Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-11-14
The Argus Daily Short Story
Vindicated-Bv Fred L. Young.
Copyrighted. 1910. by Associated Literary Press

One morning Elmer Ward, a fresh
man in Vernon college. was called up
before the president, who thus adj
dressed him:
"NIr. Ward, last night you were
caught in one of those depredations
which of late have been throwing dis
credit on the university. Peter Bar
ber's grocery store was entered and
liquors and cigars taken. Barber,
who lives over his store. hearing a
noise below. put his head out of the
window and saw several young men
running away. He recognized you as
one of them. If you will give me the
names Of the others your punishment
will be far lighter"
last night" replied the accused
man. Il was in my room from 6 o'clock
till Z in the morning, never once leav-
ing it,
That you would undoubtedly be
able to prove by your fellow students,
but not to the satisfaction of the fac
ulty. You may consider your connec-
ton with the college severed"
Elmer. after an interview with Bar
Der. during which the latter maintain
ed stoutly that he had seen the stu
dent running away from his store. saw
no way to prove his innocence and.
making a virtue of necessity. left the
university. There was no legal pros,
cCutiOn for burglary since the matter
was considered one OF those indiscro-
lions common among college students
The hardest part Of file young mans
college leaving was saying gcodby 10
Della Trevor. the daughter Of PrOfcs
sur Trevor. The two had been play
mates. and Elmer had chosen Vernon
college because she was there. They
were neither Of them quite of an age.
certainly not in position to pretend
TO any thing more than friendship.
but there was an undercurrGpt Of
feeling that was liable to burst forth
at any moment. This trouble which
had overtal.en the Young man brought
it all out. Together they talked Over
the situation as Il matter Of supreme
interest to both. and the plan that he.
lia proposed was carried out 10 the let
TER 1t was in substance that Elmer
should not he derived Of college
education. When La left this was not
only understood tetvecn them. bu'
that the current OF their lives shou!"
be one.
Though Elmer had been in college
but a few months. his expulsion VIZ
received by the students With markel
diSapprobation. The spirit of robe!
lion ran SO high that the president was
burned in effigy on the campus. I'll.
freshman was not only the most ponu
lar man in his class. but was looked u
to as the athletic Moses who bid fail
to lead his fellow students out of the
wilderness OF defeat in which they had
been wandering for several years. He
stood six feet two in his stockings
and was a Hercules for strength. And
now that he had been expelled the
expectation OF great things he would
do for the college was crushed in the
bud. Interest in the annual football
match for the next year died out.
and it was supposed that Kendall uni
versity. which had downed Vernon so
often, would do it again. And so II
turned out. not only that year. but
the next and the next.
When the autumn of the third year
came around the Vernon undergradu-
ates felt that something must be done
to break this chain of defeats. good
man, Tom AIuir. was selected for cap
tain. and he worked hard to get to-
Rether an efficient team He succeeded