From the birth to the death of a child the passage is often so easy
that I shall make it an apology for the abruptness of the present
transition. The moral accountableness of a human being, as I have
observed before, does not, according to Catholic divines, begin till
the seventh year; consequently such as die without attaining that
age, are, by the effect of their baptism, indubitably entitled to
a place in heaven. The death of an infant is therefore a matter of
rejoicing to all but those in whose bosoms nature speaks too loud to
be controlled by argument. The friends who call upon the parents,
contribute to aggravate their bitterness by _wishing them joy_ for
having increased the number of angels. The usual address on these
occasions is _Angelitos al Cielo!_ Little Angels to Heaven--an
unfeeling compliment, which never fails to draw a fresh gush of
tears from the eyes of a mother. Every circumstance of the funeral
is meant to _force_ joy upon the mourners. The child, dressed in
white garments, and crowned with a wreath of flowers, is followed
by the officiating priest in silk robes of the same colour; and
the clergymen who attend him to the house from whence the funeral
proceeds to the church, sing in joyful strains the psalm _Laudate,
pueri, Dominum_, while the bells are heard ringing a lively peal. The
coffin, without a lid, exposes to the view the little corpse covered
with flowers, as four well-dressed children bear it, amidst the
lighted tapers of the clergy. No black dress, no signs of mourning
whatever are seen even among the nearest relatives; the service at
church bespeaks triumph, and the organ mixes its enlivening sounds
with the hymns, which thank death for snatching a tender soul, when
through a slight and transient tribute of pain, it could obtain an
exemption from the power of sorrow. Yet no funerals are graced with
more tears; nor can dirges and penitential mournings produce even a
shadow of the tender melancholy which seizes the mind at the view of
the formal and affected joy with which a Catholic infant is laid in
his grave.