The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1901-03-19
SMOCK MARRIAGES.
Instances In Maine of Custom That Pre-
vailed In England Century Ago.

| Instances In Maine of Custom That Pre-
vailed In England Century Ago.
A Bangor lawyer attending court in
the ancient town of Wiscasset Me-,
went rummaging recently in the colonial
court records of the place and in the
course of his reading ran across the
official registration of "smock mar
riage." Not knowing what sort OF mar
riage that was he looked further and
got considerable light upon custom
that prevailed in England century or
two ago and also to some extent in the
American colonies.
Smock marriages were weddings
where the bride appeared dressed in a
white sheet or chemise. The reason Of
such a garb was the belief that if
| man married woman who was in debt
be could be held liable for her indebted
ness if he received her with any of her
property, and also that if woman mar
ried man who was in debt his credit
ors could not take her property to salts
fly their claims if he received nothing
from her. In England, says an antigua
rian, there was at least one case where
the bride was clothed puris naturalibus
while the ceremony was being per-
formed in the great church at Birming-
ham. The minister at first refused to
perform the ceremony, but finding moth
ing in the rubric that would excuse him
he married the pair.
To carry out the law fully as the peo-
pie understood it the ceremony should
always have been perform ed as it was
in the Birmingham church. But modes
ty forbidding, various expedients were
and yet avoid the undesirable features.
Sometimes the bride stood in a closet
and put her hand through hole in the
door. Sometimes she stood behind a
cloth screen and put her hand out at
one side, again she wound about her a
white sheet furnished for the purpose
by the bridegroom, and sometimes she
stood in her chemise or smock. Even
tually. in Essex county at least, all i'm
modesty was avoided by the bride
groom's furnishing to the bride all the
clothes she wore, retaining title to the
same in himself. This he did in the
presence of witnesses. that he might
prove the fact in case be was sued for
any debts she might have contracted. A
marriage of this kind occurred at Grad
ford in 1888, and the following is a true
copy of the record of the same:
BRADFORD, Dec We "a, 1913.
This may certif1e whomsoever it may con-
cerne that James Bailey of Bradford who was
married to the widow Mary Bacon Nov % last
past by me We subscriber then declared that he
took the said person without anything of es-
tate and that Lydia the wife of Eliazer Burbank
g Mary the wife of Thomas Stickney & Mar
garet the wife of Caleb Burbank all of Brad
ford were witnesses that the clothes she then
had on were of his providing g. bestowing upon
her
WILLIAM BALcH, Minister of We Gospel.
It is noted by the same writer that in
all cases of smook marriages that have
come to his knowledge the brides have
been widows.
1t is thought that during the reign Of
George III there were many smock mar
riages in Maine, then part OF the prov
ince of Massachusetts Bay, chiefly in
Lincoln and York counties or in the ter
ritory which is now so known. There is
nothing TO show that the practice out
lived the Revolution. In Maine up to
1862 a husband was liable for debts of
his wife contracted before marriage,
and no such subterfuge as the smock
marriage could relieve him.-New York
Sun.