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event to which the preparations of day had been the prelude. We bathed rather leisurely and dressed to the outer layers, when Dorothy, both of us having donned kimonos, came into our room - the room that had always been Dorothy's when she was at home, and which had been mine since I came down, the room in which stood the white bed that the folks had given to Dorothy some years before, - and we had supper. It was not a large supper, but it included ice cream and some of the angel food. The rain had held off for several minutes, and we decided to try the service outside. It was soon time for completing our personal preparations. As I was dressing letters were brought in from Dad and Mother which, with their cablegram that had come earlier, made them seem to be almost there in material fact as well as in thought and wishes. I finished dressing. Mother Rowe came in to tell me they had peaceful feelings about the wedding. Father Rowe came in, dressed in his black and red Doctor of Divinity gown, carrying the book into which I had inscribed the service Dorothy and I had written, from which we had read it over together just after supper, and from which he would read it a few minutes later. All went downstairs. I paced the floor.

     Dorothy came in, beautiful in bridal dress and veil, wearing on her left wrist the bracelet of old engraved ivory beads in the form of a Buddhist rosary with blue tassel. At supper we had exchanged our wedding gifts, both of which we^[[re]] very personal in design and meaning. Dorothy gave me a heavy silver fob with the dragon and phoenix of wedding significance around a dark blue sapphire. Both of the gifts we had designed ourselves and had ^[[had]] worked out by Peking craftsmen. We looked out from the upstairs porch toward the lawn. Within the bower was a fine mat^[[,]] in the center of which was a low stool covered with white satin. On either side of the stool were satin-covered cushion Behind the stool stood Father Rowe with the book in his hand. Back of the two trees on the two sides were the family, Mr. and Mrs. James, old friends and neighbors, Mr. Davis, the consul, Eleanor Holgate, and the Chinese members of the household. We went downstairs and as we got to the bottom of the steps the orange blossoms which had been sewed on one side of the veil, blossoms loaned for the occasion by Ruth Chou of Paofu, fell off. I found a pin and put them in place again, and we went out of the front door.


Transcription Notes:
Reviewed & added in the hand written insertion using the markup recommended by the TC in the instructions. -@siobhanleachman