The Hancock Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Ohio) 1857-1870, 1866-02-09

huth's constitution was not strong
enough for those ATTITUDES; her health
suffered materially, and the children
were confined TO the house nearly the
whole season by the severity o. the
weather We must weigh anchor
soon, l thought, and be off for some
mildcr climate.
remember what bleak dav Il
was when | was applied to oiliciate|
in marrying two of my congregation.
Strange to say, was not notified till
the very day of the wedding, the ne.
cessity OF having any one to perform.
the ceremony appearing to have been
entirely overlooked by the happy
couple and their friends till almost
the last moment.
They were neither of them young
people. The man was on the shady
side Of fifty--a withered old bachelor,
lean and snuily. He was reputed rich
but said to be as careful of his gold
as il it were his life's blood, and ev.
cry dollar of 1t spent shortened by II
day his term Of existence. Certain
~ his appearance justified this opin
ion. He was mean looking, even
shabby in dress, and hardly neat in
his person; at least, he impressed you
so.
The lady was considered one of the
old maids of the place She was
long past thirty am not sure but
she was close on TO forty. What
ever Of youth or beauty or freshness
she once had, she no longer possess
ed; youth, beauty and freshness had
parted with her forever. She was
thin and sallow; there was no bloom
upon her cheek, no dew upon her lip,
no lov1light in her eye. When she
smiled her face only wrinkled; it did
not light up rs younger faces do. She
was tall and angular in her p opor-
tions, and had that hard set look up
on her features, which years and q
lonely life almost invariably impart
Hea hopes OF matrimony must GER
fiahflX bABAfE5sh GR&f6sAffda IFS ,i9 ,li9n!g before
everybody who heard Of them--per-
maps more than anything which could
have happened, except the marriage
Of him who was to be her husband.
All W was electrified. Younger
women than she, whose orange dow
er was beginning to look doubtful,
took fresh courage. Here were these
two elderly people, will not say
old, old, lest / may offended some
who may be sensitive upon the sub
iect of their ages-who had met and
been acquainted over n score ofyears,
who had slipped tea together ut hun
drcds of "tea- fights" as this species
of convivial gathering was facetious-
| ly terned by some of the young
folks, suddenly became enamored OF
one another; their whole lives rovo-
llutioniZed and turned inside out by
that insinuating litlle god that pre-
sides over and directs all affairs oI
the heart; the oflicious sprite who, in
an unguardcd moment, chad sur
prised and taken possession of the
ruinOus, timc-worn castle in the
breast Of this snuily old bachelor,
and had employed his idle moments
in shooting nower-lipped arrows out
of the two dull windows in the tower
at the forlorn maiden oa the other
side Of the draw, and these two were
about to go, hand in hand to the nj
tar"
It was two o'clock when I was no
titled; the marriage was fixed for
three; so had only an hour for pre-.
paration. This proved ample time,
however, and at fifteen minutes be-
fore the hour | entered the vestibulc
of the church. The spectators were
beginning " assemble. Aside from
these, the church looked drcary
enough; the fires, just lighted, hau
only begun to kindle; the air within
the building seemed colder than that
without | never knew the little
church to appear so iorlorn. Was il
my feelings which impaired to it this
cheerlessuess, or was il only the in
lucnce of the bleak weather? A chill
crept over me as | made my way up
the aisle and into the vestry. When
| re. entered, the bridal party had just
arrived. All, how many couples
how many couples---l had united in
the holy bonds of wedlock there Al
that altar! | thought OF them as |
came forward, almost reluctantly Ia
perform the ceremony, and OF the
many ten and twenty dollar bauk-
notes lett in my hand 10y the happy
bridcgroOms. OF these thought
with Il feeling OF gratglulness 70 the
donors, and | wished both them and
the fair young wives they had chosen,
long lives and much happiness, as
| remembered how far their gifts had
gone towards the payment Of my
father debts.
| glanced at the bridal party as
they arranged themselves in their
places, the bride, in her brides ap-
pearel, looking, ii'possible, even more
sallow and withered than ever before.
The groom in his groOm's suit, II
learicature upon youth, but smiling
all over, and seemed MS proud and
satisfied with his bride as if she were
blooming maiden OF oaly seventeen
summers. The only show of fresh
ness, making the re't appear more
old aud faded by contrast, was in the
bridesmaid, lovely young girl, a
niece Of the bride. The groomsman
was a tall, meagre, melancholy wild
over, older even than his friend the
little groom, who was both very