South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-03-06
Unused Marriage License
= Mystery Hides Tales OF
Many Blasted R0m1anCeS
Twentysx Wedding Certificates Fail Appear St Joseph
County Records Till Memory Jogging Explains All But
Ten -Knot-Tieing Ministers Relate Humor-
- Matrimonial Incidents

pay, so they could start down the
matrimonial river with no debts
dragging their skim into the mire.
Consequently. the minister had 10
be content with a much obliged. "
Figures Bible Not Needed.
The telephone bell jingled at
certain preachers home one morn
ing. and a mans voice at the other
end Of the wire asked that he come
over 20 perform a marriage Cc-c-
mony. You won't need 20 bring a
Bible he said. my wife C-be is "A
Christian woman and has a bible of
hsr own" Evidently ne thought
that the words 81 pronounce YOU
man and wife" We're read from the
Bible
a young man and woman. each q
years old. rang tho same minister's
door bell one day and asked 30 be
married. The customary questiors
We're asked before the ceremony w-s
| performed.
I Were YOU ever married before %
he asked tho young man.
"Ycs, WAS the reply.
] Divorced"
/ Yes
Turning to the young woman. he
/ asked the same questions and re-
plies "How is this" the minister
/ asked that YOU have both been
married before and divorced and now
you want TO marry again2 You
seem rather young to have gone
| through so much"
wei. YOU see. doctor. we were
married TO each other divorced, and
now want to remarry."
The ceremony was performed ard
the minister states that they were
( apparently one of the happiest Cou-
pies he has ever married. The
/ groom's feet TO the minister was
liberal as were his gifts to the wit
nesses, so happy was he to be re-
married
One Suggests InstalIment Plan.
Not quite so generous was the fee
Of the middle-aEed woman who pre-
scented herself at the minister's door
with a middle-aCed man on her
arm. After the ct pronounce you"
the woman asked what the fee was.
ON being told that there WAS no
I fixed charge. that it depended upon
the free wiz Of the giver. the woman
opened her purse and presented to
the minister S125 Ecclesiastics
would go 10 the poor house if they
had to depend or marriage fees. par
ticularly if the Gree will' Of the
giver could not be stretched any fur
Their than five silver quarters. tt is
quite probable that the woman did
the proposing. as the marriage hap
pened in Leap Year.
Even at that. the woman who
opened her heart and purse - the
extent of S1.25 was more generous
than the man who after the cere-
mOny. promised to pay a certain fee
on the installment plan. "I'H iust
pay a dollar now" he said. because
we want to take n little trip. When
we come back IN pay you the rest -
Hard times or a loss Of memory
must have seized the couple. as they
haven't been heard from since.
DisiUUsions Lark Seekers.
One evening two couples, more
, than slightly intoxicated. entered the
office of a local justice of the peace
z Z
r They must have decided that &
would he a lark. when the justic,
was ready to marry them, they start
ed to quarrel both men wanting Il
] marry the same girl The scene
81 ended by their tearing up their mar
J riaSe licenses and hastily departing
at the request Of the Justice
A marriage license issued by tn,
p clerk last June never turned up unit
} January. The bride-to-be had sud
D denly become in and had gone f,
2 her home i'm a small Illinois town E,
Z | rccuperatc. After several months
p illness. which proved more seriou
q than at FIRST expected. the youni
r woman returned and the .marriag
< / took place I'M January.
Nearly everyone has seen picture
r or cartoons of a young couple elop
S ing. followed by irate parents or pa
a . rent who wildly gestiCulate for n
u couple to stop. The parents them