The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1900-04-11

flcuous DeinE nuiOhu maOes IL in-
ways within the grasp OF human COM
prehension," said another, while truth
Is often beyond IT,"
Mr.. Edwards, whose 60 years and
many successful novels gave weight TO
his opinions, was appealed to.
1T seems 10 me that truth Is the
most logical of all things" said he.
Every fact is the inevitable conse-
queDce Of some other fact, though In
our ignorance OF prior or intermediate
facts we often miss the sequence. The
difference between truth and fiction Is
that In fiction we are permitted to see
both cause and effect, while truth Of
ten conceals certain causal facts, the
absence of which makes the conclusion
seem strange, Illogical, unaccountable.
My wlfe's first love affair furnishes 50
good an illustration OF what / mean
that, IL you win pardon so personal
relation, will tell you about It."
OF course everybody expressed de-
sire TO hear the eminent novelists sto-
ry.
well" said he, ''in 1850 she who Is
now my wife went with her parents to
live in a small town In Missouri. She
was then IL years old, that age when
the vine heart OF a maiden begins ear
nestly feeling about for the oak to
which II is to cling for life. There was
not verT extensive forest OF available
oaks In that little town, yet before a
year had passed she had fastened her
tendrils to one OF them, young fellow
whose loving but misguided mother
had bestowed upon him the Scriptural
Christian name of Elimelech. III might
have taken some courage for Flora
Eldredge TO receive openly the atten-
tions of a young man with such q
name, especially since her brothers and
sisters missed no opportunity to chaff
her about 1t. But she loved Elimelech
with a devotion which paid no heed TO
such trivialities. sc one day they
plighted their troth, vowing by all that
was sacred 70 their earnest souls that,
come what might, they were for each
other through life, through death,
through the eternal existence OF their
immortal essences.
Then the boom OF a great gun rang
across this continent and reverberated
round the world. Sumter had been
fred on. Men met OH the streets OF the
little Missouri town and In the excite
ment OF the hour hissed the words
which made them mortal foes. Mr..
Eldredge, Flora's father, waJ an out
spoken northerner. ElimeIech's father
was nm equally outspoken southerner.
They came together in heated dispute
and parted in deadly enmity. Mr..
Eldredge well nigh broke his daugh-
ter's heart that day by commanding
her never again to see Elimelech. and
the young mans father declared he
would disown his son II he did not at
once break OFF with the hated north
erner's daughter. Elimelech at one
home pleaded, and Flora at the other
wept, but all to no purpose. The roar
OF the tempest In the paternal breasts
deafened the hearts 10 pleas and sobs.
"The sentiment OF the town was al
most unanimously with the south, and
II was soon borne In upon Mr.. Eldredge
that his personal safety lay In immedi-
ate flight. Within two days he and his
family had departed, but not until the
lovers had met surreptitiOusly and re-
newed their pledges ofslove and fidelity.
''Mr. Eldredge himself did not know
where he was going TO settle. so all his
daughter could say IN the three letters
which she managed 10 send TO Elime-
lech from as many points along her
journey was that she would send her
address as soon as she had one. But
by the time her abode was established
Pap Princes Confederate army held the
little Missouri town and the mails
could not pass In. The important let
ter which told her lover how 10 ad-