Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1900-07-19
Special to mes-Republican.

III
Fort Dodge, July 19.-Dying in hor-
rible agony in a smallpox pest house in
South America, thousands Of miles
from home and friends and deserted by
even his companions in crime, Martin
Jay writes to his sister and brothers In
h Boone urging them to forsake the ways
3 OF sin and repent, even as he has done,
before 1t Is too late.
write you a few lines to let you
\ know that I am we'll with God and I
hope these lines will find you the same.
{ am sorry to say that cannot hope
/ that We shall ever see each other again.
( There is no hope of getting back am
going straight away. Nettie, tell the
folks good bye for ME.
u have been sick for week in the
. hospital with smallpox and two doctors
have given me up. must die. oh,
the horror Of 1t! The worst is that they
never bury the dead here. but take
them out on a hill beyond the city and
burn them. They dom know what a
grave Ia: they are not civilized. i can
see that the end is only a short way off.
1t is glorious to think that God can
save, aSpoor sinner like me- so far away
from h0me. Nettie, pray for me-
So began the letter. 1t was dated
from far inland town in the Argen-
tine Republic, started November a.
1889, and the closing words were feebly
and almost unintelligibly scrawled out
on November 10. Yet it has just arr
rived at Its destination. Gay, debonair
Martin Jay died shortly after the letter
was finished, according to simultaneous
Sadvices. His short life began brilliant
" and endedsin degradation and shame
He was the son OF a prominent Iowa
farmer and stock raiser and was prom
tnent as dashing young man in this
section. On the 31st of May. 1899 he
was arrested on the charge of horse
stealing and confined in the county
. Jail. He was regarded as "trustyD
and was assigned to the duty of carry
ing wood and water to the prisoners in
the upper cells Of the Jail. One day
Martin was pumping water and saw
that no one was around and decided
forthwith, altho the evidences of his
guilt were so slight that he would
( probably have been cleared at the
hands of the grand jury. to take foot
bail for security" and dropped the
water bucket and ran. No more was
heard of him by friends or officers of
the law until the receipt OF the present
letter, which has been SO long in com
Ing.
/ You will wonder. he said in the
etter. what I ever went to this terri
Bile country for, and how got here.
Well. four young fellows and myself
were fishing in small skiff on the
Gulf. "A ship was riding at anchor fur
ther out, waiting for the return of al
packet sent to shore. Like fools we.
srowed to the ship and went aboard to
See things. We were there half an
hour when the packet returned with
provisions, which were loaded on, and
the ship weighed anchor before we
knew it. We could not get off then and
the crew made great sport Of us hen
We pleaded with them to be let loose:
again.
The letter Is somewhat Disconnected,
showing that probably young Jay was
sout OF his head during the writing. The.
relatives are overjoyed to learn of the.
whereabouts OF the long lost prodigali
and yet are Frustrated with grief at
learning Of his sad end.