The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-10-18

From Our ocn Correspondent

New YORK, Oct. 1S, 1859.
Marriages In New York.
On the surface 1t seems as though there had du-
ring the last six months been good many marriages
In high life in New York. but this is not In reality the
case. The increasing publicity which some OF the
papers have given to them has bestowed upon them
Fictitious Importance. BY far the greater proper
uon OF marriages, making allowance for the COM
parave size of the various classes of society has oc
CURED among the lower and middle grades. Among
the lower classes here, more especially marriage is
on the increase. The reason is that they are COM
posed 80 largely OF emigrants, and emiRrants
are much more given to marrying than the native
born American is. In the year 1866, for instance
more than half the people married in this city were
OF foreign birth In 1851 much larger proportion
were foreigners and In 1868 the minority of those
born in this country was still more remarkable But
the marriage ratio OF Gotham taking the classes as
they come, Is smaller than that of any other city In
the United States. In Boston the marriage-ratio is
that OF fifteen in thousand; in your CITY, that OF
fourteen In thousand; in this CITY, that OF less
than twelve in one thousand; yet both in Boston
and Philadelphia the foreign population is extremely
limited 1t may, indeed be safe say that for each
marriage in New York two three occur in Bos-
ton and In Philadelphia We have perhaps plenty
OF the raw material for good husbands, for we have
plenty OF rakes-only the rakes are not reformed.
Perhaps, too, the invasion Of so many foreign
counts and marquises as have within the past few
years made Fifth avenue the Of their spOlia-
millionaire papas. Whether or not the Lord Hubert
Ainsley who so recently married the Staten Island
belle was all that he assumed TO be, his career in
Gotham pointed a sad moral to many rich and re-
pentant papa who had fallen victim to his own
anxiety to call a nobleman his son-ln-law. Like
poor Tom Moore the parUeRues OF Murray Hill
''deariy love lord" and one reason the Lady Of
LyOnS remains popular Is because Of its satire upon
the servie worship OF titles In connection with this
subject the COrreative of divorce is not without
interest. In 1868 more than five hundred divorces
were granted In the city and county Of New York,
and the great cause was not infdelity, but incom-
patiblity of temper. That covers a good deal,
you know, and, unhappNy, William and
Mary, or AphonsO and Imogen, do not always find
out the nasty little unsuspected hdingpaces Of
another's temper in year or two. happily mar
rled woman (or at least an apparently happily mar
rled one told me the other day, that after twenty
years OF study of the character OF her husband she
must confess to still being ignorant many points.
Well! suppose the study of ones husbands ones
wife's character must be like the study of Shake
speare or .Iu ble-one Is always discovering new
beautica ID. At any rate it would be charitable to
suppose 50. On the other hand, have heard it said
that the reciprocal study OF cOnnubial character is
like trying to follow Sir Joshua Reynolds direction to
contemplate a stone wall until you can discover
beauty it there is use trying and you soon turn
away In despair. am afraid that is the principle
upon which too many New Workers. who
have entered the marriage state pro-
ceed. The number Of divorces makes
things look that way. But, after all, perhaps the
happest welded lives are those in which the first
years have been marred by misunderstanding
which revealed mutual strengths well weak
nesses. We are told that the dweers by the Red
Sea used to procure pearls from their oysters by
first wounding the bivalves and then casting them
back into the water Perhaps 1t is with human
hearts, particularly those that have been dshed for
in the sea of marriage. 1t is only after being
wounded that they are good for much.
N. T.. Willis Ghost.
Seeing Is believing and to have 'heern tell is next
door to considering whether perhaps the thing
might not he so. The New York correspondent OF a
Western newspaper, which is equally devoted to fe
male suffrage and spirituasm has l see raked up
rumor that the spirit of the late n. p. Willis is in
the habit OF visiting certain house (number not
given) in Fortyfourth street, of this city, Accord
ing to this account he cuts around loose, writes his
spiritual autograph with an attenuated pen-holder,
presents hls'nost with an airy volume Of poems
printed lin gold and blue, faucy) somewhere In in
finite space and adorns her vase with supernatural
bouquet culled from heavenly hot-house. The cor
respondent vouches the truth Of the phenomena,
for she Ut mast be she) has seen the place where
they occurred, and beheld the sRelctonzed remains
OF the bouquets. In the name OF Cannon!
when will all these rumors be accom-
naned with names, localities dates,
and circumstantal details In future intend treat
ing all OF them in the same way in which the "best
boarding house keepers treat applicants for board,
and to insist upon the best of references. Rumors,
which disdan to make use of, every now and then
float to my ears respecting spiritual phenomena;
children haunted with mysterious Voice with which
they converse in unintelgible language; ladies of
irreproachable character and great literary attain
ments, who see visions and receive communications
from Goating aureolas. All right! Trot 'em outl
That is all ask for Let there be Grand Spiritual
Test Mediums Congress, with Parker Pillsbury for
President and Charles Foster as Roper-in-in-Chef.
This is what things must come TO, if the phenomena
which the spirtualists pretend to accomplish in
secret are ever to be brought to the worlds light
''Frce' Concerts at the Tammany.
The English actor Eliston, in one of his mpudent,
bombastic speeches, once informed his Surrey au-
dience that those among them who were dissatisfied
with the performance might apply to the box office
and would be furnished with tickets, which any
evening during the ensuing week would admit them
free-upOn surrender OF one shilling! The Tam
many evidently proceedson occasion, upon similar
principle. Last night sacred concert was given
there, in which Madame Frederci, Mr.. Himmer,
and Wilhelm Formes took part Admission was
thirty-nve cents; but $50 the advertisement said
the seats treae free. ALI BABA.