Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1872-10-17
AN ENGLISH CURATE'S WEDDING
EXPERIENCES.

In the earlier years of my clerical life
it was ny fortune to hold a CuraCy in
one Of the ancient metropolitan par
ishes.
The church was, in point of arcbitec-
tural beauty, by no means what it might
have been, although efforts toward i'm
proyemcnt had been made when | first
entered on my duties. Yet, unprepos-
sessinC As was the appearance of the
building, IL seemed to exercise an almost
magnetic power of attraction upon per-
sons about to marry and to such an eX-
tent was this the case, that when | left the
parish had myself married one couple
for every day of the period during
which had held the curacy.
Sellom dId an evening pass without a
ring a. the bell of my lodgings about
nine or ten o'clock, and the entry of a
peculiaEly-tolded paper, with ever the
selfsane contents:
REV SIR A wedding two or three
weddings, and now and then even six or
seven at ten o'clock tomorrow morning
Your obedient servant, J. b., Clerk"
He was a wonderful man, that same
J. B. My vicar, who did not have the
best Of health though he did his part ac-
cordng to his ability, was handsome
man OF some iiftytiVe years, and looked
his profession; but J. B. on SUNDAYS, as
far as dress and department" went, with
the ncatest and stittest of white Cravats,
and the glossiest of strictly clerical coats,
and a ,OJk which seemed to say, "EICars
and curates may be all very well in
their way, but / know on whose Shout.
derq the real responsibilities of the ser
vice rest, fairly eClipsed US both. He had
seen, rs he told me, four Wears ''out''-
he has since seen a tifth--and curateS
withou; number his post was a lucrative
one and he was reported to have done
well for himself in his husiness-that of
an undertaker-SO, perhaps, ii was but
natural that he should be tolerant Of the
vicar ana condescending to the curatc as
to "Men who come and men who 90,
while clerks 60 on forever.
But, Ike the peacock, he was better to
look al Than to hear; his voice was his
weak point, the higher it was raised,
the more reedy it grew as realized on
my first Sunday afternoon when, after
the bap'ismal service was concluded
there were eight babies that day-hc
shocked NY notions Of propriety by thus
addressing the assembled sponsors:
" ladies as wishes to be churched please
TO go Up 10 the rails, which the ladies ac-
Cordiug,y did,
We had morning prayers on Wednes
days ana Fridays Onmy first Wednesday,
| wei remember that the snow, or rather
what mad been the snow, was deep on
the ground had put on my surplice,
and w1s leaving the vestry, when j. B.
stopped me: Better see if there's q
IL.
church. and in minute or so returned:
"lt y0u please, sir, there was only Cap.
tam NJ J., and he said as there was only
him, he wouldn't trouble you; and he's
gone, sir.
THIS, however, ought to say, did not
happen second time; we always had q
conrregat ion, though il was often very
limited one
There was special point, however,
on which | must own J. b. deserved
my gratitude He had a son who wrote
a large and very leginle hand; this
son was his fathers amanuensis. and
used 10 write the names in the Bans
Book
Il was the custom for the congregation
to sit down every Sunday morning after
the second lesson, whilst | published
r IL -.
from twenty 10 thlfty palrS from various
parishes Tor the hrSt' second and thlrd
times oi ASKING; ana put Tor the exceed.
ing legIoliity OF the wfltng should many
a time nave broken down learned
then, Tor the urst time, with what strange
and complicated names 1t IS possible Tor
people 70 90 through the world; nor was
II easy TO aTold at iImes saying spInstvf
after mans name ana pacheIof after
ina, oi a woman,
MY predecessor IN me cuiaGy was very
smHI L.tu, apu Tas ,o,u INA, a. "a
u,g ~ ,o% MN t yo 'i,'"0''' VI ''0 ~
~ .ht, h ,,l ''' mo bool. n ,be mar.
-;orns 'll7' LAY ''N'' ''' ''''
"a, r. ~ , -,
lLsy were % al ue2iees--hi-h any
to", ron ana poor. Vhe nlorHlnI l
IouH- myself CONFRONTED 0y Ten oflaeS'
a 55"5 GA another me bridegroom con
n0eu 10 lile GIefh IN inc Yeslry, altet the
.cIeAto- ~, mat II had not been ms IoT'
c couv ~ IN huIh c carriage exercise N Ihg