Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-09-12
Throwing Stones for a Husband.

The Albuquerque On. M Democrat
relates the following concerning a matri
monial target there, which is destined to
build up the town.
The papers are telling us of an old i'm
age which stands near a tumble down old
church at Vera Cruz, and Of belief con-
nected with it that il a marriageable Wom-
an shall hit the image squarely in the
face with stone she will Immediately
obtain readymade husband carefully
selected from job lot of benedicts, and
be advantageOusly settled for life The
image has been thrown at by longing wom-
en- for centuries, but its rigid features
have never been damaged to any great
extent.
This seems to be an old custom handed
down as an heirloom from the days when
MOntezuma was running against Cortez
for second term as Governor of Mexico,
and was working the ward caucuses with
the ever potent bar'l--of beer. Near the
town of Old Albuquerque there stands
wooden post, and young women can often
be seen standing there chucking rocks at
1t at ten PAGES distance, believing that if
they hit 1t fairly and squarely, all they
have TO do is to open their beautifully
rounded arms and a husband will fall into
them all dressed up for the occasion. Up
TO the hour of going TO press there have
/ been no very great falls there, my country
men. Tradition tells us that the spot
where the post now stands used to be the
| centre OF the town, but that so many win
dows were broken and that there was 80
much personal danger from flying mis-
slles that, as an act of self-detense, the
people moved off to a safe distance and
pitched their adobes on the present site
of the ancient village. Joe Dixon, who
was President Of the Board of Supervisors
OF the old town, little over a century
ago, assures us that this Is fact, and
Joe is man who will not lie outside of
the columns of his paper. He says that
/ when band of young and yearnng wom-
en- took notion 10 go out and throw at
the target for husbands the people would
all crowd around the post TO get out OF
/ danger, and he now exhibits scar on
| his ear received from a stone flung at
| the post by cross-eyed girl, while
he was standing twenty yards south
east of her meBding broken suspender.
The place has become a great resort for
female tourists from the East. Old maids
who have been fishing for husbands for
years without getting even nibbe. hear
of this tradition and come out here each
| with two return tickets, eXpeCtingto take
| husbands home WITT them. On some days
| perfect fusilade of rocks aimed at the
post can be seen flying in all directions
while the dear old girls stand there and
/ grit lneT custom maze TEEN, ana stamp
! holes in the ground, and swear in French
so that the recording angel can't under
stand them. Up TO last Saturday, the
face Of the post was unmarried, and the
old stock Of husbands on hand when it
was fret planted were yet on the shelves,
and were getting musty, and beginning to
/ be regarded as a drug on the market. On
saturday well preserved maiden Of 'tjust
turned %" from Chicago. hit the post
/ square in the centre, and is now at one of
our hotels waiting patiently for the UNI
pire TO render decision. 1t is feared,
/ however, that the ancient relic OF pre-
historic age will return home husband
less, as il has been shown that the stone
which hit the post was hurled az a Mexi-
can who was standing at point twenty
yards TO one side OF the target, laughing
At the way her corkscrew curls sQuirmed
and writhed when disturbed by the soft
breeze which swept up the valley OF the
historic Rio Grando.