The Monticellonian., 1899-06-16
THE SAD FATE
 OF X PIONEER LAD.
BY !" PoNTIAC.)

stands I solitary cabin. For many years thls was the peaceful abode of lonely fisherman. This cab in, situated far back in the inpene- trable swamps, safe from the en- eroachnents of settlers, seldom greets the eye of any except now and then | party of hunters and fishermen. It has q ghostly and appearance and has con- nected with its history one of the and most pathetic stories ever told by man.
 Roscoe Devine was the last rep of an old IIugenot fam fly living at Savannah Georgia. His ancestors came from Beaufort, x. C., and having settled near Sa- vannah, had identified themselves W tn the aristocracy of the South. He with his wife and an only son were all that was left of the fami- ly in IS44. He had inherited q nice little fortune which he had in- creased by speculating in cotton and in the "pet bank' schemes. Wishing to engage more extensive ly in farming, he left Georgia and came to Arkansas, settling in the South-Eastern part. He bought a great deal of land and opened.. up large plantations along Bayou Bar tholomew, all of which were worked by slaves. Finding the swamps unhealthy, he moved hi. family out to the hills, near the present site of Monticello, where he built q beautiful home and sur
 rounded it with every luxury i'm aginable. For several years ht was successful in farming. He bought new lands and slaves unti he was one of the largest planter West of the Mississippi river. Hi plantations, as was the custom O the day, were looked after by over seers, he himself making week., trips to these.
 Mot a shadow had ever crossed the threshold of the home" unti one morning i'll the fall of 1859
 when the lifeless body of MT. De vine was found by the roadside
 He had been foully murdered, bu
 by whom it has never been full, ascertained. The popular suppo sition of the time was that he hae fallen a victim to the Murrel gang who frequently passed througl this section of the State in going from the Mississippi swamps to tht Indian Territory. The supposi ton was well founded because hs was known to carry large sums ot money on his person, especially II the harvesting season; and .Joh1 A. Murrel, the noted outlaw anc and leader of the gang, was aware of the fact
 The shock was too great fol Mrs. Divine, who was naturally oi an eXcitable temperament. She fell into swoon which was fol lowed by fever, fingered a few days and died. She was buried beside her husband on grassy mound beneath the softening shade of a lone sassafras, where the winc whistling through the leaves seem ed to mourn their fate. Their son Malcom, had now grown to man hood. The sudden and untimely death of his parents was terrible blow to him, but this wore away ere many months and he was agair the same promising youth that he had been in days gone by.
 Early in his life he had wooed and seemingly won the affections of beautiful and interesting girl, the daughter of another rich plant. CT. She had been educated in one of the best schools in the North. She was graceful in form, mild in disposition, and well versed in CO quetry. She had many admirers and suffers and for long time none could tell who would be the fortunate lover. One by one they were discarded and Malcom had triumphed over his rivals. He loved her with all the ardent fer yer of man $ devotion. He had found out the passions of his soul in eloquent strain and laid himself as a trophy at her feet. Many were the happy hours they spent together, sitting at home in the parlor. dancing together at the