A SIMPLE hymn was sung at the marriage of Mary, born at sea on the ship Mary William, and the Delaware Sheninjee, born in a birthing hut on the banks of the Susquehanna. The Seneca restrained their joy at the wedding ceremonies, out of uncertainty for themselves and out of tact of heart for the bride.

THEY lay on their backs on the pallet draped with skins, and Sheninjee said, “You are afraid.”

The bride did not answer.

“You are sad. I know I am not white, but you are now truly one of our race, standing in the place of a brave family member.” He paused.

Mary answered and said that he seemed to be saying that she should not be timid on the wedding pallet because her Seneca brother before her was a brave man. She asked Sheninjee if that was what he wanted her to think, if that was his strategy. She turned on her side and left him looking at her back, at her pale shoulders, her roan hair fanned out against her sleeveless brown undergarment.

Sheninjee turned from her.

The bride lay with her eyes open, waiting for what he would say next.

But the groom said nothing, nor did he move nor make another sound.

I soon found myself listening intently to make sure that he was breathing.

THE NEXT morning Mary laid her short-handled hoe on the ground and secured her hair with a thong so that it would not fall forward about her face. The corn was just above her ankles now, and she worked the weeds loose with one sharp edge of the hoe, being careful to bring up the weed-rootlets intact. And she made short chopping movements with the hoe, loosening the soil around the small stalks.

Then, bent over as she was, she saw a hoe blade flash behind her. She looked and then looked away: the hoe-er proved to be Sheninjee. To hide her surprise, she returned to her work.

She hoed. The hoe-er behind and to one side of her, working his way up the little hillock, was catching up with her.

What could he be thinking of? Men usually didn’t hoe. I waited for him to stop, to give up. He was proud; he would not want some of the others, some of the men, some of the women, to see what he was doing.

BUT THE hoe-er did not give up, keeping just a little behind her. Mary twisted her lips to one side so that she would not smile, so that he would not see her smile.

But she knew the hoe-er’s scanning eyes saw everything, so she finally turned to look straight at Sheninjee, who kept at his hoeing. He passed her as she stood staring.

She bent again and tried to catch up, all the while being thorough and exact in the weeding and loosening, not cheating, and after several minutes she was even with him and then she passed him. She knew he could pass her again easily, but he did not, and after a while she could not help herself and she looked around.