Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1903-11-04
CHAPTER I.

UNDER THE LHERRY TREE
YP to the days of Indiana's early
statehood, probably as late as
~ 1925, there stood, in what Is
now the beautiful little city
OF Vincennes on the Wabash, the de-
cay1ng remnant of an old and curiously
gnarled cherry tree known as the
Roussillon tree, lie cerisier de Monsieur
Roussillon, as the French inhabitants
called it, which as long as islived bore
fruit remarkable for richness of favor
and peculiar dark ruby depth of color.
The exact spot where this noble old
seeding from la belle France flourished,
declined and died cannot be certainly
pointed out. for In the rapid and happy
growth of Vincennes many landmarks
once notable, among them lie cerisier
de Monsieur Roussillon, have been de-
vtroyed and the spots where they stood,
once familiar to every eye in old Vim
cennes, are now lost in the pleasant
confusion of the new town.
The old, twisted, gum embossed
cherry tree survived every other dis
tnguishing feature Of what was once
the most picturesque and romantic
place in Vincennes. Just north of it
stood, in the early French days, a low,
rambling cabin surrounded by rude
verandas overgrown with grapevines.
This was the Roussillon place, the most
pretentious home in all the Wabash
country. Its owner was Gaspard Rous-
u1llon, successful trader with the In
dams. He was rich, for the time and
the place, influential to a degree, a
man Of some education, who had
brought with him to the wilderness a
bundle Of books and a taste for read
ing.
1t is not known just when Vincennes
was first founded, but most historians
the eighteenth century, somewhere be-
tween ITO and 1870. In 1910 the
Roussillon cherry tree was thought by
a distinguished botanical letter writer
to be at least fifty years old. which
would make the date Of it's planting
about 176O. Certainly, as shown by the
time stained family records upon which
\AAAo olOAJ VI Ou1o 10 UdScu, IL vas q
R9urishing and wide topped tree in
the early summer Of 177S, it's branches
loaded to dropping with luscious fruit.
So low did the dark red clusters hang
at one point that tall young girl
standing on the ground easily reached
the best ones and made her lips purple
with their juice while she ate them.
Ma Iox~
what has come to pass on the gentle
swell of rich country from which Vim
cennes overlooks the Wabash. The
new town fourishes notably and it's
appearance marks the latest limit Of
progress. Electric cars in it's streets,
electric lights in it's beautiful homes,
the roar of railway trains coming and
going in all directions, bicycles whirl-
ing hither and thither, the most fash
1onable styles of equipages from
brougham to pony phaeton, make the
days Of flintlock guns and buckskin
trousers seem ages down the past. and
yet we are looking back over but
little more than 12O years to see Alice
Roussillon standing under a CHEEKY
tree and holding high tempting clus-
ter of fruit, while short humpbacked
youth looks up with longing eyes and
vainly reaches for it. The tableau is
not merely rustic; it is primitive
Jump" the girl is saying in French.
~Jump, Jean; jump highv'
Eyes, that was very long ago, in the
days when women lightly braved what
the strongest men would shrink from
now.
Alice Roussillon was tall, 1.-THE,
strongly knit, with an almost perfect
figure, judging by what the master
sculptOrS carved for the form Of Venus,
and her face was comely and winning,
II not absolutely beautiful; but the
time and place were vigorously indi-
Gated by her dress, which was of
coarse stuff and simply designed.
Plainly she was child Of the Amer
lean wilderness, daughter of old Vim
cennes on the Wabash in the time that
tried mems souls.
slump, Jeanr' she cried, her face
laughing with show of cheek dim
pies, an arching Of finely sketched
brows and the twinkling Of large blue
gray eyes.
"Jump high and get them!'
While she waved her sun Drowned
hand holding the cherries aloft, the
breeze blowing fresh from the south
west tossed her hair so that some loose
strands shone like rimpled flames.
The sturdy little hunchback did leap
with surprising activity. but the
treacherous brown hand went higher,
30 high that the combined altitude of
his jump and the reach Of his unnat-
urally long arms was overcome. Again
and again he sprang vainly into the
adr' comically, like long legged, squat
bodied frog.
'And you brag Of your agility and
strength, Jean.' she laughingly re-
marked, "but you can't take cherries
when they are offered to you. What q
clumsy bungler you arev' -,.
II can climb and get some." he said,
with hideously happy grin, and i'm
mediately embraced the bole of the