The good Will of a Flower
The Man who would possess
Must first present
Certificate
Of minted Holiness.
The Man who would possess
Must first present
Certificate
Of minted Holiness.
(F.954/J.849)
[1] Flower:: a beautiful woman.
[2] Man, would possess:: to own the woman as his wife.
[4] Certificate:: a marriage certificate under the 1836 Marriage Act and the Registration Act.
[5] minted:: produced by stamping metal. minted Holiness:: a marriage certificate's usual heading, "Holy Matrimony."
No marriage can be performed unless the proper certificate is first produced; and after the marriage is solemnized, the proper certificate of marriage must be returned for record before the tenth day of the following month, to the registering officer in the town or city where the marriage was performed. ─ Annual Report on the Vital Statistics of Massachusetts (1857)
