MARRIAGE ROMANCE

Taranaki Daily News, 1 September 1933, Page 8

MARRIAGE ROMANCE

ELDERLY COUPLE UNITED. SWEETHEARTS 50 YEARS AGO. Auckland, August .31. An elderly couple on the Rangitata, which arrived yesterday from London, were the principals in a remarkable marriage romance before they left England. They are Mr. and Mrs. E. E. Watson, who were married 50 years after they had been school friends together. It was in 1883 that they first met aS children on Hayling Island, near Portsmouth. As they grew up they became sweethearts, but the girl rejected the young man, who came to New Zealand and married. She, too, married. With the passage of time, hdr husband died, and so did Mr. Watson’s wife. Both left alone in. the world, the childhood friendship was renewed by c orre ®P° n “\ ence, and six months ago Mr. Watson left New Zealand for London to marry his former sweetheart. The marriage took place before the Rangitata sailed, and now they have come to Auckland to MrT e ’Watson, who was employed to Auckland by the firm of Sargood, Son and Ewen for 29 years, has three children by his former marriage and grandchildren. Mrs. Watson has two children and three grandchildren, all of whom are in England. , Mr. and Mrs. Watson agreed yesterday that their marriage was a very able one. “We played games on deckduring the voyage as we did when we were at school together,” said Mrs. Watson. A large number of relatives and friends greeted the happy couple as they stepped ashore from the liner.