699	888[?]

TOTAL YEARLY CREMATIONS IN GREAT BRITAIN

	1885.	1886.	1887.	1888.	1889.	1890.	1891.	1892.	1893.	1894.	1895.	1896.	1897.	1898.	Total.
Glasgow...................	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	1	10	16	12	39
Liverpool.................	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	2	10	27	39
London....................	3	10	13	28	46	54	99	104	101	125	150	137	173	240	1283
Manchester...............	..	..	..	..	..	..	..	3	30	47	58	52	51	62	303
Totals.......................	3	10	13	28	46	54	99	107	131	172	209	201	250	341	1664

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Transcript June 10/08 [O?] Stevens

[T?]RANSCRIPT, WEDNES[DAY?]

PROGRESS IN CREMATION — A METHOD STEADILY GROWING IN FAVOR — Statistics That Show the Steady Increase in This Country, and Especially in This Community—New Methods and Better Equipment at Mount Auburn—The Sentimental and Religious Objections Met and Answered—Sanitary Advantages Over Burial Are Many and Clear—The Distribution of Crematories in This Country—An Important Step in the Direction of More Simple Funerals — An interesting conversation is taking place amongst us. It is a conversion in the furtherance of health rather than of morals, the widespread turning to cremation as the proper method of disposing of the dead. Even ten years ago the idea was yet a novelty. Now, the experimental stage is past. There is no longer diversity of means or method. The earlier crudities of coal or wood flame and noisy air-blast have given place universally to an intense heat from vaporized oil and an air pressure that is virtually noiseless. The process has become standardized.

With all the recent trend toward the incineration method, old crematoria have been steadily improved, and new ones are constantly being planned and constructed. In fact they increase so rapidly that it is difficult to keep accurate count of them. England has thirteen and there were 705 cremations last year. In Europe, including England, Scotland, France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark and Sweden, there are ofter fifty; while Canada has one, at Montreal; and the United States has upward of thirty in operation, and several others in contemplation. Within a year or two, no doubt, the total number for which records will be available in Europe and this country will be close to one hundred. Thirty years ago there had been but two cases in the United States where cremation had been adopted in place of earth burial. Since that time the country has seen approximately thirty-eight thousand cremations, with this total increasing at the rate of about four thousand a year. Massachusetts, which now has only the Massachusetts Cremation Society's crematorium at Forest Hills, established in 1893, and the crematorium of Mt. Auburn Cemetery at Cambridge, established in 1900, is soon to have another, in Springfield, the home of the late John Storer Cobb, a pioneer among advocates of the incineration method in this State. Including the yeaar 1907, the number of cremations at Forest Hills has been 2621; the number at Mt. Auburn 1192. The former performed 276 in 1907, the latter 210. Thus the State total so far is above 3800, and the increase in each year is approximately 500. New crematoria are either planned or under construction in New York, Chicago and Minneapolis, and the institution at Milwaukee is being reconstructed. Outside of Massachusetts the existing crematoria in this country are distributed as follows: San Francisco (two), Pasadena, Los Angeles and Oakland, Cal.; Denver, Col.; Washington, D.C.; Chicago, two; Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, Ind.; Davenport, Ia.; Baltimore, Detroit, St. Paul, St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo.; Linden, N.J.; Cincinnati and Cleveland, O.; Portland, Or,; Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Lancaster and Washington, Pa; Seattle, Wash., and Milwaukee.

There is work to do, inevitably, for all these; and it may not be indelicate to say outright that crematories in large centres are successfully managed institutions. A single cremation costs only $30, but it is not a question of profit or loss to the cemetery that has also a crematorium. The Massachusetts crematoria are prosperous, although it should be said that up to the present time the proceeds have been turned back to a development or improvement of the crematory buildings or their special chapels and columbaria adjoining. Forest Hills is just now interested in extending its impressive columbarium, of which a considerable section has already been taken up by funeral urns. Mt. Auburn is substituting electricity as motive power for the elevator that raises and lowers the catafalque, and for raising and lowering the arch of the retorts. A considerable amount of space is now to be developed as a columbarium. When the old chapel was remodelled for use in connection with the crematorium, a fireproof gallery was built around three sides. Dividing easily into four bays on each side, the chapel can be made to accommodate hundreds of urns on each floor. While it is unlikely that the whole number will be constructed at once, an architect is now at work on the plans, and whatever section is built now will be susceptible to duplication until the whole space is occupied. The fact that the galleries are above ground, with daylight, and at times even sunlight bringing the beautifully colored windows into harmonious relationship with the interior, is calculated to make their niches specially desirable to many; but the chapel affords a considerable amount of space below ground level that may readily be made available for the preservation of urns.

At Pere la Chaise in Paris, where incinerations take place at the rate of more than ten a day, or about 4000 every year, there is an extensive columbarium. In San Francisco the magnificent crematorium in the Odd Fellows Cemetery, built a marble, cement and bronze at a cost of more than $200,000, on arches supposed to be earthquake proof, is one of the sights of the city. In its columbarium crypts are sold in perpetuity at prices ranging from $1500 fro the larger spaces to $100 or $150 for the niches capable of holding two or three urns. And these charges include guaranty of care and preservation in perpetuity, excepting only as against the acts of Providence, cyclones, earthquakes and civil commotion.

In case where a crematorium is established in connection with a cemetery, as at Mount Auburn, although a columbarium, is necessarily provided, yet it cannot take the place of the family lot, which, with elaborate sarcophagus or monument, on which is inscribed the permanent family record, will always be regarded by many as the proper form of final resting place. Although some prefer the ornamental urn in the nich of a magnificent columbarium, others, even while adopting cremation, still cling to the custom of earth-burial for final disposition, and the family lot serves alike for funeral urns as well as grass-grown graves.

Old-time predisposition and religious preference for earth-burial are being neutralized by the niceties and hygenic advantages of the swifter method. Science, dealing with interment, has demonstrated beyong question the desirability of incineration of the dead in the interest of the living. People have been coming to realize that the ground is for the living rather than for the dead; that earth-burial makes for contamination and disease while cremation stands for health and purity. Everybody is ready to assist in stamping out contagious or infection diseases; and the danger to the public health from diphtheria, scarlet fever, measles, smallpox, and fevers has convinced thoughtful people everywhere of the reasonableness of the method of the crematorium, which purifies by heat, reducing the remains to ashes in a single hour, as compared with the slow decay of months or years in the earth.

Curious stories are cited, demonstrating beyond doubt that the disease germ contaminates the ground where diseased bodies have lain. About twenty years ago, cattle afflicted with rinderpest in Germany were by law required to be killed and buried in a large tract of land secured for this purpose. Thousands were disposed of in this way. Nearly a score of years later, while the tract was being used for pasturage, the cattle grazing over it were stricken with the same plague that worked havoc among the earlier herds. The old scourge broke out anew from disease germs that had continued their contamination of the soil even after the lapse of nearly a quarter century. Back in the days of Marcus Aurelius, an old battlefield where bodies

had been buried in trenches, Roman soldiers dug open the graves in a search for treasure, and breathing the air of these places of sepulture were stricken with a plague which spread through the whole army and cost hundreds of lives. Contamination of earth, air or water is bound to result in some form as a consequence of earth-burial, and the effects thrust themselves into general notice in proportion as they are aggravated, as in the case of crowded churchyards in England and the older cemeteries in thickly settled districts in this country.

Religious considerations have long had a deterrent influence on the spread of cremation as a custom. But it is plain that this obstacle is having less and less weight; and people who once inclined to interment as the more beautiful method of disposal are swinging to the other side. Instead of the open grave and the sullen earth they incline to favor the purifying fire as something more nearly in keeping with spiritual ideals. Hence the gradual turning of the clergy, as well as the laity, toward the cremation doctrine. The Bishop of Manchester of the Church of England said: "No intelligent faith can suppose that any Christian doctrine is affected by the manner in which the mortal body of ours crumbles into dust."

Phillips Brooks said: "I believe that there are no true objections to the practice of cremation and a good many excellent reasons why it should become uncommon."

Bishop Lawrence of Massachusetts says: "The condition of many old graveyards, the neglect of tombs and their possible desecration are a shock to a reverent spirit. All the details of incineration are consistent with reverence."

Charles Francis Adams says: "As a matter of sentiment, I fail to see why we should rather consign the remains of those we love to the tender mercy of worms than to the tender mercies of heat."

Charles A. Dana said: "It is my judgment that cremation is the most rational and appropriate manner of disposition of the dead."

Frances E. Willard, Professor Felix Adler, David Starr Jordan, Charles Eliot Norton and Dr. Wilson Anderson have all expressed themselves similarly.

Perhaps one of the factros in the gradual extension of the practice of cremation has been the greater freedom allowed by this process in the final disposal of the remains. When the human frame has been reduced to clean white ashes, they can be buried in the ground no less readily than before. But they can be scattered broadcast: over the earth's surface, over the waters of the ocean, or from lofty heights, as the tops of mountains or monuments. They can be preserved in ornamental urns, in imposing buildings specially designed for the purpose. And in any or all of these methods the disagreeable features inseparable from ordinary earth burial are removed.

Only lately the death of a New Englander who had been an ardent devotee of yachting and lover of the sea showed how readily cremation allows final disposal of the remains of this human frame in some manner peculiarly fitting with the life or likes of the departed. After cremation his ashes were taken off shore from his favorite harbor and scattered over the waters of the great bay on which, aboard his yacht, he had spent some of the happiest hours of his life. In the case of a wellknown educator, recently departed, it was his wish to have the ashes of his body placed in one of the several crypts formed in the concrete base of a monument that was to be erected on the family lot in an oldestablished cemetery, thereby putting to use a space that must otherwise have gone unavailed of, and thus transforming the monument into a private columbarium, as well. Not a few people of late have profited by the ease with which the ashes of departed friends or relatives may be transported, by carrying them long distances for the sake of having them rest at last in a little buryingground on some old homestead, peacefully secluded frim the scenes of their more active life, and surrounded, perhaps, by the traditions of former generations and the associations of a happy childhood.

As cremation comes more and more into general favor, one effect is noticeable. That is the simplification of funerals. The whole tendency of cremation customs is toward the elimination of superfluous display; and when the display is sacrificed, expense is kept within reason. It is a fact that the entire cost of an incineration may ordinarily be saved merely through the difference in kind of casket involved. It is not uncommon for a body to be buried in a casket costing into the hundreds of dollars. People in straitened circumstances often feel that a coffin costing less than $150 is out of keeping with respect for the dead. But where the body is to be disposed of by fire, not even a single silver plate or handle is allowed to remain on the coffin when it is prepared for the retort, and those in charge are urged to provide only the simplest of all-wood coffins. Perhaps there will be always a class of people who are unable to recognize a proper tribute to the memory of the departed without a funeral marked by lavish expenditures; but at least the number is increasing of those who are pleased to find in cremation a method that makes not only for healthful conditions but for simplicity.