Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1881-07-07
A MARRIAGE in WARTIME.


O00Ne0eIHlE
Groom Hnstencd to the Wedding.
remember very amusing marriage
ceremony which I once performed. !
was busy trying to make up some bread
for my mess 4 was then t'high private
in the rear rank" Of the old Thirteeth
Virginia regiment) when albright young
fellow Of the Maryland line hailed me
with :'fIsay, Mister, are youa preacher
Not surprised at the doubt implied in
the question, for neither my dress nor
my occupation was very clerical /
replied eyes, / claim to be-" "Are
you authorized to marry people in
this State?" II am" 'Well, YOU are
the very man | have been hunting for
five days 81 am glad you have found
me at last. What can do for you n
II want you to marrym me, sir" "When ?"
fright away, sir; Just as soon as we
can get there" ''Where ?" "About
two miles down the road"
Accordingly ! got permission from
my colonel "a. P. Hill, satisfied myself
that the license was all right, and
started. As we were going along the
little fellow (the license stated that he
look to be over sixteen) pulled out his
license and said: f'Look here, parson;
suppose anything should happen so that
we could not get married to-day, she
could not marry any one else as long as
I hold these Shaking his icense) again
her, could she 2" When I explained
that the license was Of no binding force
until the ceremony was performed, he
started off in half run, excla1 ing:
"Well, come on, parson we must make
haste -
Beginning to suspect that there was
something wrong, / stopped and said;
Il must have an explanation of this,
sir. I do not mean to do anything con
trary to law and right. Did you not
tell me that you had the full consent
Of the young lady's parents, and that
there was no obstacle in the way Of
your marriage p ''Yes, it is all right,
parson, come on and I'll explain it all
to your satisfaction. The whole truth
is that have been sick down at that
house-or rather have been pretending
to be sick-for several weeks, and there
has been little girl down there who
has been so kind to me that 1 want to
marry her for it. Now, my colonel (his
colonel was George H. Seward, an old
West Pointer, and one of the most rigid
disciplinarians in the army has found
out that | am well, and / am afraid he
will send a guard after me and put me
in the guard-house; that before / get
out the brigade will move away, and 60
/ may not get chance to be married at
all, and she may then go and marry some
other fellow. Come on, parson Please
let us make haste p
| followed him as rapidly as could,
and on reaching the place ascertained
that the guard had actually come for
him before he came after me, but had
agreed to wait for him if he could pro-
cure preacher and hurry up the mar
riage. performed the ceremony, he
saluted his bride in approved old
1 fashioned style, and the guard immedi-
ately marched him off to the guard
house. He called to see me several
days afterward, however, and said !:
''Parson, l have been o very happy man
| since I saw you. 1 took your advice,
and made clean breast of it to the
colonel, and he released me from the
guard house and gave me forty y-eight
hours leave of absence"
Some time afterward l was at Louisa
Courthouse on furlough, and being at
the depot when the cars came up, whom
should see but my young Maryland
soldier, who jumped off the train and
rushed up to me, exclaiming "Parson,
] H. L. l.
Confederacy have gotten discharge
from the army. have work in Rich
mond at which 1 can make plenty of
money. I have rented O nice little
house there and furnished it very com
fortably, and now I am going up after
my wife" | was very much gratified to
see the marriage turning out SO well,
for, unfortunately, these army marriages
did not always so result. Louisville
Cou1iey'-Jom7sdl.