There being some superfluous earth at the bottom of the grave,
the coffin was drawn up again after being once buried, and the obstacle
removed with a hoe; then it was lowered again for the last time. While
this was going on, the father and mother stood weeping at the upper end
of the grave, at the head of the little procession,--the mother sobbing
with stifled violence, and peeping forth to discover why the coffin was
drawn up again. It being fitted in its place, Orrin S------ strewed some
straw upon it,--this being the custom here, because "the clods on the
coffin-lid have an ugly sound." Then the Baptist minister, having first
whispered to the father, removed his hat, the spectators all doing the
same, and thanked them "in the name of these mourners, for this last act
of kindness to them."
In all these rites Orrin S------ bore the chief part with real feeling
and sadly decorous demeanor. After the funeral, I took a walk on the
Williamstown road, towards the west. There had been a heavy shower in
the afternoon, and clouds were brilliant all over the sky, around
Graylock and everywhere else.
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