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ALL SAINTS' IS ^ 

 <^ SOUTH'S BIG DAY 



All Saints' day in and near Nezv Orleans is to the southern florist ivhat 

 Memorial day is in the north. Everyone carries flozcers to the cemeteries, 

 ivhich means good business for the retailers. Mums have the call and are 

 grozvn in quantities now by the florists near the Crescent City. 



■i^'^Lv: 



LORISTS in and about 



FNew Orleans now are as 

 busy as their northern 

 brothers in the trade are 

 about the middle of May. 

 This is because November 

 1 is All Saints' day, which 

 in the south, or rather in 

 that section of the south 

 . that is peopled by the de- 

 scendants of the early French settlers, 

 calls for the extensive use of flowers 

 that Memorial day docs in the north. 

 It is the day for the annual pilgrim- 

 ajsje to the cemetery, where decorations 

 elaborate and simple, costly and inox- 

 ])ensive, are placed at each grave. 



All Saints' day is a day of feasting, 

 following a night of prayer for the 

 saints and martyrs recognized l)y the 

 Roman Catholic church. Tliis night of 

 prayer and the feast day following are 

 observed in practically every country 

 by the Catholic church, but the deco- 

 ration of graves on All Saints' day is 

 peculiar to New Orleans. 



Originated in France. 



The custom is the outcome of a prac- 

 tice in France of leaving a calling card 

 at the tombs of tlie dead. This is called 

 La Fete des Morts. However the 

 practice of grave dec- 

 oration began, it has 

 made All Saints' day 

 the largest in the year 

 for the New Orloans 

 florists, and has done 

 much to promote the 

 growing of chrysanthe- 

 mums in the south, as 

 it furnishes a demand 

 for these flowers at a 

 time when they are 

 near the height of their 

 season. Not only are 

 the flower stores 

 rushed with orders for 

 this day, but on All 

 Saints' day itself the 

 curbs of the streets ad- 

 jacent to tlie cemeter- 

 ies are lined with flow- 

 er stands, which do a 

 rushing .business. 



Some idea of what 

 All Saints' day means 

 to the florists of the 

 Crescent City can l)e 

 gathered from the ac- 

 c o m p a n y i n g 

 illustrations, made at 

 midnight previous to 

 All Saints' day in the 

 retail store of the Me- 

 tairie Ridge Nursery 



Co., New Orleans. The picture of the 

 interior of the store shows part of the 

 staff busy getting orders ready for 

 early morning delivery. The window 

 already had given up a part of its stock 

 for the orders, and no attempt had been 

 made at arrangement. 



Mum Most Populax Flower. 



There is little business done by the 

 florists on the day itself, practically 

 all the worth-while sales having been 

 made in advance. However, there are 

 some calls for flowers at the stores, 

 and the curb retailers sell many small 

 and cheaper bouquets to the visitors to 

 the cemeteries. 



Chrysanthemums are used more free- 

 ly than any other flower; carnations 

 are second in demand, and Easter lilies 

 third. Roses are too costly for the 

 general public, but sell well to the 

 wealthy. There is not much call for 

 designs, the trade being like that in the 

 north on Memorial day. 



It was not until a few years ago tliat 

 "southern growers produced any consid- 

 erable portion of the stock to sui)j)ly 

 the demand at New Orleans on All 

 Saints' day. Before that time New 

 Orleans florists dei)ended on the Chi- 

 cago market for their supply. Two 



Midnight Preceding All Saints' Day Finds New Orleans Florists Still Busy. 



or three days before November 1, a 

 carload of flowers, and sometimes more, 

 was shipped by express for the observ- 

 ance of this day. 



In recent years, however, growers in 

 and near New Orleans have been able 

 to supplv much of the demand of the 

 local retailers. Large quantities of 

 flowers still are shipped from Chicago, 

 but a majority of the mums in a good 

 growing year are from local establish- 

 ments. The supply of chrysanthemums 

 comes from outdoors, where the flowers 

 are grown under the i)rotcction of cloth 

 coverings. Sometimes the crop is ru- 

 ined bv storms on the eve of All Saints' 

 dav, but in 101(5 one grower ])roduced 

 lOJOOO Mrs. Henry Robinson clirysan- 

 themums, which he sold on All Saints' 

 day at retail for prices ranging from 

 $2 to $6 per do/en. 



Cities of Tombs. 



It is an intciesting sight to visit the 

 New Orleans cemeteries on All Saints' 

 day. There are few cemeteries in the 

 world more unique than those at New 

 Orleans. The city itself is l)elow sea 

 level, protected from ' tlie Mississippi 

 river by dikes, while snuill lakes, called 

 ])ayousi are numerous. Because of its 

 level it is impossible to bury the dead 

 beneath the ground, 

 excavations of only 

 a few feet quickly 

 filling with water, 

 which seeps through 

 the soil comi)osed of 

 sand and silt thrown 

 u]) 'i)\ centuries past by 

 the overflowing river. 

 Consequently the dead 

 are i)laced either in 

 single tombs or in 

 mausoleums, the latter 

 made for the accom- 

 modation of several 

 bodies. 



These structures of 

 stone, marl)l<> and 

 granite predominating, 

 are ranged along nar- 

 row w a y s , w h i c h 

 might be called the 

 streets of these cities 

 of the dead. On many 

 of the tombs are ])ro- 

 jecting shelves, giving 

 ])laces for the flowers. 

 It is to these ceme- 

 teries that the rela- 

 tives of the dead make 

 their annual pilgrim- 

 age and remember the 

 departed ones with 

 flowers. However, the 



