FUNERAL CUSTOMS OF THE WORLD. 807 



great divisions : (1) The simple closing up of the body in earth or 

 stone; (2) the burning of the body and the entombing of the 

 cinders ; (3) the embalming of the body. 



The first of these, i. e., the simple inclosing of the body in 

 earth or stone, is not only the most widely diffused of the three, 

 but also the earliest of which we have any record. It is referred 

 to again and again in Scripture, although the other methods 

 also are mentioned. A beautiful description of one of the most 

 ancient of Bible burials is found in the twenty-third chapter of 

 Genesis. It was considered by the Hebrews one of the greatest 

 calamities and deepest marks of dishonor to be deprived of 

 burial. So we read in the prophecy of Jeremiah against Jehoi- 

 akim, " He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and 

 cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem." Evidently, next to 

 the simple exposure of the body, which savored too much of 

 cruel neglect, burial was the first means that would suggest itself 

 to the human race for the disposal of the remains of the dead. 

 In the beginning the rite was no doubt simple and unosten- 

 tatious ; but, as civilization advanced, it became more and more 

 ornate, reaching in some lands and ages a pitch of ceremonial 

 magnificence which seems incredible to us now, but relics of 

 which are still seen in our modern funeral displays. There 

 can be nothing more magnificent than the obsequies of a high 

 dignitary of the Greek or the Roman Church. But still, to those 

 outside these churches all such ceremonies appear just a little 

 tawdry and garish. It is doubtful whether there is, or can be, 

 any funeral ceremony so truly solemn as that which is held in 

 Westminster Abbey. In such a burial there is everything calcu- 

 lated to evoke the most reverential, the most solemn thoughts 

 the dim religious light stealing through the painted windows far 

 up against the sky ; the long vista of arch and pillar and tomb ; 

 the silence, broken only by the solemn service for the dead, the 

 deep roll of the organ, and the voices of the singers like the sing- 

 ing of angels far away; more than all else, the thought that 

 everywhere about us lies the dust of those who once filled the 

 world with their fame, from the days of St. Edward the founder, 

 yes, from the days of Sebert the Saxon king. A burial at West- 

 minster marks the highest point ever reached by this form of 

 sepulture. It stands at one end of the series. At the other end 

 stand those hideous rites which have been practiced in many a 

 heathen land : in Ashantee, in Dahomey, in ancient Mexico,, in 

 certain of the south sea islands, and (formerly) in India. Let 

 me epitomize two or three extracts bearing on this : " Hero- 

 dotus tells us that when a king died in ancient Scythia, those 

 who attended him cut off one ear, shaved their heads, wounded 

 themselves on the arm, forehead, and nose, and pierced the left 



