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I do not know when I have beeer pleased than at being invited last week to be present at the wedding of a friends daughter. I like to make o these ceremonies, which to us old people give back our youth in a manner, aore ayest season, in the remembrance of our own success, or the regrets, scarcely less tender, of our own youthful disappois, in this point of a settlement. On these occasions I am sure to be in good-humor for a week or two after, and enjoy a reflected honey-moon. Being without a family, I am flattered with these temporary adoptions into a friends family. I feel a sort of cousinhood, or uncleship, for the season. I am inducted into degrees of affinity, and, in the participated socialities of the little unity, I lay down for a brief while my solitary bachelorship. I carry this humour so far, that I take it unkindly to be left out, even when a funeral is going on in the house of a dear friend. But to my subject. ---The union itself had been loled, but its celebration had be<mark>.</mark>en hitherto deferred, to an almost unreasoate of suspense in the lovers, by some invincible prejudices which the brides father had unhappily tracted upon the subject of the too early marriages of females. He has beeuring any time these five years -- for to that length the courtship has been protracted -- upon the propriety of putting off the solemnity, till the lady should have pleted her five and tweh year. We all began to be afraid that a suit, which as yet had abated of none of its ardours, might at last be lingered on, till passion had time to cool, and love go out in the experiment. But a little wheedling on the part of his wife, who was by no means a party to these overstrained notions, joio some serious expostulations on that of his friends, who, from the growing infirmities of the old gentleman, could not promise ourselves many years enjoyment of his pany, and were anxious t matters to a clusion during his life-time, at length prevailed, and on Monday last the daughter of my old friend, Admiral ---, having attaihe womanly age of een was ducted to the church by her pleasant cousin J---, who told some few years older.
Before the youthful part of my female readers express their indignation at the abominable loss of time occasioo the lovers by the preposterous notions of my old friend, they will do well to sider the reluce which a fond parent naturally feels at parting with his child. To this unwillingness, I believe, in most cases may be traced the difference of opinion on this poiween child and parent, whatever pretences of i or prudence may be held out to cover it. The hard-heartedness of fathers is a fiheme for romance writers, a sure and moving topic, but is there not something unteo say no more of it, in the hurry which a beloved child is sometimes in to tear herself from the parental stock, and it herself te graftings? The case is heightened where the lady, as in the present instance, happens to be an only child. I do not uand these matters experimentally, but I make a shrewd guess at the wounded pride of a parent upon these occasions. It is no new observation, I believe, that a lover in most cases has no rival so much to be feared as the father. Certainly there is a jealousy in unparallel subjects, which is little less heart-rending than the passion which we more strictly christen by that name. Mothers scruples are more easily got over, for this reason, I suppose, that the prote transferred to a husband is less a derogation and a loss to their authority than to the paternal. Mothers, besides, have a trembling fht, which paints the inveniences (impossible to be ceived in the same degree by the other parent) of a life of forlorn celibacy, which the refusal of a tolerable match may entail upon their child. Mothers instinct is a surer guide here, than the cold reasonings of a father on such a topic. To this instinct may be imputed, and by it alone may be excused, the unbeseeming artifices, by whie wives push orimonial projects of their daughters, which the husband, however approving, shall eain with parative indifference. A little shamelessness<mark></mark> on this head is pardonable. With this explanation, forwardness bees a grace, and maternal importunity receives the name of a virtue. -- But the parson stays, while I preposterously assume his office. I am preag, while the bride is ohreshold.
Nor let any of my female readers suppose that the sage refles which have just escaped me have the obliquest tendency of application to the young lady, who, it will be seen, is about to venture upon a ge in her dition, at a mature and petent age, and not without the fullest approbation of all parties. I only <bdo>..</bdo>deprecate very hasty marriages.
It had been fixed that the ceremony should be gohrough at an early hour, to give time for a little dejeuerwards, to which a select party of friends had been invited. We were in church a little before the clock struck eight.
Nothing could be more judicious raceful than the dress of the bride-maids -- the three charming Miss Foresters -- on this m. To give the bride an opportunity of shining singly, they had e habited all in green. I am ill at describing female apparel, but, while she stood at the altar iments white and did as her thoughts, a sacrificial whiteness, they assisted in robes, such as might bee Dianas nymphs -- Foresters indeed -- as such who had not yet e to the resolution of putting off cold virginity. These young maids, not being so blest as to have a mother living, I am told, keep single for their fathers sake, and live altogether so happy with their remaining parent, that the hearts of their lovers are ever broken with the prospect (so inauspicious to their hopes) of suinterrupted and provoking home-fallant girls! each a victim worthy of Iphigenia!
I do not know what business I have to be present in solemn places. I ot divest me of an unseasonable disposition to levity upon the most awful occasions. I was never cut out for a publiary. Ceremony and I have long shaken hands, but I could not resist the importunities of the young ladys father, whose gout unhappily fined him at home, to act as parent on this occasion, and give away the bride. Something ludicrous occurred to me at this most serious of all moments -- a sense of my unfito have the disposal, even in imagination, of the sweet young creature beside me. I fear I was betrayed to some lightness, for the awful eye of the parson -- and the rectors eye of Saint Mildreds in the Poultry is no trifle of a rebuke -- on me in an instant, s my incipieo the tristful severities of a funeral.
This was the only misbehavior which I plead to upon this solemn occasion, unless what was objected to me after the ceremony by one of the handsome Miss T---s, be ated a solecism. She leased to say that she had never seen a gentleman before me give away a bride in blaow black has been my ordinary apparel so long -- indeed I take it to be the proper e of an author -- the stage sans it -- that to have appeared in some lighter colour would have raised more mirth at my expehan the anomaly had created sure. But I could perceive that the brides mother, and some elderly ladies present (God bless them!) would have been well tent, if I had e in any other colour than that. But I got over the omen by a lucky apologue, which I remembered out of Pilpay, or some Indian author, of all the birds being io the lis wedding, at which, when all the rest came in their gayest feathers, the raven alone apologised for his cloak because "he had no other." This tolerably reciled the elders. But with the young people all was merriment, and shakings of hands, and gratulations, and kissing away the brides tears, and kissings from her iurn, till a young lady, who assumed some experien these matters, having worn the nuptial bands some four or five weeks lohan her friend, rescued her, archly , with half an eye upon the bridegroom, that at this rate she would have "no."
My friend the admiral was in fine wig and buckle on this occasion -- a striking trast to his usual of personal appearance. He did not once shove up his borrowed locks (his ever at his m studies) to betray the few grey stragglers of his owh them. He wore an aspect of thoughtful satisfa. I trembled for the hour, which at length approached, when after a protracted breakfast of three hours -- if stores of cold fowls, tongues, hams, boes, dried fruits, wines, cordials, etc. deserve so meagre an appellation -- the coach was announced, which was e to carry off the bride and bridegroom for a season, as has sensibly ordained, into the try, upon which design, wishing them a felicitous journey, let us return to the assembled guests.
As wh９9lｉb.en a well-graced actor leaves the stage,
The eyes of men
Are idly bent on him that enters ,
so idly did we bend our eyes upon one another, when the chief performers in the ms pageant had vanished. old his tale. None sipt her glass. The poor Admiral made an effort -- it was not much. I had anticipated so far. Even the infinity of full satisfa, that had betrayed itself through the prim looks and quiet deportment of his lady, began to wao something of misgiving. No one knew whether to take their leaves or stay. We seemed assembled upon a silly occasion. In this crisis, betwixt tarrying aure, I must do justice to a foolish talent of mine, which had otherwise like to have brought me into disgra the fore-part of the day, I mean a power, in any emergency, of thinking and givio all manner of strange nonsense. In this awkward dilemma I found it sn. I rattled off some of my most excellent absurdities. All were willing to be relieved, at any expense of reason, from the pressure of the intolerable vacuum which had succeeded to the m bustle. By this means I was fortunate in keeping together the better part of the pany to a late hour: and a rubber of whist (the Admirals favourite game) with some rare strokes of ce as well as skill, which came opportunely on his side -- lengthened out till midnight -- dismissed the old gentleman at last to his bed with paratively easy spirits.
I have been at my old friends various times since. I do not know a visiting place where every guest is so perfectly at his ease, nowhere, where harmony is sely the result of fusion. Every body is at cross purposes, yet the effect is so much better than uniformity. tradictory orders, servants pulling one way, master and mistress driving some other, yet both diverse, visitors huddled up in ers, chairs unsymmetrised: dles disposed by ce, meals at off hours, tea and supper at once, or the latter preg the former, the host and the guest ferring, yet each upon a different topic, eaderstanding himself, her trying to uand or hear the other, draughts and politics, chess and political ey, cards and versation on nautical matters, going on at once, without the hope, or ihe wish, of distinguishing them, make it altogether the most perfect cordia discors you shall meet with. Yet somehow the old house is not quite what it should be. The Admiral still enjoys his pipe, but he has no Miss Emily to fill it for him. The instrument stands where it stood, but she is gone, whose delicate touch could sometimes for a short minute appease the warring elements. He has learnt, as Marvel expresses it, to "make his destiny his choice." He bears bravely up, but he does not e out with his flashes of wild wit so thick as sea songs seldomer escape him. His wife, too, looks as if she wanted some younger body to scold ahts. We all miss a junior prese is wonderful how one young maiden freshens up, and keeps green, the paternal roof. Old and youo have an i in her, so long as she is not absolutely disposed of. The youthfulness of the house is flown. Emily is married.
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