THE CEMETERIES.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3901, 4 September 1873, Page 2

THE CEMETERIES.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE' INDEPENDENT. Sir— The Wellington Cemeteries Bill, now before the Parliament, requires to be: looked after with a vigilant eye, or else an act of gross injustice will be done to a portion of the community. Already thepurchasers of land in the cemeteries have been told that they hav,e no claim to their land, because the trustees appointed by the Provincial Government have failed to give them conveyances for the same. It is now attempted to add insult to injury, by describing disgusting scenes which have never occurred. No doubt it would be more pleasant to have the present cemetery made into a shrubbery — especially for the owners of houses overlooking it— than to be appropriated for the solemn uses it is at present. Their property might also be raised in value ; but then it would be very inconvenient to a large . section of .• the community. The cry about the unhealthinesa of the cemetery is simply absurd. . The earth is a deoderiser, and requires only a very thin layer to prevent any exhalation. The feelings of persons having relativesJying there should be respected. If the proposals made in Mr Pearce's amended Bill were adopted, it would meet all the exigencies of the case. It i 3 similar to those adopted in "Victoria, and, if agreed to here, it would not be very long before all the cemeteries would be closed. Trusting the interests of the many will not be sacrificed to the fewl— '- I am, &c, Justice.