Iron County register., 1900-03-08
LOVES QUAINT sNAREs.
some Queer OId-Time Country Cusa
TENS of Bucks County, Penn
syIvania.

Time and progress have obliterated
many of the social customs that were
established in the colony that Penn
founded. In the county of Bucks,
where many of Penn's descendants re-
side, and where he owned vast tracts of
land, the ancient customs appertain-
ing to courtship and marriage are still
largely observed.
First of all, the country swain is not
qualified to pay court to the girls of his
Leighborhood until he has horse and
carriage, and that is generally hisafirst
possession, either by gift from his IA
ther or the result of the boarding of
small savings. The team acquired, the
young man is prepared to become the
lover. He drives usually, not to some
girls house, but to church or pubic
gathering of both sexes, where he picks
out a maiden who suits his fancy, and if
she has not an escort, and is willing, he
drives her home, and that is the open
ing for future calls and drives.
Then, too, the team comes in advan-
tageously during the Sunday School
picnic season, the woods meetings con-
Quoted by the Methodist churches, and
for dance parties and other social occa-
sions.
The wooer's team has in the past been
the cause of much worriment on certain
occasions. Some evening, when he was
spending the time pleasantly in the
house of his sweetheart, his friends,
having located him, proceeded to take
the carriage apart and carry the sec
tions to the roof of the barn or other
outbuilding, or, perchance, on top of a
haystack, and there put the vehicle to-
gether. The wooer, coming for his team
after the last lingering farewell to the
object of his alteration, would be
amazed to see his carriage in the place
where his tormentors had left it. His
alternative was to walk home or be-
stride his horse and return the next
day for his carriage, meanwhile being
the subject of merciless raillery.
Sometimes the prank took the form
of reversing the wheels of the carriage,
placing the rear higher wheels in front
and the lower front wheels in the place
of the rear. Again, the horse might be
unhitched from the carriage and placed
back in the shafts with its head toward
abolished, however, as they became so
annoying that arrests resulted, and the
fun" was discontinued.
Presuming that the courtship has
progressed satisfactorily to all parties
concerned, the wedding is the next
step. Real country weddings are some
times celebrated with considerable
eclat, but the primitive customs still
prevail in the rural communities in
Bucks county. The young man quits
work a little earlier than usual on
afternoon mutually agreed
upon and drives to the home of the
bride-elect, who goes with him to
clergyman, or a justice of the peace,
sometimes a distance from home in or
der to keep the event a secret for a time,
and they are made man and wife.
They return to the brides home,
where her husband leaves her and he
goes back and finishes his weeks work.
Or, possibly. he takes supper with the
brides family, and, then, woe betide
him if news of his wedding has spread
abroad. That means a serenade by his
male acquaintance, who make deaf
CHING IOlSc DN al SUI - VI III
cans, footing horns, etc. A favorite in
strument for such an occasion is dry
goods box upon which rosin has been
literally sprinkled, and then a fat
fence rail as fiddle bow is used.
The noise is endured as long as posi-
BILE. Then the bridegroom steps to the
front door and invites the calithump-
ians, as they are called, inside, and sup
plies refreshments, or he gives them
sum of money and they speed to the
nearest tavern to regale themselves at
their friends expense.
Some times it was the custom to
watch for the bride and bridegroom on
their first drive after the wedding and
stretch a rope across the highway and
hold up" the couple until the demand
ed price was paid. This money, too,
went for tipple at the nearest public
house.
All this has changed where more
modern ideas prevail, but the cali
thumpian band still exists in even the
more refined communities.-N. Y.