The Enchanted Cottage Page #2

- Hello, Mrs. Minnett.

- Good afternoon.

This is Miss Alexander, Mrs. Minnett.

How do you do, Mrs. Minnett?

- And is must be

- The maid, oh, yes.

- Is there a dining room?

- No.

I thought we could dine

by the fire, dear.

Oh.

- Would you like to see the upstairs?

- Thank you.

I'll stay here, dear.

I've already seen it.

All right, Oliver.

My mother warned me that

men are never interested

in the practical side of housekeeping.

It's a law.

Hmm. What an odd pattern.

Does this belong to the old boy

who first built the place?

It was his family crest.

The chain symbolizes

the new country he adopted.

The first 15 American states.

What a charming idea

for an Englishman.

Hey, this is

really an old goblet, isn't it?

You can't even read the inscription.

Was this the old boy's too?

No, that was given

to the favorite son and his wife.

They drank a toast from it

on their wedding night.

Just the two of them killed this?

Well, so the story goes.

Well, I bet they didn't need

a candle to light their way to bed.

All this was in the old house, hmm?

No. The old house burned down

shortly after it was built.

That was over a century ago.

This wing was all that was saved.

The sun was the first to live

here with his young bride.

When you had a cocktail in those days,

you weren't kidding.

You must have been here

quite a while with Mrs. Minnett?

No, I just came this morning.

But you know so much

about the cottage.

Well, I was born in the village

and lived there for years.

When I was a little girl,

I heard all the stories

there were about the cottage.

It was like like

living in a fairy tale.

Every day you could walk by and see

where all the stories happened.

Next thing,

you'll be telling me it's haunted.

Oh, no, it's not haunted.

But it is enchanted.

It comes to the same thing, doesn't it?

Oh, no, haunted.

That's to be restless. Uneasy. Afraid.

It's ugly.

Enchanted, that's to be happy and gay.

And beauty.

You see, all people who lived

here loved one another.

Look.

Here are their names.

Young men and young women

who in this very room swore

to love one another... always.

"Evangeline and Clement, 1844."

"Judith and Richard, 1790."

There are all a part of this place now.

Forever and ever.

Do you really believe all this,

don't you?

Well?

Darling, this was your idea.

After all, you know my tastes.

You'd say they were prosaic.

Oh, now, darling. As the outstanding

example of your tastes

Well, I admit it's all very charming.

Charming? It's much more than that.

It's enchanted.

Isn't it enchanted, Miss uh...?

I just received a personal guarantee.

If we spend our honeymoon here,

we'll live happily ever after.

Mr. Bradford stumbles onto your cottage,

Mrs. Minnett.

He's fascinated by it.

It exerts its charm and

persuades you to rent it to him.

What can I say?

You made your important mistake

when you said "yes" to me.

Miss Alexander is delighted

at the prospect of spending

her honeymoon in your cottage.

There are a few routine questions

I've got to ask, of course.

My dear Mrs. Minnett.

I filled out so many forms

in the past few weeks,

I can tell you anything you want

to know about myself.

With photostatic copies.

Mr. Bradford means he's applied for a

commission in the Army Air Corps.

He's a flier.

Oh.

Well, don't worry.

The Army isn't

my sole means of support.

I'm really a very good risk,

in spite of the uncertainty

of my profession.

Oh, really, Oliver.

At any rate, I brought a check

for the first two months rent.

No, thank you.

Later will do?

Better take it now. We'll be

here at least three months.

It'll take that long

to get my commission.

It may be sooner than you think.

My commission? Not a chance.

Army red tape and all that.

They tell me down in Washington

Oliver.

Oh, all right, darling.

We'll show up on Tuesday,

Mrs. Minnett, and I hope that

Dear, let me have your ring, will you?

My ring?

Now that were gonna settle down

here for a bit,

I think we ought to keep up

all the old traditions..

What are you talking about?

Just give me your ring.

And I'll show you.

Oh, Oliver!

I'm sorry.

What are you trying to do anyway?

Oh, thank you.

I'll explain later.

I'm afraid you should have used this.

Oh.

Oh.

I'll have it reset for you, darling.

I suppose if I were superstitious,

I regard this as a warning that

we shouldn't be married at all.

You're not married yet. Thats why.

Only honeymoon couples may

write their name in that window.

Very well, Mrs. Minnett.

Please put us down for

reservation on that cottage.

We're going to be married Tuesday.

- Bye.

- Bye.

Goodbye Miss uh... Pennington.

Be sure and dust off that goblet for us.

Why, your calendar is way off,

Mrs. Minnett. Let me see...

Today is December 7th, '41.

April 6, 1917.

Why, you're just 24 years, 8 months...

And one day off-schedule.

It may be sooner than you think.

You've got exactly 35 minutes, Ollie.

Thank you, Freddie.

But don't worry.

I won't be late for the war.

Your stepfather isn't worried

you'll be late to the war, Oliver.

I know, Mother.

I was just trying to be funny.

I don't see anything funny about it.

If you ask me, I've never encountered

anything more inconsiderate.

I can't imagine what

the War Department was thinking about.

It's telling you to report in Washington

the very day you were

supposed to be married.

That's the way war is, Violet.

You give no quarter.

You get no quarter.

I can remember back in '17

You'd think people would

learn better in 25 years!

Oh, it's simply ridiculous, Oliver.

They can't expect you to be uprooted

as if you were

an ordinary garden vegetable.

It wouldn't make

much difference, mother,

if I were a rare and exotic

hothouse fruit.

There's a war on.

Whoever heard of starting

a war in December?

Oh, dear!

When I think of all the parties

we had planned for you and Beatrice.

We'll have them all when

he comes back, dear.

And when I think of the people that

I didn't invite to the wedding.

They're all my enemies now.

And we're not even going to

have a wedding. Oh, dear!

Aren't you going to take along this nice

warm sweater I knitted for you, Oliver?

Well, it's not regulation, mother.

Who says what's regulation and what

isn't. That's what I'd like to know.

The Army does, mother.

Darling, will you stick these papers

in the briefcase for me?

Suppose you had been home

with the telegram came?

Good thing I was, I'd say.

Looks like I'm really in on this deal.

- I guess that's everything, Oliver.

- Okay.

I'll close it, dear.

Oh, I just remembered.

We were going to do about

all those wedding presents?

Send them back. For the duration.

You can send things back

for the duration.

At least I won't have to write

all those thank-you notes.

I will, at that, won't I?

Without being able to

keep the presents.

Have you got everything you

want in this briefcase?

I think so, dear.

No bachelor dinner in either.

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