The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1876-05-18
A School Girl Elopes With Her Room.
mates BetrOthed.

AMONG the young people of the best Cir
Giles OF Eldred, "Blessie" Cookton, aged
sixteen, adopted daughter of Jerome Cook
ton, a rich farmer, was an acknowledged
leader. She recently returned home from
Philadelphia boarding-school, where
she had been pupil for four years, max
ing occasional visits home. On one of
these visits, about year ago, she met
Alva Evans, the son of an iron founder,
of London, Canada. He was visiting this
section with a party of other young men
for the purpose Of trout fishing. Evans
suit was that Il correspondence was opened
and kept up between the two and mar
riage fixed upon, to be consummated
when Miss " Blesse" should have reached
the age Of eighteen.
The roommate and particular friend"
of the young lady at school was Frances
Peters, of Petersville, N. Y. She was two
years the senior of Bessie" and left
school some time before the latter Miss
Peters is blonde, exceedingly attractive,
and of dashing and reckless nature. At
the house of friend in Philadelphia she
met Isaac Bell, young man represented
to be of an old family and wealthy. The
young people formed an attachment for
each other-at least Miss Peters fell
deeply in love with Bell As her parents
had other matrimonial prospects marked
out for hera home, she kept her acquaint-
ance with young Bell secret from them,
but, it seems, promised to marry him at
some future day. Not being able TO have
her lover visit her at home, Miss Peters
made an arrangement with Miss Cookton
by which she was to pay the latter visit,
when Mr.. Bell was to go also and stay
few days. To add to the completeness of
the arrangement, "Blessie" wrote to her
Canadian betrothed, and he was to join
the visiting party.
Miss Peters came to Eldrcd about the
middle of April, and in a few days there
after Isaac Bell made his appearance.
Miss "Blessie" liked him from the first.
1t was near the latter part of April before
Mr.. Evans came from Canada. During
the two weeks that had elapsed since the
coming of Mr.. Bell, Miss Cookton had
transferred her affections to her friends
betrothed, and his love toward Miss Peters
had visibiy grown cold. 1t did not take
the jealous eyes of Miss Peters and the
young Canadian long to notice the change,
as it affected them respectively, but they
had no idea that it was anything more
than temporary Irritation. On the ar
rival ofyoung Mr.. Evans "Blessie" planned
a May day party for an excursion to the
mountains. On Wednesday morning the
party started, in accordance with previous
arrangements, Miss Cookton and Mr.,
Evans in one carriage and the visiting
couple in another. On reaching the
woods the party strolled at random. They
naturally got somewhat separated; but
while Miss Peters and the Canadian were
always in hallooing distance of each other
1t seemed that the other couple strolled
further away. The occasion seemed to be
one of no pleasure to Evans and Miss
Peters, and they, after an hour or so, met
near the edge of the woods and sat down
to await the return of the other
couple. They sat there talking for an
hour or more, and as there was yet no sign
of either Bell or Miss Cookton, both
Evans and Miss Peters betrayed evidence
of uneasiness and alarm. The Canadian
told his companion to remain in her seat,
and he would walk back over the hill and |
look for Bessie" as he was fearful she |
had lost her way He was absent long
time, and finally returned, looking pale
and anxious. He had seen nothing of |
either of the missing young folks. Miss
Peters was greatly agitated over the result |
of his search, but neither she nor Evans
at that time entertained the slightest sus-
picion that the prolonged absence Of the
two was by design or that they were to-
gether. They returned to the farmhouse
where the carriage had been left, in order
to give an alarm and have a thorough |
search made. They found that the con-
veyance in which Evans and "Blessie"
had come was gone. For the first time
B terrible suspicion crossed their minds.
A farmer told them that young man