Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1896-12-25
ODD WEDDINGS.
Freaks Who Havo Been Joined
Together in Wedloclg
One Couple Married by Proxy While
Thousands OF Miles Apart = Some
of the Queer Franks of
Cupid.

The conventional idea Of wedding
| does not agree with the tastes of some
people, and occasionally very eccentric
and sometimes romantic marriage
ceremonies are solemnized. Men and
women entirely opposite in disposition
| and character frequently unite in the
holy bonds of matrmony sometimes
much to their mutual regret. This
| peculiar fact, it would seem, also APP
| piles to oddities of human nature. In
many of the travelling shows the freaks
who help to draw money from the pub
lie intermarry, and it is not an unusual
thing to find the fat man welded tothe
skeleton woman, and the tuttooed man
| to the bearded lady.
Mrs, Hannah Battersby, who at one
| time toured the country as Il fat woman,
was married to Pennsylvania man,
and it is stated as curious fact that no
sooner were they married than she be-
gan to lose flesh and he to gain it. His
weight increased so rapidly that he soon
| took to exhibiting himself as fat man.
An exception to this rule of contrast,
however, was Col. Glover, the giant,
who stood six feet seven inches. He was
welded to Martha Peabody. the Ameri-
can giAntess. Several years ago, when
they appeared in public together, they
used to receive as much as $3.50 a week.
The italian consular agent at Gin
cinnati performed the most peculiar
marriage ceremony on record. The
groom was well-to-do resident of the
Ohio city and his bride lived in Italy
The contracting parties were thousands
of miles apart when the wedding was
performed, the marriage being by
proxy. The consul filled in a blank
certificate, which he forwarded to au-
thorities in Italy. who in the presence
of the parish priest exhibited it before
the bride, who affixed her signature,
| accepting it as her action. The mar.
riage was perfectly binding.
\ very similar ceremony was per-
formed some time ago. The affair took
place by proxy, and Miss Maple was
married by Il clergyman in New York to
man who at the ime of the marriage
lay dying in Texas town. The bride
groom was represented in the cerc-
mony by the brides cousin, who made
the necessary responses and signatures
as mis- proxy. The two lovers had been
engaged for long time, and Miss Maple
wished to bear the name of her be-
trothed even though she could do so
only as a widow.
The all-important ring is sometimes
forgotten. and in more than one case
the door key of the church has had to do
duty. but it is not often that portions Of
the marriage service are omitted. In
a southern town, however, n little while
ago, after the party had left the church
it was discovered that the clergyman
had forgotten the words. with this
ring thee we'd, etc, thus relieving
the bridegroom OF the most serious
part OF ms Obligations, and the fair
pflde was minus wedding ring. In
stead OF sIttIng down to breakfast the
party hurried hack to the church and
were tluS practIcaIiy married twice in
one day
Cupid ran amuck some time ago
among the old folk of Georgia town.
An ola soldier, rs years of age, led to the
altar an aged damsel who had seen ~
summers Ihere were three brides
lh"lues' whose ages respectively were
w. % ana 49, 1hey were all splnsters.
Inc Dest man. who was 20, brought
the combined ages up to 423 years.
An unusual kind of marriage was
celebrated in New York recently. This
was between couple both deaf and
dumb, They held prayer books while
friend pointed out the different
passages in the service as they yere
spoken by the clergyman, and they
made the customary responses in the
deaf and dumb alphabet.
An ingenious couple once conceived
the idea of being married by phono-
graph. In the place where the bride
groom resided he and the minister went