Northern Oklahoma College - Roundup Yearbook (Tonkawa, OK)

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iraqi- J 5 4 ,ey H .. fi-1-:fl -1'-. 'Q 'Mai- :r3, ,. . ff, Si. Q sfclifql WGVG ll-12111115' Clad and attended the common school, unlike their father who had alWaYS had private tutors. The father seemed to need a great deal of money and spent much L11119 2111114 from the little home. The same kind of wrinkles that had marked the fave of the once handsome young man's mother, were appearing in the face of the once golden-haired girl and the people nodded their heads as' isf to say: l told you so. And there were two graves in the quiet churchyard. under the Stately elms. As l listened l saw the little home broken up. The children were placed in the homes of benevolent relatives and friendsg the bloom had faded from the cheeks of the mother-she had grown prematurely old, and her body was bent from the effects of toil. l.er small hands had found it necessary to earn a l.velihood for the famfily as the dis- solute father had all but forgotten that he had a family, and was headed down the salma' treacherous stream, and headed for fthe same fatal cataract that had engulfed his fath- er. Then came a stormy, blustery night, and a drunken form lay huddled in a drunken sleep in a gutter. lt was the handsome boy of other days, and he was dreaming of the long ago. The sulfering he had wrought overwhelmed him with a sense of horror, aliil demons. of indescribable aspect haunted, rebuked, and tormented him wlithout mercy. He seemed plunged into a dream purgatory, and when he awoke he found h,s soul. His life, however, was hopelessly wrecked, and little seemed left to sweeten the lives of h.s wife and children. Then a mighty resolve filled his demoral-zed brain. He Could at least rel ere them of the weight of his miserable presence, and he did. Placing thc little hoard of money that he had saved fo-r his own selfish uses Where his Wife could find it, and bidding them a long, sad. silent farewell a larewell unobserved by them- he disappeared and his family and acquaintances and the community gave him up for dead. Then Flddlin' Joe came west, and with his body ravished with disease. and 115 soul filled with remorse. his mind gradually weakened and became almost a blank, and it wal: thus that l found him. 1 ' The bow fell from his fingers and he gazed vacantly at the opposite wall. I tip- toed to the door, and, mounting my pony, rode home under the StarB- 153

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if 9 1 6 a - ' ig .ma . and repulsion, and -he stupidly, senselessly. Undecided as to whether or not to enter, I, blunderer that I am, drove precipitously toward the object of my visit. The boys tell me, I said, that you have helped them immeasurably in overcom- ing the drink habit. I hardly expected a comprehensive, or even intelligible expla- nation of the subject, but even as I spoke, his face lost its blank look, and his broken frame suddenly seemed to be lighted as with an inner fire. His body trembled as with an o-vermastering passion. Drink, drink! he sobbed, and clenched his fists in impotent ra.ge and Sorrow. lt was the death of me and my family. O, God! O, Godln I-Ie raised hjls trembling hands above his head and tore his hair in anguish, or perhaps it was anger. I also trembled at the 'sight of him, and should have liked to flee the place as fast as my pony could have carried me. But I resisted this impulse and asked. Would you mind telling me about it? I-Ie mo-tioned me to come in, and I complied-more because I feared not to than be- cause I wanted to do so. He seated himself in the one wretched chair, and I found E1 seat' on the no less wretched bed close by. All the fire that a moment before seemed about to consume him, had disappeared and his eyes stared senselessly into space as he listlessly strummed his violin. I waited nervously, until suddenly 'one claw-like hand clutched my knee while the other pointed at the blank wall opposite us. i'Look, he crfzed, in a hoarse whisper. I saw nothing at all, but I heard as he began to play, and I sat spellbound at the sound, for this was the story the fiddle told in the hands of Fiddlin' Joe. Surrounded by the mists of years, sacred to the memory of the maniac, lo-cked in the soul of his music, revolved a miniature world, flooded with sunshine as only the sun can shine in the Southland, filled with the songs of birds and the murmur of soft breezes laden with the incense of many flowers and o-verfiowing w :th lz tghter and hap- piness, lay a paradise, and in this paradise moved beautiful women quantly gowned in the dresses of that long gone past, escorted by brave and handsome men and about them children froliicking and dancing and laughing as children will always do. In this scene and playing with the other children was a child who seemed to rule this child- world. What his name was I could not understand tho-ugh h s comrades frequently called to him in their sports. Tlme rested lightly upon the little lad and all seemed as it should. They were celebrating a birthday party where he first tasted wine and could not refrain from making a grimace as he did so. His fond parents' were there too. His mother, a sweet, dainty woman, adorably dependent upon the tall, handsome man with the weak face, who' was the lad's father and who proposed drinking 'the toast. The music suddenly changed, and as suddenly the scene was transformed-no, not the scene, only the characters. The handsome little lad in his blue velvet suit was transformed into a tall handsome youth, the image of his father, and with hflm was seen the golden haired girl whose curls he used to pull in the long ago, now grown into blushing girlho-od. Many were smiling at the happy couple, but there were a few who shook theffr heads and whispered and pointed toward the boy's parents, who, also had changed with the years. T-he mother had a pathetic droop to her once comely shoul- ders, and the lines carved by the hand of worry showed plainly 111 1191- face, a1t11011g11. with her old pride, she tried artfully to' conceal them. To understand the reason for all this it was only necessary to look upon the once handsome father, now no longer the pride of his wife and 'the object of his son's adoration. lfle had fallen at victim to the demon drink. Again the scene changed. Now the chimes of the great cathedral pealed forth their happy announcement and down the massive steps marched the gay wedding party -the golden-haired girl and the handsome youth were now 1111111 511111 yvlfe. AAJ1 1110 world seemed -to rejoice and be glad with them, except one who Seelllgd to be 536113, out of harmony with all the laughter and song. A small, frail black-clad figure yvali kneeling under the stately elms in the churchyard-kneeling beside a grass grown grave. It was the mother and she was thinking of another such a time long ago, and, perhaps praying for the happiness' of her son and his wife. Another scene, and I could see the home and family of the golden-haired girl and the handsome youth. It was a very modest and unpretentious home. The children 152

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Sag a,-ik. elm A. 5.51 .1-3.-1-'Q-, :Ly--.EW L Dear Old School Cecil Artis, '17 In my mind there are thots that keep clinging, Of you Old School, so dear, To me different pictures they're bringing- , Pictures so bright and clear. You're standing robed in your splendor, The students all happy and gay, Some day from all this welll be parted, Yes, we'll go on in life's' different ways. The delightful moments are flying, We are sorry We cannot stay, With prayers, and best wishes, and gratitude, Some favors we'll try to repay. With sweet thots and fond hopes you have filled us May we ever be true to thy name, We regard you as one of the brightest links In our friends'hip's golden chain. May the battles you win be many, . All glory be unto thy name! May all students who come Within thy Walls Never dare to bring thee shame. Happy, thrice happy, we ever are, Whenin your presence sweet, You seem to us a dear old friend. We hope again to meet, We bid farewell to you, Dear Old School, And as we pass along life's way Our thots will turn back to the happy hours Spent here in work and play. Should there be so-me here. we may not meet again Here on earthg to us sorrow would be giveng But Peace,'7 Whisper angels from above, You may join again in Heaven. 154 A