Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 20, Number 87, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 July 1899 — A Fourth of July Wedding. [ARTICLE]

A Fourth of July Wedding.

There was at least one Fourth of July wedding in Jasper County. The,parties were Mr. William C. Griffith, of Lafayette and Miss Mary Smith, of Pulaski. The bride will be old enough to vote, namely 21, on her next birthday, but the groom will be only 20, on his. And thereby hangs a tale of considerable tribulation and anxiety, through which the young and anxious couple passed, prior to the performance of their marriage ceremony. The young man being under 20, the consent of the parents was required by the clerk before he would issue the license. The parents were at Lafayette, and an attempt was made to reach them by telephone. After considerable delay they were found, but then the wires were working badly and the parties could not make themselves understood over them- Finally however, the necessary consent was asked for and given through the medium of the respective “centrals” at Rensselaer and Lafayette, and the license was issued. The marriage ceremony, a much less difficult affair, was performed by Squire Churchill at his office, in Rensselaer.