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FLW LIVES ‘THAT EVERYONE ners. Maginot Line. and ily started. . American citizens had already en advised to return home but ow, With the fighting nearing “i, there could be no rther. delay. And then lean asked Melinda to marry the war # “ne wae in an agony of in- cision. She liked him too well ati outright refusal and yet ‘ could not bring herself to ept: him. ue desperately wanted time. ld she not go back home and nk it ever? No, he replied. American citizens could Téa any longer in the war ‘e and if she went ta the ded States she would never able io Tetiirn to Furope—+ least, until the war was over. ‘~..? (No’~then And'as things were then, in “ost the blackest moments of . war, who dare possibly pre « when that. would. be, or whut > future held F in her Uttle hotel bedroom st door to the Café More, with nic rapidly rising all around *. Melinda wrestled. with her ‘diem, alone and with no one gulde-her, Finaliv she made > ber, mind: she could set ury Bim. \iter another attempt to make : ghange- “her i mind, he accepled her decision and said he would drive her to Bordeaux and put her on a boat for America. But events moved tog swiftly fon them. The speed of the German advance accelerated: the evacuation of Paris began; and Melinda changed her mind. On June 10, 1940, with gunfire sounding faintly in. the distance, Melinda Marling and Donald Duart Maclean were married in the. Mairie of the Palais Bourbon district. of Paris, facing the already deserted Chamber of Deputies . Same. time belora, -in.a letter posted on June *9, although in typical Melinda fashion it qwas dated June ji, she ‘rote Te. a A mass of contradictions be sent all over the world. IS - I rather extraordinary manner. to her mother, extraordinary, that is to say, for a young girk just about t6 marry the man she loved. It said: * Darling Mother,Please don't feel hurt that I haven't let you know before about my decision to marry Donald. But I honestly didn't know whether to or nat. “We decided very suddenly because it seemed ta be the only chance. as the Embassy is Hable te have to leave Paris: for some God-forsaken little place in the country and one is no longer allowed to travel. without an im- possible reagon. “ Also I had decided I couldn’: stand it any longer I was so ff homesick. . “Tl am sorry I haven't given Fou more details about. Donald and I know you must be very worried and also probably dia- appointed at my marrying an Englishman. But that’ doesn’t nécessarily mean I will have to settle down in England for the reat of my life. We will probably “Darling, I am terribly in } and strong-willed we Be An unreal world | The letter ‘was obviously con- tinued some days later, by which time the infuriating French red tape had been successfully reduced to mere strings and the marriage was imminent. Melinda Speaks of a dinner at the home of a friend of Donald's whe bad a cart _— “And when they leave Paris Donald and I are going with him, i will probably go straight to Bordeaux to try to get a boat. | am so thrilled £ ean hardly believe I will soon be seeing you. Lam only bringing over two suit- cases or so as it will be impose sible to travel with more. The rest lam leaving in Donald’s flat as they will be sent-to-hini if hé has to leave France.” | The utter wunreality of this letter, written after the German armies had overrun Europe and were fast approaching Paris— facts of which it makes no men- tion at all—show Melinda's pre- .eceupation with her own. affairs ‘to the complete exclusion of the outside world, a characteristic i think. she always which. retained oe es Plans go The letter continued: = * “To go back to Donald, sweetie. He is six foot four, | blond with beautiful blue eyes, altogether a beautiful man. He hag all the qualities for a husband Cat feast, I think} He is the soul af honour. resoonsible, u sense of humour. intelligent. imaxination, cultured, | -broad-minded fand sweell, eft. 0 “ OF gourse, he Nas faults, but sumenow they dont clash with mine—except that he is stubborn u , L needed thas as Ll wassdrifting along getting ‘nowhere. ° : . “My greatest desire is te have a baby while I am home asJ am dying to have one and I couldn't bear to have it without you. Wouldn’: it be wonderful Mummy.t* , it is clear from ‘this that Melinda had planned te‘ marry Donald and then. with his ino~ fluence and ag the wife of a Brilish official, obtain a passage wore a, with Donald and am sure there will never be anyone else.- He ig the only man I have ever seen i would have liked to marry. We “have known eath other nine months now, so yow see we are kindly yushing intomibenaneg, Ameriga trom Bozdeauy Jor ome sou r ES southern French por mee ee