The Denver Jewish news., 1923-09-06
Tel. Mali, Ss7s

We are at the preliminary festivities
of an orthodox Jewish wedding in pre-
war Russian Poland. The prelude is
staged in the spacious parlor Of the
brides home in typical provincial
town in the midst of the warm colors
and dramatic setting dictated by the
haIlowed traditions of the race. The
bridesmaids are here in force, giving
the final touches to the central tableau
which the leading character, the
bride, is sitting in state on the chair
of honor in all the glory Of her bridal
gown. She is sitting here under the
admiring gaze Of the guests awaiting
the yelling ceremony. The wedding
band of provincial musicians are here
to a man, lined up around the bride
with their Instruments In position
From time to time the tension Is broken
by the yYowl Of violin string under
the temperamental pinch Of its masters
finger. The double bass groans in the
painful, low.pitched plant, and Yankel
snothers his impatience In the silvery,
rolling response Of his clarinet to his
tuning up.
The wedding bard is also here and
ready to do his part. But the inter-
minable wait has set his nerves a-ting-
ling down to his finger tips. These
finger tips Of his are piucking and
twitching away at his racial goatee-
that poor little tapering bunch OF
beardlike, nervous, jerky strands franz
ing the restless and bony minstrel chin
-as II to vent all their irate fury on
this innocent tnft.
But the bridegroom with the silken
yelling cloth is not yet in sight. His
absence acts like n wet blanket upon
the festive company. All become de-
pressed and gloomy. The mother OF
the bride Is sulky and restless. Her
angry scow1 suggests some grave trouble
with the bridegroom, but nobody knows
Just what it is all about. The poor
bride tortured by dark forebodings OF
her usaiden dreams cruelty blasted, is
sitting and waiting, pale and trembling
in An agony of shame, with her eyes
and face buried in her hands to hide
the rush Of hot tears and smother the
sobs convulsing her frail, delicate
frame. The girls, overcome by pity
for the bride, are doing their best to
cheer her up and dipel the all-pervad.
ing gloom. They laugh and rOmp and
shout in transports of glee, calling upon
the band to play. But the musicians
on their part, are sunk in brown
study tinged by fear and worry at the
| loss of the money staring them in the
| face in case the match is called off
They chase off the bevy of girls with
their violin bows.
Move on, girls, no dancing just
now; bide your time"
The mother of the bride stands bent
over the weeping form of her daughter
cooling and erOoning at her consolingly
..The Lord will redeem your shame, my
4 child; He will make good all you've
suffered"
4 The sordid end of the affair In al
/ Its naked, upredeemed, commercializet
4 brutality is going on at the same time
in the next room where the fathers Of
the bridal pair are threshing out the
business details of the marriage agree
ment. Oiser the groom's father, Al
undersized specimen of the race. is sit
| ting, with his withered, blOOdless lip:
\ tightly closed, and his other hand pla
cidly strokilg his scrubby beard. He
is as dumb and mresponsive as the
rocks The father of the bride is q
tall, husky man with large spreading
face, framed by long beard of russe
strands. with the ruddy complexion OF
the sturdy semi-blond Jew typical OF
western Poland. He is standing before
his puny prospective kin-in-law, plead
| ing with him appealingly to come t.
terms:
Diser. don't disgrace me before tht
people. Within eight days after thu
wedding, as soon as l clfnch my whea
sale. you'll get the hundred rubles
Please take the note; for mercy's sake