The preacher was young and new to the Iowa town. On his second day at his newly assigned church, he got a call from a funeral director who asked if the young minister would conduct a short grave side committal service at a small country cemetery nearby.

There was to be no funeral, just the committal, because the deceased had no family or friends left.

The young pastor started early to the cemetery, but soon lost his way. After making several wrong turns, he finally arrived a half-hour late.

The hearse was nowhere in sight, but he saw some workmen relaxing and eating lunch under a tree near a freshly dug hole.

The clergyman went to the site, opened his book and read the service.

As he returned to his car, he overheard one of the workmen say, "Maybe we'd better tell him it's a septic tank."

From: http://www.wvgazette.com/Columns/Terry.html