The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1903-02-05
Rawsonville's -
Senoation

copyright. 1902, by the s. S. Mcclure
Company.l
On certain Tuesday night the vii
lage of Jacksonville, containing about q
thousand inhabitants, went to led. Be
fore O'clock Wednesday morning
there was buzz of excitement up and
down its length. Two events had hap
pened while 99S Of the inhabitants
slept the sleep Of the just.
One of the general stores was owned
by George Carter. He was bachelor
of forty, who boarded with the Widow
Brown, and the widow had reported
his mysterious disappearance. AS
Deacon Spooner put the case to the
crowd while standing on the horse
block in front of the store:
George Carter has vanished off the
face of the earth, and it devolves upon
this community to unearth the mys-
terry"
The community first declared it's be-
lief that the missing merchant was
bankrupt and had run away to avoid
his creditors.
When the clerk had shown by, the
books that that belief could not hold
water, the community looked for other
reasons and found them. 1t was known
to all that he accompanied the Widow
Spicer to Sunday evening church, and
the inference was that he had asked
her to marry him and then disappeared
to avoid breach of promise suit The
widow was called upon to give convict
ing evidence. She either couldn't or
wouldn't
Gentlemen" said the deacon as he
mounted the horse block again, 1--WE
are on the trail, but we haven't found
the body yet"
A search was made of the abandoned
red sawmill, Of the creek north of the
village and Of the garnet of the store,
but no one was found drowned or
hanging by the neck. Nevertheless the
public proposed an inquest, and Squire
Haddon was brought to the front.
After duly hopping his heated brow
with his we'll known yellow silk hand
kerchief he said:
II don't know much about inquests,
but l allus supposed that you had to
have somethin' to inquest on. But if
the freemen Of this glorious commune
ty wish me to go ahead I'll do so with
the greatest of pleasure"
1t was not only apparent to the free
| men that there was no dead body be-
fore them to call for q verdict, but that
| the squire was aching to deliver a
|. Fourth of July grafton, and the pro-
| posed inquest was therefore choked
off.
Joseph Taylor, the village carpenter,
had wife named Polly. He had gone
| over to Snow Hill to work for a week,
leaving Polly alone. 1t was now sud
denly discovered that her house was
shut up and that she hadn't been seen
since the afternoon before. Here was
mystery No. 2. Deacon Spooner was
still itching to deliver that Fourth of
July address, so he remounted the horse
block, called for order in q loud voice
and said:
"Feller freemen, this ere case is as
plain as knot on q log-that is, it's
plain to me. George Carter and Polly
Taylor have eloped together and scan
dalized the fair name of town which
never even had dogfght before
When that devoted band Of pilgrims
left the shores of old England to-
But he was choked off right there
Every man and woman in the village
was sure that the key to the mystery
had been found, and what the pilgrim
fathers did was Of no consequence
| How blind they We're not to have
guessed the truth at the start! Polly
Taylor was good looking, smart and
inclined to be frivolous, while her hus
band was SO serious minded that he
| did not believe in huslliDg bees. Be
fore nightfall twenty different people
had remembered her saying that
George Carter was good looking mar
and Of George Carter saying that he
wished he had met her years before.
Things had been talked over sc
many times before supper that it seem.
ed as If there was nothing more tc
say. But it was hardly over before
the Methodist church bell rang out a
| fire alarm. There was no fire. Dea.
con Spooner had simply got a new
idea and wanted to submit it to the
freemen of Rawsonville. Once more
he mounted the horse block to indulge
In feryid address. This time he
meant to land the pilgrim fathers in
good shape, but he planned to blind his
audience by first stating his belief
that the husband Of the heartless wife
ought to be communicated with al
once.
His declaration was received with
enthusiasm, and boy was hired te
ride over to Snow Hill and tell Joe
Taylor that he was wifeless.
1t had come o'clock when thun
derclap shook the village--lhat is, Joe
Taylor and lis wife appeared. She
had gone over to Snow Hill to see him
about the contents Of letter that haC
arrived at the house, and he had re
turned with her. Men and womer