II. Cuuisti.vx. — (I.) Ancient Usages. Among the ceremonies of the early Christians we observe invaria- bly a remarkable care for the dead, and a becoming gravity and sorrow in conducting the funeral solemni- ties. The Christian Church manifested from the first a decided preference for the custom of bury 'ng the dead, though the practice of burning the dead prevailed throughout the Roman empire. The liomans used to conduct their funeral solemnities in the night; but the Christians, on the contrary, preferred the daytime, retaining, however, the custom of carrying lighted tap -rs in the funeral procession. In times of perse- cution they were often compelled to bury their dead in the night, for the sake of security (Euseb. Ch. Hist. vii, 22). It was usual for friends or relatives to close the eyes and mouth "of the dying, and to dress them in proper grave-clothes (usually made of fine linen). Eusebius tells us that Constantine was wrapped in a purple robe, with other magnificence (Vit. Const, iv, <)H). Jerome alludes, with indignation, to the custom of burying the rich in costly clothes, as gold and silk (Vita /'(/"/). Augustine, in several passages, com- mends the practice of decently and reverently burying tli- bodies of the dead, especially of the righteous, of whose bodies he says, " the Holy Spirit hath made use, as instruments and vessels, for all good works" (De Civit. I> /, lib. i, cap. 13). He says further, in another passage, that we are not to infer from the authorities given in Holy Scripture for this sacred duty that there is any sense or feeling in the corpse itself, but that even the bodies of the dead are under the providence of God, to whom such pious offices are pleasing, through faitli in the Resurrection. Ths body was watched and attended till the time fixed for the funeral, when it was carried to the grave by the nearest relatives of the deceased, or by persons of rank or distinction, or by individuals appointed for that purpose. Appropriate hymns were sung; and the practice of singing on such occasions was explained and defended by Chrysostom, who says (Ham. iv in Ili'hr.), " What mean our hymns ? Do we not glorify God, and give him thanks that he bi.li crowned him that is departed, that he hath de- livered him from trouble, and hath set him free from all fear? Consider what thou singest at that time: 'Turn again unto thy rest, O my soul, for the Lord hath rewarded thee.' And again,"' I will fear no evil ; for ilea art with me.' And again, 'Thou art my refuge from the affliction that encompasseth me.' < !on- sidcr what these psalms mean. If thou believest the things that thou sayest to be true, why dost thou weep •'""' lament, and make a mere mock and pageantry of th\ singing? If thou believest them not to be true. Why dost thou play the hypocrite so much as to sing?" None ,,f tin- moving of the funeral procession was sometimes given by the /„/„,; or boards, used before tli-' introduction of bells, were struck together; and in Later times bells were tolled. As early as the fourth century it was usual to carry in the procession palm and olive branches, us symbols of victory and joy, and t" barn incense. Rosemary was „ot used till a later
period ; laurel and ivy leaves ware sometimes put into
th.- coin,, : but cypress was rejected, as being symbol- ical of sorrow and mourning. It was also customary
to strew flowers on the grave. Funeral orations, in praise of those who had been distinguished during life by their virtues and merits, were delivered. Several of these orations are extant. In the early Church it was not uncommon to celebrate the Lord's Supper at the grave, by which it was intended to intimate the communion between the living and the dead, as members of one and the same mystical body, while a testimony was given by the fact that the deceased had departed in the faith. Prayers for the dead were offered when it became customary to commend the souls of the deceased to God at the grave, and into this serious error some eminent men fell. Chrysostom and Jerome have both been quoted as adopting this unscriptural practice (Bingham, Grig. Eccl. xv, iii, 17). See Dead, Prayers for the. "In England, burial in some part of the parish church-yard is a common law right, without even paying for breaking the soil, and that right will be enforced by mandamus. But the body of a parishioner cannot be interred in an iron coffin or vault, or even in any particular part of a church-yard, as, for instance, the family vault, without the sanction of the incumbent. To acquire a right to be buried in a particular vault or place, a faculty must be obtained from the ordinary, as in the case of a pew in the church. But this right is at an end when the family cease to be parishioners. By the canons of the Church of England, clergymen cannot refuse to delay or bury any corpse that is brought to the church or church-yard ; on the other hand, a conspiracy to pre- vent a burial is an indictable offence, and so is the wil- fully obstructing a clertrgman in reading the burial service in a parish church. It is a popular error that a creditor can arrest or detain the body of a deceased debtor, and the doing such an act is indictable as a misdemeanor. It is also an error that permitting a funeral procession to pass over private grounds creates a public right of way. By the 3 Geo. IV, c. 126, § 32, the inhabitants of any parish, township, or place, when going to or returning from attending funerals of per- sons in England who have died and are to be buried there, are exempted from any toll within these limits. And by the 4 Gao. IV, c. 49, § 36, the same regulation is extended to Scotland : the only difference being that in the latter case the limitation of the district is de- scribed by the T,vord parish alone. The 6 and 7 Will. IV, c. 86, regulates the registry of deaths. The 4 Geo. IV, c. 52, abolished the barbarous mode of bury- ing persons found felo de se, and directs that their bur- ial shall take place, without any marks of ignominy, privately in the parish church-yard, between the hours of nine and twelve at night, under the direction of the coroner. The burial of dead bodies cast on shore is enforced by 48 Geo. Ill, c. 75 (see Wharton's Law Lexicon). In Scotland, the right of burial in a church- yard is an incident of property in the parish ; hut it is a mere right of burial, and there is not necessarily any corresponding ownership in the solum or ground of the church-yard. In Edinburgh, however, the right to special burial places in church-yards is recognized (Chambers, Encyclopaedia).