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Début – Book One
1880 – Newport, Rhode Island
Sara Swan Whiting is a beautiful, but naive, nineteen-year-old debutante going to her first Newport Ball. Sara débuted in New York City at Delmonico’s, where she turned heads with her ethereal beauty and singing ability.Excited to attend her first ball among the wealthiest Americans and titled European royals,she dreams of finding a match for marriage, and for love.
Sara is 14 years younger than her two older sisters, who are overly protective and controlling.SometimesSara feels she has three mothers. (Her spinster sisters made their début during the American Civil War and both failed to marry as prospects at the time were slim.)
Stepping from the coach upon her arrival at the ball, Sara catches sight of Oliver Hazard Perry Belmont, privileged and pleasure-seeking son of wealthy financier August Belmont. On leave from the Navy, Oliver is under pressure from his father to settle into a career. His parents
insistedhe attend the Naval Academy in Annapolis, hopingthat Oliver will follow the success of his uncle and grandfather, Oliver Hazard Perry and Matthew Perry, great American war heroes. Unfortunately, Oliver hates the Navy and spends his time drinking, gambling and stirring up rowdiness among his fellow cadets. He is repeatedly reprimanded by his uncle, Admiral Rogers, who suggests to Oliver’s parents, (cousins Caroline Perry Belmont and August Belmont) that perhaps Oliver is more suited to another career.
Back at the ball Sara meets with her friends, Carrie Astor and Edith Jones. Carrie’s mother is the wealthy and powerful ruler of New York society, Mrs. Caroline Astor. A favorite of Mrs. Astor’s, Sara hopes that Mrs. Astor’s fondness for her will shine a favorable light on her prospects for marriage.
Edith Jones also comes from a wealthy and influential family. Her mother, Mrs. Jones, is mindful to have the best new inventions and gadgets in several beautiful mansions that the family owns, and the most modern, chic wardrobe from Paris. Everyone keeps an eye on Edith and her mother in an effort to keep up with the Joneses – including Mrs. Astor. (Edith later marries Teddy Wharton and becomes acclaimed American author Edith Wharton. Mrs. Wharton makes reference to the scandal of AMERICAN GILT in her novel THE AGE OF INNOCENCE.)
Meanwhile, it occurs to Oliver that marriage will bring him a tidy allowance, as well as alleviate his father’s complaints that he settle into a career. With this in mind, Oliver focuses on the lovely Miss Whiting while attending tonight’s ball.
Sara is invited to dance by William Vanderbilt, the powerful and wealthy businessman who is also well known for his philandering. Sara finds Mr. Vanderbilt’s attentions seductive, as she is eager to leave her little-girl-ways behind and be treated as a woman. After singing for the group in the music room Sara meets George Rives (Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State) and his wife, who compliment Sara’s beautiful voice. Sara can’t help but notice Mr. Rives glance at her décolletage, and after her dance with Mr. Vanderbilt, she wonders if this is the way of all men. Meanwhile she looks for Oliver in the crowd, hoping to meet the handsome bachelor.
Oliver steers his friend, William Vanderbilt, in Sara’s direction, and asks for an introduction to Miss Whiting. This leads to a dance and further courtship between Sara and Oliver.
Oliver returns to the Naval Academy, and Sara’s friends, Edith and Carrie insist Saracourt other gentlemen in Oliver’s absence. Sara confesses a fondness for Oliver that she doesn’t feel for other gentlemen. Carrie advises Sara that courting is a sport, and it is too early to devote her attention to only one man, especially one who can’t commit to a career. “If he can’t commit to a vocation how will he commit to a wife?”
Meanwhile, Oliver’s parents receive news of more disciplinary action for Oliver in Annapolis and discuss their concerns over their son’s conduct in the Navy. His mother, Caroline, prepares for a tour of Europe. August Belmont, Oliver’s father, insists that Oliver remain in the Navy, concerned for his future livelihood.
Back in Newport, Sara is discreetly invited on a picnic with William Vanderbilt. Her maid insists she refuse the invitation, but in spite of the warning, Sara secretly meets with him. Later, finding herself alone in the woodlands with the powerful and handsome Willie, Sara is shocked when he kisses her and makes improper advances. She runs off, heading back to Newport on foot. Later, Mr. Vanderbilt catches up with Sara in his coach, explaining that he thought she had more experience with men. Sara is flustered and works to come to terms with the ways of men and her own transgression of social protocol, striving to retain her secret.
In Annapolis Oliver and other ensigns are sent on assignment to England and France. Oliver detests the discipline and work of the Navy. Receiving a letter from his mother he discovers she is in Paris, and leaves his ship, docked in Nice.Away without leave, he heads to his mother’s hotel via train. Upon his arrival, Mrs. Belmont is shocked and disturbed that Oliver would bring shame upon the family not only with his conduct, but by deserting his ship and the naval assignment.
Oliver begs his mother to relieve him of the Navy and also to persuade his father to allow him to resign. In the end, his parents do excuse him from the Naval Academy, but his father is furious and insists he find a career.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Whiting decides to take Sara and her sisters to Paris for socializing and wardrobe shopping. While there, Sara receives word Oliver has left the Navy and is also in Paris. The two meet and begin courting anew. Sara falls in love with the charming and handsome gentleman, while Oliver also swears his love to Sara, mindful that marriage will release him from his father’s all-powerful grip.
While on an afternoon outing, Oliver breaks social protocol and proposes marriage to Sara without first consulting with his parents. She instantly accepts, overjoyed at the engagement. Faced with getting his parents’ consent for the marriage,Oliver refers to the couple as ‘half-engaged’.
But Oliver has committed an unforgiveable offense in his parents’ eyes, by not conferringwith them first! Marriages between aristocrats in 1880 was not about love or fondness, but far more a matter of financial arrangements. August Belmont is furious with his son, as is his mother, Caroline, who feels that Sara’s American sensibilities are too uncultured to make her a suitable daughter-in-law.
In response to his son’s marriage proposal to Miss Whiting,August Belmontsends Oliver to Germany where he has arrangedan internship for Oliver with the Rothschild’s financial house. Not only must Oliver go to Germany, but he must stay away from Sara Swan Whiting for a full two years, with no contact whatsoever. If at the end of the two-year period Oliver still wants to marry Miss Whiting, August will give his blessing and finance a fancy wedding for the couple. But only if the agreement is fulfilled as dictated.
Oliver departs for Germany where he grows miserable and broods. Sara is heartbroken but keeps the ‘half-engagement’ hidden to avoid a scandal, only sharing the developments with her closest friends, Edith and Carrie. Edith and Carrie encourage Sara to attend balls and continue courting lest she draw attention to herself by being absent from the gaiety, all the while criticizing the Belmonts for not honoring Oliver’s proposal.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Whiting is enraged that the Belmonts are not honoring Oliver’s proposal and she hounds Mr. and Mrs. Belmont incessantly, insisting that Oliver be allowed to return to Newport and that the engagement be announced without delay.
But Mr. Belmont is firm in his decree and refuses Mrs. Whiting’s request. Mrs. Belmont departs for Egypt to escape Mrs. Whiting’sconstant pestering on the subject.
After a ladies luncheon in New York, Sara fibs to her mother that she is leaving with Edith, only to head down Madison Avenue unchaperoned for some time alone. While window shopping she overhears several women gossiping that her dear friend, Elizabeth Slater, is getting a divorce after only one year of marriage. Sara knows this will ruin Elizabeth’s reputation and she begins to worry over her own half-engagement. Growing distraught she becomes weak and pale. George Rives catches sight of Sara on the sidewalk and rescues her as she faints, carrying her to his apartment in the adjacent hotel. When Sara comes to, she panics at the impropriety of being alone with him in his room, worried she will be seen and her reputation will be tainted. George confesses his admiration, telling her ‘if we are to be accused of impropriety anyway…’ and he kisses her. Sara rushes from the room, flustered by her attraction to this married man. When she reaches the lobby, she runs into Willie Vanderbilt who questions why she is out alone, unchaperoned, at such a late hour. “Doesn’t George Rives have an apartment here?” he asks. “I wouldn’t know,” Sara replies and rushes outside for a taxi home.
Meanwhile in Germany, Oliver discovers whiskey and absinthe and begins drinking in excess. His personality begins to change, and he falls into a deep melancholy. News reaches Oliver that his older brother, August Jr., has been permitted to marry Miss Bessie Morgan and the newspapers are having a field day with the New York social event of the season. Depressed and further frustrated at the news of his brother’s wedding, Oliver takes a leave of absence from Rothschild’s during the Christmas holiday and travels to Paris.
The Whitings are also in Paris to escape the fanfare of the Belmont wedding, the news of which is very distressing to Sara. While in Paris, Oliver begins visiting Sara and her family. Word reaches August Belmont that Oliver is fraternizing with Miss Whiting and he withdraws his conditions for the engagement. Oliver is ordered back to Germany where he becomes alcoholic and addicted to absinthe.
Mrs. Belmont receives letters from her son begging for permission to marry Miss Whiting. His handwriting is now more of a scrawl than a script, and Mrs. Whiting suspects Oliver’s mood and health are worsening due to the situation. Considering the prospects of an alcoholic and lazy son, Mrs. Belmont capitulates to Oliver’s wishes and appeals to her husband to allow Oliver to marry Miss Whiting, arguing that it is better to let ‘a more influential person, like a wife, look after Oliver, rather than have him smoking and drinking around the house.’
Surprised at his wife’s agreement to a marriage she was so set against, August Belmont brings Oliver back to Newport from Germany and announces he will allow the marriage to moveforward. Furthermore, Oliver will be given a great house, Oakland Farm in Portsmouth, and a handsome allowance.
Overjoyed at the news, Sara and her mother prepare a fancy wedding at the family home, Swanhurst, in Newport, Rhode Island. The marriage is announced in the New York Times and on December 27, 1882, the Astors, Vanderbilts, Roosevelts and other society families attend the nuptials of Oliver Hazard Perry Belmont and Sara Swan Whiting. Carrie Astor supportsSara, hiding her misgivings about the union, and agrees to be the maid of honor.
Finally married, the couple heads off to Paris for an extended honeymoon on the Champs Elysees.
But Mrs. Whiting, upholding a family tradition, plans on joining the newlyweds with her two older daughtersto announce the couple to European society. Oliver expresses no misgivings about his mother-in-law joining them in Paris, and rents a large apartment to accommodate the family.
Book One ends with the couple on a steamer sailing across the Atlantic. Sara stands on the deck with Oliver watching the sun set while plucking petals from a rose and tossing them into the dark water as she chants; “He loves me, he loves me not… He loves me, he loves me not…”
ABSINTHE – Book Two
The newlyweds are blissfully happy, snuggled away in their honeymoon apartment on the Champs Elysees. Sexually curious, Sara enjoys the intimacy, now an initiated woman exploring sensuous delights with her new husband. After the challenges of their courtship, the two are rewarded with the fulfillment of marriage.
That is, until Sara’s mother and sisters show up at the apartment and join the couple in the honeymoon suite. Insistent on introducing the two to society, Mrs. Whiting oversteps her position with many demands, causing the young groom, who originally agreed to the living arrangements, to become disgruntled. Feeling emasculated, surrounded by the four women, Oliver escapes the apartment, frequenting brothels and bars, drinking absinthe in excess. His temperament begins to change and he becomes moody and argumentative.
Oliver appeals to Sara to get an apartment of their own, but Sara denies his request. Concerned over offending her family, she is also growing wary of Oliver’s moods and frightened of being alone with him. A terrible argument occurs between the newlyweds. Oliver grows violent, striking Sara, and she refuses him in her bed, locking the bedroom door. He shouts ‘You are not my wife!’ and storms from the apartment, spending the night in a brothel.
Sara and Oliver make up, but their relationship is strained. Mrs. Whiting makes no move to find a new apartment for herself and her two spinster daughters, unaware that they are a big part of the problem. Mrs. Whiting’s motherly, protective nature provides constant interference between the newlyweds. Sara, frightened of Oliver, is happy for her family’s companionship.
The situation reaches a boiling point one evening after attending the opera and Oliver explodes in a violent display, beating his new wife. Grabbing a suitcase, he packs and leaves, telling her he is going away for a few days to clear his head.
Sara is left behind, only eight weeks after her nuptials, her marriage in a shambles. Oliver is not heard from for much longer than a ‘few days’. Days turn to weeks, and weeks turn into a month. Rumors reach Sara that Oliver has been seen in Bordeaux traveling with a French ‘dancer’. More rumors reach Sara that Oliver was previously married while in the Navy. Heartbroken and distraught, Sara receives a few letters from Oliver – he writes he will return soon.
A visit from her friend, Edith (Jones-Wharton) in Paris is a comfort to Sara and the two commiserate, as Edith’s engagement to Harry Stevens was recently canceled by his mother. All of this, while the social season in New York heats up as Alva Vanderbilt plans the masquerade ball of the season to unveil her new 5th Avenue castle of a mansion,a huge party with a guest list of 1200 people. Edith encourages Sara to attend without Oliver, as the couple had already sent their RSVP. After some discussion, Sara agrees, and secretly sets off for New York with only her maid, telling her mother she is going to visit Edith in France for a few weeks.
The Fancy Ball is the party of the century, and Sara’s friend George Rives, not a fan of Oliver’s, asks why she is attending the ball alone. Sara tells him Oliver is on business in Spain. Aware of Oliver’s work ethic – or lack thereof, George is skeptical of her answer. During the ball Sara grows ill and George escorts her outside for fresh air, while pressuring Sara for the truth. Although she never tells him, George deduces enough from the situation and grows furious with Oliver. Sitting alone outside, away from the party, Willie Vanderbilt comes out and discovers the two alone. George explains that Sara is ill, and Willie and George tend to her.
A few days later while crossing back to France, Sara’s illness persists and she discovers she is pregnant with Oliver’s child. Mrs. Whiting writes to Oliver in Bordeaux urging him to return. Mr. and Mrs. Belmont receive word of the couple’sproblems – followed by news of the pregnancy. Mrs. Belmont writes to Oliver telling him to return to his wife ‘for if he were to cause a problem with the unborn child he would never forgive himself’.
Oliver is troubled at the news but not enough to stop drinking or return to Paris and his wife. Marriage had given him a tidyfinancial allowance from his father as well as the freedom he yearned for, but he had not bargained on the problems as well. He stays in Bordeaux with his French dancer, drinking and carousing in his usual way, while contemplating his next move.