Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1884-11-30
COST OF A WEDDING.
The Biz Bills That are chesrfulIy
Paid.

Nee lori Trsbsse.

Nee Tork Tr;sts>.
The expense of q fashionable wedding
may be hkened to mstrimony itself IN that
nothing is known Of it save by experience.
At least such is the verdict Of the father OF
a family who has launched his daughters,
like so many gayly decked and graceful
yachts, on the sea af married life. A Trf-
bune reporter has been investigating the
cost OF fashionable weddings and theaPProx-
innate figures are given below. The esti-
mates Of an average Fifth avenue wedding.
where a large company is invited TO the
church and subsequently, entertained at the
home OF the bride, all the appointments be-
ing on liberal but not extravagant scale
Weddings may be arranged to cost any sum,
bu, fashionable wedding with everything
of satisfactory quality can hardly be bad at
less expense than the estimate below with
out the economy being apparent. There
is, to be sure, no absolute necessity for IN
curing some Of the items of expense and
some Of them might be cot down. Never
tEeless
People of Means
would be ready to pay for all the expenses
enumerated. and many fathers would be
glad TO get OF so eheaPly. The estimate
Tor the church wedding with six brides
maids and six ushers, a reception and
collation. with vine for 500 people, floral
dscotstions, etc. The total cost is calcu
la;ed 10 be little over e, 600 orthe brides
father and 81 600 additional for the bride
g,Ocm's clothing, brief bridal trip, etc,
;eayiug out bis present Of diamonds, ETC., to
lie bride. Though this estimate Of often
Aeeeded, the vast majority Of people man
~ge to get married for much less money.
Many of the items in the expense Of
,tdcing depend entirely on ones hberaity
Fyr instance. the rector Of a tashionab!"
EuIch receives a variety Of sums in mar
mage lees, but b. expects as much as S0O
..um rich people at church wedding es
.tcially. Yet it is not always the riches;
.sOple that pay the most. The fees run
rem $40 to so, sometimes reaching 500,
O.; rarely Str that
The Bridegroom
scspected to pay this, and gives the moae,,
"a his best man for that purpose. Difereu
churches charge different amounts for tn
..,e Of the building tor weddings. Some
INES ba,f goes to the church and halFto the
.rAiou. la other cases the whole fee is
erouisite of the sexton gas, etc, being
ala for by him or by the persons hirlng tn
e.. e OF the church. When chimes are rung
additional charge is made Of 81 or $40
he man who calls carriages, unless en-
aged with the collation., is an extra ex
p, nse and costs from S. to $40 or more &C
Urding 10 the size Of the wedding, the time
Lc works, and the number Of assistants he
has. Mr.. johnson, the well known successor
~ Brown, of Grace Church, has the happy
faculty of remembering the faces and the
arriages, drivers and footmen Of almos
all the fashionable people in New York. A;
L. asst ten carriages are needed to collect
bridesmaids and convey them, the ushers,
bride and groom, minister and members o.
he family to and from the church. In thu
iiiv guests are expected to provide carriages
Tor themselves. But in the case Of we'd
sing in the suburbs the brides family must
upply hacks TO take people to and from the
railroad station and the church or house.
Canopies are occasionally dispensed with
ia pleasant weather, but even then they pro
ct guests from the gaze Of bystanders and
90 are necessary to
Awen-APpointed Wedding.
Il is well 10 have the carpets of the parlors
nd refreshment room covered with crash,
aud the steps outside should be carpeted to
protect ladies in slippers or thin soled shoes
from the cold. Camp chairs must be hired
for seating people. They take up little room
and are easily moved The cost Of refresh
ments depends entirely upon the quality
Of the viands. the extent of the bill Of fare,
lie time of year, price Of delicacies, etc:
Most Of the delicacies Of the season, hot and
cold, will be served in the best style for -
4 head, and from that the price goes down
81 for a plain luncheon. A table taste
fully decorated is usually set in the dining
room and the visnds distributed By the
walters. The guests sit about on camp
hairs or stand if they cannot get seat.
tlcblews sit down to regular dinner a.
| heir weddings Champagne is usually an
.Xtfa charge, though the estimate for the
,oDaiion occasionally includes wine. The
cdding invitations being 1000 in number
Iere will usually not be over 500 guests
nisining to the reception. Often, for
.ood reasons, the reception is limited to
~ OF the nearest relatives aud intimate
tends who alone receive cards. BI'
here everything like a large company i
ntertained at the house il is likely TO cause
dissatisfaction il all invited to the church DE-
not also have cards for the house. Six
pieces Of music are not too many, though a
less number is sometimes got along with.
Some weddings have as many as ten or
twenty pieces A piano violin, cornet, fate
and bass VOL are desirable.
Floral Decorations
may be of any degree OF costumes. For
800 one can have the church chancel sci
With palms and eyergreens and the parlors
! and railways decorated with plants, the
mantels banked with roses, wedding bell
hung over the bride and groom and fora
devices and smilax TO decorate doorways
Sindows, etc. The bouquets for the bride
gud bridesmaids are usually purchased bs
he bridegroom and cost from $50 to 300
II more according to the price Of roses.
Wedding invitations cost Sl5 for the frs
100 and IS for every additional hundred
rom the engraved plate They ar
generally delivered by special messengers