The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-06-03
A Pair of Violet Eyes.

he was trying TO locate pair OF eS yes
He had been over to the penitentiary
during the day. and in going through
its gloomy walls had come upon q con-
vict being led back to his cell BIZ a cou-
pie OF stout turkeys. The convict was
refractory. and had just been given a
thrashing, and as he slouched along SUI
lenly the governor stopped him, attract
ed by his face. and asked what the trou-
BILE was.
None o. yer damn business" growled
the young man sullenly.
SMUT yer mouth yer fool, it's the gov
ernorl" said one Of the guards An IL
yer can't speak polite ter him, we'll take
yer back an see IL little more hiek-
ory'll help YER
He was taken to the narrow den that
was to be his home for the term OF his
natural life, and the heavy door changed
to in it's groove. The turkeys came
back to where the governor stood, look
ing curiousiy after the convict.
Who is that man, and what is he In
for?''
His names Smith,, and he's up from
Limestone county. Murder He's a
'lifer,'" chatted the guard HE'S a
tough nut-ain't so years old yit, but he's
alters IN trouble. till he got in here I'm
from Limestone county myself, and I
know him. Yes. stree. he's a bad egg.
Killed his daddy. The old man was a
hard citizen. too. They got Inter some
sort Of family rookus. and tbs fust
thing Jim done was ter shoot his paw.
Tn jury would er hung Jim, but his
daddy was such an alfred mean man
they thought Jim oughter been allowed
somethin fer riddin' tn county of him,
SO they give Jim a life term"
This was all that had occurred, but
the governor had taken a good look at
the prisoners face. 1t had been a fine
face once. Even now it was not wholly
bad. If he would drop that look Of sui
len defiance Il would be very good look
ing face indeed. And those eyes, GER
tainly, thought the governor, ne had
seen those eyes beforei He cudgele0 his
brain. and somehow, out Of the dim,
misty memories Of childhood, there APP
peared a pair of eyes, strangely like the
ones of the convict. 1t was oueer-he
could not help thinking Of an old apple
tree in full blossom and moonlight and
white face with those eyes. 1t was
most unaccountable. and mixed up.
There was a timid knock at the door,
and the figure of a frail looking old wo-
man entered as though half afraid
ut is after office hours. madam, and
you will have to come back tomorrow"
I'm so sorry the governor is gone.
have been trying to see him for three
days, and every time he has been too
busy. Well, l will come back tomor-
row" AS she started to go a ray Of
light from a street lamp flashed into the
office and on the withered face.
There were those eyes againi And the
vision of the apple blossoms!
Madam, l am the governor. It is I'M
usual to attend to business at this time
in the evening. but 1 win make an ex-
ception in your case. What is it you
wish?"
"You-the governor"
Certainly. madam. Please tell me
what 1 can do for vou.'
She unrolled a grimy paper and hand
ed it to him. In the dim light he could
see that 1t was petition for a pardon.
HIN. James Smith. Limestone coun-
ty. Murder. Not many names on the
petition. On what grounds, madam, do
you base this claim to executive Glenn
ency? From all I can learn this case
is a particularly horrible one The man
killed his father, and moreover Smith is
a man of bad reputation in the county
from which he came
It's not so-it's lie. He has always
been good to me. And the man he-he-
killed was not his father, he was his
step-father only That wasn't shown at
the trial-we had no money to get a law
yer. And Jim was always so kind 10
inches all l have left of the happy
days before 1 married that drunken
brute. Jim is all / have in this world,
she walled
Madam, do not see that it is a case
where 1 can interfere. There is no
showing made of extenuating circum-
stances"
mo 'extenuating circumstancesr My
God-if you want to know of 'extenuat-
ing circumstances I'll tell you Of them.
| killed that man myself, and Jim said
he did it in order to save me. He was
beating me. as he always did when he
was drunk-and haunting me about Jim.
until in desperation l snatched up the
pistol. l didn't mean TO kill him.
You say Jim was not the son of the
man ne killed-then whose son was hep
Il can't tell you. When / was a girl
lived in a state a long ways from here
and 1 was pretty then, everybody said
sO-but that don't matter now. After
he war, when L was still young, 1 had
4 sweetheart. He was a poor boy-came
pack from the war Just twenty-five
years old. and worked the old farm for
/ while. Then his people all died. and he
vent Az lANG4 Will O4Q
'ather-my father died in Pickett's
,harge at Gettysburg And John finally
said he was going away to make his
ortune, and some day he would come
back for me. And l trusted him and
believed him. / well remember the night
We parted, when he went away. 1t was
n the spring time, and we sat under the
great low-branched apple tree down in
lite orchard
The governor shivered, and his teeth
,hattered little.
Go on-go on" he said in a low
7oice.
1t was moonlight, and the apple bios
'oms were on the ground al about US,
md ne pulled great branches Of them
md put them in my hair and on my
lress-and he said my eyes looked like
NO great violets peeping out Of a snow
,ank. Well, he went away. / heard
rom him for a while, and then l heard
10 more.
Then baby-Jim, who IS in prison
vas born Grandfather died soon after
md I went away ! met the brute that
that's dead. He was not so bad then
tried 10 find John-but / could not He
must have died, or he would have come
Jack to me and made everything all
light / married this man.
Jim was good TO me. and he kept US
ip. Every cent ne made he gave TO me.
nd comfoTted me. and never said an
.nkind word 10 me in MS life. II / don't
,et him cut I'll die-T!l die / don't care
o live without him.
There was a long silence The gov
rnor thought Of the violet eyes. and the (
moonlight and the uDturued. trusting
ace, and the apple blossoms. long. al. .
. long ago. The woman had broken !
own and was weeping silently The I
governors eyes were full CT tears At 4
ast be broke the silence. From his 4
.ocket he pulled wallet. and took a 7
lie OF bills from H.
Madam, Re sati There Is some 4
Money. 2 Jew hundred toIlsrs Il afu