The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1906-04-26
Old Time Leon Stories
DR.. Layton's Aero-plane.

The recently invented Aero-plane,
which slides along on the air, swooping
and soaring like big winged bird, is
no new thing to DR.. Layton. He and
Billie Perdew discovered this principle
OF aerial navigation in the early summer
following the court house fire. DR..
hadn't been in Leon very long at this
time and was engaged in raising a
beard and trying to build up medical
practice in too healthy community.
So one Sunday afternoon in late June,
pretending to have call MP near
Franklin, he hooked up his roam ponies
and rushed out of town on the gallop,
as all young doctors do. Billie went
along for company and to hold the
ponies.
Returning they reached the city
limits at dusk-that glorious hour when
nights sable pail dropping DER the
landscape thrills the soul with awe and
sweet regrets for the passing day. The
insect choirs sang requiem-the stars
came out and all nature breathed of
peace. The church bells called to even
ing worship, the girls were waiting, and
the ponies were sent home at brisk
trot.
There was no herd law in those times
and the solemnity Of the dying day had
been desecrated several times by Dr.'s
remarks when he was compelled to
stop while Billie climbed out of the
buggy and persuaded languid COW
to move over and cease from blockading
the roadway. The perverted instinct,
or whatever it is, that impels COW to
choose the middle of the country road
for her evening siesta had heen truly
an tod I1yR 1,rf ol1
quate explanation evolved when they
came upon Mr.. Lunbeck's moolley cow,
recumbent and ruminant, resting in the
cool of the evening in the dusty road
way. For many returning seasons this
COW had used the center of the highway
as summer sleeping apartment and
was not disposed to relinquish her
vested rights acquired by occupation.
DR.. and Billie, coming down the road,
the horses at a trot, waved warning
arms and shouted loudly at Mrs. Cow,
but she calmly cbewed her cud and gaz-
ed curiously at the antics of the young
men and moved, not an inch. DR.. drove
the horses directly over the astonished
animal, which was an error in judgment
on his part, as pointed out to him later
by Billie Perdew,for as the buggy reach
ed the center of gravity reached point
directlyover the median line of the cows
vertebral column she arose and headed
for down town with celebrity, bucking
and bawling strenously. 1t is regretted
that no scientific account of what
followed has been preserved. Dr.'s
estimate Of the vertical distance reach
ed by the buggy as over forty feet is
thought to be erroneous and excessive.
1t is probable that not until the ponies
took part in the mix-up and kicked
themselves loose that the vehicle at
tanned any such altitude. This error
in calculation may be attributed to the
fact that Dr.'s mind was occupied at the
time and was not in the calm receptive
condition conducive to accurate deduc-
tions. Church goers who observed the
flight testified that the buggy scared
and swooped and scared again like
thing of life, and, had the initial force
been more continuous and under control,
the horizontal distance travelled would
have exceeded the performance of
modern Aero-planes. When the re-
mains of the buggy bed finally touched
the ground DR.. and Billie dived out
simultaneously, selecting soft grass
spot in front of the school house upon
which to alight.
During the flight and hasty debarka-
tion they lost important portions of
their wearing apparel and several
patches of cuticle, but under the friend-s
ly, cover of an umbrella and the gather
ing darkness they gained the seclusion
of their boarding house and bound up
their wounds.
Possibly it was owing to the scientific
interest attached to this-the first
public exploitation of the Aero planes
that the maximum penalty for fast
driving within the city limits was not
| imposed in this case. Squire Mills, who
was mayor of Leon at that time, was