THE snow had fallen more and more heavily while they were on the train, and the air was crisp when they emerged into the dusk at Woods Point. “I think I’m going to like my wedding,” said Rose-Ann.
They found a car at the nearest garage to take them to Clive’s place, some two miles away. The driver halted at the edge of a steep ravine that cut down toward the lake. He pointed1 over to the gleam of a lighted window. “There it is,” he said. “And here’s the path. It goes right along the edge of the ravine, but Mr. Bangs keeps it pretty clean of snow, and there’s a railing by the worst places. I guess you can make it all right. Everybody seems to.” He backed the car about, and left them.
Recent footprints, not yet quite obliterated2, defined the path for them. They went up toward the house, laughing. Rose-Ann had urged him again at the station to call Clive up and tell him they were coming, and again he had refused. Now, as they edged the ravine, holding on to the railings that guarded the most precarious3 moments of the path, they were feeling a little foolish and very happy about their adventure. It was thus, they read plainly in each other’s eyes, that they should be married.
A little out of breath at the end of the path, they faced a suddenly opened door, and Clive standing4 there, laughing and puzzled as he tried to make them out. “Felix?” he said. “And who else?”
“And Rose-Ann!” cried Felix. “We’ve come to Woods Point to be married!”
Clive laughed. “Welcome!” he said, ushering8 them inside. “If I’d known you were coming, I’d have met you at the station and guided you to the house. You weren’t afraid of breaking your neck?” And then, as Rose-Ann emerged from her snowy cloak, he took her hand. “So this is Rose-Ann! I’m delighted. You know, Felix isn’t very good at descriptions, and I never got the right idea of you at all.”
“I suppose we can get married here, can’t we?” he asked.
Clive looked at him, and then back at Rose-Ann. “How solemn you both are!” he said. “Why, I really believe—Felix, what is this about getting married?”
“That’s what we’ve come for,” said Felix patiently.
“You mean—” Clive appeared incredulous.
“I mean, married. Preacher! License10! Ceremony! Didn’t you ever hear of anybody getting married before?”
“Not really?”
“Yes, really. And right away. Tonight. Is your mind capable of taking all that in, or must I spell it out for you. You seem dazed.”
This was not exactly the reception he had expected for his news.
“I’m more than dazed. I’m shocked,” said Clive. He turned again to Rose-Ann. “Tell me—when did this—when did you children decide on this rash deed?”
“This afternoon,” said Rose-Ann. “It is rash, isn’t it? Do you really think we shouldn’t?”
Felix made an impatient movement. What difference did it make what Clive Bangs thought?
“Come in by the fire,” said Clive. “You—you bewilder me, you two.”
He put a hand, with some kind of vague paternal11 gesture, on Rose-Ann’s shoulder. “In here”—and he showed them into a room where a coal fire glowed in an open Franklin stove. He arranged three big chairs. “Sit there.... Bad weather outdoors.”
“No,” said Rose-Ann, “it’s beautiful! It’s snowing....”
116“I’ll get you something warm to drink,” and Clive left them.
They sat there a moment, silent.
“Do you—do you think—?” Rose-Ann began in a troubled voice.
“I think Clive is a little upset,” he said. “Poor devil!”
“You don’t—?” She stopped again.
“What?” he asked dreamily, reaching out and finding her fingers as they drooped12 over the arm of the chair.
“Nothing,” she said.
Presently he looked up, and met her eyes. A look he had never seen before glowed in them, and it was as if she had shown him some secret part of herself always hidden before. That look seemed to reveal to him, as if for the first time, dazzlingly, by the real truth of their love. It was as if everything they had said to each other had been in some way false and evasive. This was the truth—this ultimate surrender, this faith-beyond-reason, this something deeper than pride and joy in her eyes. He was strangely exalted13. He thought: “This—this—is marriage....”
In an instant the revelation had passed. Rose-Ann bent14 down swiftly to shake out a fold in her skirt—and to hide that revealing look, it seemed. Clive was at the door, coming in with their hot drinks.
“And now,” said Clive, settling down comfortably in the third big chair, “tell me about it.”
2
Rose-Ann looked at Felix.
“We’re going to be married, that’s all,” said Felix.
“Yes,” said Clive reflectively, “people do.”
“You think we oughtn’t to?” asked Rose-Ann.
Clive rubbed his chin. “I really think it is my duty to make one last, however futile15, attempt to dissuade16 you!”
“Why?” asked Felix.
“Because,” said Clive smiling, “you are so obviously in love with each other now—so obviously happy, just as you are.”
117“And you think marriage will spoil that?” Rose-Ann asked.
Clive regarded them. “Well,” he said, “how many people do you know whose marital17 happiness you would be willing to take as your own?”
They were silent, Felix annoyed.
“I’ don’t know anybody whose happiness I would want,” said Rose-Ann at last. “But—”
“But you hope to have something different, and very much better,” said Clive gently, as if speaking to a child.
“I suppose it’s foolish,” said Rose-Ann.
“I don’t see anything foolish about it,” said Felix defiantly18. “What’s your objection to marriage?”
Clive turned upon him with mild surprise. “Is this the young man with whom I have had a number of luncheon19 discussions—in which, if I remember rightly, you spoke20 eloquently22 on this same subject?”
Rose-Ann turned to Felix inquiringly. “I don’t think you’ve ever told me your views of marriage, Felix,” she said.
Clive laughed. “That is what is known in fiction as a sardonic23 laugh,” he observed. “I trust you recognized it. I will repeat it for you: Ha, ha! Now, Mr. Fay, is your opportunity to explain to your prospective24 bride your views of marriage.”
Felix flushed. “As a matter of fact, Rose-Ann and I have discussed them,” he said.
“Of barbarism?” Rose-Ann repeated, puzzled.
“Clive and I have the habit of orating to each other on these subjects,” said Felix, “at lunch and whenever we haven’t anything better to do.”
“I’ve heard of those luncheon discussions,” said Rose-Ann, “and wished I could have been present. I’d like to hear you,” she said, looking at Clive and then back to Felix. It was, subtly, her defiance27 to Clive.
“Our discussions,” said Felix, “are devastatingly28 theoretical. We are accustomed to refer to everything we don’t like 118as a relic of barbarism. Marriage, for instance.... It’s essentially29 an intrusion by the Elders of the Tribe into the private affairs of the young. The Old People always think they know what is best. Originally, of course, their power to rule the lives of the young was far greater. Rose-Ann and I wouldn’t have been allowed to select a mate for ourselves. The choice would be made for us by the Elders; in their infinite wisdom they would choose for her a lord and master, and she would settle down at once to her proper womanly business of cooking his meals and bringing up his babies. Me they would doubtless have mated with some possessive young hussy who would efficiently30 smother31 and drug to sleep with her own physical charms any desire of mine for an impersonal32 intellectual life. And thus we would both have been made safe and harmless—Rose-Ann with her cooking and babies, and I with my harem of one. Both of us tied down body and soul, and thus presenting no menace to established institutions!”
He was speaking quickly, with a feeling that it was all very absurd, this speech-making at large upon a subject which interested them now only in its specific and unique aspects. “But times have changed,” he went on. “This form of tribal33 control now exists only as a rudimentary survival—a custom to which one must superficially conform, and nothing more. So long as Rose-Ann and I are allowed to choose each other, and decide for ourselves how we are going to live, we can very well permit the Tribe to come in, in the person of its official representative, for ten minutes, and ratify34 our choice!... There, those are my views, expressed in the uncouth35 intellectual dialect which Clive and I affect in these discussions. That’s just the way we talk.”
“Very clever,” said Clive. “You shift your ground easily....”
“A wedding is an awfully36 tribal thing, isn’t it?” said Rose-Ann soberly. “Especially,” she added more cheerfully, “the old-fashioned kind. With the families and all. And the usher7 asking you which side you are on, the bride’s or the groom’s! I went to one when I was back in Springfield.”
119“I went to one,” said Clive, “once upon a time, in Chicago.... I had a sense of the girl’s having been recaptured by her family, after a temporary escape—recaptured and subdued37. In her white veil, at her father’s side, coming down the aisle38, she was so unlike the free wild thing I had known.—Somehow it seemed like a funeral to me—a triumphant39 and solemn burial of her individuality. I remember that I went away from church saying over to myself that little poem of Victor Plarr’s, that ironic40 little funeral poem—do you know it? It begins—
Rather say you saw her lately
Lightly kissing her last lover!”
They laughed, interrupting Clive as he began on the next stanza44, and then they stopped, waiting for him to go on. They exchanged a swift glance, wondering if this was the girl of the story they had heard.
“I forget just how it goes,” he said confusedly. “But it ends something like this—
“She is dead: it were a pity
Let’s not say dull things about her.”
“A lovely poem,” said Rose-Ann softly.
“But,” said Felix vigorously, “it doesn’t discourage me a bit. I think Rose-Ann can be just as wild and sweet and witty after marriage as before. Her individuality, if that is what you’re worrying about, is not in the least danger of being buried by marriage.”
Clive turned to her. “You aren’t afraid the Tribe will get you at last?” he asked. “That would be too bad.”
She flushed, as at a compliment. “This marriage will be one final defiance and farewell to the particular tribe to which I belong,” she said. “No, I—I guess I’m not afraid. What do you think, Felix?”
120“Bring on the Tribal Ceremony!” said Felix.
“Well,” said Clive, “I’ve done my duty.... And now I’ll see about getting you married.”
Felix sighed with relief, and reflected that it was about time Clive began to take the occasion seriously.
“I suppose,” said Clive, “that it hasn’t occurred to you that this is Saturday afternoon, and the county clark’s office is closed. And you can’t be married without a license.”
Felix looked his chagrin47. Of course, he would have forgotten something essential! He glanced sheepishly at Rose-Ann, who seemed merely amused. But why must he be, always, and even in his getting married, a moon-calf?
“However,” said Clive, suddenly transformed into the efficient and practical personage that Felix had so often admired, “I think it can be fixed48 up! I’ll telephone my friend Judge Peabody. And—” he paused for a moment and frowned—“we’ll need another witness. I’ll fix that up, too.”
“I’m sorry I forgot about the license,” said Felix as Clive briskly left the room.
“It’s all right,” she said. “I forgot, too. It makes no difference.”
Clive came back in a few minutes. “It’s all right!” he said. “Judge Peabody says the city council is in session tonight at Waukegan, and the county clark will be there. Judge Peabody will ’phone up there and tell the clark you’re coming. You’ll go there at eight o’clock, right after dinner. I’ve arranged for a car to take you—it’s only a few miles further on. Judge Peabody will be here at nine, and perform the ceremony. The other witness is on the way here, to join us at dinner. And Mrs. Cowan says the dinner will be ready on time. How is that for management?”
“You with your objections to marriage!” said Rose-Ann, laughing. “You’re a fraud!”
“No,” said Clive. “Merely a born compromiser!”
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1
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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obliterated
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| v.除去( obliterate的过去式和过去分词 )；涂去；擦掉；彻底破坏或毁灭 | |
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precarious
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| adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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gaily
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| adv.欢乐地，高兴地 | |
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usher
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| n.带位员，招待员；vt.引导，护送；vi.做招待，担任引座员 | |
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ushering
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| v.引，领，陪同( usher的现在分词 ) | |
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vaguely
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| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
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license
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| n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许 | |
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paternal
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| adj.父亲的，像父亲的，父系的，父方的 | |
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drooped
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| 弯曲或下垂，发蔫( droop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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exalted
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| adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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15
futile
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| adj.无效的，无用的，无希望的 | |
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16
dissuade
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| v.劝阻，阻止 | |
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marital
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| adj.婚姻的，夫妻的 | |
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defiantly
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| adv.挑战地，大胆对抗地 | |
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19
luncheon
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| n.午宴，午餐，便宴 | |
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20
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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poke
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| n.刺，戳，袋；vt.拨开，刺，戳；vi.戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢 | |
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eloquently
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| adv. 雄辩地(有口才地, 富于表情地) | |
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sardonic
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| adj.嘲笑的，冷笑的，讥讽的 | |
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prospective
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| adj.预期的，未来的，前瞻性的 | |
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25
relic
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| n.神圣的遗物，遗迹，纪念物 | |
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26
malice
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| n.恶意，怨恨，蓄意；[律]预谋 | |
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27
defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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28
devastatingly
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| adv. 破坏性地，毁灭性地，极其 | |
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essentially
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| adv.本质上，实质上，基本上 | |
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efficiently
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| adv.高效率地，有能力地 | |
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smother
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| vt./vi.使窒息；抑制；闷死；n.浓烟；窒息 | |
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impersonal
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| adj.无个人感情的，与个人无关的，非人称的 | |
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tribal
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| adj.部族的，种族的 | |
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ratify
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| v.批准，认可，追认 | |
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uncouth
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| adj.无教养的，粗鲁的 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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37
subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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aisle
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| n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道 | |
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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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40
ironic
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| adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的 | |
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sedately
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| adv.镇静地，安详地 | |
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trite
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| adj.陈腐的 | |
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oblivious
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| adj.易忘的，遗忘的，忘却的，健忘的 | |
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stanza
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| n.（诗）节，段 | |
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flout
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| v./n.嘲弄，愚弄，轻视 | |
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46
witty
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| adj.机智的，风趣的 | |
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47
chagrin
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| n.懊恼；气愤；委屈 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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