Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1853-10-02
1ailp Nmon Il american
From the New-York Tribune.
The Tgc-PeHny Marriage.
.:Mr. Pcase. we want TO be married.
SWant to be married-what fer?P

be living together this way any longer, and We have
>been talking over the matter to-day and you Sec"
'.Yes yes, see. you have been talking over the
/ matter over the bottle and have come to the con-
clusion to get married. When you get sober you
will both repent of it, probably
"No sir, we are not very drunk now, not so
drunk but what we can think, and We don't think
we are doing right-we are not doing as We were
brought up to do by piOus parents-We have been
reading about the good things you have done for
just such poor outcasts as we are and we want you
to try and do something for us
q "Read! Can you read? Do you read the b
! ble?P
".Well not much lately. but we read the newspa-
! pers, and sometimes We read something good in
] them. How can we read the Bible when we are
drunk"
ado you think getting married will keep you
/ from getting drunk?'
'1es, for we are going to take the pledge too
and we shall keep it, dependupOn that"
Suppose You take the pledge and try that FIST,
and if you can keepit till you can wash some Of
the dirt away, and get some clothes on, then will
| marry you'
-No that won't do. l shall get TO thinking what
a poor, dirty, miserable wretch am. and how am
| living with this woman, who is not bad woman
by nature, and then will drink and then she will
drnk-oh, cursed rum!-and what is to prevent
lis? But if were married, my wife, yes Mr..
I Pease. my wife woud say, .Thomas'-she would
not say 'Tom'-you dirty brute don't be tempted;
and who knows but we might be somebody yet
somebody that our mothers would not be ashamed
of" -"-' ~5t
Here the woman, who had been silent and rather
moody. burst into violent flood Of tears, CRYING,
Another. mother, know not whether she is alive
or not, and dare not inquire; but il we were mar
ried and reformed, would make her happy once
more"
IL could no longer stand the appeal, said Mr.
P, and determined to give them a trial. have
married a good many poor wretched looking cou-
pies but none that looked quite so much so as this
This man was hatless and shoeless without coat or
vest. with long hair and beard grimmed with dirt
/ Hewas by trade a brick-layer one Of the best in
the city. She Wore the last remains of a silk bon
net, and something that might pass for shoes, and
an old, very old dress, rich merino, apparent
| ly without any under garments
"And your name is Thomas Thomas what?7
''Elting, sir: Thomas Elting good true name
and true man-that is, it shall be- if you marry u.s.
| We'll. well. ] am going to marry you"
"Are You? There Mag, told You So"
Don't call me Mag. If am going to be mar
ried, will be by my right name, the one my moth
/ er gave me-.
"Not Mag. Well I never knew that
Now, Thomas, hold your tongue, you talk too
much
| What Is your name:'
Matilda. Must tell the other? Yes I will,
and will never disgrace it. don't think | should
have been as bad if had kept it.-That bad wo-
man who first tempted me- made me take a false
name 1t is bad thing for girl to give up her
name unless for that of good husband. Matilda
Fraley. Nobody knows me by that name in this
bad city.
/ .'Very well, Matilda and Thomas, take each 9th
er by the right hand. and look at me- for am going
to unite you in the holy bond of marriage by Gods
ordinance. Do you think you are sufficiently sober
to comprehend its solemnity?'
''Yes. sir
Marriage being one of Gods holy ordinances,
cannot be kept in sin. misery, filth and drunken
ness. Thomas, will you take Matilda to be your
lawful, true. and only welded wife,"
YES. sir.
'You promise that You viii live with her, in sick
ness as well as health and nourish, protect and
comfort her as your true and faithful wife, that yor
will be to her true and faithful husband that yor
will not get drank, and will cothe yourself ant
keep clean
so [ WILL
And You, Matilda, on your part, viii you prom
Use the same, and he a true wife to this man?
4 will try, SIR. --.- g.
+ @But do you promise all this faithfully"
'Yes sir, ] will
Then pronounce you man and wife"
aNow. Thomas says the new wife, after l ha'
made out the certificate and given it to her, witt
an Injunction to keep it safely-"now pay Nh
Pease, and let US 20 home and break the bottle.
Thomas felt first in the right hand pocket then tn
e left then back to the right, then he examined tn
r watch fob.
; why where is it, says she, 'yOu had two dollar
is this morning."
Yes, know it, but I have only got two cent
this evening. There Mr.. Pease, take them; it is a
have got in the world; what more can give?"
I Sure enough what could he do more? too
them and prayed over them, that in parting wit
" the last penny, this couple might have parted wit
IN vice, a wicked foolish practice, which had red'
,T ced them to such degree of poverty and wretc
edness, that the monster power of rum could hard
send its victims lower.
SO Tom and Mag were transformed into Mr.. al
e Mrs Fitting, and having grown somewhat more $
n Der while in the house. seemed to fully understar
IS their new position and all the obligations they ha
an taken upon themselves. s r--'-- 81
es For few days thought occasionally of th
twopenny marriage, and chen it became absorb'
y, with thousand other scenes of wretchedne
1g which have witnessed since have lived in I'll
n, y. centre of city misery.
IA Time wore on and married many other coupl
often those who came in their carriage and left
- Golden marriage fee-a delicate way Of giving
the needy-but among all had never perform
the rite for a couple quite so low as this twO-pen
fec. and resolved never would again. At lengt
a. however. had call for full match to the
= /. I