Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1916-12-07
CHAPTER III.
Vows.

Vows.
Driving forward with her scattered
vedettes the vestlges of winter, spring
began to intrench the main body of
ner army. The ilacs became delicious
spreaders of fragrance, the japonica
unfolded its exquisite single flower.
Violets hallowed the dead grasses of
winter. Then the dogwood trees hung
out their snow-whlte blossoms like
huge white butterflies. Against the
drifting cloud and up into the warm
air famed the daring color of the red
maple of the swamps.
The seventeenth of the month
Toinette O'Bannon met with a puz-
cling experience that afternoon. She
was working In the garden behind her
cabin, so that 1t might not lack for its
wealth of bloom that spring. The
tears gathered In her eyes as she bent
over the task. She was thinking of
the garden in New Orleans, whose
first cool blooms had been gathered to
be laid beside the still, white face that
had grown cold at her birth. Now she
herself was q woman and had found,
with her father, O new home in the
northern wilds.
She gathered some sprays of purple
hyacinths that late frost had with
cred on their stalks. These she twist
ed into a detected posy and tossed
into the lane, mourning even for them.
Then she stopped and began to dig
idly about the roots Of some love-in-
the-mist. Suddenly she was reused
from her day-dream by the sound of
footsteps passing on the side street
that passed the garden. And then she
heard an ejaculation like the moan Of
a beast caught in trap, and .heav-
Ter voice speaking. Too startled to
move, she listened behind the screen
Ing bushes.
"What ails you, MANI"
"The mark The markl"
"What foollshness now? What
mark?"
"Therel The purple posyl Oh, my
GodP The speaker seemed to choke.
The other laughed contemptuously.
Nonsense, man, those be but flowers
someone has dropped. They mean
naught."
"You cannot know" said the other
convulsively. 'If you but knew the
oath"
"a fiddlestick for the OATH" the
grufe voice blurted. "Throw the thing
away, I tell you, and forget it. Hast
it with your
There was pause, and then the
commanding voice resumed:
"Throw it away, man. 1t was naught
but mummery."
The girl heard their steps pass on
down the street. Rising quickly, she
stared at their retreating backs. The
one was a tall youth, whom she rec
ognized as young Doctor Elliott; the
other broad-shouldered, portly fig
ure, a stranger to her. AS she turned
back her eye caught sight Of
crumpled bit Of paper lying on the
path outside the garden and with girl
ish excitement she hastily ran out and
picked it up. Dirty and greasy 1t was,
as If with long handling, and on 1t,
written in a struggling hand and I'M
couth spelling, were the words:
I, Edward scull Of my own free will
and Acoard do declare and solemnly
sware that will never reveal to aney
person or Persons aney thing that may
Iaad m hn dtaOnNyarxy s.f n
in or by word sign or action as may lead
to aney Discovery under the Penelty OF
being sent out OF this World by the first
Brother that May Meet me after the per-
pie mark further more I do sware that
will Punish by death aney trater or
traters should there aney arise up
amongst us I win persue with unseaceing
Statute. will be gust true sober and
faithful in all my dealings with all my
Brothers. So help God to keep this my
Oath Invoilated Amen"
What had Doctor Elliott to do with
Edward ScullT She puzzled over
the riddle and tried to dismiss It with
a laugh. But as she returned to the
smiling garden 1t seemed to her that a
cloud, no bigger perhaps than q mans
hand but still cloud, came over the
place.
When Elliott, having ridden in from
Louisville on his mare, called on Toll
nette later In the afternoon, they
strolled, at his suggestion, along the
river path. She had not known him
long; but on each of his weekly visits
to Corydon he had disclosed In every
look and word growing passion for
her.
The girl, walking In a reverie that
drew a veil Of tenderness over the
deep sapphire Of her eyes, and the
April day, fading out In a dream of
blue and a dazzling glory
of gold, seemed part of each other.
BY her side walked the tall young
doctor; and he. too. was part, surely,
of the beautiful fellowship of the
happy world.
He speaks: 'Toinette, here are VIC.
lets. Blue as your eyes, Toi-
nettei"