Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1902-07-17

ate any Dlleu owl nut Oncc, anu
that was nigh unto thirty years
ago, aud that he could taste it ev-
cry time he thought of it. 1t has
been more than thirty years since
| ate the parsnips, and | can not
only taste them every time | think
of them, but | could never bear the
taste or smell of parsnip from
that memorable day to this. In
those days of need we had good
neighbors with hearts as unselfish
and pure as that of the good Sam
aritan of old. Ben Elliott, b. F.
Manuel and w. Y. Cook, all at
different times gave us bread and
meat and other necessities and
thus helped to keep the gauut
wolf from the door. 1t has been
said that in this world there is no
such thing as disintcrested benev-
olence. 1t may be true, but if
these men ever expected to get any
thing in return for their goodness,
they died disappointed in that par
ticular, for thev have all passed
over the silent river without hav-
ing received their reward i'm this
world. All, my friends, we learn
ed in those distressing days how to
value true friendship, we learned
how to appreciate good neighbors,
and we also learned to bear each
others burdens. The trials and
hardships of the war in the old
neighborhood brought out many of
the Christian graces and taught us
the beautiful lesson of unselfish-
ness. 1t gives me pleasure to re-
hearse these things and | insist
that neither in war or peace should
the selfish traits of character be
cultivated. When one withdraws
himself from his fellow beings and
lives much by himself, he is prone
to imagine he sees grievous faults
in them, but when he returns to
them and compares notes with
them, what appeared to him to be
gricvous faults, vanish like snow
flakes before the summers sun
| remember couple who came
into Audrain county in the early
JOS. Wen not call them by the
names by which they were then
known. because we wish to avoid
personalities as far as possible.
| Wen call them John and Jane.
They had grown to manhood and
womanhood in one of the thickly
populated communities of the east.
They concluded when they had
grown up that they could fight the
battles of life together better than
separately. SO, standing side by
side before the altar, calling AL
mighty God and their neighbors
to witness the rectitude of their
intentions, they pledged unto each
other their mutual vows of fidelity.
Despairing of being able to own a
home worthy the name in the once
crowded community where they
were raised, they came to Audrain
county, Missouri, and settled in
the midst of Il wilderness of prairie.
The prospect was not flattering,
though their hopes were high
They applied themselves diligently
to the task of carving out Il home
"A castle behind whose walls they
could flee in time of danger. With
his industrious hands John lald the
foundation and builded the super
structure and then went ont in the
wilderness and sought to make it
blossom and bloom like the rose.
Jane in the mountains was not idle.
With her skillful and industrious
hands she planted the holly hook
down by the side of the door, that
afterward grew up to be a thing of
beauty and JOY to their little home.
She neatly and taStefully arranged
the furniture of what they We're
pleased to call their parlor, she
trained the lattice work up over
the window SO that when the sun
light came down it fell checkered
on the baby in the cradle. One
wear il raiued too much and their