In Extremis.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4476, 10 May 1883, Page 2

In Extremis.

An incident recently occnrred which shows what may happen in New Zealand to an M.H.R. He had been transacting some business at the Auckland Post Office, and was proceeding to the staircase leading to the Fort street entrance, when he was accosted on the landing facing the office of the Registrar of Marriages, and requested by the applicant to act as witness to his marriage, which was about to be celebrated in the Registrar's Office. The M.H.R. was rather taken aback at the proposal; but, as he had made himself prominent in the Assembly in advocating colonisationwas, in fact, a director -of a Colonisation Society—and had been swearing by the motto, " The Land for the People, and the People for the Land," his reputation for consistency was at stake, and there was no help for it but to yield consent. There threatened to be a difficulty in getting a female witness on behalf of the bride, but providentially a matron came in at that rery moment to register her tenth, pledge of mutual affection, and her services were cheerfully invoked, and as willingly given. As Mr Lord, the Registrar, was in "good form," the couple were " worked off " in about 3|mins., as neatly and deftly as if a whole Bench of Bishops had assisted at the affair. Both the parties hailed from the rural settlement of Onehunga, were of middle life, and bad both before passed through the romance of " Love's young dream," which may account for the very practical way in which they went about the business this time. The M.H.R. does not feel that be is quite out of the wood yet, and sees visions in the not distant future of the possibility of a silver mug to be purchased, to say nothing of the onerous responsibilities of a godfather.