The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1873-06-05
AN IOWA STORY.
A Mysterious Disappearance and
~ Timely Discovery.
BY HAWKINS TAYLOR.

i timely Discovery.
i BY HAWKINS TAYLOR.
From the"Annals OF Iowa., for April. /
| Probably no settlers in any ney
country In modern times ever say
such bard times as the early settler
Of Iowa, summing up from 1885 +
about ls4s. In Keokuk, as in all part
of the territory, there was no sucl
thing as getting money for any kin,
of labor. laid brick at three dollar
per thousand, in anything that coul,
be eaten or worn. 10 43 or ~ bull
the first Methodist church built Ii
keokuk, Al by 90 feet, think, (brick
for six hundred dollars, and took my
pay in the subscription papers. part 0
which was never paid, and not fifty
dollars in money. The best qualit,
OF fall wheat was hauled to Keokuk
more than one hundred miles, and
sold Cor S72 cents per bushel in store
pay. Other products brought abou,
the same rates but these were gooJ
old times, notwithstanding the low
prices and no money. and other hard.
ships.
! had carpenter shop in the middle
Of Main and Second streets, with nei.
ther door or lock, but had neither tool.
or plank stolen. We then slcpt in oul
houses without locking our doors
with neither fear nor loss; but there
were no Grecian bends nor high.
heeled boots then 1t wss before the
era Of civilization.
Among others Of the citizens Of Keo-
kuk ut that happy day was Melanc-
thon knight. knight was native OF
Cattaraagus county, N. Y, = hard
working, sober, steady, quiet young
man, sort Of Jack of alI-trades, plas-
terer, stone mason, and carpenter, =
sort Of necessity Of that day, when
there was no steady employment ut
any one trade, and more or less Of all
required. About lS46, business being
very dull, aud Knight having nothing
else to do. built wharf-boat by piece
meal. When SO far finished that it
could be used, he sold one-half OF the
boat to man by the name Of Walls
worth. wtsoiived at Montrose, at the
head Of the rapids, a small place at
that time, aud its business depending
entirely on the low water Of the river,
requiring steamboats, to stop at that
place aud tighten over the rapids, An i
stop there to re-ship the up freight
that had to be sent over the rapids on
lighters. It ~ happened that during
the spring and summer after Knight
& Wallsworth took their boat to Mon
trose, that the river rem aimed so high
that few boats stopped at Montrose,
and but little business was done on
the wharf boat, the main profits being
to sell whisky to the steamboat hands.
knight left the management OF the
boat entirely to his partner, Wallis
worth, who employed an English
Mormon, a rough laborpr, and as hard
q looking customer rs cDuld have been
found in the Mormon Church, to run
the whisky shop.
In building the boat, Knight got in
debt some forty dollars, on which u
Judgment was obtained. an execution
issued and levied upon his half of the
boat, which was advertised for sale.
BY this time the river had fallen so
hat boats had to stop at Montrose and
tighten over the rapids, and there was
svery indication of prosperous fall
business on the wharf-boat. knight
had been sick with the chiils aud
ever all the latter summer and early
al, but WAS then able to be around,
md went up to Montr0se to get the
money to pay of the execution that
lad been levied on his part of the
boat, but to his surprise Wsllsworth
'efused to make any settlement or let
lin have any money. Knight went
tut that night to al old Cattaraueus
riend who lived In Muddy Lane,
bout six miles from Montrose, hoping
o be able to borrow the money, but
'e failed. The next morning he went
'ack to Montrose, but Walisworth
till refused to settle with him, evi-
lently intending to have the interest
# Knight in the boat sold by the
aud bought in for his own
'enefit. Forty dollars at that time
vas large sum TO raise, and Knight
ppeared to have no chance to raise it,
That night Knight remained on the
and early in the evening
lie went to bed (the upper part Of the
'oat was used for sleeping purposes).
There were that night seven boats
lighting up or down over the rapids.
Two OF them were fast to the wharf
'oat, and work was kept up on some
# the boats nearly all night. About
wo O'Clock In the morning Knight
'ot up and told his bedfellow that he
ould not sleep, and that he would 20
|owE and write y letter to his old
'ome. In the morning when the
Cnglishman opened the bar and tue
hirsty crowd rushed In, they found
N the card table half finished letter,
written by Knight tn bis apld school
hum IN y, X. ina H6st Mysly and
heerful Zone. On the lettSf we're
Hood drops tksss vsss 6Jaod stAiss
N the table. n no rAoer ssld .srotn
he table 70 Ae de& Asd ythes river
vas the mark in nN "a dust. Of
ONE heavy substance having been
ragged, that looked as If \ man had
'een dragged 70 the door and dropped
'ut on the guard Of the boat into the
liver. On the floor was Knights
hat, with blood on 1t. and
lole cut that looked like it had been
lOne by the corner of Ratchet, that
|ppeared to have been stuck into the
lead just above and behind the ear.
Gear the hat on the foor was O lock
Il Knights hair, that was bloody, that
'ppeared to have been cut by the
ratchet, when stuck into the head.
Behind the counter q hatchet was
ound. the corner Of which exactly
n