The Temple of Man was rapidly rising. The building fronted three hundred feet on each cross street. Its great steel-ribbed dome1, modeled on the capitol at Washington, was slowly climbing into the sky from the centre to dominate the architecture of the Metropolitan2 district.
The success of Gordon’s meetings in the old Grand Opera House had been enormous. Its four thousand seats were filled and every inch of standing-room the police would allow. The religious element in Socialism had found in him its high priest. His eloquence3, his magnetism4, his daring, his aggressive and radical5 instinct for leadership made him at once their idol6.
The prestige given him by the rapid building of his magnificent Temple in the heart of the wealth and splendour of the Metropolis7, and the crush for admission by strangers who had read of him and his work, were adding daily to his power.
His bold avowal8 of love for Kate Ransom9, and his determination to win and marry her by a new ceremony of “announcement,” which should challenge the forms of civilisation10, had stilled the tongue of gossip and made him the hero of the sentimental11.
At the same time it had made him the object of bitter attack by the conservative forces of society, and the violence of these attacks daily added importance to his every act.
His triumphant12 appeal to the masses against the classes was making him a master spirit of the modern mob that has humbled13 king, emperor and pope, at whose breath statesmen tremble, and at whose feet coward and sycophant14 of every cult15 cringe and fawn16.
With fierce enthusiasm he proclaimed, “Now is Eternity17. To reach Heaven we must build a new earth, and lo! we are in Heaven.”
The response from sullen18 working-men who had hitherto held aloof19 from Socialism and its leaders was remarkable20. With the fiery21 zeal22 of the pioneer of a religious movement he preached in season and out of season his new faith, and proselyted with success even among those who scoffed23.
He gave a new emphasis to the dogma of the Immanence of God, the charming Pantheism of which appealed to the childlike minds of the people. With mystic fervour he proclaimed the unity24 of life, and in all and over all and working through all—God! In bud and flower, in sun and storm, in dewdrop and star, in man and beast, in soul and body, the divine everywhere. As never before he glorified25 the body and its beauty as the incarnation of God, His veritable image. The advent26 of every child he hailed as great a miracle as the birth of the Babe of Bethlehem.
Life itself became an ever-growing wonder, and existence an infinite joy. Gradually he began to ridicule27 the theology of “Sin.” “Sin” he declared a figment of the human mind. The sin which is the wilful28 and persistent29 violation30 of known law he ignored.
He proclaimed the advent of the Kingdom of Love universal, all embracing, all conquering.
His marriage to Kate Ransom by the new ceremony he had devised commanded the attention of the world. Its romance, and the tragedy of a broken heart behind it, at once interested the average mind; and its social and religious challenge appealed to the thoughtful.
It was announced to be a marriage without form or ceremony. It was celebrated31 on a Saturday evening, that his friends among the working-men might attend.
It was early in May. The grass was green behind the high iron bars of Gramercy Park, and the trees were putting on their new satin robes. The air was warm with the sensuous32 languor33 of spring. The rain poured in torrents34, but the Ransom mansion35 was a blaze of light, and a canopy36 with rubber roof stretched down the high brownstone steps across the sidewalk to the curbing37.
It was past the appointed time, the last carriage had long since snapped its silver lock beside the awning38, and still the bride and groom39 tarried. The guests were assembled in the great parlours, and a band in the conservatory40, from which floated the perfume of flowers in full bloom, was softly playing primitive41 love melodies, simple, tender and full of. mysterious beauty.
Besides the personal friends of the bride, the. guests assembled were a remarkable group.
A churchless clergyman who had become a Socialist42, and whose church building was for sale, was on hand to make the “Announcement.” A handsome poet, a disciple43 of William Morris and a man of international fame, was there. Socialists44, Anarchists45, Theosophists, Spiritualists, Buddhists46, Communists, Single-Taxers, Walking Delegates, Presidents of Labour-unions, editors of Radical papers, Ethical47 gymnasts, and lecturers mingled48 in the throng49.
Kate refused to allow Gordon to see or speak to her before her entrance. They had agreed to make no elaborate preparations. She was to prepare no traditional wedding trousseau. They were simply to stand by each other’s side before their friends, greet them with the announcement of their love and unity of life, and receive their congratulations.
When she at length summoned Gordon, he was amazed to see her arrayed in the most magnificent conventional bridal dress he had ever seen.
A frown clouded his brow for an instant, and then melted into a smile as his eyes feasted on the barbaric splendour of her beauty.
She stood silent and thoughtful, with her arms folded in front across the lines of her voluptuous50 form, her head poised51 high, erect52 as an arrow. Her mass of dark red hair rolled upward in a great curling wave from her face. From its crest53 a bunch of orange blossoms gleamed, clasping the filmy veil which fell, a white cascade54, over the wilderness55 of delicate lace forming her train. She had turned half around, and this great train of shimmering56 stuff enveloped57 her feet and swept out in graceful58 curve into the room. The collar, which completely covered her rounded neck, was made of rows of linked opals, and a necklace of pearls rested on her beautiful breast, spreading out in heart shape, with a single strand59 encircling the neck.
Her face was tragic60 in its seriousness. A new and charming melancholy61 shadowed her violet eyes, causing the heavy lashes62 to droop63 till their shadows showed on the creamy velvet64 of her cheek. Her mouth, with scarlet65 lips drawn66 close, was earnest and solemn as he had never seen it.
With the regal bearing of a queen she looked at him thoughtfully without a word. She was giving him his first lesson in perfect freedom and perfect equality of will. She had changed her mind at the last moment and determined67 to be the bride her girlhood dreams had pictured.
But the man saw only the ripened68, luscious69 woman in the hour of supreme70 surrender, and gazed in rapture71. So superb was her health, so rich and vital the splendid figure, no conventional art of bridal costumer could confine or conceal72 the glory of its beauty.
“You see, my beloved,” she said. “I am not going to promise to obey, so I have chosen with this old conceit73 to disobey your first expressed wish. Do you like me thus?”
“You are glorious!” he answered, smiling.
“And my father will give me away, and you will place a ring on my hand when you make your little speech, before I respond.”
He bowed gracefully74. “As you will, my dear.”
He would have promised anything.
As they entered the hall leading to the crowded parlours, the organ in the music-room suddenly burst into the strains of the Wedding March, and again she looked seriously into his face, and he laughed.
“My beautiful rebel, I’ll tame you in due time, never fear!”
“And you’re not angry?”
“Angry? I am more madly in love than ever.”
And she flushed in triumph.
When they had entered the room, the invalid75 father rose, pale and trembling, and, in accordance with Kate’s wishes, declared:
“My friends, I announce to you that I have given my daughter to be married unto this man.”
Gordon took her hot hand in his massive grasp and said:
“We believe, friends, in fellowship. We have asked you to-night to share with us the sacrament of the unity of our lives which we thus announce. For years this unity has made us one. We thus make it manifest unto the world. In the woman I have chosen as my comrade, behold76 the living soul of serene77-browed Grecian goddess and German seeress of old, whose untamed eyes of primeval womanhood, the equal and the mate of man, proclaim the end of slave-marriage and the dawn of perfect love.”
He placed the ring on her hand, and Kate responded:
“This is the day and the hour that we have chosen to announce to you our union.”
The Socialist preacher said:
“We are here to-day, called by a sacrament, not in the conventional sense, but in the elemental meaning of the word which reflects the mind and the being of the Eternal. Human life incarnates78 God. We are not met here to inaugurate a marriage. Words can add nothing to the sublime79 fact of the union of two souls. This is the supreme sacrament of human experience. It proclaims its inherent divinity. This oneness no more begins to-day than God does. Time loses its meaning, but there is no yesterday or to-morrow in the harmony and rhythm of two such souls. Love holds all the years that have been and are to be.
“This is a day of joy—overflowing, unsullied, serene, a day of hope, a day of faith. It is a day of courage and of cheer, and to the world it speaks a gospel of freedom and fellowship. It proclaims the dawn of a higher life for all, the sanctity and omnipotence80 of love. It asserts the elemental rights of man. These friends of ours announce to-day their marriage.
“Inasmuch as Frank Gordon and Kate Ransom are thus united in love, I announce that they are husband and wife by every law of right and truth, and pray for them the abiding81 gladness that dwells in the heart of God forever.”
Kate’s mother kissed her and cried in the old-fashioned way, and they sailed next day for a bridal tour abroad.
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1
dome
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| n.圆屋顶，拱顶 | |
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metropolitan
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| adj.大城市的，大都会的 | |
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eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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magnetism
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| n.磁性，吸引力，磁学 | |
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radical
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| n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的 | |
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idol
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| n.偶像，红人，宠儿 | |
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metropolis
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| n.首府；大城市 | |
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8
avowal
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| n.公开宣称，坦白承认 | |
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9
ransom
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| n.赎金，赎身；v.赎回，解救 | |
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civilisation
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| n.文明，文化，开化，教化 | |
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sentimental
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| adj.多愁善感的，感伤的 | |
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triumphant
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| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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humbled
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| adj. 卑下的，谦逊的，粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下，贬低 | |
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sycophant
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| n.马屁精 | |
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cult
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| n.异教，邪教；时尚，狂热的崇拜 | |
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fawn
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| n.未满周岁的小鹿；v.巴结，奉承 | |
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17
eternity
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| n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷 | |
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sullen
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| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
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aloof
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| adj.远离的；冷淡的，漠不关心的 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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fiery
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| adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的 | |
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zeal
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| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
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23
scoffed
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| 嘲笑，嘲弄( scoff的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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unity
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| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
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25
glorified
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| 美其名的，变荣耀的 | |
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advent
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| n.(重要事件等的)到来，来临 | |
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ridicule
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| v.讥讽，挖苦；n.嘲弄 | |
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wilful
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| adj.任性的，故意的 | |
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persistent
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| adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的 | |
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violation
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| n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯 | |
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celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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sensuous
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| adj.激发美感的；感官的，感觉上的 | |
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languor
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| n.无精力，倦怠 | |
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34
torrents
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| n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断 | |
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35
mansion
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| n.大厦，大楼；宅第 | |
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canopy
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| n.天篷，遮篷 | |
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37
curbing
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| n.边石，边石的材料v.限制，克制，抑制( curb的现在分词 ) | |
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38
awning
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| n.遮阳篷；雨篷 | |
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39
groom
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| vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁 | |
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40
conservatory
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| n.温室，音乐学院；adj.保存性的，有保存力的 | |
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41
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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42
socialist
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| n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的 | |
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43
disciple
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| n.信徒，门徒，追随者 | |
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44
socialists
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| 社会主义者( socialist的名词复数 ) | |
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45
anarchists
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| 无政府主义者( anarchist的名词复数 ) | |
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46
Buddhists
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| n.佛教徒( Buddhist的名词复数 ) | |
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47
ethical
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| adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的 | |
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48
mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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49
throng
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| n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集 | |
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50
voluptuous
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| adj.肉欲的，骄奢淫逸的 | |
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51
poised
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| a.摆好姿势不动的 | |
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52
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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53
crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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54
cascade
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| n.小瀑布，喷流；层叠；vi.成瀑布落下 | |
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55
wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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56
shimmering
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| v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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57
enveloped
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| v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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58
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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59
strand
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| vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地） | |
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60
tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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61
melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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62
lashes
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| n.鞭挞( lash的名词复数 )；鞭子；突然猛烈的一击；急速挥动v.鞭打( lash的第三人称单数 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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63
droop
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| v.低垂，下垂；凋萎，萎靡 | |
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64
velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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66
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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67
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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68
ripened
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| v.成熟，使熟( ripen的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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luscious
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| adj.美味的；芬芳的；肉感的，引与性欲的 | |
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70
supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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71
rapture
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| n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜 | |
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conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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conceit
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| n.自负，自高自大 | |
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74
gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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75
invalid
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| n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的 | |
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76
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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serene
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| adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的 | |
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78
incarnates
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| v.赋予（思想、精神等）以人的形体( incarnate的第三人称单数 )；使人格化；体现；使具体化 | |
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79
sublime
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| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
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omnipotence
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| n.全能，万能，无限威力 | |
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81
abiding
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| adj.永久的，持久的，不变的 | |
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