Courtship Interludes
By

Gerry Niskern
(Snippets from the Creative Memoir Writing workshop. Topic suggested: Past family history)
Suddenly, she was holding a small white card. The young fellow who had been in line in front of them thrust it into her hand as he hurried away to join his friends. Her friend Ruby grabbed it and read, “Hello, I’m Chester Craig, Who are you?”. Then, she smelled it. Eva reached for the card and asked, “Why are you smelling it?” Her petite, blonde friend replied, “Because, silly, if it smells like gasoline it means he probably has a car.”
The girls paid their admission to enter the County Fairgrounds and headed straight to the Midway. Eva loved the bright lights and the rides and planned to go on every one of them. The sound of the calliope as the carosuel spun around was drawing them in.
Eva Gunto, the young coal miner’s daughter, gave her mother her paycheck as usual after work on Friday, but this week Mom handed her back five dollars and said, “You go fair”.
The line for the Ferris wheel was long so the girls decided to stroll past the booths with games of chance. There was a small crowd and loud cheers at one spot as a lean, tan fellow was throwing winning shots at the milk bottles. “That’s Chet, the guy that gave you his card. Remember he was the star pitcher of the Moundsville High School baseball team last year.”
Later on, as they approached the Ferris Wheel again, that pitcher guy was suddenly by her side. “ Would you like to ride the Wheel with me?” Speechless, she nodded yes. Chet took hand and helped her climb the metal steps and steadied the swinging seat. Her first ride on a ferris wheel was breathtaking. As they ascended high above the fairgrounds she felt like she was looking down on the whole world. Her new friend was very quiet and she saw he was blushing as his friends watching below were razzing him.
As it grew late, the crowd thinned. Ruby pulled her aside and whispered, “Bob has a car. If you will ride in the rumble seat with Chet, they’ll take us home. Okay?”
As they reached the car Eva wondered how they would ever get into that rumble seat. She found out quickly. Chet grabbed her hand and directed her to step on the running board with her left foot and then onto a small indentation in the fender with her right. “Now, just step down onto the seat with your left foot and slid in”
The ride home was magical with the breeze in her hair and her new friend’s arm around her shoulder. The stars were warm and bright.
After many movie dates and picnics down on the river, Chet invited her to go on a Moonlight River Cruise. They would catch the ferry at Wheeling and as Chet explained “There will be music and a dinner.” The Ferry would cruise the Ohio River to Pittsburgh and return later in the early morning hours.
Eva’s older sisters came to the rescue. Sophie loaned her new mauve silk shantung dress. Sister Kathrine donated her kid pumps and Annie marceled Eva’s new short bob in soft waves with the iron heated on their coal burning kitchen stove. Sarah came over with her sparkling beaded purse to carry. Best of all, Chet had his uncle Thad’s car and they didn’t have to ride in a rumble seat!
The swing band was playing Jazz and some were dancing the Charleston when they boarded the ferry boat. Eva loved standing at the bow and watching the water part in waves in front of them. After dinner the band started some slow love ballads and she and Chester danced cheek to cheek under the moonlight. Way too soon the ferry reversed and headed back. Finally , the band swung into “Good Night Ladies,Good Night Ladies.” And they were home.
They eloped the next fall as the county fair was setting up again. They took the train to Pittsburgh and were married by a Methodist minister. He didn’t know them and they lied about their age.
The following Sunday one of the “pillars of the Methodist church”, Laura Barnhardt Craig, heard whispering in the pew behind her. “Hey, did you hear? Chester Craig and that Eva Gunto eloped over the weekend?”
Laura promptly fainted.