Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-08-08
COurtship and Matrimony I'm Ger
MANY.


lBerttn Correspondence Of the London Daily Ners. !
In uefault or public announcement of a be-
trothai, people in the habit of watching the ac-
toIs from evening to evening may tell by one
infallible sign when the happy climax is reached
AS coon as the SWAIN begins to paw the
Young lsdy's reckoning in ADDITION TO his own.
time the maiden's Gansebraten has been reck-
oDed at the close OF every evening with the oc-
count of the family and paid for by the fond
parent; but now the burden has been lightened.
The future son-in-law meets his sweetheart's
expenses, but them alone. Even IL there be
nobody else with them but the mother, she
always pays sr own bill. Night after night
one may see at the same restaurants q young
man pay fcf himself and his sweetheart, while
the worthy matron just as regularly is left TO
the resc urces Of her own purse. III the three
visit the theatre he purchases sail for two, while
the mother takes her place in the queue, and
looks out for herself, and the rule is scarcely
ever broken.
If 1t be said, on the one hand, that the mother
having shuffied of the responsibility of her
daughters entertainment, ought to be satisfied
with that, IL may be urged, on the other hand,
that in view OF the fidelity and regularity eJ-
pected of German lover, the support of the
young Lady Is in itself enough, and he ought not
to be asked to have the mother superadded-At
least until after the marriage. Young people
and sixty five evenings year in each others So
ciety. If they belong to the middle or poorer
classes this phenomenon is generally witnessed
Sv an ana varied in
Ii they have a more exalted position in ne So
cial scale, there will generally be facilities for
entertaining the victim at the home of the in
tended, and for beer gardens they will now and
then substitute concert or a play. Bat, the
full quota of evenings is always vigorously ex-
acted.
Berlin is fast outgrowing slow matr imonial
machinery. The diplomacy OF the mother and
the harmless arts of the daughter are giving
way TO the more simple and more expeditions
system of matrimonial agencies. An English
NDT Iva M h "a In
the progress made within year or two by that
extraordinary business, and not even German
CO. forecast its future possibilities. 1t is not
enough that there are women who, in seductive
advertisements, make known their benevolent
purposes, and who, in modest aplrtm snts and
in a private way, bring the anxious together.
Not even the slender veil OF that degree OF pru-
dishness Is now thrown over the traffic. There
now great Off ces, with their ID nagers, their
matrons, their dodgers, and hierarchy of clerks,
and which offers applicants of either sex their
choice from two or three hundred candidates.
They issue their catalogues, like the old book
shops, and omit no important details. Thus
the candidates viii be classified something like
this: ''Two bunuTed and fifty maidens from the
bouTgeosa, 175 widows from the same class, 30
maidens ard widows from the artist )cracy, with
fortunes, &c." and on the other side, $500 gen
tlemeD, merchants, and that class 1c) Govern
II mt off cials, 80 country landowners, &C." And
recently the business has risen to the dignity OF
issued weekly, contains the advertisements of
these agencies az well as Of candidates them
selves, notices of books, and miscellaneous
matter well calculated 10 set forth the beauties
OF married life and TO encourage the wayer.
ing.