Year: 1860

staging, and up the sloping bank. Some
! fifty yards up the brook the pair stopped,
and joining hands, they stood with the clear
water between them--bridged as il was by
the winding fingers and crossed by stream
OF love as pure as itself. All was silent
still, until broken by the minister read
ing in an impressive manner, And of the
rib which the Lord God has taken from
man made he a woman and brough; her to
the man. And Adam said this is now bone
of my bone and flesh of my flesh, she shall
be called woman because she was taken out
of man. Therefore shall man leave his
father and mother and cleave unto his wife,
and they shall be one flesh" He closed
the book and offered a most touching and
beautiful prayer; not a heart but seemed TO
feel that earnest appeal to the throne of
grace. Then asking the usual questions
he pronounced them husband and wife.
The bride slowly sinking on her knees
raised her beautiful face all covered with
tears, and her hands clasped and in the
most touchingly sweet voice, tremulous with
deep emotion, said, And now, 0, mercifnl
father, grant that our two lives thus united,
may peacefully flow in one, even as .his
rivulet until we reach the river of death,
and undivided in faith and conduct, be per-
mitted the pure and blest." Every pulse
seemed stilled, hoping, wishing for more of
this beautiful drama. Not word, not a
movement from all that throng, all, all was
happiness. o, lovely panorama, how thou
art craven on this heart The happy man
was in the act of imprinting a kiss upon
the smiling lips of his magnificent bride,
when the clear tones of o manly voice star
tied all from their pleasant reverie; the
universal gaze rested upon tall, handsome
Tennesseean, whose eagle eye spoke tie
mana fit representative of a State where
sleeps jackson,


:" / can't stand this any longer. can't.
Pardon, ladies, pardon have PROPOSE
ton to make on the faith of man that
never lies or triAes. / mast make ii or die
so here goes. Now I'll marry on this spot
any lady that has the nerve to face such
music look at me, and if yon can love me
as she loves" (pointing to the bride) "Pll
promise to be husband to you, and such
husband as she deserves, and such hus-
band as true hearted man will make to
the woman that comes trembling under his
wing. | further say, that no spot or shame
attaches my name nor ever shall and this
arm will support and protect the one who
can trust it. Who'll take it ?" and his eye
ran slowly over the crowd of handsome
women around him.


His earnest manner and novel speech
had aroused an intense feeling; all was
surprise and deep sympathy with the fear
less, excited orator, when a fawn like, blue
eyed girl from the fiowrey banks of Ala
bama, stepped to his side and looking conf
IDENTIFY up in his eyes with her hands on his
arm, said, {" am thine" By this time his
arm was around her waist, and parting her
eurls looked steadfastly in her face for
moment, and signed the contract with a
kiss that all married ladies pronounced the
genuine sort-perfectly satisfactory. Raj
sing his flashing eyes with triumphant
expression from the pleasant job just men,
toned, he said Where is the parson
Send him right here-on this spot we shall
be made one. never let such luck as this
pass me by waiting a minute-so go ahead
and on that spot where they first met where
they solemnly united forever When the
words" What God hath joined let no man
put assunder," died away shout went up
that awoke the echoes for mile; every
hand was extended to the happy, lucky,
yenturous fellow, and every lady in that
crowd pressed the lip of his young and
handsome wife for moment | wished ]
were her, but instantly recovered my self.
possession and thrust my weakness from me
women kissing each other always seemed
waste of sweetness TO me, but they know
the best,) laughing, shouting, happy, we all
returned on board. Our generous captain
set splendid supper, the clerk made ont
two certificates-they were signed by the
parson and seventy.four witnesses.


Then we danced, we laughed, we made
children of ourselves-yes, made fools of
ourselves. Be that as it may, when the
watch changed at the noon of night, the
bluffs on the dark shores of the river re-
turned only an unbroken echo of the hoarse
coughing of the Emily Barton's engines,
for we slept, and our dreams vainly tried
to vie with the lovely reality of the even
inu