St. Patrick's Queen

"For I'm to be Queen of St. Patrick's Ball," reflected Miss Mary Louise Butterfield proudly in her sorority house at the

University of Missouri one day last week. How gay and glamorous the affair would be, the big annual ball of the Engineering School! How red-blooded and stalwart the engineers, who stride the campus daily in corduroys and stout boots, seemingly oblivious to the admiring glances of the coeds! A fig for their rivals the law-students, who garb themselves nattily, strut with walking sticks! Mary Butterfield hummed gaily, her thoughts on the triumph, that would be hers when the engineers crowned her Queen of the Ball. About mid-afternoon she left the sorority house.

The ball began that night. But where was its Queen? Ten o'clock passed . . . eleven . . . midnight . . . and no beauteous Mary Louise Butterfield to be crowned Queen of St. Pat's.

There were angry mutterings along the stag lines and in the flask-fragrant coatroom. Blood had long been bad between the natty law students and the virile engineers. When it was learned that Burnis Frederick and three other law students had abducted Miss Butterfield, taken her from Columbia to Moberly, Mo., the engineers were hot indeed. Three days later eleven of them set upon Burnis Frederick and a companion. Was Burnis Frederick a milk sop? Bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang! went his revolver. Down went three of the avengers of Mary Butterfield: Jerry Cebe, captain-elect of the wrestling team, hit in the arm and leg; Bus Love with a wound in his leg; Frank Luckey with a bullet in his abdomen. Law Student Frederick was carried off, beaten badly, thrown from an automobile near the college hospital where he later admitted the kidnapping and shooting. Freed under bond, he pleaded self-defense. Said he: "I don't see what else I could have done." Mary Butterfield, who had not tried to resist, said the kidnappers promised to return her before the ball ended. "I got a big kick out of it," said she. After the shooting: "I think it's awful."

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