Morning journal and courier., 1880-03-01
Golden Wedding.

On Saturday evening the relatives of MT. | and Mrs. Alfred Edwards gathered at their
 residence, corner of Davenport avenue and Ward street, to celebrate the fftieth anniver-
 sary of their wedding. John G. North was
 selected to present to the bride and groom the congratulations of their friends. In doing so he said he was the only witness here who
 was in attendance at the wedding fifty years ago, and of all the number present only six were living, namely, brother of the bride
 groom in Brooklyn, aged S2, sister of the
 bride and her husband (who lack only two years of their golden wedding). living in Chicago, brother in Philadelphia and two cousins in Vermont and New York States. H @ said that seventy years ago there was in Der
 lin, Conn.,, 8 carriage manufacturer, country
 merchant and druggist by the name of Josiah
 Edwards who had son Alfred and a manu- facturer of tin wares and lamps by the name
 of Lemuel North, who had 8 daughter named
 Orpha. These two children lived in homes
 only few feet apart and were then only one
 and one and half years old. They learned
 to talk, to walk, to play and to sing together
 they went to the same schools, to the same
 church, and grew up as ardent little friends.
 Here the historian gave several pleasing incl
 dents of their childhood and courtship, of
 Alfred's work in his fathers carriage shop
 and of Orpha's work in her mothers kitchen
 (for negro servants and hired girl help were
 then unknown in that town), and of her suc-
 cess as cook, etc. He said in those days all
 intentions of marriages had to be previously
 published, as by law directed, from the pull
 pit, and that it was the custom for the bride
 to absent herself from the church on that
 Sabbath and not to appear in society after the
 declaration until after the wedding but in
 this instance the rule was broken. Miss Orpha,
 being the leading soprano singer, was needed
 in the church choir, and as usual (after Par
 son Goodrich with his strong voice pro
 nounced that marriage is intended by'' AL
 fred Edwards and Orpha W. North) sang the
 opening anthem, with solo, without 'tfal-
 tering voice." Next, the wedding of fifty
 years ago was described, with many pleasing
 illustrative incidents one of which was that
 when it was said that railroads would be
 built, and by means of steam iron horses pec- pie could travel twelve miles an hour ''no, mo-" said an old uncle, s'can't be done, it
 will take away the folks breath" One of the gran dfathers also said he had set apart POO acres of woodland for his grandchildren, for there would not be wood enough to burn in little while ;-another said the 'tscientifi- cers at Yale were taking black stones from Pennsylvania which they called coal, and was heating them red hot and said that that coal would be used in time to heat and cook with " but another said it would take all the charcoal | in the world to keep them hot. When the wedding was over description was made of l the reception at the new bridegroom's parents | home. |
 The brides own father Gas was then the | custom) provided all the house with carpets, | furniture and all housekeeping articles. This | all accomplished the new husband and wife of | fifty years ago commenced housekeeping. At | the first dinner she provided meal for the | workmen in the shop, now numbering twenty 1 persons, who extolled the praises of the new | wife by saying, ''She will do for wife. Can't she make good pies thought"
 Other events were alluded to of interest to | this happy gathering. On the wall of the | parlor was seen photograph of the old | Grandpa North's homestead, where the brides ancestors lived years before and where she was born (seventy years ago) and married also 8 | line painting of ''Holyhocks'' (by Mrs. S. P. | Warren), descriptive of the old style of flow srs grown in such quantities on this old home- stead. Also there was at the feast on the
 North" end of the table one of the same ;able-cloths given to the bride, with the same identical dishes, or tea set, of fifty years ago. l Letters of congratulation from Chicago, l Brooklyn and Greenfield were 'ead, and the occasion was one of great inter- sst and long to be remembered