FATE PLANS WEDDING.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20704, 30 April 1929, Page 16

FATE PLANS WEDDING.

OLD AGREEMENT BROKEN. TWO WHO AGREED TO PART. UNITED AFTER 22 YEARS. Fate has played a remarkable part in a romance which had a sequel at Cardiff a tew weeke, ego in a wedding between a middle-aged couple who were sweethearts “■ years ago. For years they have attempted to avoid each other under an old vow, but fate has always thrown them together again, - The . couple are Mr Tom Rogers, a re--5- ™ er ? hal >t. and his wife, until lately Miss Phoebe Clark, a housekeeper. When they were boy and girl lovers their parents expressed disapproval of the courtship. Miss Clark’s mother thought she was too young, and Mr Rogers’s father vetoed the match as “ unsuitable.” Under pressure from their parents, the two undertook not to meet again. , Miss Clark left the district and went to live on the south coast as companion to a wealthy family. . Mr Rogers went to Australia, as a mining engineer. Thus widely separated, neither one expected to see the.other again. Four years passed and the family witli whom Miss Clark was employed also went to Australia, taking her with them. One night in Melbourne she was given a seat for a theatre. Twp rows behind her was Mr Rogers, with his newly-married wife. .They exchanged greetings*, talked about old tunes, and parted, and that once more was set down as the last meeting possible. Five years later the pair were as tomshed to meet again in a hotel at the' Devonshire resort where Mr Rogers was staying with his wife. Miss Clark spent a fortnight with the. couple. Six more years passed before they saw each other for a few minutes at Crewe while waiting for trains. Miss Clark learned that Mr Rogers’ wife had died. Their last meeting, in an unexpected way, was described by Mr Rogers two or three weeks before the wedding. "A fortnight ago,” he said, “ I advertised for a housekeeper. To my astonishment, the first applicant was Miss Clark. She did not know it was I who was advertising, and we both had the shock of our lives when we came face to face. Fate .seems determined to throw us together, so we have decided to take the hint.”