Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-11-30
A SUDDEN
WEDDING
By RUTH GRAHAM

one son, Ralph, a midshipman IN the
United States navy, who was six years
older than | and was at sea when went
to live with his father. Ralph was sta
toned in foreign waters and did not
visit his home till | had been there
several years. | grew to look upon
Uncle Samuel as my second father, and
by the time Ralph returned / think my
uncle had come to look upon me as his
daughter.
Ralph's photograph was hanging on
the wall of the living room. 1t had
been taken at the time Of his gradua-
ton at the Naval academy and showed
a handsome young fellow of twenty.
/ admired the picture very much and
asked his father many questions con-
corning the original. Uncle was al
ways pleased to talk of his son, and 1t
was evident that Ralph was the apple
of his eye.
After awhile | came to speak of my
Cousin Ralph as Brother Ralph, think
ing that it would please his father.
was watching uncle when l first spoke
of his son in this fashion and noted the
expression on his face. / did not I'M
derstand it. He neither seemed pleased
nor displeased by 1t, and yet 1t appear
| ed to attract his attention. However.
since he made no approving comment
on my looking on Ralph as my brother
| refrained from speaking of him again
as such.
/ shall never forget Ralph's home
coming. 1t was shortly before the out
break of the great worlds war. Ralph
was twenty-three and had developed
from the boy he had been when grad
uated to a young man with a hand
some, we'll grown mustache. L was sew
enteen. He had heard a great deal of
me from his father by letter and look
ed at me curiously when we met. |
was somewhat abashed at meeting him
and shrank away. But he advanced
and kissed me.
Ralph remained at home but a week,
when he was ordered to rejoin his ship.
During his stay he treated me as some
| thing between a child and a woman,
calling me Little Coz. 1t did not seem
to me that his bearing toward M es-
pecially pleased his father, who treat
ed me with more Difference than be-
fore, and l believed that he did SO as
an example to his son, who he desired
should look upon me as a person
worthy of more consideration than he
thought proper to bestow upon me.
This accorded with my view of the
matter, and / did what I could to ap-
pear older than | was. This seemed
only to amuse Ralph, who continued to
treat me as something between a child
and oma
When he left us to return to his ship
he bent forward to kiss me goodby.
but / took advantage of his act to show
him that if he considered me a child
I considered myself something more
mature.
My assumption of dignity as l re-
fused the preferred kiss seemed to hurt
him a little, which surprised me.
Ralph did not leave for foreign parts
for several months and did not visit us
again till a few days before he sailed.
He spent but one day with us, but that
day was of great importance to all Of
us. Soon after his arrival uncle took
him into his study and shut the door.
They were closeted together for nearly
two hours, and when they came out I
| noticed a great change in Ralph's ex-
preston when he looked at me. l
seemed to have become a person of
very great Importance to him. Indeed,
| there was a tenderness in his eyes that
/ had never seen there before.
1t was 10 o'clock in the morning
when Ralph came from his conference
with his father. He chatted with me
for a few minutes on ordinary topics,
then went off for a walk, not returning
till luncheon time. After luncheon he
was again closeted with his father, and
when they came out of the study 1 hap
pened to pass the door, which stood
ajar, and l saw uncle putting some pa
pers in a safe be kept there.
During the afternoon Ralph asked
me to take a stroll with him. and we
walked to a brook that flowed through
a wood a short distance from the
house. There, seating ourselves on u
grassy spot beside the gurgling waters,
received the surprise of my life.
Ralph told me that he was ordered to
the Pacific coast. to be gone two or
three years, and that he wished to take
with him the privilege of calling me his
wife.
Why the reason of this sudden pro-
posal did not occur to mt 1 don't know
unless it was because was very
young and not versed in the ways of
the world. | hung my head and made
no reply. ~whereupon Ralph became
more lover-like and, taking me in his
arms, soon elected a favorable assent.
When we returned to the house we
met uncle on the porch, who cast an
inquiring glance at his son. He SEEM
ed to be treasured. and the two enter
ed the house together, leaving me on