19 August.--Joy, joy, joy! Although not all joy. At last, news of Jonathan. The dear fellow has been ill, that is why he did not write. I am not afraid to think it or to say it, now that I know. Mr. Hawkins sent me on the letter, and wrote himself, oh so kindly. I am to leave in the morning and go over to Jonathan, and to help to nurse him if necessary, and to bring him home. Mr. Hawkins says it would not be a bad thing if we were to be married out there. I have cried over the good Sister's letter till I can feel it wet against my bosom, where it lies. It is of Jonathan, and must be near my heart, for he is in my heart. My journey is all mapped out, and my luggage ready. I am only taking one change of dress. Lucy will bring my trunk to London and keep it till I send for it, for it may be that. . .I must write no more. I must keep it to say to Jonathan, my husband. The letter that he has seen and touched must comfort me till we meet.
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“Mr. Hawkins sent me on the letter [about Jonathan] and wrote himself, oh, so kindly. I am to leave in the morning and go over to Jonathan, and to help to nurse him if necessary, and to bring him home. Mr. Hawkins says it would not be a bad thing if we were to be married out there…My journey is all mapped out, and my luggage ready.”
Imagine the flurry of activity following these letters! Not only does Mina have to make a solo trip from Whitby to Budapest on very short notice, but she also has to make wedding preparations.
It seems likely that Mr. Hawkins and/or Mrs. Westenra provided Mina with the funds to travel safely to Budapest and back, and to reimburse the nuns for Jonathan's care. Mina, “the train fiend” (28 Oct), probably was quite capable of making her own travel arrangements and picking up the appropriate Baedeker guides to help her out.
She doesn't need to speak German or Hungarian to travel safely. The 1887 Baedeker guide for Southern Germany and Austria states that "Those...who do not deviate from the beaten track will generally find that English or French is spoken at the principal hotels and the usual resorts of strangers." ( https://archive.org/details/02008565.5297.emory.edu/page/n19/mode/2up ; the 1886 Baedeker guide for Northern Germany-- https://archive.org/details/northerngermany08firgoog/page/n12/mode/2up --says that English will do if you stay on the beaten track.)
What about wedding preparations? This may have caught her off guard. Mina will have to get married in ordinary clothes, unfortunately. What about a wedding ring? I can't see Mina hoping to pick one up in her travels, or after arriving in Budapest, and surely Jonathan did not travel to Transylvania with a wedding ring in his luggage. It also seems unlikely that Mr. Hawkins would have trusted such a valuable item to the post--if Jonathan had even bought a ring before leaving for Transylvania in late April. Was Mina's engagement ring pressed into service as a wedding ring also? Was there a frantic shopping trip in Whitby? Or perhaps the widowed Mrs. Westenra, knowing she might not see Mina again, offered her own wedding ring?
Someone might have telegraphed the English consulate or embassy in Budapest about the planned nuptials, as the wedding was unhindered by red tape or legal issues.
The rhyme about "something old, something new" dates to at least 1871*, and so it is no surprise that Mina has a blue ribbon to wear on her wedding day. As for "something old", she would certainly remember to bring her Book of Common Prayer, with the words of the wedding ceremony. (It also makes an appearance on Mina’s next trip to the Continent, for the burial service). The "something borrowed", according to some, should be from a woman who has successfully had children; perhaps Mrs. Westenra would lend her a token. "Something new" is normally the wedding dress, but surely Lucy would be keen to contribute a small gift for her friend's wedding, especially since she won’t be able to attend.
"Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a sixpence in her shoe” used prior to 1871 https://www.businessinsider.com/somethingv-old-new-meaning-borrowed-blue-2017-3
Posted by: Most Significant | August 19, 2021 at 03:38 AM