The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1899-09-26
WHERE Is DIR. LEONARD

WHERE Is DIR. LEONARD
Nearly every one in this Sec
tion remembers J. G. Leonard,
the dentist, who in the past Wis
tied Challis nearly every year,
and who is also noted as "Gover-
nor of the Third House of Ida
no." A recent issue of the Times
of Chicago contains the follow
ing about him
DR.. J. G. Leonard is missing.
Some say that he has left his
bleaching bones on the mountain
side, as he himself predicted;
some say, doc Leonard Not
much Can't kill him so easily"
All agree that DR.. Leonard is
the strangest combination of
dentist, tramp, paleontogist and
queer character that ever be-
friended a great university.
DR.. Leonard first made him
self known to the University of
Michigan by inquiring casually
of Harrison Soule, its treasurer,
through a letter, whether the
college had any use for relics
and specimens ia its museums.
Now, the University of Michigan
is a great and valuable institu-
ton of learning-one of the
greatest in the country, but it
has not millions OF endowment
like Harvard or Yale. Major
Soule has no money to waste on
specimens he hasn't seen, and SC
he replied, in more diplomatic
phrase, of course. The univer-
sity has no fund, he said, to pay
for such articles. Next Major
Soule received a postal card
couched in rather less diplomatic
phrase than his own, thus
80 you can't pay the expense,
eh ? Then go to the devil I'll
pay it myself. My rope is near
ly run, and some day I'll turn up
missing, and few years later a
few bleached bones will be found
among the crags up in the noun
tains. [ want to be remembers d
somewhere on Gods green earth,
so kindly accept my gifts, and
some day, old cub, perhaps we'll
meet. ]. G. LEONARD"
Pretty soon Major Soule be-
gan to receive things. expenses
paid, huge 900-pound cinnamon
bear, stuffed, the largest ever
killed; an antelope, and rare min
ing specimens. The collection
grew constantly. 1t now fills
two cases in the museum and is
considered very valuable. There
are Indian relics, shields, axes,
bows and arrows, blankets,
tepees and minerals of every sort
known to the West.
Most pathetic of all is a lock-
less gun-an old Mississippi rifle
with a hammered barrel four feet
long-a relic of the saddest trag-
edy of the plains, the massacre
of Lamoile creek. 1t was the
gun belonging to the young fell
low who was butchered by the
Indians. His sweetheart had
stabbed herself to the heart un-
der a wagon not far away, and
he, wounded fatally, hid himself
to die in the bushes, first wrench
ing off the locks and sights of
his rifle that the Indians might
not use it. The gun was found
many years later by DR.. Leonard
and sent to the museum.
Once Dr.. Leonard wrote Maj.
Soule Il travel along with
two mules, cart, my dogs, a
gun, and my tooth pullers, all
alone. i manage to stay in each
town long enough to pull a coup
le barrels of teeth and dicker for
some new specimens for the col
lections and move on" Another
time he wrote Major Soule for
his portrait, and on receiving it,
wrote You look about the
same kind of q sardine as / am. y
The last time DR.. Leonard was
heard from was in the fall of
1898. He was starting upon an
expedition through the desert
regions of Arizona to investigate
the remains of the cliff dwellers
there and in old Mexico. He has
never been heard from since.