The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-02-08

tainty affirm The feelings of the young
people are not greatly disturbed by what
happens In these cases / had interesting
proof of IL little while ago, when l was
called upon to congratulate a youthful
couple who had gone through the ordeal
at o'clock. An hour later L met them
at Washers cake shop. In what Is called
the lane" and so little had her unique
experience disturbed the equanimity OF the
young woman that she was enabled to take
eleven chocolate cellars and three cups OF
chocolate. topped with couple OF pickled
cucumbers. as a light provision against the
fatigucs of a visit 10 the music hall. That
she ate an excellent supper later can also
assert. for / had the privilege OF an invi-
tation as friend OF the Shadkhen. A half
hour at the pastry cooks and an evening
at the theater or variety hall is the correct
thing in the East End after meeting at
the marriage brokers' on approval.
SETTLING THE DOwRY.
The agreement OF the young people is
only, however. a preliminary TO the real
business of the Shadkhen. The all important
question of the "Nedann." or dowry. has
to be arranged, so as to permit the draw
ing up of the betrothal contract prior to
the betrothal party. And it is here that
the brokers' troubles commence. Nor do
they terminate for him until the bridegroom
is safe under the 'Khupa," or bridal canopy
used when the marriage ceremony is per-
formed. Tie dowry is always a sine qua
non. Rich or poor the intended husband
insists on something with his promised wife.
Now, the father OF a girl never under any
circumstances. gives more than half what
is specified in the contract made. The
bridegroom invariably insists upon twice as
much being sent down as he thinks he Is
on the wedding morning before going
under the khupa. 1t is an understood
thing, too, that the father-in-law will trade
OFF what he can OF the dowry TO AVOID
paying casn, or do ...s son-in-law out or
as large a proportion of it as he safely can
Hence the point of a story which Reb
Moishe, like others of his craft, is fond OF
A Jew, known to be in poor circumstances
was making round of the country, after
the old fashion, collecting small sums from
wealthy co-retgionists toward his daugh-
ter's dOwry. A poor friend met him. and
inquired what he was travelling for. well, y
he replied, my daughter is engaged, but
Ave hundred marks" why don't you give
him two hundred and fifty, said the other,
land do him out of the other half?' That
is exactly what l mean TO do was the re-
tort. And how much" resumed the poor
friend, have you got toward the dowry?'
Said the worthy father, Il have got the
two hundred and fifty out of which 1 mean
to do the young man." And so it is. If a
Jewish East Ender agrees to pay nifty
pounds Nedann. the son-in-law expects
| Internationally, of which, in all Likelihood,
in goods, or in promissory notes OF uncer-
tain value as negotiable securities. Only
on one OCCASION, said Reb Moishe to me
reflectively, do / remember man paying
the whole dowry of one hundred pounds as
agreed. He paid it to the bridegroom be-
| fore the ceremony, half in a check and
| half In three months bill. The young
man was half crazy with delight, for the
| girl was rather a 'Meesnik,' that is to say,
| not exactly Venus. But the next day he
| found the father-in-law had drawn his
hn1n hon sY,oaH n n
| bankrupt, before the week was out. That
| comes" concluded Reb Moishe. 'of doing
| things contrary TO custom in such matters.
| When the dowry is finally settled, and the
| intended son-in-law knows exactly how
| much he is likely to be done out of, the be-
| trothal contract is drawn up, sealed by the
| contracting parties, and the tenoyim, OF
| formal betrothal, takes place at the bride $
| home, or at the ShadkhenS place, If more
| convenient. The ceremony is attended by
1 all the women, old, middle-aged and young
whom the brides family can induce to be
| present, and each brings with her cup
mug. jug or basin of china-something. in
| fact, that can easily be shattered. Then
| the Shadkhen appears in his glory, as he
| reads out the old world phrases of the con-
| tract in the mixed neo-Hebraic and Ara
mean dialect employed in such documents
| AS he conclues and all say Amen, the
women take out the china articles they
| have brought, and there is a simultaneous
| crash and smash as they are thrown forci-
bly, on the floor and broken in pieces, amid
1
| May the planet be propitious." a form OF
| congratulation dating from the days of the
belief in stellar influences. But even now
| the Shadkhens business is not over, or his
| trouble ended. The bridegroom-elect is sus-
picious, and the father-n-law is apt to be-
| tricky. So the poor broker has to go to and
fro, keep his eyes upon both parties, coax
one and humor the other, until the morning
| of the wedding. And then comes the hard
| est task of ALTO that the dowry i:
| paid down, and that the bridegroom j:
ready for the ceremony. Not infrequently
| the young man refuses to leave his house
until the cash or its equivalent is paid over
On one occasion, Reb Moishe relates, the
! groom refused to get up from bed AND
dress until he had received an extra five
| and-twenty per cent. on the agreed dowry
| In another case, the Shadkhen tells me
with a distinctly goyish or Christian winl
of the eye, young man in Hull took thu
| money paid down, called for a cab ant
drove off, not to the synagogue where al
were waiting for him, but to the docks
where he took the packet for Hamburg
and left the poor bride "shteien," stuck, a.
the expressive phrase of the synagogue
| has it.
Such are some of the experiences of tn
Jewish marriage broker. If he pockets hi
little commission on an affair he has ar
ranged, ii must be conceded that he ha
done a good deal to earn it,