Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1890-10-23
The History of Marriage,

he coming entertainment to be given
for the Massachusetts, Woman Suffrage
Association, The History of Mar
rage" as drama Of the centuries.
will teach the great lesson CT the pro-
grcss Of woman through the ages.
Many persons DO not realize how far
back some OF our present customs date.
nor how interesting is their origin.
For instance, the word wedding is
derived from the wed" or security
which the Anglo Saxon groom gave to
the trustees to prove that lie should
perform his part Of the contract. 1t
was necessary to have trustee APP
pointed. because, after the world be-
came civilized enough not to have the
wives captured and carried off by
force, the fathers became corrupt aud
made contracts with many prospective
sons-in-law, and received from them
money. or what was called foster lean.
Then. when the wedding-dav came,
the fsther could only give the bride to
one husband. and vet he kept all the
fp,'er cans which he had been able to
collect. Daughters in those DAYS were
a source Of income, as their work be-
longed to the father. and every hus-
band expected to pay for his wife
The symbol of domestic authority
was the shoe, and the father gave this
10 the bridegroom. He then became
the brides owner. Having paid the
price, he tapped her lightly upon the
head a. a token that she was his prop
erty. The throwing Of the slipper also
comes down from the Saxons, aud has
the same meaning. The custom Of the
best man is very ancient, dating back
10 the heptarchy.
The ancient Roman betrothal was a
! curious ceremony. The bride and
groom ate together a cake composed OF
farina, salt and water These three
materials, kneaded together aud baked
SO that the parts could not be separa-
ted. were intended 10 symbolic the
indissoluble union Of marriage.
Perhaps the most interesting feature
Of q japanese wedding is the butter
flies that perform the part Of master OF
ceremonies. The insect Is supposed to
be an emblem Of coniugal felicity. and
the two most intimate friends OF the
bride. in their dress and manner imi-
tate during the wedding tete by airy
fitting from group to group the move
ments OF this charming symbol.
The Jewish wedding. in which the
bride walks three times around the
groom. and then is placed at his right
hand and drinks with him from a COB
let which he dashes in pieces, also
symbolizes the indissoluble union.
Ia the tableau representing the
Gretna Green marriage. Joseph Pals
ley. the most notorious man in Scot
land. is to appear; but he will hardly
claim as much attention as the dainty
bride, who will be dressed in a gown Of
the time of her Observation-Disclosures.
In the American tableau, the red
skinned uncle who gives away Poca-
hontas will wear a scalp jacket with a
grewsome history. This jacket was
the property of an Indian chief. who
gave it TO an American army officer as
token of his regard. II is made of
buckskin and trimmed with porcupine
quilts, and fringe of human hair
made from forty scalps adorns it. This
trophy has been lent by the son of the
officer for this brilliant occasion. Moe
casins also. which were the gift of the
renowned Spotted Tail, will be worn
in this tableau.
The costumes have been made es-
pecially for this entertainment, and
many of them are gorgeous in cooring
and design 1t is said that the whole
entertainment will be one of the most
artistic ever given in Boston Tile
Woman's Column.
CHARLOTTE H. ALLEN.