Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1910-02-24
FORMER AUDRAN MAN.
Writes the Message, Hunting Some
of His Old schoolmates.

my desk once week. LII 1t should
cease its visits / fear Mrs. Petty,
who is my "better half" in every
thing noble and good, would re-
bell, as she looks forward to its
coming as if it were a letter from
"a friend. SO to secure me from
such loss you will find inclosed my
personal check for which please
move my date up two years.
We have some very dear friends
in old Audrain and adjoining
counties. | often think Of them
and wonder if anything good or
bad l yer did calls me up to anyI
of their memories.
1t sometimes seems but a few
days or months since l was al
small school boy with my school
mates in the old log school house,
one and half miles south of Mar
tinsburg, with Byron Cluster as
teacher and Albert Martin as my
ideal of manliness among all of
my fellow mates.
There was his brother, John,
whom we all learned to pet and
call "Little Johnnie Martin. ="
There was John Fish, Ed. Sigrer,
Ryley Ellis, John Wilburn, with
his two brothers, Noah, just older
than he, and Willie, the next
younger. Oh, well the girls and big
boys as well as the smaller ones
come fitting across my memory
in such a great train it would oc-
cupy too much space to give each
just a passing mention. | some
times wonder where even those
mentioned are. Some have gone to
their long homes. ! wonder if /
ever helped them upward in all our
. associations with each other. Some
are here yet struggling with the
problems of life. If any of them
. should chance to see these lines |
p would be glad. for them to know
: l still hold each Of them as dear
friends.
Yes, just across the county line
/, on the Montgomery side was Geo.
, Canterbury, John and Sam O'Don-
mel, Allen Burwell, Ely and Hy
ram Cox, Milt Corder, Shelf and
John Haislip, with host of Others
. l often think of. What are we all
doingY If any should feel like
opening "a correspondence through
. these columns / doubt not if Bro.
Beal would consent if we should
be brief with what we had to say.
; What say some of you9 Let me
!, hear from you.
For these thirty years l have
n been trying to point men and
o women to a better life. l am just
closing up my third year at this
! place. We have nice seven room
J. cottage as a nance, also barn
with other out-buildings, situated
on ten acres of good ground. The
:, church session gives us the use Ot
this with a nice little salary eact
!. year. We are 6 IL miles north
/ east of Odessa, in Fayette county
| preach the first, second and thirC
; Sundays at this strong country
l. church, and the 4th Sunday a
Bates City, the first station ives
g. of Odessa, ON the C. & A. r. R
o Besides, / own a farm of n acre
just across the road from tn
!. manse This l rent out each year
- L have had past0rates u
Vernon, Bates, Henry, john
on and Cass countie
since l left Audrain, ten year
a ago. This gives me a wide &C
b. quaintaihee among these peOpb
" frequently mingle with thes
W same people in their sorrows
lt Three times within one month
A was called to johnson and Henr
us counties this winter to deliye
* funeral discourses. But one q
., these days we win put it all asid,
Will you meet mein "a better land
X Geo. w. Petty,