E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Burying,
Cremation. The Parsees neither bury or burn their dead, because they will not defile the elements (fire and earth). So they carry their dead to the Tower of Silence, and leave the body there to be devoured by vultures. (See Nineteenth Century, October, 1893, p. 611.)
