Victorian Short Stories: Stories of Successful Marriages
General
Victorian Short Stories: Stories of Successful Marriages
Marriage -- Fiction; Short stories
Mr Heddegan forgave the coldness of his bride's manner during and
after the wedding ceremony, full well aware that there had been
considerable reluctance on her part to acquiesce in this neighbourly
arrangement, and, as a philosopher of long standing, holding that
whatever Baptista's attitude now, the conditions would probably
be much the same six months hence as those which ruled among other
married couples.
An absolutely unexpected shock was given to Baptista's listless mind
about an hour after the wedding service. They had nearly finished the
midday dinner when the now husband said to her father, 'We think of
starting about two. And the breeze being so fair we shall bring up
inside Pen-zephyr new pier about six at least.'
'What--are we going to Pen-zephyr?' said Baptista. 'I don't know
anything of it.'
'Didn't you tell her?' asked her father of Heddegan.
It transpired that, owing to the delay in her arrival, this proposal
too, among other things, had in the hurry not been mentioned to
her, except some time ago as a general suggestion that they would go
somewhere. Heddegan had imagined that any trip would be pleasant, and
one to the mainland the pleasantest of all.
She looked so distressed at the announcement that her husband
willingly offered to give it up, though he had not had a holiday off
the island for a whole year. Then she pondered on the inconvenience of
staying at Giant's Town, where all the inhabitants were bonded, by the
circumstances of their situation, into a sort of family party, which
permitted and encouraged on such occasions as these oral criticism
that was apt to disturb the equanimity of newly married girls, and
would especially worry Baptista in her strange situation. Hence,
unexpectedly, she agreed not to disorganize her husband's plans for
the wedding jaunt, and it was settled that, as originally intended,
they should proceed in a neighbour's sailing boat to the metropolis of
the district.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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