The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1908-07-16
SOME EARLY HISTORY

Suggestions Made by One Who Knows
like Clark and Billy Perdue
| as Commercial Travellers.
Some thirty odd year ago, when the
James boys were making periodical ex-
cursions into southern Iowa, and shortly
after the robbery of the bank at Cory
don, which crime was charged to these
outlaws, citizens of Leon feared that
this town would be an early objective
point of the James gang. 1t is probable
that each and every citizen of Leon
had fully determined upon his course of
action should the expected raid take
place and many cunning schemes were
devised to foil the robbers and prevent
their grabbing the money and valuables
of the community. Silverware, coin and
other portable articles of value were
hidden in divers unsupported places;
sometimes being placed in the we'll
bucket and lowered to the bottom Of
the we'll, or concealed in hooks and cor
ners not likely to be suspicioned. The
bank cashiers were armed like pirates,
and kept loaded shotguns handy behind
the counters where they could be
quickly brought into action.
With this nervous expectancy in the
very air, with rumors of desperate look
ing characters lowering about the out
skirts of the town, and reports of rob-
berries and of cold-blooded murders
perpetrated in localities not far distant,
it is not strange that Ike Clark and
Billy Perdue should have had some
misgiving as to the outcome Of trip
they were taking by team to Ravanna,
Mo-, and return.
house, and as was customary in those
goods sold the previous visit, and when
trade was good he was the custodian of
several hundred dollars which was
usually brought to Leon to be for
warded through the bank here to his
employers. Ike bought great many
horses, too, in those days, and generally
carried a fair sized wad of currency
with which to dazzle the "Mizzoury''
horse traders.
Well, leaving Leon in the early morn
ing Ike and Billy drove to Pleasant
Plains, now Pleasanton, and thence or
south into the enemy's country.
The first rumors they had of impend-
ing trouble was at Mt. Moriah. Billy's
collections had been unusually good.
and he had big bill book fairly stuffed
with green backs. Ike's roll was still
intact, so they listened with fervid in
terest to the tales told them at Mt.
Moriah of recent holdups over towards
Princeton, and heartily wished that
they we're out of the mess and back
home in dear old Leon. To add to their
trepidation there were several lankv
loafers hanging about in front OF the
Mt. Moriah store, seemingly taking
great interest in the movements Of the
travellers. Rough, unshaven, with
trousers tucked into spurred boots,
their horses tethered near by, they
certainly looked like bandits.
1t is not known if Billy and Ike were
armed, and it is not material to this
history whether thoy were, or not.
They left Mt. Moriah in the late after
noon, and breathed easier when they
reached the top of the hill, and looking
back could see no signs Of horsemen in
pursuit. Knowing that it would be
useless to resist if hold up by the
James boys, they agreed that the best
plan to conserve their cash money, in
case they were halted, would be to car
ry their pocket books on tho buggy
seat ready for action, and on the ap-
proach of danger toss them far out into
the weeds at the road side. Night
came on, and drizzly, foggy night it
was. Not a star in sight, and faint
flashes of lightning on the horizon only
made darker the way. They drove
silently down long hillside, tho dim
roadway stretching ahead between
darker borders of weeds, which grew
tall at each side of the road. As they
neared the foot of the hill the horses
SHE'D at the stir of some wild thing, and
the buggy threshed through the rosin
weed. 1t was pitch dark now, and the
team slowly crept along the bottom
road, the occupants of the buggy pre-
serving discreet silence and keeping
sharp lookout for danger.
Suddenly. and without warning, the
horses came to dead stop and re-
coiled, throwing the buggy back with
a jerk. With one impulse out tho two
pocket books went into the gloom, one
to the right; the other to the left
They fell softly far out in the darkness
and their owners sat perfectly still
awaiting the expected demand "your
money or life." Nothing disturbed the
silence. No champing Of bits, no click
Of pistol hammer, no grutf voice fretted
the cool darkness.
After discreet time allowance, Billy
held the horses while Ike went to the
front to investigate. He found that q
culvert, washed out by recent rains
had left gap in the road which the
wise livery team refused to cross.
1t took several hours to find those
pocket books. A lantern was borrowed
from farm house, mile or so away
and after a weary search the bill books
were found where they had fallen, and
the journey was resumed, and both Ike
and Billy lived to tell the tale.
Long afterwards Charley Ward and
Charley Allen added few frills, but
this is the authentic account of the
OccurrSnce.
MORTUARY.