This little gem of a story was next to the fire story in the Caddo Herald, November 23, 1900. I wish I knew who these people were. If you have any clues, please let me know. I've looked through a couple of marriage listings for the time period, but will have to put this on my "to do" list for future research.
“Yes, I’m a havin’ a h_ _ l of a time gittin’ them licenses.” This was what a young fellow said to a Herald reporter Tuesday when the latter suggested that he seemed to be having quite a hard time in securing the necessary papers to entitle him to enter upon a career as a married man. This young fellow, with his hoped to be wife, came to Caddo early Monday morning and went to Atoka on the local to secure a marriage license. They got to Atoka alright, but when they went to the clerk he refused to issue the license as the girl seemed to be under age. They returned to Caddo without having entered into the marriage state. They stayed here all day Monday. Monday night about 1 o’clock, just as Attorney Elting had begun to get warm after his drenching at the fire, he heard a racket at the door and thinking perhaps another fire was on the program, he hustled out. It was raining very hard, and dark as pitch, but there stood that would-be benedict, who told Mr. Elting that he must have “them license”. After considerable delay, Elting armed him with the necessary documents and told him to send them to Atoka and the license would be coming forthwith. The fellow went away happy and said he would do so.
Next day Judge saw him and asked him if he had sent the letter.
The fellow said, “Yep, I wired it!”
“You didn’t send that letter by telegraph did you?”, asked the attorney as he sized the fellow up.
“Hell no, man. I just wired it to the mail sack.”
Elting went to his office to recover from the shock.
The remark at the beginning of the piece was made while the fellow was anxiously waiting for the license to be sent from Atoka. He continued by saying. “I’ve shore got it in for that guy what wouldn’t let us have them license, and if I could of got him out of that office I shore would have beat the stuffin’ outer him and then run like a son-of-a-gun. I’ll get even with him yet, durn his old soul."
The last we saw of the couple they were at the depot holding each other by the hand and looking as loving as any couple we have ever seen.
Later- The young girl's father went to Atoka Wednesday, procured the license and returned Wednesday night and the couple were married at 2 am at B.N. Hultsman’s wagon yard. May they live happy forever afterward.
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