The Helena independent., 1891-01-21
TRADING IN MARRIAGES.
Americas Gretna Green is Located
in the State Of New
Jersey.
Tho Olcrgymen Divide With Hack
men Who Bring Them We'd
ding Couples.
An Effort to be Made to Have the Lcgis-
laturo Put an End to tho
Traffic.

TRENTON, N. j., Jan. 16.-New Jersey il
still the Gretna Green of the Union. The
annual report Of the state bureau Of vital
statistics, recently issued, proves this fact.
The license laws Of other states in this part
of the nation send hundreds Of couples to
Jersey, where the matrimonial knot is tied
with neatness and dispatch by some clergy
man or one Of few justices Of the peace
who make a speciality of marriages. Cam
den is still the favorite, and is really the
spot 10 be named. as it was some time ago,
the American Gretna Green.
The rush Of bridal parties to this state
began In 1886. That was the year when the
marriage license law went into effect in
Pennsylvania. Camden began its matri-
monial boom At once, as the figures show.
Being just across the Delaware from Phil
adelphia, those desiring to wed, unable
or unwilling to procure license in the
Quaker City, can cross on the ferry for two
cents head and have the marriage cere-
mony performed quietly and quickly. In
1885 the marriages returned from Camden
we're only GA. The number jumped in 1886
to 2,739. In 1887 there were 4,0l2 couples
united in Camden, record of whose mar
were doubtless some weddings that were,
for peculiar reasons, nnrecorded. In 1883
the number increased to &, 140, which is the
best matrimonial year on record in ary
city in the land having even ten times the
population Of Camden. The returns fell
OF somewhat in 1889, the couples united in
Camden amounting to 1856. Last year the
market doomed egain, however, as there
were ,621 marriages.
There were 1864 marriages in the entire
state Of New Jersey last year. Camden had
nearly one-third of them, although the pop
Of the population Of the state. This shows
the trade that Hymen did by way Of the
ferry. Phillipsburg and Trenton catch
some Of the matrimonial tourists, because
they are connected by bridges with the
Pennsylvania shore, but the percentage is
bridal COUPLES from other places who were
united in Camden, Trenton and Phillips
burg alone last year were 4.1S7. There are
q few small towns along the Delaware at
various points. such as Frenchtown, Lam
bertville and Milford, where some Keystone
to say there were 4,300 outside couples mar
ried in New Jersey in the year 1880: Ger
tainly no commonwealth in these United
States can match this record.
The influx Of wedding parties to Camden
has caused great deal of scandal and
forts being made to stop the increasing
trade. One clergyman has made regular
business Of marriages and has advertised
himself in that connection. The facts were
brought out when Assemblyman WoOlman,
of Camden, presented marriage license
bill at the last session of the legislature.
The minister in question put sign con-
spicuously on the front Of his residence and
remained constantly at home to attend to
the mob of customers. He married one
couple in the sitting room, while the later
comers waited in the parlor. They took
one couple out the door and pocketed the
fee, called out Next" after the manner Of
a barber's shop. So eager was the minister
to do big trade that he made an arrange
ment with the hackmen at the ferry by
which he divided the money he got out Of
him. He is said to have made over 5000
year out of tho business. prominent
Methodist minister in Camden WAS severely
criticised about year ago for the number
of marriage knots he tied.
The measure for marriage license failed
to pass the legislature last year, and one Of
the principal causes of its defeat was the
lobbying done by Camden clergymen and
BY persons living at nearly every point di-
rectly opposite and accessible to PenIsyl-
vania. The presence OF and petitions of
these ministers caused a great deal of
COIHmeut Ut Ine Llme. AnOtnef e1oft Is TO
be made in the course of ths legislative sas-
sion that begins here at the state house next
week. All the Camden representatives have
been instructed to do all in their power to
secure the passage of a license law. Reput-
able clergymen from other portions of the |
state desire the enactmsnt of measure
that will stop the scandalous features of
this modern Gretna Green traffic. 1t is
stated on good authority that the parsons
and justices who have reaped such boun- |
tiful harvest during the past four years
will combine and, if necessary, spend money
to kill any license bill that may be intro
duced. 1t is rumored that quite promi- |
nent lobbyist has been retained in the in
terest of the opposition of license.