CREMATION.

Evening Star, Issue 8612, 4 September 1891, Page 4

CREMATION.

TO CHB BDITOB. Siu, —As now and again the word “cremation” has cropped up in your correspondence column, allow mo to send you the following excerpts from a book entitled ‘ Things Japanese,’ from the pen of Professor Basil Hall, Chamberlain of the Imperial University of Japan Cremation followed Buddhism into Japan about A d 700, but never entirely superseded the older Shinto custom of disposing of the dead by interment.” “ Ludicrous as it may appear, cremation was first discontinued in the case of the mikados, on the representations of a fishmonger named Hachibei, who clamored for the interment of the Emperor Go-Komei in 1644.” “On the 18th of July, 1873; cremation was totally prohibited by the Government, whose members seem to have bad some confused notion as to the practice being un-European and therefore barbarous. > Having discovered that, far from being unEuropean, cremation was the goal of European reformers in such matters, they rescinded their prohibition only twenty- [ two months later (23rd May, 1875).*’ “ There are nOw (1890) five cremation grounds in Tokyo (or Eastern capital formerly called Yedo).” The usual charge for cremation according to the old native style are First-class, 7dol (LI 9a 2d) ; secondclass, 2.50d01, (10a sd); and third-class, l.SOdol (6s 3d). But the charges for cremation according to the improved European during the last two orthree years,are;—Firajolass. 7dol (LI 9a 2d); second-class, 4.60 dcl (18s Od), and third class Bdol (12s fid).” “It should be added that, on the 19th of June, 1874, a law was passed against intramural interment except in certain special oases. It is still prohibited, unless when the body has been cremated before burial.” The very fact that we read among your * Brief Mention’ notes of,the Stab that “in consequence of the stench arising from the corpses. In ,the vaults of St. Mary’s.London, the church has been closed,” ought to cause us .to bestir ourselves to see if we cannot adopt cremation here as it is now practised at Woking, in Surrey (England). | Should anyone desire to learn something on this pressing subject, he dan see a lettpr ip the 4 Otago Daffy Times’ of Saturday, 1 24th January, 1891, ba the supplement. And the subscriber to this note is willing to place before anyone what he has learned On this subject of cremation/and the disposal of our dead.— l am, etc,, Rbsckgam.Dunedin, August 28.