The morning times., 1896-10-18
MADE ONE N 50 SECONDS
.-,s- - s-4s,-a, rs .-a
Marriages Performed al the the
Rate of One a Minute.
KNOT JUST AS STRONG
Remarkable Records Made
By Various Aldermen in
New York City.

The record for quick and easy divorce
| proceedings may be held elsewhere. but
New York wins by several knots an hour
| for speedy marriages
III marry in hpsle and repent at leis-
ure- is a true adage, then quickly married
| New York couples will have more oppor-
tunity Tor ieisurciy repentance than those
IN any other cityyc6 the United States, Tor
II Is here that tie least time is CONSUMED
III The ceremony itself. The 'Mary-,lo-
you-tahe-JOhn jahs.-iC you Ia he Mary once
dollar ceremony of the country squire
| alone is excepted
| or course, one can be welded in New
1ork ;is claborajeiy as the purse permits,
within a bowcrnofiroscs and orangc-blos-
| SONS, TO the strains OF Promise Me"
| upon the great chnrch organ, with brides
malds, chimes and ieaSting nj libituni; but
the municipal marriage bureau does not
provide these accompaDimcnts The mar
rage service as performed by the city
fathers is Il marvel of neatncss a nd despatch.
The knot, however. is of the regulation
pattern and double riveted in every re-
| spect. 1t is brief, but no essential detail
is omitted TO make the bond good for all
time. The participants are lot required
to say anything but the fatal Yes
giving no opportunity for brides to drop
out surreptitiously the word obey" from
the promissory portion, as is occasionally
done In the church service by certain wo-
men of indepe ndent tastes.
The first. step is The Insertion in the
marriage certificate or answers TO certain
| questions respecting the names, pedigrees,
ages, occupations and residences OF the
contracting parties. This preliminary be-
ing satisfactorily arranged. the nearest al
derman suhmoBed, that he may admins
ter the vows and sign his name to the
certificate. ,. ... ,..-s ts
III either of you know OF any impcdi-
ment' rattles OFF the alderman uiiici-t-
! ing, why you may not be lawfully join
| ell together in matrimuny, you will now
confess 1t; or If any person present Can
| show Just cause why these parties should
not be legally welded together in natri-
| mony let him now speak or hereafter
hold his peace. Join right hands, please.
DO you, Benjamin Bolt, take this woman
! as YOUR welded wife 10 live with her in a
| state of nIatrimony, and viii! you love,
| comfort. honor and Keep her as "a faithful
| husband is bound to do, in health and sick
uess, prosperity and adversely, and for
saking all Others keep you alone unto her
as long as both shall Hve?'
| The trembling brlGr Is tnra cd In
| a similar manner. Theu in q single SEN
| tence they are pronounced man and wife.
Time, one minute.
| There are about 200 words in tic cere-
muny, and they can be delivered by an
| ag ie-Iougued Official in about iiity see
opds. leaving ten seconds for his signature
10 lie appended 10 the certificate.
| The conscientious alderman VIII make Il
| few inquiries OF bride and groom to assure
| hiDseif or their legal eligibility, and some
times in cases or previous divorce the dc
| cree of the court grant ing it is required az
| evidence but, scaled down to I he minimum
and divested Of sil superIiuIties, sixty sec
| ondH suffice 10 iniiiatc tie Honeymoon
| Alderman Frederick A Ware can tie
nuptial knots almost as fast as. the ma
teriaI can he presented to him. He pre-
| fers TO make the formaiities as impress
| sive as possible, and is also careful in his
| cross-cxaminatioB as to previous mar
| riages, but If tie necessity for haste arises
| he can perform tfis, service with amazing
| rapidity.
HIS record is five couples out Of a possible
| eight in eight mihutes not oiHitting the
| questioning. y
1t is said that Alderman "Sojer' Flynn
| in his day married -four in eight minutes.
| Thatwns considered fast time, but alderman
| Ware wins by a good margin.
1t takes. .Aldrmah's chidiing eighteen min
utes to dispose uf five cases.
Alderman W. M. K. Olcott recently
| Joined seven Italian couples in thirty five
minutes but that Is no indication uf his
ability. as the ceremony had to be inter
preted for each couple in every instance,
as the English was not perfectly under
| stood.
All nervous grooms who dread the ordeal
| better call upon "Cupid' Carter at the city
| hall marriage bureau, New York. lie can
| give them points on getting married SD
| quickly thai they haven'ttin 80 get scared.
Il was not trying to make record.'
said Mr.. Ware. II don't like to 20
| through with the thing like parrot;
but the five couples were all ready for
me, and I Just happened to notice the
| time. The service is extremely simple, and
| man could marry them off a abont the
| rate of one a minute all day. If they stood
| in u row "