MASS MARRIAGE

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 20, 24 July 1939, Page 10

MASS MARRIAGE

106 COUPLES

FRENCH-CANADIAN CEREMONY

(Received July 24, 2.10 p.m.)

MONTREAL, July 23.

One hundred and six French-Can-adian couples were married today in the centre of the Montreal baseball stadium before 2500 witnesses. It was the greatest mass marriage in Canada's history, and was arranged by the Young French-Canadian Catholic Workers' (Jo cist) Movement in order to "offset unfavourable publicity given to marriage by divorces."

A priest stood before each couple. Six bishops were present at a postnuptial Mass. All the participants raised the right arm in salute and took the Jocist vow to guard the Roman Catholic faith, obey their leaders, and work for victory for the working class. The brides were given rosaries and the grooms crosses, which had been specially blessed and sent by the Pope, also greeting cards bearing the Pope's photograph.

satisfactory anchorage it kept moving, and finally grounded. The Union Company's tug Terawhiti, which has been assisting the Port Bowen, arrived on the scene from Wellington and several attempts were made !to refloat the Indrabarah.

When hopes of salvage were at their lowest the steamer was floated on a very high tide early in July, after she had been ashore for nearly two months. Extensive overhaul and repair work was carried out in dock at Port Chalmers and the steamer was able to return to England.

The Indrabarah, after her name had been changed, ran over a reef at 13 knots near East Cape in 1924 in very thick weather. The crew were rescued, but within a few days the vessel became a total wreck.