Excerpt from The Nineteenth Century, Vol. 23: A Monthly Review; January-June, 1888 Sentimental, ' the opposition manifested appeared to me curiously out of proportion with the importance of the interests or sentiments I had perhaps underestimated. Even the few who approved yielded for the most part a weak assent to the confident assertion of a host Of Opponents, that whatever might be the fate of the theory, any realisation of it could never at all events occur in our time. To use a phrase invented since that date, the proposal was not to be regarded as coming within the range of a practical policy. At some future day, when the world's population had largely increased, we might possibly be driven to submit to such a process, but, thank heaven the good Old-fashioned resting-place in the churchyard or cemetery would amply suffice to meet all needful demands for several future generations still. To some of the more formidable Objections, especially those which had been urged by men of experience, weight, and position, entitled to be listened to with respect and attention, I endeavoured to reply in a subsequent article which appeared two months later in the same journal. Since that date, although maintaining an undiminished interest in the subject, I have taken no public part in any of the numerous platform discussions and published controversies which have frequently appeared both in this country and abroad. But I think the time has come to present, as far as it is possible to do so within the narrow limits of an article, a Sketch Of what has been accomplished here, after a patient and quiet service of twice seven years, by a few earnest friends and co-operators, in regard of the practice of cremation, and also to what extent it has been employed in other countries. This will occupy the first portion of the paper. But it is more important still to meet one or two Objections to cremation commonly urged, as well as to formulate conditions by which the practice should be regulated in future. An endeavour to do so will occupy the concluding portion. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.