The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-08-20

tha go. u"0 P"tisn were invited, and
1ae evening was given to music and
games and fun. The gentlemen soon
learned OF the new work that was i'm
pa.nng such renewed vigor to the So
cieey and increasing 30 largely it's at
tendance. And from week to week we
Oil mad giimpses of some parts of the
wedding wardrobe. Article after article
was exhibited to the visitor; comments
were made upon this or that. Imaoina-
ton was excited to the utmost as to how
Miss Pickett would look; and one even
ing, when the articles were nearly COM
pleIeG. one of the young ladies dressed
herself In the bridal costume, and amid
pesls OF laughter personated Miss
ana SO, as the weeks rolled on, the in
terest increased, and expectation reached
fever heat. Rarely has marriage in
hlgh life excited deeper interest, and
hundreds anticipated the rare pleasure
OF being numbered among the wedding
guests, and privileged to behold the
marriage service. But now again new
csres and anxieties were awakened for
MISS Pickett, and once moro l worried
fer her sake. Row frightened she would
bt thought, if she knew of all the ex-
clement awakened by her expected
mirage. If all these eager friends
wlo had worked for her, and enjoyed
theOI, were present, neither she nor
her Intended husband would be
able to Co their part in the marriage.
service. And SO / decided, notwith-
standing the Disappointment it might
cause, tha Miss Pickett had better be
married Fiyately; that l would 60
down to hr snug little rooms, so neat
and home-lte, and there tie the golden
KNOTT and Wien l had made in my own
mind this deision, my anxieties were
quoted, and the time drew rapidly near.
AT length Mis- Pickett herself came to
see me. She said Mr.. Jones was too
busy to call, andshe had come to make
the arrangement about the marriage.
She would like tt be married at eight
O'Clock on such anevening; and she had
always loved erehurch SO much, she
would like to be married in the church.
Had Mr.. Smith anyobjectins?
What could / say? Icould not wound
that sensitive little nature by any objec-
tions. Had she not as good right as
any one to be married in church?
''But," / said, "my dear Miss Pickett, l
would not mention to any one that your
wedding is to take place in church, nor
would mention the precise date to any
one. Sometimes, you know, a great
many people come at such times-iust
out of curiosity; and if there should be
a great many present, it might prove
very embarrassing especially to Mr..
JONES'" l added. l further especially
charged the sexton to preserve the
strictest silence. And thus in the conf
dent assurance on my part that every
thing would be quiet, and that only two
or three would be present, the eventful
evening arrived.
About ten minutes before the ap-
pointed hour l walked around to the
church. To my astonishment, it was all
ablaze with light. Carpets were spread
upon the sidewalks; policemen were
keeping open passageway from the
street to the main entrance; carriages
were constantly arriving, and fashiona-
bly, attired ladies were passing in. 1
entered, and the spacious church was
crowded. The grand old organ, as if
conscious of all the associations that
clustered around the hour, was sending
forth-never more triumphantly-the
strains of the Wedding March. Gentle
manly ushers in white kids were in at
tendance, and conducting to their seats
the beauty and fashion of the city.
While / had been fancying that had
outwitted the ladies of the sewing socie-
ty, they had quietly outwitted me, and
had planned this brilliant scene as the
fitting close of the weeks and months of
preparation. 1 fairly trembled as l
thought of Miss Pickett. How could
she endure all this? Nay, 1 thought,
with all that had gone before, if any
mistake should occur, the feelings of the
excited crowd would not be restrained
either by the sacredness of the place or
their natural sense of decorum. Never
in all the public ministrations of my
whole ministry was so anxious, never
did | tremble so much as in the few
remaining minutes before the appointed
hour.
At length the doors were thrown open,
and up the aisle marched Mr.. Jones and
Miss Pickett. He was the tallesC OF
men, more than six feet in height, and
she so small that she could barely reach
up her little hand and clasp his arm.
He was evidently painfully conscious of
the terribleness of the ordeal through
which he had to pass, and he came up
the aisle with the strides of mountain
eer, which Miss Pickett could match
only by an occasional skip and run.
But there she was, just as our fancy had
painted her. There was the new hat,
the new dress, everything which had
become so familiar to US all; and, in
spite of all repression, smiles were audi
bic.
Gan describe that marriage ceremo-
nyP Only the pencil of Hogarth
or Mast, or the pen of Dick
ems or Thackeray, could do it justice.
Can 1 describe, as Miss Pickett knelt for
moment at the chancel rail in silent
prayer, how the bridegroom, attempting
to initiate her example, and doubtless to
follow her instructions, had fallen on
his knees on the floor three steps below
her, and then noticing his mistake, went
up those three steps on his knees to
reach her side, while the church was
filed with suppressed laughterP Can l
describe his difficulty in finding the
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