The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1905-09-07
GOOD ROADS TRAIN
Will be Sent over the Lines of the
Burlington In Iowa in October.

Burlington IN iowa IN OClODer.
A good road train is to be run over
the lines Of the Burlington in Iowa in
October. At big good road meeting
held in Council Bluffs recently it was
announced that the railway company
expected to begin campaign Of eda-
cation for the improvement of the
roads.
The King road drag, simple tool,
which is working marvellous results,
was enthusiastically lauded at Council
Bluffs. Mr.. King dwelt upon the value
and benefit of hard roads but when such
are not to be had or until they can be
had, the best thing to do is to keep
our dirt roads in the best possible
condition. G. nj. Junkins, of the Fair
field Ledger, told what the drag had
done for Jefferson county and for Fair
fields unpaved street. He said in part:
81 am not advocating any special tool
or machine, for l have seen better roads
made with anything from steel rail to
the fork of maple tree, bnt believe
the invention which bears the name of
the Missouri colonel is the king of all
of them; it certainly gives smooth,
rounding, firm roads, and those three
things make perfect dirt highway. !
was impressed with it's possibilities a
year or more ago, and madean effort to
have sample drag constructed for
use on the dirt streets Of Fairfield.
The city authorities were slow to move
possibly because they feared that the
use Of split log where we are prone to
put on city airs, would do more to
provoke ridicule than bring results.
Drags of other patterns were made
and cast aside. Finally from mater
ials in the city yards Street Commits
sioner Strong made a drag which
closely conforms to the King plans.
He used it and then he made another
and another. Fairfelds unpaved
streets are in better condition today
than they have ever been and the cost
of good streets has been less than that
of poor ones, for one man and one team
will do the work Of two or three men
and two teams with grader. More than
that, it is practically impossible to do
serious damage to street or highway
with the drag, while much Of the work 81
the grader, especially in the hands of the
unframed men. is worse than wasted
People who drive, and those who don't
drive, taxpayers and city authorities al
sound the praises of the drag.
An old and faded bible, and a dusty
old violin owned by Halle Dale are
worth upwards of 100000 if report.
recently published are true. He ha'
German Lutheran bible, printed il
Germany in 1897, a counterpart o
which is said to be valued at $4,000
This is the information Mr.. Dale go
. from Des Moines paper which sni'
but three were in existence, valued a
> that price each. The one he has cor
!, responds with the description given
: 1t was found in an old rubbish pile ant
was given him by Mrs. AL Sweringer
], In it is written the name John Lants
. 1877. Another relic is a Stradivariu
: violin. There is no doubt of the al
most fabulous value of this. 1t is tn
life ambition of every great violinis
= some day to own "Strad." One re
! Gently sold at Mt. Pleasant for $1,000
! 1t had been owned by Hans Albert, h
lost it in adversely, and now has
! back again. No one has ever approach
. ed Stradivarius as violin maker an
he has not many in existence toda
: They are musty with age, but swe'
toned beyond comparison with ar
other.
The annual reunion of the Thirty-thil
4 Iowa will be held at Newton, low
Sept. 13, IA, and 18th.