The Wedding
Mary tried to resist the urge to scratch her arm. But the muslin sleeve of her brand new blouse was so itchy The blouse had large puffs of white fabric on her upper arms narrowing at the elbow and hugging her forearms and her wrists. White gloves were on her hands. She also wore a new hat that sat exactly on top of her head. She had parted her dark hair simply, down the middle, and pulled it back at the nape of her neck so the hat could stay put. But just to be sure, she secured it with a hat pin. The hat had a profusion of satin yellow and pink flowers attached to it although her wedding today was in November. Feathers or ribbons might have been more seasonal but she and her mother had been unable to resist the pretty hat. A brown ribbon of the same hue as her skirt was in a bow around the stiff collar at her throat. Mary had never felt more fashionable. But it was her wedding day after all and she was young and feminine and enjoyed feeling pretty. Although her arm was itching madly, Mary did not want to scratch because it might take away from the solemn ceremony as she and William knelt before Father Mueller at St. Joseph Catholic Church.
Mary was 19 and William was 21 today, the day of their nuptials on 11/8/1896. Mary and William had noticed each other at this self same church. Young people in the parish delighted in taking the opportunity of Sunday services to look for prospective companions. Although William lived closer to Delphos, it was sometimes more comfortable to go to Mass in Ft. Jennings because he would get soggy trouser cuffs as he had to cross over the Auglaize River to get to Delphos for Mass. Mary had appealed to him and William had worked up the courage to speak to Mary’s parents. He introduced himself to them and after several weeks of cordiality towards Mary’s parents and having received her parents’ favorable opinion, the young William and Mary had begun courting. During the ensuing year, William would wait for Mary after church, and would take her for a buggy ride.
William had proposed on an April Sunday. Mary hadn’t seen William at church but he was waiting for her in the buggy when she emerged from Mass. She smiled brightly to see him and he jumped down and handed her up onto the seat. She called to her mother saying William would take her home. It was warm and mild and there was a light breeze. Mary lifted her face to catch the breeze and to inhale the smell of the warming earth She prattled on a bit to William as he clucked to his horse and the buggy jerked forward.
“Where were you sitting in church today? I didn’t see you. Did you go earlier?”
William’s mouth pursed. “I had chores to do this morning”.
“But William, not attending church on Sunday is a mortal sin!”
William grunted. “Oh Mary, don’t you think that God has more to do than to look down to see if I’m occupying a seat in the church pew? I think that God is more concerned about how I live my life than if I sit on a bench in the church, don’t you?
“But William!” Mary blurted.
“So I’ll confess it then! I’ll get a couple of prayers as penance and then it’s all over and done. Doesn’t seem to have much of a point to me though. ”
Mary fell silent and looked down in her lap and they continued the ride for a time with tension running between them. Finally, William pulled up on the reins to stop the buggy. He turned to Mary.
“Mary” She turned her face and the soft April breeze caught a tendril of hair and it caressed her cheek. He lifted his hand and gently pushed it back by her ear. “I love you.”
“I know. I love you too.”
“Will you marry me”? he asked.
Mary’s blue eyes opened wide and her mouth parted with surprise and she wrapped her arms around him and said “Yes, oh yes I’ll marry you!”
They embraced and kissed for a while.
“Please let’s go. I want to tell my family.” Mary sighed.
The young couple received the full support of their families and preparation began for the young couple to take over William’s parents’ farm because William’s parents wanted to retire to town. The time sped by in a happy blur for there was much to do to get ready for the wedding and for their new life together.
The wedding service was attended by family and friends of William’s and Mary’s families in the small village. This amounted to around 30 hardy souls who braved the cold and traveled the distance to church. Most of the families had emigrated from northern Germany and spoke low German even though they had made their lives in Ohio where English was the home tongue. The older parishioners had learned a smattering of English but the young folks were bilingual, speaking both English and the low German dialect fluently. The Mass, of course, was in Latin but the message given by the priest was in low German so everyone could understand.
As the service reached its ending, Mary felt as if she was in a gauzy dream as she and William turned toward each other to complete the vows. Mary could vaguely hear her mother sniffling in the background but her attention was completely focused on William. His face was bathed with bright blue, green and red light from the sun’s rays which were colored and streamed through the stained glass window behind her as he placed the shining gold band on her hand. She could even see the Bible scene depicted in the window reflected in the glass lens of William’s round silver rimmed spectacles. His wavy black hair was combed back over his high forehead. He had high cheekbones and his face then narrowed toward a determined and firm mouth and Mary thought he was very handsome.
After the priest pronounced them husband and wife, William and Mary turned to the congregation and, with wide smiles, descended the few steps from the altar. Strains of music from the organ resting in the choir loft filled the church and accompanied the young couple’s exit.
William and Mary preceded the gaggle of wedding guests and after slipping on their coats, they quickly stepped onto the wide walkway in front of the rosary cathedral. Then, accompanied by their friends and families, they made their way to the large home of Josephine and Charles Kramer who had graciously offered its use to the young couple and their fellow parishioners to hold a small wedding reception. Since it was such a short distance, all but the frailest crisply walked to the Kramer home, all the while chattering and laughing. It was the kind of November day that Ohioans treasure. The sky was bright blue, and the cold air was bracing and felt sharp as one inhaled it into one’s lungs. So often Ohio skies in November were overcast and gray and made the countryside appear drab and dreary.
Josephine opened the door wide and with a joyful smile, admitted Mary and William and the guests into her home. Mary clapped her hands over her mouth with delight when she entered the front room and saw the friends’ cake sitting on the table in the center of the room. Josephine, a friend of Mary’s mother, had organized the baking of the cake and had enlisted some of Mary’s friends to each bake a one layer vanilla cake and then frost it with a coating of apple butter or apple sauce that had been canned the previous summer. The cake layers were then placed one atop the other to make a multi-layer delicious wedding gift for the young couple to share with their friends and families. Beneath the table, gifts from their family and friends were gaily tossed into a pile. The coats were then removed and collected, the wedding cake was cut and served with coffee or tea, and the gifts were opened and exclaimed over.
“Let’s have some music then!” shouted Charles. And with that he strode over to the piano bench, lifted the seat and removed a piano roll. He then placed the musical roll onto the spindle in the instrument, sat on the bench and began pumping the foot pedals. The music began with a lively rendition of Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight followed by And the Band Played On. That tune was a favorite of Mary’s and she found herself silently singing “I married the girl with a strawberry curl and the band played on.” Some of the wedding guests gathered around the piano and as the keys on the piano depressed and the popular songs rang out, the guests picked up the tune and sang along. William took Mary’s hand and drew her over to the gathering where they too picked up the chorus. Mary caught a glimpse of her new ring and she then looked up at William, looked back at her ring, then back at William. They shared a loving look and Mary mused “Maybe one day husbands will wear a ring just like a wife.”
.JPG)