Evening star., 1935-04-08
Rehearsal
OfWedding
Sets Pace
Ceremony in Church
Must Be Made
Impressive.
BY EMILY POST.

THE event Of greatest importance
on the day before the wedding is
the rehearsal at the church. At every
completely perfect wedding not only
must each person in the bridal party
know exactly where to stand but the
pace and the timing must be as per-
feet as that of company Of soldiers
at drill.
At the rehearsal the bride herself
never takes part. Some one is always
deputy for her and the bride directs
the procedure instead. The rehearsal
Of very small house wedding is very
simple, since it is more than likely
the procession consists of the bride and
her father, and possibly maid Of
honor walking into the room ahead of
them, and that is all. But at every
church wedding, whether the process
sion includes only two ushers and a
maid of honor, or whether the pro-
cession includes every attendant that
has ever been heard Of. every detail OF
the ceremony must be carefully re-
hearsed The order of the procession
is as follows:
At the first sound of the wedding
march the clergyman enters and takes
his place facing the assembled guests
The bridegroom stands in front of and
from the point of view Of the guests +,
TO the right Of the clergyman. The
best man stands beside him and still
further to the right.
The brides procession starts from
the foot of the aisle (or from up
stairs in a house, or from the hall in
an apartmenD.
The ushers first, two by two, then
the bridesmaids, two by two. (No dis
tinction is made between maids or ma
irons; they always walk according to
height, the shortest two f1rst.)
Then maid (or matron of honor
alone.
Last of all comes the bride on the
right arm of her father or nearest
male relative.
Junior uShers (boys between 10 and
IA, if included, follow the usherS, but
junior bridesmaids (girls between 9
and l3), lead the other bridesmaids.
Flower girls or ring bearer, or flower
girl and ring bearer together Cif any
of these are included) walk between
the maid of honor and the bride.
1t is not practical to have both maid
and matron of honor, but If the bride
insists upon managing this, then they
will have to walk together. One would
hold her bouquet and the other
Straighten out her train. At the re-
ception, I suppose they would take
turns standing next to the bride and
sitting next to the groom at the bridal
table-or else they would have to draw
lots for these honors.
The bride walks up the aisle on her
fathers right because, apart from
correctness, the bridegroom joins her
on her own right and the result would
be tangle were father and BRIDE
groom to collide on the same side, and
father have to jump her train to reach
his place on her left in order to place
her hand in that of the clergyman.
II she has no relative, she chooses
a friend Of her family, or If she pre-
fers, she walks alone.
Recessional is the reverse: Bride
and groom, then maid of honor, then
bridesmaids and, last, ushers.
Correctly, the best man has no part
In the recesSional. He goes back into
the veStry room and gives the clergy
man his fee, intrusted to him before
hand by the groom. At occasional,
badly rehearsed weddings, ushers walk
with bridesmaids and best man
with maid of honor, which gives the
receSsional the effect of the chorus in
q musical comedy (or at an evening
wedding, of the grand march at q
BALD, in any case detracting from the
central figures Of the bride and groom
But now let us say that it is the
day of the wedding; the ushers must
be at the church an hour ahead of
time. Their boutonnieres have been
sent to the church by the groom.
Their ties and gloves (when they wear
gloves, as well as the groom's presents
TO them, are always given at the
bachelor dinner. If the bride has a
lunch for her bridesmaids, she gives
her presents to them at this time. If
there is neither dinner nor a lunch
con. both bride and groom present
their gifts at whatever time is con-
venient.
Ito be continued tomorrow