The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1889-09-14
How He Won His Wife,

SOI' JOuu w. Nay HIIuSeb uOW d
venerable gray-headed man. tells the
following story of the courtship and
marriage of his grandfather. Rev.
John Ray. who figured largely in the
Methodist church in the latter part
of the last and the early part of
this century: my father joined the
travelling connection in $780," said
he. "When there were less than $50
ordained members in the United
States and but one conference, ex-
tending from Massachusetts to Flor
ida, along the coast. His early work
was In Virginia and North Carolina,
where he Travelled ten years. of course
single man, for in those days to
marry was to locate, He travelled in
1900 the Tar River circuit, which
extended from the coast into the in
terror a hundred miles or more. He
was 80 years old and made up his
mind to marry and locate and go
west, which meant into Kentucky,
his former home. Among his stop
ping places on his circuit was the
plantation of rich widow, by the
name of Lewis, well stocked with
slaves and the luxuries that a
wealthy STAKEHOLDER of that period
was expected to possess. The widow
also had grown daughter, who had
made such an impression upon the
bachelor preacher that he had con-
cluded to ask her to 60 with him,
nothing doubling that she would go,
ard go on his own terms, but he had
said nothing to her on the subject
until one evening, toward the close
of the war, he took scrap of paper
and wrote: Are you under obliga-
tions to any man? Are you in the
spirit of slavery Will you 60 west ?
Will you 60 with me?'
He expected an immediate an
swer. and, of course. favorable one,
for how could a girl refuse such a
man? But she carefully folded the
paper, put it in her pocket and soon
after left the room, to be seen no more
until the next morning. TIC the sur
prise and perpleXitv of the lover. she
appeared the next morning in the
family circle as merry as usual, and
went about the ordinary duties of
the morning as though nothing un-
usual had happened. The suspense
became painful and embarrassing,
until he finally got an opportunity
to ask if she could now answer the
question he had pronounced. She
asked for further time to consider.
"'No' said he, L must know now.
/ AM going away to day. and 1 want
to know before starting.'
"'Well,' said she, L have some
questions to ask before deciding.
Will you give up your pipe?'
1.-THE lover was dumfounded. 1t
had never entered his head that girl
had any right to PROFOUND such
question on such an occasion, but
that the extent of her prerOgative
was to say Yes, with all my heart
Presuming upon his own importance
and assuming that she would be only
to say yes after this little episode, he
said: No, not for the best woman
on EARTH 1t was now her turn to
speak, and she said in tone that
indicated earnestness Then yon can
have my answer. once for all. l will
never marry man who thinks more
of his pipe than of me- No man
ever did more thinking in few mo-
ments than he did then and there.
She had put the pipe question in a
new light. Think more of my pipe
than of her?' he soliloquized. why,
certainly not; yet it looks like it if
cannot give it up for her. But there
is another question Shall girl
force me to do what four conferences
have failed to do? Can I be happy
without this girl-happier without
her and with my pipe than with her
and without my pipe? and the man
found himself deeper in love than he
had ever suspected, and he was not
long in settling the question. If it
is a girl or pipe. farewell pipe ana
he turned to her, as she sat apparent.
ly as heartless as stone, and said
We'll, Elizabeth. if it Is to part with
you or my pipe. 1 give up the pipe
forever
"What followed Immediately is
more easily imagined than told. In a
few weeks they were married. AS
soon afterward "a the papers could
be made out all of her slaves were
manumitted. and the two were mar.
ried and went west. which meant
Montgomery county. Kentucky.
There my father was born and there
my grandfather spent many years as
a local preacher, rejoining the con-.
ference in 1919, moving later to In.