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Article A SERVIAN WEDDING. ← Page 2 of 5 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Servian Wedding.
spotted Avith floAvcrs ; their broad-brimmed hats were set jauntily on one side , and , as if in mockery of the law Avhich forbade the use of firearms , they discharged from time to time vollies of paper pellets from children's pop-guns . The musicians , —two fiddlers with genuine gipsey faces , —succeeded , playing a
soulstirring march : that they broke the time and played false notes in no Avay affected the audience ; indeed , Ave must confess that the effect produced Avas wild and inspiriting , arousing the passions , and kindling a savage , reckless merriment . The bride and bridegroom , attended by their companions and friends , followed next , and the procession was closed by the bridal guests ,
chiefly AA'omen , walking two aud two . As it approached our carriage , the procession halted . The municipal hussars declared they could not proceed Avithout paying their respects to two such " distinguished individuals , " as from our appearance we evidently Avere ; and poured forth a torrent of Avords , interrupted by the applause of the Avedding guests ; the substance of the oration Avas the honour we should confer upon the party by our presence . At the conclusion , the
gipsey fiddlers struck up a merry tune , the four Wallachians fired off volley after volley of their harmless missiles , and amidst the uproar Ave alighted from our carriage and joined the procession on its way to the church . The small number of men accompanying the procession Avas accounted for by the crowds assembled in the church ; amongst
them , conspicuous by their silvery hair and snowy beards , were the elders ofthe community . On reaching the church-door the musicians ceased playing ; the wedding guests arranged themselves in a half-circle before the table Avhich served as the altar ; it stood in the centre ofthe church facing the Iconostase , covered AA'ith a simple Avhite cloth ; its only ornaments Avere bouquets
of flowers , and a simple cross of ebony placed betAveen two candles beautifully ornamented Avith roses . Before the cross lay a well-thumbed copy of the gospels , on either side of AA'hich was a crown , formed of slender hoops bound round AA'ith red and green ribbons . When the bridal party were all assembled , the bride and bridegroom ( whom , be it observed , were ill-matched enough as far as age is concerned ) , stood side by side before the Iconostase to say their prayers .
The marriage of a young lad to a Avoman old enough to be his mother is an evil of long standing amongst the Servians . It originated in the desire of the fathers of families to increase the available force of their households by adding to them another pair of hands . It is , therefore , a great object that the sons
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Servian Wedding.
spotted Avith floAvcrs ; their broad-brimmed hats were set jauntily on one side , and , as if in mockery of the law Avhich forbade the use of firearms , they discharged from time to time vollies of paper pellets from children's pop-guns . The musicians , —two fiddlers with genuine gipsey faces , —succeeded , playing a
soulstirring march : that they broke the time and played false notes in no Avay affected the audience ; indeed , Ave must confess that the effect produced Avas wild and inspiriting , arousing the passions , and kindling a savage , reckless merriment . The bride and bridegroom , attended by their companions and friends , followed next , and the procession was closed by the bridal guests ,
chiefly AA'omen , walking two aud two . As it approached our carriage , the procession halted . The municipal hussars declared they could not proceed Avithout paying their respects to two such " distinguished individuals , " as from our appearance we evidently Avere ; and poured forth a torrent of Avords , interrupted by the applause of the Avedding guests ; the substance of the oration Avas the honour we should confer upon the party by our presence . At the conclusion , the
gipsey fiddlers struck up a merry tune , the four Wallachians fired off volley after volley of their harmless missiles , and amidst the uproar Ave alighted from our carriage and joined the procession on its way to the church . The small number of men accompanying the procession Avas accounted for by the crowds assembled in the church ; amongst
them , conspicuous by their silvery hair and snowy beards , were the elders ofthe community . On reaching the church-door the musicians ceased playing ; the wedding guests arranged themselves in a half-circle before the table Avhich served as the altar ; it stood in the centre ofthe church facing the Iconostase , covered AA'ith a simple Avhite cloth ; its only ornaments Avere bouquets
of flowers , and a simple cross of ebony placed betAveen two candles beautifully ornamented Avith roses . Before the cross lay a well-thumbed copy of the gospels , on either side of AA'hich was a crown , formed of slender hoops bound round AA'ith red and green ribbons . When the bridal party were all assembled , the bride and bridegroom ( whom , be it observed , were ill-matched enough as far as age is concerned ) , stood side by side before the Iconostase to say their prayers .
The marriage of a young lad to a Avoman old enough to be his mother is an evil of long standing amongst the Servians . It originated in the desire of the fathers of families to increase the available force of their households by adding to them another pair of hands . It is , therefore , a great object that the sons