The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1910-08-01
The Wedding Day
A Tale Of New Amsterdam
By HELEN INCIEHART
Copyright. 1910. by American Press
Association.

There lived in the town of New Am
sterdam, which is now the great city
of New York. q Dutchman-they We're
all Dutchmen there then-named Peter
Van Gaasback. Peter had a daughter.
Katrina. whose eyes were as blue as
the vault of heaven. whose cheeks
were like two roses floating in Il pan
of milk and whose hair hung down her
back like lovely woven flax rope.
Now, there were a people not far to
the east of New Amsterdam who were
of English extraction and of an entire
~ different makeup from the Dutch.
These were the Yankees Whenever
the two peoples met for trade-they
never met for anything else except TO
fght-the Dutchman invariably went
home with nothing. while the Yankee
had twice as much as be had before
1t is not to be wondered that the for
mer hated the latter
Pardon I.ancdon. the Yankee who
had won Kairinas young heart. was q
long. lean. hungry looking youth who
walked with a slouchy gait. drawled
his words and did not appear to know
enough to go under cover when it
rained. Nevertheless he was not to
be shaken from his purpose to marry
Katrina despite the refusal of her IA
Their and mother and the principal citi-
Zens of New Amsterdam. These rrin-
cipal citizens. including her father
met to take measures to prevent the
rnhhorv nF nf no
Of their lassieS by Yankee and her
transfer to the cabbage fields of Con
necticut. A great deal OF schnapps
was consumed. and many pounds of
tobacco were smoked-for q Dutch,nan
could not deliberate without both when
the council came to the conclusion that
the best way to prevent Katrina's mar
rying a Yankee was TO marry her to a
Dutchman.
No sooner was this decision reached
than every unmarried man present put
forward a claim for the position of
Katrina's husband. whereupon her
father announced that she should be
welded to the man among them who
could show the largest number of pelt-
r1es-fOr that was the sole business of
the town-and old Dietrich Van Grin
Gle. some sixty years old. baldheaded
and with the palsy. having shown that
he owned more skins than any other,
was selected to save Katrina to the
community.
This was too much for Katrina 5
mother. who from this time sided with
her daughter. But Katrina's mother
was the stupidest woman in New Am
sterdam. Katrina told Pardon Lang,
don all that had happened and that
she was to be forced to marry old Van
Crincle on the fifteenth day Of June
coming. Pardon told Katrina to per
suade her father to promise her that
! If she was not married to Dietrich Van
Crincle on the 18th Of June. 16i7. she
should not be forced to marry him al
all, but should be permitted to marry
| whomsoever she liked. Katrina. aided
by her mother. spent week persist
emily entreating the old man to grant
this request, and he. worn out by their
opportunities. finally gave in. But h.
told Van Crincle what he had done
and warned him to surely be on hnnt
! on the appointed day to claim his
bride.
When Katrina reported the success:
| of her and her mothers work done
upon her father he told her to tell bel
| mother to meet him that night at tn,
base of the tower wherein was tht
, town clock. The mother did SO. ant
Pardon. opening the door for her. tol,
| her to 60 up and set the clock bacl
| twenty four hours. This was done. ano
Pardon instructed her that on the 1.tl
of June she should tell her husband
what she had done.
! The result of all this was that OIL
the morning Of the appointed weddin:
Peter Van Gaasback called the council
together, told them Of his promise Il
his daughter. of his wife's turning tn
clock back twentyfour hours. and tina
| Katrina now claimed that the day 70
the wedding had passed. What shoui'
he do?
Anthony Ten Brock. the cleares
headed man in New Amsterdam. ARCS
and attempted to prove that. thong
| the clock had been turned back
day. no day had been lost But h
| became involved in his own argUmen
| and sat down in confusion. Other
| endeavored to set the matter right. bu
| met with no better success than lie
| Brock Then the bridegroom eXpec
| ant attempted to show that the da
appointed for the nuptials had arrived
but he only succeeded in provin. tha
| q day had been lost by the turniu
back of the clock and 1t was now til
| 10th Of June. AS the sChnaQpS an
| tobacco smoke mounted to the brain
| of the Dutchmen the confusion b,
came greater. and the debate lasted 5
| long that some of them went to Slecl
while others went home to Dime
After dinner the discussion continue
till it began to grow dark. and all Wei
home to supper and to bed.
The next morning Katrina went
her father and claimed that the l5t
Of the month had passed while Il
council were debating and she We
now entitled to marry whom 81
pleased.
The old man was satisfied that
was now at least the 18th of Il
month. and he was not quite sure b
it was the nth katrinaS mother =
so mixed in her calculations that h
reckoning was lost entirely. The t
Their. being satisfied that whatever ";