Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1896-08-06
iAMatterOfPredeStinatiOn
By MARTHA MCULLOCH WILLIAMS.
Icopyright, lsps. ty the AuthoF.I

Low late sunshine gilded richly tht
street and house tops Of Troy. Plenty O
folk were abroad there IL was cour
day, the first Monday in June, and ev
erybody in the county round about whC
felt himself entitled to rank as any
body held il q point Of honor TO come Il
town then, whether or no he had occa
zion for the coming. Most Of them had
occasion, great or small II is a mighty
unusual human mind that cannot con,
struct out of daily necessities decent
pretext for doing what it chooses Ger.
tainly Troy's country neighbors did not
lack such ingenuity. They were, for the
most part, of the level minded English
stock, full of shrewd wit and slow hu.
NOR, that has spread from Virginia and
the Carolinas westward over the face Of
the land.
Troy town was and is the capital Of q
Tennessee county. Upon this Monday
afternoon-evening the Trojans would
have said-it had perhaps 500 inhabit-
ants The three general stores stood
apart, each in its own building, with a
wide porch across the front, long
horse rack shouldering the porch, and a
lot behind, in which those who came to
town, as they phrased it, buggy back, "
could leave their vehicles with a con-
tented mind while they either loitered
at gossip or thronged the courthouse
benches.
Troy had nine lawyers, and not one
was without following 1t had like
wise five ministers, but the wrangle
over their merits never grew so warm
as was the case with the lawyers. De-
nominational lines, you see, narrowed
appreciation of words that burn.
just now the law and the gospel had
got into O snarl, with an element of ro-
nance that made the whole countryside
thrill 1t had been whispered about for
year at least that young Jack Mus
grave, Lawyer Musgrave's son and sue
cessor, of whom it already began to be
said that he would more than fill his
fathers shoes, was 'dead in love with
Pixy Eecock," and that Pixy herself
was nearly as "bad off" about him.
Pixy, whose real name was Maria
Martha Caroline, was old Squire Ee-
cocks only child Naturally he ought
to have loved her better than all the
world. As % matter of fact, he loved
but two things better One of them
was his own way, the other his habit of
conversation. He had never been known
to leave off talking while any human
creature would stand to listen. He was
certainly, though, very fond of Pixy
Just after her came his creed He was
a Baptist, dyed in the wool.
Contrariwise. the Musgraves had been
Methodists since the days of Wesley
They lived in q big white house, the
biggest and whitest In Troy. Besides
Jack there was only one other son, who
was studying for the itinerancy, and of
whom the church folk fondly prophesied
that if only he lived long enough he
would die bishop. TWAS in some sort
this youngster, Edward Musgrave, who
had made the course of jacks true love
run exceedingly rough. Usually the
Methodist and Baptist hocks dwelt, if
not in arnity and comfy, in state Of
courteous neutrality that forbade touch
ing upon each others doctrinal short
comings outside the church With more
zeal than discretion, Ned began to pro-
claim upon the street corners his rea-
sons for the faith that was in him.
Nothing else is so contagious as con-
tention. Out Of his speaking, there had
soon come o set debate between picked
men Of either creed All the town
churches depended on the country for
large part of their membership. So it is
not strange that one of the antagonists
pittted against young Musgrave was
Phys father, and still less strange that,
though he was not Notwithstanding
earthly could have accomplished that
he was SO completely outargued by the
nimble witted young polemic that he
completely lost his temper and vowed
that neither Musgrave nor Methodist
should ever again set foot across his
threshold.
The debate came off in late March.
Jack Musgrave waited month, then
asked for Pixy outright and was sent
unceremoniously about his business He
went, but first he said:
II tell you here and now, Squire |
Eecock, / mean to marry Pixy soon or
late. She loves me. / love her. All you |
have against me Is that we don't see
the way to heaven alike, and I should |
despise myself if were so little man
as to give up the woman love because
you are unreasonable. F"
Pixy, when she came to know, said
quite the same thing, though she com
forted her father by adding:
: "Yes, I'll marry Jack, but I'll do it
right here at home. Catch me leayin
my fathers house with anybody but
my husband. You needn't buy bull
dog, pa, ner go get new locks fer the
doors. ] tell yCu, you couldn't chase me
into runnin away. But, all the same,
you better watch ont. l promised Jack
to marry him before Christmas, an I'm
pretty good at keepin my word. I"
The old man heard her in silence,
smiling gri1nly. For the first two weeks
he did watch out" without ceasing.
Then, as all things else kept their usual
course, he fell back to his common or
bit. His uneasiness had made him miss
the May court. 1t was therefore all
the more imperative that he should be
on hand in June. His mind, indeed, be-
gan to be thirsty for the small gossip of
his kind.
; The delight of it 50 beguiled him that
it was near sundown before he thought |
Of starting home. His horse, indeed,
stood solitary at the rack in front Of |
Looney's store, which was the biggest
and sthe most various in Troy--a place
where yon could buy anything from a
wedding silk to o keg of nails. Just
across from 1t stood the tavern. A dozen |
met sat at ease upon the porch Of it.
10 La. IL