The Washington herald., 1916-11-04
By MARY MARSHALL.

Nine O'Clock at night in a bed chamber
seems a stronge hour and place for a
Wedding, but that is all a matter of usage
end S9 years ago today when Princess
Mary Of England and her cousin, Prince
William OF Orange were made man and
wife this was not considered at all re-
markable. Mary was l5 and her cousin,
whom she did not care a fig for at that
time, was 25 years old. In fact November
4 was chosen as the wedding day because
1t was the day on which Prince William
completed his 25th year.
The little princess was weeping and had
10 be hurried to the altar by her uncle,
King Charles II. And good reason be-
sides her dislike OF her bridegroom had
she for weeping; for not only was her
sister, the Princess Anne, afterward
Queen Anne, lying prostrate with small
poN, but Mary's governess was dying of
the fatal malady and half the court were
victims of its ravages besides. 1t must.
Indeed, have been a very melancholy
wedding party. But ill-omened as was
the beginning of their married life, Will
lam and Mary did manage to find more
than their quota of happiness in their
life together. William and Mary were
lather better suited for each other than
most royal husbands and wives. though
1t is said that Mary was nearly six feet
in height and her husband so small that
sion together the king took Mary's arm
for greater convenience.
To Americans November is an
especially interesting wedding day,
since it was the one chosen by Abra-
ham Lincoln and his wife, Mary Todd.
in lS42. In spite of the great personal
magnetism apparent even in his youth
IN spite. too. of the fact that Lincoln
always craYed the society and SYM
pathy of women. he does not seem to
have been a successful wooer. The
story of his long courtship and the
final death of Anne Rutledge is too
we'll known to be repeated. Few men
have ever loved so intensely as Lin
coin did at this time. Then there was
the affair with Mary Owens. whom he
promised to wed in jest, and by whom
he was before long released. Il have
come to the conclusion" wrote Lincoln
at this time, never to think of marry
ing for this reason-I never can be
satisfied with any one who would be
blockhead enough to have me-"
Then he met Mary Todd and from
the first meeting he admired her She
was spending the winter with her sis
ter and brOther-in-law at Springfield
and many were her admirers among
the young men of that city. Lincoln
proposed and was accepted, but the
course of this courtship ran anything
but smoothly.
Finally. persuaded that their mar
riage would lead to unhappiness. the
engagement was broken. Then Lin
coin was haunted by a thousand mis-
givings. He feared above all else that
he had not been honorable In breaking
with her. and he appreciated too late
that her society was necessary to his
happiness. IF what I feel were equally
distributed to the whole human fam
fly" he wrote to a friend at this time
there would not be one cheerful face
on earth. To remain as am is i'm
possible. ! must die or get better"
No fancied suffering of a lovesick
youth was this, for Lincoln was 80 and
already deeply interested in his ca
reer. His misery was unfeigned and
genuine and the only cure possible he
secured when he married Mary Todd
the following spring.
That a large amount Of happiness
came to Lincoln as the result of this
marriage cannot be denied, but there
were occasional manifestations of q
lack of complete sympathy. It was
known that when Mrs. Lincoln enter
tanned in the White House profusely
during the civil war the President was
much dIspleased, and even Lincoln
himself admitted in later life that he
had never quite forgotten Anne Rut-
ledge.
tOopyrfxht fTG)