The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1910-05-06

tardineaa ana for myself. 1 would like
70 toll my story In this wallet are the
documents OF proof
my story Is nay fathers shame Ills
name was John Francis Wayne and
he was the son OF Thomas James
Wayne, once bishop OF tho diocese OF
Georgia. Among the slaves my grand
/ father owned was a fine fellow named
Ben, who had been stolen from tho
Gold Coast. He had son, also named
Ben. and tho father OF the African BE-
noni that you have Just thrown into
! jail, because he has kept silence out OF
| respect for my inhrmity His son Ben
! and my father grew up IN that relh-
| tionship that once existed In the South
| between boy master ana boy slave
! Ben's father had told his SON how their
/ people were kings IN mid-Atriea, ana
OF the enormous wealth they held there,
an vested IN diamond mines. The
| black lad and the white one Were hd-
venturous youths, and planned trom
| hoyhOod up 10 sail 20 Africa as soor
as they were grown 10 manhood Der
was to be restored 10 his aneestra.
power and my father was 10 be enrich.
ed with half the wealth Of the KING
dom and 10 return here 10 America 20
live. Father wanted 20 be a physician,
so his parents sent him 20 Germany
and later 10 France TO study. Ben, the
slave. went with him as his valet
though they were more like foster
brothers, and with good reason, as
Ban's mother had been my fathers wet
nurse Ben was bright and 10 nt him
salf 20 rule over his people and 20 head
his dreams OF n vast African colonial
ton he studied side by side with my
father They saved their money did
these two boys and when they were
matrlculatcd made ready 10 90 10 Ar
rlea. lowering around Paris before
their departure my father met the
beautiful twin daughters OF French
man OF rank and wealth, the Mademoi-
selles Deslrce and Marie De Ia Roux.
They were like as two peas, and OF ex-
ceptloual grace and charm, and for
long while father did not know which
to choose. He loved them both. FL
naIly he decided upon Desiree, pro-
posed. was accepted and married with
IN a fortnight AS the two sisters had
never been separated Marie accom-
panied the newly welded pair 10 AZ
rlca. Shortly after their arrival in ;he
ancient kingdom Of Ben's father a
Journey accomplished only after terri
BILE hardships Ben married Tyoga, the
mother OF Benoni, and the foster moth
or OF Meta, now Bcnours wife. The
natives gave them short shrlft at hrst
Had not my fathers really marvellous
knowledge Of electricity and his clever
acmaintance with black art as II was
then practlced I'm some portions Of Ger
many stood them In good stead, their
lives would not have been worth much.
AS II was the barbarians considered
my father q terrible sorcerer, and eN-
allied him to be their ruler. Shortly
afterwards Ben and father quarreled
and father had the faithful slave exc
cutod with terrible torture for the sight
of the wealth I'm this African kingdom,
and It's almost limltless diamond fields
had disclosed all the avariclous quail
tics OF my fathers nature. and he felt
no tIIttllNl 'AIfNh IhI NLfH EIIhkNElIlE
Jewels that his thousands Of serfs piled |
up no his feet. Tyoga remained staun n |
to her lonely young mistress even after !
the fearful death Of Bon. her husband.
Then Bononi and 7 were boru-with- |
IN a month of each other. when the |
first year Of the soiourn on African soil |
was barely ended. Tyoga consecrated
Benoni to my service at his birth, ana |
he has been more faithful and loyal |
than a brother ever since. Within the |
next year my sister Cerisse was born. |
In appearance I was like my father. |
but had my mothers disposition. |
Cerisse was the image of our mother |
and Of our Aunt Marie, but her nature /
was that Of our father Intensely vain. |
selfish and overbearing. Cerisse would |
have been hated by all around the cas- /
tie but for her exceptional beauty. She |
was barely two years old when a young
captain in the French army, Raoul de
[IEnclose, stationed in camp a few
rods from cur demesne, met my Aunt
Marie. They fell violently in love with
each other, and despite my fathers M
position were married by the old
French Cure who had accompanied The
marty on its migration into the African
Father was wild with an
yer about the marriage. He forbade
my aunt and her husband the house
and returned to my Aunt Marie her
half of the joint fortune that she and
her sister had brought with them to
Africa, only because he feared that
Capt. de L'Enclos might invoke an in
of the Wayne desmene by
he French government. My aunt was
" now thoroughly enrapturad with
ife in the tropics, which was but nat
Iral as the De La RouX had originally
,ome from Martinique. Africa was
,arred to them, because both she and
Ter husband feared my fathers vindic-
iveness.