The Narrative of Twenty Years' Residence in South America. William Bennet Stevenson

the walls, it is sufficiently large to contain all the dead bodies for six years, without removal; when this becomes necessary, the bones are taken out of the niches, and placed in the osariums. Many of the rich families have purchased allotments for family vaults, having their names inscribed above. The building is a square enclosure, divided into several sections; in the wall are niches, each sufficient to hold a corpse, and the divisions are also formed by double rows of niches built one above another, some of them eight stories high, the fronts being open. The walks are planted with many aromatics and evergreens. In the centre is a small chapel, or rather altar, with a roof: its form is octagonal, so that eight priests can celebrate mass at the same time. The corpse is put into the niche with the feet foremost, if in a coffin, which seldom happens, except among the richer classes, the lid is removed, and a quantity of unslaked lime being thrown on each body, its decay is very rapid. For the conveyance of the dead several hearses of different descriptions are provided, belonging to the pantheon, and they are not permitted to traverse the streets after twelve o'clock in the day.

      Before the establishment of this cemetery, all the dead were buried in the churches, or rather, placed in vaults, many of which had wooden trap-doors, opening in the floors; and notwithstanding the plentiful use of lime, the stench and other disgusting effects were sometimes almost insufferable. When the first nun was to be carried to the pantheon, great opposition was made by the sisterhood; but the Viceroy sent a file of soldiers, and enforced the interment of the corpse in the general cemetery.

      FOOTNOTE:

      [6] The lenity shown in this case, by the inquisition, might probably be owing to the expectation that the tribunal would shortly be abolished by the Cortes.