Winsome Winnie and other New Nonsense Novels | Page 9

and
whether he could fill my life as it should be filled. But I told him that
he was not to worry, because I meant to be happy, and was determined
just to make the best of everything.
Father stayed with John a good deal before the wedding day, and on the
wedding morning he went and fetched him to the church in a closed
carriage and had him there all ready when we came. It was a beautiful
day in September, and the church looked just lovely. I had a beautiful
gown of white organdie with tulle at the throat, and I carried a great
bunch of white roses, and Father led John up the aisle after me.
I remember that Mother cried a good deal at the wedding, and told John
that he had stolen her darling and that he must never misuse me or beat
me. And I remember that the clergyman spoke very severely to John,
and told him he hoped he realized the responsibility he was taking and
that it was his duty to make me happy. A lot of our old friends were
there, and they all spoke quite sharply to John, and all the women
kissed me and said they hoped I would never regret what I had done,
and I just kept up my spirits by sheer determination, and told them that
I had made up my mind to be happy and that I was going to be so.
So presently it was all over and we were driven to the station and got
the afternoon train for New York, and when we sat down in the
compartment among all our bandboxes and flowers, John said, "Well,
thank God, that's over." And I said, "Oh, John, an oath! on our wedding

day, an oath!" John said, "I'm sorry, Minn, I didn't mean----" but I said,
"Don't, John, don't make it worse. Swear at me if you must, but don't
make it harder to bear."
* * * * *
We spent our honeymoon in New York. At first I had thought of going
somewhere to the great lonely woods, where I could have walked under
the great trees and felt the silence of nature, and where John should
have been my Viking and captured me with his spear, and where I
should be his and his alone and no other man should share me; and
John had said all right. Or else I had planned to go away somewhere to
the seashore, where I could have watched the great waves dashing
themselves against the rocks. I had told John that he should be my cave
man, and should seize me in his arms and carry me whither he would. I
felt somehow that for my development I wanted to get as close to
nature as ever I could--that my mind seemed to be reaching out for a
great emptiness. But I looked over all the hotel and steamship folders I
could find and it seemed impossible to get good accommodation, so we
came to New York. I had a great deal of shopping to do for our new
house, so I could not be much with John, but I felt it was not right to
neglect him, so I drove him somewhere in a taxi each morning and
called for him again in the evening. One day I took him to the
Metropolitan Museum, and another day I left him at the Zoo, and
another day at the aquarium. John seemed very happy and quiet among
the fishes.
So presently we came back home, and I spent many busy days in fixing
and arranging our new house. I had the drawing-room done in blue, and
the dining-room all in dark panelled wood, and a boudoir upstairs done
in pink and white enamel to match my bedroom and dressing-room.
There was a very nice little room in the basement next to the coal cellar
that I turned into a "den" for John, so that when he wanted to smoke he
could go down there and do it. John seemed to appreciate his den at
once, and often would stay down there so long that I had to call to him
to come up.
When I look back on those days they seem very bright and happy. But

it was not very long before a change came. I began to realize that John
was neglecting me. I noticed it at first in small things. I don't know just
how long it was after our marriage that John began to read the
newspaper at breakfast. At first he would only pick it up and read it in
little bits, and only on the front page. I tried not to be hurt at it, and
would go on