The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1901-10-24
WILL END HIS DAYS
IN AN ASYLUM.
Or. SamueIs, the Step-F ather
of the James Bows. is 0y-
ing of Paresis.
LIFE WAS FULL OF TRAGEDY

LIFE WAS FULL OF TRAGEDY.
-. Joseph. Mo. oct. 1S-pr Reu-
ben >amuels. >trpfather u Frank
and Jesse james. j. dying at the
stat. insane asylum here. a victim of
paresis.
pr Samuels was brought To the
asylum on Wednesday from his home
near kearney. Clay county, Missouri,
and while tie l. past 40 years of age,
il required the services 81 three stall
wart men To land him safely at the
institution. 50 violent j. the nature
OF his attiictiou.
DR. Samuels was practicing ply
stefan in Clay county when the moth
er Of the James boys was the pious
and devoted wife of the Rev. Robert
James. who held small pastorate
of the Baptist faith i'll kearney. In
1857. while Frank and Jesse were
still boys. their father announced
that he could no longer live with his
wife and departed for California.
short time thereafter Mrs. James Sc
cured a divorce and she and DR. Sam
uels were united in marriage.
/ DR. Samuels was IA kind and indul-
gent father To the boys, and planned
to give them the benefit of a cole
giate education. and iii them for
some professionally life.
The black and terrible war
cloud appeared, and all the good and
praiseworthy plans of the stepfather
for the welfare of the two boys were
dissipated in the fire and smoke of
battle.
DIR. sAMUELs AT HOME.
Although intensely pro-sonthern IN
his ideas and and belief, yet DR.. Sam
uels declares he at no time merited
he terrible prosecutions himself and
family were compelled to submit To
because of the awful strife of the civil
war. He endeavored to remain Mt
home and follow his profession, but
the intense hatred OF his neighbors
against the south and those who
held TO the Justice OF the cause famed
the flames of passions that led to
linnumerable murders, and for which
Frank and Jesse james became out
! laws. with price upon their heads.
DR.. Samuels frequently took to the
! brush ana remained for weeks ut II
time i'm order to save his life from
marauding bands Of Kansas Red
legs, who were particularly bent on
seeking revenge Oh the families Of
. members Of Quantrell' band.
7 In 1862 he was taken from his
: home and hanged to "A tree III the
: front ward. The mob was frighten-
r ed away by a rumor that friends OF
: the doctor were approaching. Frank
2 and Jesse James did approach, but
: not on that night.
Three weeks later they returned
. home with about fifteen OF their guer-
o rilla companions and when they left
4 many homes were burning in the
vicinity where it was presumed that
. members of the family had been in
n timately or remotely identified with
I the outrage at the Samuels home.
1t was several years later that the
p. assault on the SamuelS residence by
d Pinkerton detectives was committed
who expected to capture or Kill the
0 james boys and their companions
many of whom it was enormously
u believed were there in hiding. Cotton
Il balls saturated with Kerosene were
h hurled into the house through the
, windows. and when the inmates at
tempted to put out the fire and save
the building from destruction, 6
handgrenade containing explosives
. or high force was thrown into the
middle OF one Of the rooms. An :
vear-old son Of Mrs. Samuels wa
: almost instantly killed. her own arm
Y was left shredded helpless by her -id'
Is and Dr. Samuels was -lightlyiniu
a. Frank and Jesse James secured
= ample revenge by killing several per
+ sons who took part il the assault.