The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-11-12

| remarked, Say this after me- When.
however, l came to the words want
| ed said, he was stOlidly silent. At
last when he saw that 1 was annoyed
by his extreme stupidity, IN the mid
| die of the service he upset my gravity
| by volunteering the following apology:
You see, sir, it's so long since l was
married afOre, that you must excuse
| my forgetting these things"
One man so far forgot what was
| due to himself and his bride that he
came to his wedding intoxicated. The
minister was obliged to refuse to pro-
! eeed with the marriage. A few days
| afterwards the same thing occurred
with the same couple, whereupOn the
minister demonstrated with the bride
and said they must not again present
| themselves with the bridegroom In
such a state-"But sir, he-he Wilma
come when he's sober!' was the can
did rejoinder. 1t is possible that this
! bridegroom, whose courage was so
very Dutch, might have been deferred
| by the impending fuss and publicity If
a marriage ceremony, rather than by
| any fear of, or want of affection for
! her who was to become his wife.
This reminds me of the experience
of a north country clergyman who
was about to marry couple the other
day Just before the ceremony the
| bride came up and informed him, with
tears in her eyes, that her fiance had
forgotten all his money with the ex-
! ception of two shillings. "And
can't let him go home to get the rest
| she added, cor he'll ne'er come back;
| so l was a-thinking that If you'd be
so good and kind as to marry us rs
| far as you can for the two shilings
we'd bring the rest and get it finished
| another time"
In Ireland so much importance is at
tached to u stylish wedding that a girl
remarked she would sell every stitch
off her back and go without anything
rather than not be 'dacently" married
THE SERIOUS SIDE.
But though there undoubtedly is a
comic side to matrimony there is no
reason why some people should al
ways try to be funny when they speak
Of that state. Personally l would
sooner laugh at death than marriage
for the former, at least in this world,
is the end Of all things, but the latter
is only the beginning. Writing about
the seriousness Of marriage and the
folly of fashionable weddings, Mr.
Carlyle used these words: IF ever
We should pray, if ever we should be
grave and anxious. If ever We should
abstain from vain show and vainer
casion when two people are giving
themselves to each other for better,
for worse, until death part them"
What do you think of Inatrimony?'
some one asked Franklin. He reptile d:
Il think as those do who deny purga-
tory; it locally contains either heaven
or hell; there is no third place in it."
This reminds us Of a priest who asked,
when examining a class in the south
of Ireland: What is the sacrament
Of matrimony?" A little girl at the
head Of the class answered, It's u
state of torment into which souls enter
to prepare them for another and
better world" That" said the
curate. sis purgatory; put her down to
the bottom Of the class" Leave her
alone" said the parish priest; ''fOr
anything you cor L know to the con-
trary, she may be perfectly right"
A Scotch girl asked her father leave
to marry. The old Cameronian gave
his consent. but he prefaced it by say.
ing: Its a solemn thing, Jeanne, 10
be married" Il know that" repli
the sensible girl, but it is even more
solemn to be single" Without at
tempting to compare the comparative
solemnfty Of these two states, l think
we shall all admit that marriage is
very solemn thing. It is indeed a
dreadful thing, If at least we may use
the term dreadful" in the sense In
which the patriarch Jacob used it
when he said of that place where be
saw the vision Of angels: How
dreadful Is this place, this is more
other but the house of God, and this is
the gate of heaven" We all know
married couples who make their hona
! the house of God, yes. the very gate
of heaven, but on the other hand there
are almost as many who make it ex.
actly the reverse.
'-ONE THING MORE SOLEMN"
There Is indeed but one thing more
solemn than marriage, and that Is not
to be married, and it Is only because
single people know the Ills they have
that they fly to others they know not
of in marriage. That it is a serious
! thing not to be married Franklin
/ taught, when he made Poor Richard
| say, "a man without a wife is but
half man." This view Franklin ex,
banded as follows to friend: 1T IS
the man and woman united that make
the complete human being. Separate.
! she wants his force Of body and
strength Of reason; he, her softne s.
sensibility and acute discernment.
! Together they are more likely to sue
coed in the world. 4 single man has
not nearly the value he would have in
! the state of union. He is an incOm-
| plete animal He resembles the ODD
half of a pair of scissors If you get
a prudent, healthy wife, your industry