Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1906-09-27


smashed.
Lightning struck the Little x Gill
hardware store at Prairie City a few
nights ago. The fire that followed
destroyed three stores and caused q
loss of about $4,000. The bolt struck
in the midst of terrific rain and the
excellent work of the local fire depart
ment, coupled with the rain, succeed
ed in staying the flames that for a
time threatened to wipe out the heart
Of the business district
Charles Johnson, a highly respected
resident Of, Munterville, died from in.
juries received in a runaway. Mr..
Johnson was enroute home from
Hynes when the accident occurred.
| He was found unconscious mile
from Hynes and nothing is known as
| to the details Of the accident. The
| injured man was taken to a nearby
farm house, where he died. Mr.. John.
son was 73 years old and is survived
by wife and four daughters.
The body of e. ]. Evans, who died
a year ago, was moved to Osceola
from Murray and reinforced, but IL
took the action of the district court
and contest between the relatives
to do it. When he died he was taken
to Murray by brother and buried.
| The rest of the family were dissaUis-
fed and after q wrangle the body was
taken to Osceola and inferred. The
brother at Murray now says he intends
TO have the body taken back there.
Notice of suit for 81 has been
served on S. M. Swigart by Mrs. ]. F
Meade, both of Waterloo. Action is
brought to collect a bill for washing
AMI the matter has been placed in the
hands of a collecting agency, which
Is to receive % per cent of the amount
collected. The dispute arose over the
amount of the bill, Mrs. Meade claim
ing 81 was due her and Mr.. Swigart
maintaining that rs cents was the
agreed price. Justice Hildebrand will
be called upon to decide the conten.
ton over tse 25 cents.
The Farmers Elevator company at
Barnum is in financial straits that
have caused quite a sensation in that
| section. One day last week the Bank
Of Barnum refused to cash the checks
of the institution and a small panic
ensued. Investigation revealed the
fact that the company had an over
draft of 81 300 at the bank, owed bor-
rowed money to the extent of $3.50
and had on hand only about 5000
bushels of oats. The directors of the
Institution met and it is supposed that
satisfactory arrangements were made
! to tide the elevator over the difficulty.
| The company has ample funds among
! its stockholders to pay every dollar Of
! Indebtedness and continue business,
hence no great alarm is felt over the
! furry
The promoters of the Des Moines,
Winterset & Creston interurban road
have enlarged their plans and now pro
| pose to extend a branch Of the road
| from Winterset to Osceola and put on
quick service between Des Moines
and Osceola to compete with the X. 4
w. branch of the Burlington. Surveyors
! have been in the field and say that the
new branch can be built at small eX
pense. The promoters have floated
! half of their stock with Ohio capitalists
and are now selling stock to people in
| Winterset and along the line of the
! proposed road A party of seventy
! five people went to Des MoineS from
Winterset and took a ride in special
cars over the Granger branch Of the
! Polk road to see how the new road has
| increased the price Of property. The
new road to Osceola would be no long
err than the X. & w. branch of the
Burlington and it is expected that the
running time would be considerably
! less. 1t would also give Osceola much
needed connection with Winterset. It
! is expected that the contract for build
! ing the Winerset branch will be let
by Jan. l.
Frank Blint, a Lee county farmer,
living near Denmark, claims to have
come to a large fortune in a most
unusual manner, having found among
the rubbish at the bottom OF an old
well can containing $4,000 in gold.
| The farm, on which the great wealth
was found was formerly owned by a
man named Cartwright. He was re-
ported to be wealthy, but when he
died, the administrator was unable to
find all of the money he was said to
possess. 1t is said that he would put
no trust in banks, and instead, put
his money away in the old cistern
and well. Now that the treasure has
come to light, there is no telling how
much more may be hidden away on
the land. The house on the property
had not been occupied for a number
of years and the superstitious element
down in that part of the country
thought it was haunted. Blint is a
we'll to do farmer, who owns two
large farms down near the county
line. One is two miles west of Den
mark Several months ago he pur.
chased the Cartwright farm, near
| West Point. When he came into pos
session of the farm Blint decided to
enlarge the cistern and he went to
work digging it deeper. Down at the
bottom while he was turning the earth
his spade struck a chest which when
brought forth was found to contain
several thousand dollars in coin. Bl1nt
was more than satisfied with his in.
yestment, but even in his dreams he
had no such visions of what he found
later. 1t so happened that an oil
well needed cleaning and Blint went
down to do the work. In the rubbish
at the bottom he discovered an old
tin can full of gold.
Lightning destroyed a large barn
on E. B. Cimpotti's farm near Mason
City, burning two horses valued at
$500, besides hay and grain. The