202 HENRY HILL GOODELL 



their ancestors sleeping quietly beneath. Here lovers wan- 

 der arm in arm and whisper their fond nothings, undis- 

 turbed by ghosts of former days. And here the gallants, as 

 they sip their wine, order so many Roman candles burnt in 

 honor of their ladies. 



The occupation of the deceased is always portrayed 

 upon his tombstone : an adze or saw representing a carpen- 

 ter; a lancet, a barber; an anvil, a blacksmith; an inkstand, 

 a scribe or lawyer; and if, perchance, his end has been 

 hastened by violence, the manner of his * 'taking off" is 

 faithfully portrayed. Here you may see a representation 

 of the deceased upon his knees, holding his head in his 

 hands, while jets of blood spout fromhis neck in stiff curves, 

 like those issuing from a beer bottle on a tavern sign. There 

 you may see the fatal bowstring adjusted about the neck 

 as he awaits the tightening of the cord. These representa- 

 tions carry with them no associations of infamy or crime. 

 They are but the heraldic quarterings to be found among 

 the aristocracy of other nations, and if they had a name 

 would be called the "scimetar pendant, or the bowstring 

 displayed in a field azure." Only, instead of being blazoned 

 upon the carriages of the living, they are placed upon the 

 tombstones of the dead; for they signify that the wealth 

 of the deceased was sufficient to excite the avarice of the 

 reigning power. "To die, then, by the sword or bowstring, 

 implies the possession of wealth, and the surviving relatives 

 glorify themselves in perpetuating this record of financial 

 standing and consideration." 



To the observant traveler in the East, one of its most 

 noticeable features is the absence of farm life among its in- 

 habitants. Between village and village you rarely meet 



