The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1881-04-09
MY WEDDING TOUR.

L was only seventeen when Charlie
married me, and wrote myself for the
first time Mrs. Charles Vail. Jr., and
saw the initials of the same emblazoned
! on the end OF my new Saratoga trunk,
+ when we started for our wedding jour.
ney. My wedding journey. L can speak
/ of 1t calmly now, but the time was when
/ 1t narrowed up my inmOst soul. To this
j day Charlie becomes wroth when it is
mentioned, and says it is my "blamed
! imagination;" but he knows, and | know
well that that is only one of those con-
venIent little loopholes through which
big masculinity can crawl on emergency;
Z and the facts remaining unchanged aud
/ indisputable, L shall defy Charlie and
I state them to the world
/ Imagine then, reader or listener. who
ever you may be, that the last silken
1 train had swept itself out of Trinity
chapel, and the last notes of the inevita-
/ bic Wedding March" 8huddered them
selves out of the grooming organ, and
! that Charlie and [ are married. Also.
/ that the kissing and crying over is
achieved, and the voices Of my husband
/ sisters and my maiden aunts, hailing
| down blessings on our head, are happily
lost in disrance-that the only sound we
! hear Is the rattle and roar of an express
/ train eastward bound, and [ am looking
out into the golden monday, watching
the fields and roads and villages and
woodlands race past US, and sweep back
into a stream hkerunning water. There
We sat, two blissful young fools-but it
isn't of our bliss or our fooishness eth
er that | am going to tell you-only of
the singular adventure of our wedding
tour.
Charlie hadn't told me where we were
to go, and [ rather liked being left in ig-
nOrance, knowing no more than that we
were being swept away to some little
paradise of our oWn-it might be TO an
island of the Hesperides or Crusoe's
/ kingdom, or Eden itself We stopped
at a good many stations by the way that
looked anything but paradaisical; but |
saw everything through glass, rosIy,
as l sat there demure and mute by Char
lies side. The shadows were growing
short, and it was just noon when we
stopped at some "ville" or other, whose
long, low, struggling buildings, crowd
ing close upon the track, and the broad.
dusty village street, branching off at
right angles, are photographed upon my
memory. Not for anything intrinsically
remarkable; there were only a good
many teams and farm wagons, and open
carriages, and light carryalls standing
about, with the lazy horses rubbing their
noses against old worm-eaten posts, I'M
der the row of dropping green trees, and
plenty of people on the platform, crowd
ing together for greetings and good
Dyes; 1t was a commonplace everyday
/ picture enough, and not even a pretty
/ one, except in fragments. There was a
/ general exodus from the car, and rush
I dlnnerward, as we supposed, toward the
/ swinging sign of some "house" or other
down the lazy little country street; and
Charlie, looking at his watch, said it was
twelve o'clOck-and didn't | want some
! lunch?
OF course | didn't, but of course he
said l must have It, and Immediately
started up. He wouldn't be five min
utes, he said, and | mustn't move till he
/ came back. | was to guard our two
seats, and let no one come nigh them,
/ and, above all, | was TO sit still, and not
/ change cars. We're going through, .
/ Charlie remarked, so Just keep the
seats, and don't pay any attention. " l
nodded obedience, and Mr.. Vail marched
/ cut of the car, leaving me to peer after
/ him IN the crowd and catch the last
/ glimpse of his straw hat vanishing down
/ the street.
| watched the crowd, when Charlie
was out of sight, and unused and won
dered over the faces, and built up all
( sorts OF dreamy speculations upon them,
as one does IN a crowd when they have
nothing better to think of Presently
the door banged open, and the voice OF
some unseen functionary shouted,
"Change cars for Bos-tOnl"
Everybody began to scramble their
bags and bundles and canes together,
and there was a rush among the few who
remained my fellow passengers. /
watched them go without emotion. and
merely settled myself more comfortably
for the solitary journey through which
Charlie had ndicated-woudering q lit
tie where its terminus might be- but IL
no wise disturbed or anxious thereat.
stared out at the people for five minute:
lOnger-at least so said the fat-faceC
clock IN the " ladies room opposite my
window, though l made it fifty, at least
by mental calculation-and then the
door swung open again. This time &
head projected into the car, roared g Al
outi evidently at me-and vanished
again. q won't get ont. [ replied, de.
tying the empty air. Charlie told me
to sit still. and I'm going to. Oh, Char
le why IL the world Don't you come
back /"
But no Charlie came To answer me
and l began to stare out in the crowC
with rather more anxious eyes, aud K
grow a little hot and uneasy, and L
think, with certaia unpleasant thrill:
running down my back, what would be
come of me If the train should start ant
Charlie shouldn't come back at all, A
this awful point in my meditations the
locomotive gave vent to an unearthl,
screech, which l took for premonitor.
symptom Of departure, and / was so ter
rifed that started up from my seat jus
as the little door swung back for til,
! - Of lost y-1sT N n