The Dickinson press., 1889-03-23
WEDDING TOURS.
4 CUSTOM THE ORIGIN OF WHICH
CANNOT BE PLACED.

1t Was Originally u Scheme to Determine
Whether IA Marriage Should Isc Perma-
ncnt-Thc Honeymoon Should Not BE
Passed Among Strangers.
Tho origin of the wedding trip is entirely
unknown. AS to it we can only be sure of
one thing = the wedding trip originated
among civilized or scmi-cvilized nations, and
not among barharians
Custom now requires that u newly married
pair should fly from their friends and seek
the secluson of Il cottage by the sea, or the
more acute loneliness of hotel crowded with
strangers. Exception is sometimes made in
behalf of a husband and wife who arc id
vanccd in years, or who, by long continual
habit, have become accustomed to undergo
ing marriage, and look upon taking for tie
third or fourth timo the VOWS of matrimonv
with the indifference with which veteran
traveller, landing in New York, swcars his
way through the custom house. But to young
people no social mercy is shown. They must
undergo their wedding trip, no matter how
much or how justly they may dread it,
THE BARBARIAN PROUD OF HIS WIFE.
Our barbarous ancestors regarded mar
riase us an affair either of bargain and sale
or of robbery In neither case did tho sue
cessful husband feel called upon to hide him
self. Having bought an eligible wife or
having picked up cheap wife ut II bargain,
he no more thought of carrying her off to
some secluded place and conccaing himself
and his purchase for u month than tho fortu-
nate buyer of II lino picture or n good table
bought for u song at an auction thinks of
Inn of IN r.,
disccrnmcnt Neither did the cave dwcllcr,
who probably knocked down his beloved OBJ
jcct with a club, and, throwing her over his
shoulder, carried her to his private cave,
think of flying with her to sonc largo and
fashionable seaside cave, and spending
thrco or four weeks with her in tho dark
ness of the stuily and stalaglnitc strrwn
bridal chamber On tho contrary, he was
proud of his prowess, and OH tho morning
after his marriage exhibited his new wife
with her head covered with sticking plaster,
and casually remarked to his friends that al
though lie had married u largo number of
wives this particular one had tho thickcst
skull he had over cracked Such Is to this
very day the custom in the best circles of na
tive Australian society, and scientific persons
are OF tho opinion that the Australians are
tho oldest race now OH the planet
Conce'lins, then, that tho wedding trip has
not come down to us from primitive and
savage man, it must havo been tho invention
of comparatively civilized people, What
could havo been tho motive which Eave birth
to such n customs Tho answer must he
sought by onjccturc, but in this case conjec
tllro may provo to he II trustworthy guido.
AN UNSYMrA1nETlC ARRANGEMENT.
Clearly tho inventors of tho wedding trip
were not human and sympathetic race
There is probably no timo in the life of II man
or woman when lie or Slle has greater need of
human sympathy and encouragement than
| during tho first few weeks of married life
| And yet this is the very time when modern
custom has decrccd their isolation. They are
not merely thrust out of reach of the sym
pathy of their friends. but they are practic
| ally forbidden to make new friends during the
honeymoon. Noncwly made husband ,larcs to
say My dear, have met some very good
fellows at tho hotel, aud we'ro going to hive
n littlo game of whist in tho smoking room
tonight" and where is tho recent bride who
would venture to spend the evening in Mrs
So-and-So's room and leave the groom alone
for an hour or twot mol The I,nir must bc
confined exclusively in the society of each
other whilo tho wedding trip lasts, 10 matter.
how they may long for the clasp of friendly
hand or Il word of kindness and encourage
mcnt.
Thus we SEQ that the people who invented
tho wedding trip wero not n sympathetic
race Beyond doubt they wcro practical
people who priced tho useful above tho pleas
ant. They inflicted wedding trips upon newly
married people because they judged it best
| for tho interests of tho community
Now, these sensible and disagrccable people
may have had either ono or two objects in
view when they established tho ordeal by
wedding trip. Perhaps they regarded it Us
the swimmer regards tho hcadIong plunge
into cold water, as tho quickest way to ac-
custom ones self to an inevitable evil They
may have reasoned that US man and wifo are
to mako tho experiment of living together
during the lifetime of one or tho other, the
sooner and tho more thoroughly they try it
tho better There is certainly good deal of
forco in the reasoning, but it proceeds upon
tho assumption that marriage was ut tho
period in question ndissolublo, whereas we
know that US rulo indissouble marriage
exists only in the highest stateof civilization,
and is comparatively modern idea. In all
probability such facilities for divorce existed
among tho people who originated the custom
OF wedding trips.
a CONJECTuRE AS TO ORIGIN
If such were the case, tho wedding trip
was beyond doubt designed as a test of the
fitness Of tho bride and groom for more
prolonged experience of married life.
| Doubtless the father of the bride said to his
daughter Marry this man if you wish and
| go away with him for month whcrc you
will have nothing to detract your mind from
him. If at the end of that time you can still
| endure him. we will get an order from the
supreme court making your marriage per-
Mancnt." With this understanding tho
young couple started Oh their wedding trip,
aud though we havo absolutely no statistics
on this subject, thcro can he but little doubt
| permanent marriage.
| This conjecture satisfactorily explains the
origin of the wedding trip, but only cn
| phaslzes the folly of the survival of u custoi
now becoming meaningless Weulay admire
boi,lness. hut voluntarily to incur unneces
slry danger is not t,ol,lness but foulliarIlncss.
Marriage reasonably begun Is much more
likely to succeed than is marriage begun with
wedding trip. and however much we may
| wonder at the recklesslless OF tho husband
| who takes his bride from tho church To
tho ocean steamer, we cannot respect the
intelligence of the pair who prefer to begin
| their married liie with mutual seasickness
and the mutual revelation Of the dlsa2rceable
characteristics that aasickness. ennul and
absence Of friends are sure to reveal. Once a
| Week
|