Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1884-09-10

q Afternoon W. dsIIngs.

TWO authorities. no less exalted than
the Archbishop of Canterbury and the
Catholic Archbishop OF CINCINNATI,
have recently pronounced i'll the strong
est manner against afternoon and even
ing weddings. The English primate
has announced that hereafter he will
refuse his consent to such weddings,
except in extraordinary cases, and the
Catholic prelate declares that they are
the cause of most divorces. Bth of
these gentlemen have excellent opp0r-
tunities for learning the effect of the
custom which they condemn, and nei-
ther of them is at all given to baseless
or visionary theories. We must con-
clude, therefore, that they are right in
their opinion, and that with a large
section of ERglisn-speaking people mar
Tiage is a sort of pOSt-prandial amuse-
ment employed TO relieve the tedium of
the afternoon or to provide some gayety
for the evening. \ man, having finished
his days work, diverts himself and his
friends by taking wife ; or it may be
that in some cases the evening affords
an opportunity for runaway match
which would never occur in broad day
light. ElopementS might indeed take
place before noon. Horses are as feet
and railroad trains as cOnvAient then as
later i'll the day. The trouble is we
presume, that men have not the heart
TO take so decided and vigorous step
before dinner.
AT first thought it seems almost In
credible that the time OF day when the
ceremony may occur should determine
peoples conduct in so serious and last
ing a matter as that of matrimony, and
| ones respect for human nature is not
increased by a knowledge OF the fact.
II it be a fact, however, the part of
wisdom is to make use of it by regulat-
ing, through the law, the frequency of
marriage andin a certain unconscious
and laundering manner this has been
done. Thus in England, an Over-pOpu-
lated country, the law Is, as everybody
knows, that marriage may not take
place after y O'Clock noon without the
special license, of which the primate
intends to be very chary hereafter, and
the payment of sum beyond the means
of any but the rich. In the United
States, on the other hand, a country
which has been thought to need larger
population for the development of its
resources, no limit has been placed upon
the hours at which weddings may law
fully occur, and hence their frequency.
The possible applications of this prin-
ciple, however, are many and startling.
Let us suppose, for instance, that our
lawmakers should prohibit all mar
riages except such as were solemnized
during the ordinary dinner-hOur OF the
community. Would anybOdy's affection
survive such test as that? Or, worse
yet, the Legislature might forbid all
marriages that took place let us say
after eight O'Clock in the morning.
Would any man be married before
breakfast Could the thing be done
ne'simagination revOltS from the idea.
Now and then, perhaps, in the country,
in summertime, when the dew was on
the grass and birds were singing, cOu-
pie might be joined i'll holy wedlOck by
a hungry and disgruntled priest but
ne city people would ever be married,
and none in the country except at mid
summer. "When | think of country
houses and country walks, " said Thack-
cray. Il wonder that any man is left
unmarried.'' - But when we think of
marriage before breakfast, as enforced
by the State, we wonder that the plan
never occurred to Malthus as being
more mercIful than war and more ef-
fective than the plague.