Connecticut western news., 1875-07-09
POLTER.ABEN
VS A Pretty Story Told In ConnsctiOn with . M ssusufnr Herman CnstOnl. M

. Singular serman UnssOm. 4s
 A Berlin correspondent writes: "Pol- tern" is a verb which signifies to make an uproar or, a racket in the house, a [ clustering fellow is called "polterer;" and because, according to an old, longrestabished custom, the eve l of the wed ddng. day is devoted to racket ing, rollicking sports, it has received the | name of "polter- -abend." No invita- tions are gwen to this ente tertainment; it is something like an American surprise party, only it is not etiquette for any guests to intrudeswho have not received invitations to the wedding which is to take place the next day. CThe guests come in all sorts of comic disguises, and bring all sorts of comical presents and rhyming congratulations to the bridal pair. The entertainments are some times very ingenious; no expense or trouble being considered too great by those who are wealthyI and who wish7 to honor in this way the nuptials of Q friend. A young lady friend related to me not long ago, in a very animated manner, some of the entertainments at a polter-abend," at which she had lately assisted. cit was an odd story" she said, "and rather a romantic one-the acquaintance with each other of the bride and bridegroom. He was young officer and lived in the city just opposite the house of the young hdy s father, but. was not acquainted with her or with any of the farAily. He first noticed her as a, brisk little. sehoo oolggirl, tripping out of the door early every morning, with several sisters, all apparently near together in age. He saw them sgos eften fromI his window that he began to feel an interest in them, and liked to owatohst to see them pass in the morning and at noon. In. three or four years they were no slongeri little girls, but slender, grReefm. mald1 A. ems; with { Othe lsane .bt1oyantI step3 the, same modest hearing and gentle express sion which had attracted him lin the. children, and all this increasedss hun dred-fold by the -chatins of ppsning hssqsThe young Officer used ltn look. at them and think what, & good mother and what perfect home those girls must have, all pf them to have grownEup SO lively and wohaanl% AsS Sthey seelned to be. He often wished that he knew them, and could see them Ep, the midst of their family q circle 'falhlhngS the sacred duties and enjoyfng the simple pleasures of home ifer pB But it is not. easy in a busy city life to get out of old grooves and form new acquaintances without any, ostenssiibbles .pretext He couldz not cal upon the young ladies themselves with friend to introduce him, as you young men do in Aflerica, and there seemed no opportunity for thrusting himself upont6e aoanainteneeT khip of She father in slieh azway as toabe. allowed to penetrate into the sanctum of his family life. .Raylhy day the young officer watched the girls more and more carefully, and day by day e-forlnd more. to admire in their department. He often thought what a lucky fellow the man will be who chooses wife out of that gentle band of sisters At last one of them, 8 blonde, became the particular subject of such thoughts, and 1t began to be very disagreeable idea to him, that he should some day see her from his favorite window enter the carriage, with it's white horses, adorned with bridal ribbons, which should carry her to the altar where she would bestow her began to hate this imaginary being who ant amusement Fof acting the shafmless spy upon his pretty neighbor. Sudden
 ly one day a thought struck him. By. instead oi letting some 1stnpid fellow sooner thought than, done. EHe knew wIorthy, welf-to-do citizen of middHng means; he himself was of one of the
 best families of, the city, apds although, .4;11 1aa A,,,,,1, n ,e,.1, as an able and efficient officer Of steady his expectations\ for the @fattne well kfeundsd. ForSifedG Gby these advan- tages, he introduced himself to the father, who already knew him by .ehar-' acter. He annou1ced with Yary little
 preface that he was pome to ask hirn for
 the hand of his daughter.
 " Which daughter P said the gratified
 father, q | am)so fortunste as tols have four. II believe it. is, your eldest
 daughteT.s replied the stiitor. T do
 not know her name My eldest bthat, is LottAaa { f1t is they blonde one with the bright blue eyes, and the thick
 golden braids wound around her head.
 sNo, inst isnot the eldest; that is the
 second-my Meta Charming name !!
 thought the; dover f So the Course of true love ran very smooth. The young
 lady was called, and seemed to be only too much deighted at this sndden and romantic appearance of devoted lover in her quiet circle of thoughts; especially & lover clad In the glitte1ing iuniforna of Prussian guardsman with the iron cross and the ribbon of @ royal order upon his breast" Now I must tell what the same narrator related to me of the
 "polter -abend of this happy couple A friend turned. the history of their love and wooing into long ballad after the
 old narrative fashion; among the guests
 of polter-abend this friend appeared
 as, ant organ grinder, hisi Instrument
 upon his baok, and accompanying him Ia
 female assistant with portfolio of large
 pictures. In thefrst pause of congrat1
 lations and poems, tho musician began
 to sing his ballad, accompanying him.
 self with the organ. The story had been
 considerably exaggerated to heighten it's
 interest, for instance, the father was rep
 resented as narshaling his six daugh-
 ters at the lovers request, that the lat
 ter might point out the one who had wen
 his approval, and ascertain her name. At intervals. the woman who assisted the musician acted the part of BhoVnan, ex-
 hibiting to the company from her port
 folio large cartoons Illustrating the scenes which the ballad described. This .entertainment was said to have delighted , and amused hot.a little the bridal pail and Afeir guests, and certainly showed { good deal of ingenuity and fancy, Ii !, was so entirely different from anything , I ever heard of in American society tlIat thought it worth relating to Hyot11 |. readers. ~-~..----~-,r ,rs ,.08 u,0UmUT I I4 E1SA