The weekly Iberian. (New Iberia, La.) 1894-1946, 1922-10-14

H~HE town Of Willow Creek lies
at the junction of a rivulet OF
Il that name, with the Big Mud
dy. But the people Of that commu
nifty being born scoffers, have chan led
the name Of the Big Muddy In com
mon parlance to Mud Crlck," and,
transformed by the alchemy Of popu-
lar depreciation. the name Of the town
Itself has shriveled into "Willer
Creek" 1t might have been some
thing Of town. rs towns 90 In the
West. but instead of pulling with his
| neighbors for the success Of the town,
each of It's founders spent his time
making fun OF the pretensions of 9th
ers. When there was talk on the part
of "old man" Mead, the primeval post
master, Of securing the government
land office for Willow Creek. the In
dian trader, and the saloonkeeper, and
the blacksmith. made great sport Of
the old mans ambition. A few years
later, when civilization had crowded
in with a hotel, q lumber yard. new
saloon, and a barber shop. someone
spoke of starting newspaper: but
the laugh that went up from Willow
Greek was the only unanimity that
greeted Editor McCray when his back
was turned But the newspaper came,
and so did the people, and they kept
coming, until, when the boom" Of the
later eighties struck Kansas. II found
Willow Creek with about two thou
sand soothing inhabitants.
But, In one way or another, the
''boom" seemed to bring wealth to
Willow Creek. And with wealth,
came some attempts at the organi-
zation of polite society There were
innumerable young real estate agents,
young doctors. young lawyers, and
clerks, all from the East, in the vii
lage; and these, with the daughters Of
they chahced to make In the high
school, constituted the aristOcracy Of
the town. 1t was vulnerable aris-
tocracy. and the scoffers made sad
havoc with 1t.
It was said OF Flora McCray, who
went to boarding school and came
back. timid, retiring. and distinctly
unsocial, that. "She needn't hold her.
self so high. If her father would only
pay back the money he stole in the
school land fraud she would be as
common as anybody" But the girl
paid no heed to these rumors, il she
heard them. She quietly filed her
small sphere. bounded on one side by
her meek-voiced mother and her busy
father. on another side by her church
and her Church social" on third
side by very brief glimpse Of a very
big world and her memory Of 1t. and
on the fourth side by occasional day
dreams and night thoughts, pretty
much the same rs those which come
to any young girl OF good health, good
spirits. and twenty-one years, who has
never had a sweetheart.
Az the reaction. caused by the de-
cadence Of real estate prices set In,
Willow Creek became poorer. AS the
young men. who paid for the orches-
tras, and halls, and flowers, gradually
left town, the young women, who for.
merly freQuented receptions, parties.
and balls, were seen more and more
often at the church socials." After
a two years Intellectual struggle Will
low Creek gave 1t up. the town could
no longer support two branches of
society. and the Church crowd" and
the "dance crowd" merged into one.
When II was announced that the
entire social body Of Willow Creek
was going out to RobinsOn's for
"taffy pull" one Saturday night. the
rest of Willow Greek laughed. The
town people sneered at the young wom-
en- who had planned the party, and in
timated that the night ride out to Rob
inson's and back was heroic meas
ure; and they laughed Mt old man
Robinson and his family FOR tOlerating
people who would snub them X they
came to town, and lastly they laughed
ut the young men who would have to
pay the livery bills.
Saturday morning, John Howard,
Mr.. McCray's partner in the stock
business, came up from the farm on
Dry Greek, and after going over some
details OF business, McCray asked his
partner to Sunday dinner as was his
custom. when the young man was in
town, and the invitation was accepted.
During the "boom" Howard had made
money. He had mingled with what Is !
known as the swell set" Of Willow |
Greek, and though not 4 favorite ut |
the flood OF the BOOM" the very fact |
that he had the social Instinct. made |
him necessity In society at its ebb.
Soon after leaving his partners Of
fice, he had learned Of the plans for
the 'taffy pull" that evening. He was
urged to so. and finding that all the
rigs" were full, and that ell the girls
Of his "set" were provided with es-
corts, In moment Of despairing In
SEPARATION the young man sent note
to his partners daughter. asking for
''the pleasure Of her company" His
Invitation was accepted, and late that
afternoon, Flora McCray stepped into
a buggy with the first beau she had
ever had. and headed a long process
sion Tor Robinson's.
Someone had stopped the clock that
hight, and the young women, putting
N their wraps, guessed that 1t was J.