By RENE TORRES
As gunfire rattled along the market square area of Brownsville and where local political rivals often feuded and many times resorted to bullets—Bert Hinkley determined that this was where modern funeral services were needed.
Early in Valley history, Hinkley had made several trips to Brownsville from San Antonio. He discovered that there was no competition for his business and plenty of opportunities to make money.
“Many of the cases I handled were victims of shootings, and Harlingen was actually known as Six Shooter Junction all along the border,” Hinkley was quoted as saying. The Hinkley Funeral Home handled all the business between Brownsville and Roma.
The funeral procession included two horses pulling a hearse decked in black netting. Back of the hearse walked six men and six women who held long streamers attached to the top of the hearse. Friends and relatives made up the rest of the funeral party, all on foot.
Also, no Hickley funeral procession was complete without the professional mourners. As part of the package, women were hired to cry with grief. They did a better job of crying than anyone else. Through long practice sessions, they developed the finer points of displaying grief.
Their wails were effective and infected the entire procession with additional emotion. The art of weeping and wailing dates back to ancient Rome and maybe even before then.
In Spain, these sob sisters were known as planideras, but along the border of the Valley, they were called “las lloronas”.
The wake was an essential part of the funeral. On warm days, the “velorio” was held outdoors — with plenty of food on hand to give mourners strength for the all-day affair.
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