Connecticut western news., 1908-10-22
Plot and CounterpIot.

Jim Pickering and Marcia Kyle. were as popular duo as ever graced city social set. When they became en- gagged the girls all said How lovelyf' and tn" men said "A pair of bricks" 1t was to be expected that they would be married in fine style and would re- ceive multitude of presents. They decided, however, to confine their in- vitations to their intimate friends and make an old fashioned jollification of it. Even this narrow limit took in some two hundred people, but there were plans among those invited to have a rare time. It was proposed by one group to kidnap the bride and groom and take them far out of their way on their wedding trip. Another group planned to give them what is called in the country n charivari-that. Is, to collect under their windows aud serenade them with all kinds of dis cordant music. Another feature was to follow them footing horns.
 But the groom and bride were also. busy planning. How should they es- cape all these traps set for them and
  pers? Many plans were discussed, but laid aside as impracticable. One was to procure un automobile with m cx- pcricnccI chauffeur to distance their pursuers. Another was to hide some where In the house till the guests, weary of hunting for them, would give ED the attempt to ficd them.s No conh- donce was placed in being nhlc to lose their purSucrs on the road. and, as to. hiding in house with zoo eager searchers to turn 1t inside out, such scheme wGs manifestly Impossible.
 There was one avenue of escape. which they did not lit upon till the last moment. though 1t was tho sim- nlest Grd most practicable of all. For tunately for them they thought of it in time to put 1t Into practice.
 "The guests were met, the feast was set" "'lro hundred young men and woanen--there was not an old person among them except from the immedl- ate families of the bride and groom witnessed the ceremony, many of them on tiptoe of excitement, to put in prac- tice some plan by which 10 turn tho wedding night Into n carnival. Then there were the usual kisses for the bride md groom from members of their respective families, after which the boys and girls passed before them. offering their congratulations After this came the drinking of the health of the bride in the supper room and lastly the usual disappearance up- tof nf fIa0 fod fS. don travelling suits preparatory to be- ing driven to the station.
 The hour was 10 o'clock at night. The gfoom's dressing room was on the top floor of the house. the brides on the next floor below When the bride was ready she mounted to the floor above, where the groom awaited her. Together they ran up ladder way to the scuttle, pushed 1t aside and stood on the roof. The house was in block of houses of nearly equal height. Pickering jumped down over the cop ing and handed down his bride, and to- gether they ran over half dozen roofs, vainly trying to find an open scuttle. till they reached the seventh house away.
 Now. there had been frequent rob- berries of late in that part of the city, and people were on the lookout for thieves. Hearing footsteps on his roof, an occupant of one of the houses the couple passed over telephoned for the police, and in less than three miI- utes patrol wagon full of cops drove up to the front door in question. Being informed that robbers were on the roof who would doubtless seek an egress through one of the houses, the block was surrounded. A police man went into each of the houses and upstairs to receive the thieves when they should come through the scuttlc. The consequence was that when the welded pair stepped down on to the top floor of the house they entered. in- tending to explain matters to the oc- cupants and then secure their indul- gence and cooperation, they walked into the arms of policeman.
 A policeman is matter of fact in- dIvidual, utterly devoid of humor, sympathy or any of the attributes re. quired on this occasion. Pickering eX- plained. He told the cop what flnc joke they were playing-all to no purpose. They were informed that they could tell their story to the ser geant at the desk nt the station. There was but one alternative-to request to be taken back to tho house from which they had escaped. Pickering suggest ed this course to his bride.
 What! Go back there to be laughed atl Neverr'
 "Well have to pass our bridal night in q celI.''
 "l'll pass it In n fiery furnace rather than face that crowd in charge of q policeman" ...
 The terror of 1t was in riding to the station ia the open patrol wagon. They got there without being rccor- nized. Pickering told his story to the sergeant and was informed that lie must not only be identified as re- spectable person, but prove that hc had just been married. The bride kept her pluck till they were about to be matched to separate cells, then