The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-11-27
THE BRIDE AND HER GIFTS.
MORE IND MoRE Duplicates SEEN
TO BE GIVEN TO MN.

Stories Connected with Some of Them.
When buying a wedding gift, look vol TO IL
that You have not given that identical article
tosomc other bride. The extent TO which du-
plicatc presents are made Is something to be
wondered ut, but tho extent to which they are
got rid Of would probably cause thor donors
TO wonder still more. When tho bride writes
to you or dclicatcly tinted, daintily scented
paper that your gift to her was glorlously gor-
gcous and the thing nf all things that she most
louged for, don't pat yourself on tho back and
compliment yourself oil your rare powers OF
selection and excellent taste; don't even be-
lievU q word that she says unless YOU have an
affidavit that no other piece OF silver. jcwelry.
bric-a-brac. or whatever 1t chances to be WINS
ever made like it anywhere in this world. For,
unless this Is the case. before your missive
reaches you your gift. which ha1 cost you so
much anxious thought. time and maybe money
may have been exchanged o. sold outright,
along with a dozen or more Just like it.
This business Of exchanging and selling du-
plicatc wedding gifts Is Ivy no means new. IT
Inns been going on for almost II quarter Of a
century, but it Is getting bigger and bigger
every day. The iewellcr, who was the oriRi-
nator Of the duplicate wedding gift business.
delights to talk about 1t when he can get his
mind Off Of literature and art long enough to
come down to anything so commonplace as
swapping wedding presents.
One learns n great deal about human nature
in buying and exchanging wedding gifts he
said. in response to u question, " and l see and
hear many amusing things. How did / come
TO go in this business Well. away back in
1876 1 was reading THE SuN one day when an
| advertisement OF a sale of misnt carpets caught
\ my eye. 'Misft carpets said to myself. mis-
nj carpets. If misit carpets why not misft we'd
ding prescnts:' and Immediately / advertised
that l would buy and exchange duplicate gifts.
From the first the scheme took well with very
fashionable and rich people. for. after all. they
arc the ones who receive so many duplicate
gifts. II went booming along fairly well. when
one day Il man. who Is now famous In London.
came into my store and said:
Haven't you got an idea for me to-day? l
want to write q story. You know we news.
paper chaps are alway after IDEAS
why, yes said l. YOU can make a readable
article out OF the duplicate wedding gift bust
ness. and l showed him the stock and gave
him all the information / could. The next
morning he cam in bright and early. bringing
me n paper containing his story. In the next
three weeks that article was copied in at least
two or three hundred papers. showing that il had
taken hold of tho people all over the country.
/ began to hear from it from far and near. re-
cciving barrels Of silver from briucs South.
East, North. and West. Tho man who wrote
that article was Harry Marks, to-day n member
of Parliament and an editor OF n financial Jour-
nal, none other than the Harry Marks recently
brought before the public by his connection
with the Hooley ease.
But to get hack to our subject. In buying
and exchanging wedding presents one natu-
rally hears very curious stories, and a romance
revealed in one minute might be drawn out
into a volume by a skilful novelist. Brides, as
- rA,,.n chin, l,r, n -, ta,I - t..o
about their wedding gifts. even il they get q
great many OF one kind. They rarely sell them
outright for cold cash. but prefer to exchange
them. The majority bring them to us soon
after the wedding. though not u few have 80
much sentiment that they keep them
for years before they can make up their
minds to part with what has:been Graciously
lives. In the course OF a day it is not com
to by and exchange barrels Of silver. and
}HTI SM,sn,opSSd = stars a,so ri GAf"p Seforc y dnrr evS tso that ,"n !
bride exchanged for a ring and some silver
s 81 daSoF 6esaq hsrs sGs S9s S9 EsnS c, Diamond anf W Stn r
almost. no business in Nat ware. and by that
mean forks and, spoons. because the family Of
tomary for friends 10 give fancy pieces"
When asked to tell something OF the extent tr
which duplicate wedding gifts are made. he
"A short time ago bought thjrtydozen after;
back enough to supply her needs. and only lassI
week "A newly married woman, from Detroit sold
Is eleven e /, fi n;, cut t.. glass ass bowls toCn b ! 99ee a bon Sl4
received six. and also bought ten solid silver
salad bowls from one person; As ] said. mosI
brides prefer to exchange their gifts rather
than sell them. Occasionally we get hold
Of wedding presents. not always duplicates
flee. One day received . letter from a lawyer
= well-known man down in william street. ask.
me on m business. The next day I Went down
and found him at his desk. He turned imme.
Edward. you and James bring in tina
large trunk from the next room
THE boys returned, staggering under the
key from his pocket the lawyer opened il ant
began taking out piece after,plece OF the mos
"TSome time ago be said. I had a client 70,
whom l had TO get a divorce from her husband
some sns h OF h @T Wedding mddfS II pr pss mhs' and and here Say' the %'
are. I've kept them n long time; thinking tina
s seSe p Mr. a SSpi i w @aY t res sell Chem ehsG TO- yo out Sh'
poor people and those in, moderate circum
ding presents, and indeed that most Of thu
silver sold 10 dealers comes from people VIII
great bulk Of silver and the ereateet number
duplicate gifts come from the wcalfhiest people
r door f"p .R With ! The 81" swe IHy o T"f swefii c c51s, 20 an M
footmen on the box, The footmnn Jumpeddowi
opened tho door and, Two magniAcently dressc,
after looking, about a. bit; asked the price Of
little silver clock which j had bought In Am
stcrdnm the last time | was there. ] told he
> S35. and she Said;
: "'All right III take that Going along tn
a case, she picked out half n dozen articles. say
: ing that she would take them. and thon sh
! said: : BY the way. won't you send your porte
I out TO my carriage and have him bring in som
a silver that liz there
a The porter returned with three OF the hand
D sOmest solid salad bowls I've ever seen any
where and she asked me how much I woul
: give her for them, ] told her $50. md the diff
4 ference between that and tho cost Of the thing
She lad Just nurchased was s75, / had jus
/: made a deposit in the bank and didn't hay
= enough cash to give her. so | asked il She
: take Il check. She said Of course she would
! and when ] asked her name TO make IL on
Imagine my surprise when she save me tn
4 She caught my expression and laughingly, said
5 81 received nine big silver salad bowl
: among ms wedding presents. Don't yon thin
, TINT six are enough =
My answer was. Il certainly do, and Idon
. blame you for turning them into goods such n
\ plies to every other bride"
: Are not these duplicate Glfta frnduentl
Q marked with the monogram o. full name OF I'll
{ ownrry' was asked.
: Yes, but we have II process Of rclniShin
. silver 80 TINT no N'Stige Of engraving Is visible.