The Republican journal., 1914-02-26
The News, Of Brooks.

Mrs. Ellis spoke at the Congregational church
last Fri ~ afternoon ON missions.
Last Friday was fines day with fair sled
ding and lots Of heavily loaded teams came in
with potatoes.
The third annual ball of Silver Crown Tenn
pie, No. 6. Pythian Sisters Of Brooks will be
held at Union Hall Thursday evening. March
9Th. with music by Keyes orchestra. A baked
bean supper will be served.
Golden Crown Lodge. X. Of F.. sent in q
large delegation to the district convention in
Belfast, Feb. 10Th. They were much pleased
with the kind reception accorded to them by
the Belfast brethren. The rank work was made
inter esting and the occasion was one of bene-
fit to the order.
The drama entitled "Down in Maine" is to
be presented by local talent under the auspices
of the Ladies' Aid Society of Brooks at Union
Hall, Thursday evening, Mulch IL, 1914, with
the following cast of characters:
Zeph Cummings. Geo. B. Roberts
Ralph, his brother, E. G. Roberts
Neil Wentworth, Robert Stiles
Bingle, GsW. s. Jones
Tomps, waiter Young
Mr.. Holden, ID. ~ Staples
Jimpsy. Master Hollis Jones
Nose Gorrin. Clarence Hamblen
Susie Cummings, Mrs. Lillian Morrill,
Mrs. Cummings, Mrs. w. H. Rolfe
Kezrats, Mrs. Frances Merritt
BETSY Tombs. Mrs. Vesta Higgins
Prof Norwood, stage manager.
LEANDEK STAPLES, A VETERAN. The follow
ing clipping is from a New York paper. which
also had fine cut of Mr.. Staples. 1t came
about by some one in New York seeing an item
in the Brooks news in relation to Mr.. Staples
and they wrote to him in regard to it. 1t has
also been printed in Chicago paper. small
item in a country paper will sometimes reach
a long distance. Well. Bro. Staples is not a
stranger to newspaper notices and he can stand
it all right.
Mr.. Leander Staples of Brooks, Maine, is
the dean of the harness trade in his State.
Though born in 1887 he carries his " years
WE'LL as can be seen, and he is just as active at
his business today as many younger man.
When he began, he tells US, they did not have
any oak harness leather in that end of the
country, using good tannage of hemlock, but
it was finished with fish oil. This made a fine
looking piece of stock when it began to fry
out. 1t was fine for pulling the hair off the
horse. In his county, comprising 15 towns,
they had eight tanners, and leather was plenti-
full at IL cents pound. They used to start
the shop fires with leather scrap. Harness in
those days was brass mounted, had brass hames,
and the collars were none too good They
only paid 81 Tor the making. but they sold for
$12.
When Mr.. Staples was 20 he journeyed to
Rockland, where he worked for one man SIX
years, after which he bought him out, and paid
rent at the rate of 500 year, but in few
years he got up to $40O store on the main
street, where he remained for II years, work
ing sometimes six men. Like almost all
Yankees, Mr. Staples is inventive, so he has
patents on halters. Mr.. Staples supposes
that he is probably the only man in Maine that
could hang up the old Concord coach on its
thorough braces of leather, and We agree. AT
the time mentioned Mr. Staples became i'll, SO
he had to give up the shop and take to the
open air of the country, so he went at selling
patent medicine, and after three years he re-
gained his health. The next move was to the
State prison as overseer in the harness de-
partment for which he pulled down 500 per
month, but in about year his health went bad
again, and finally he has landed in his present
location, where for 20 years he has been on the
job steadily. MIR. Staples brothers quoted
as saying: "Leander could make money if you
put him on rock," but Mr.. Staples says he
never learned the art of keeping it. Maybe
an experience with three wives made the
money go easily. Mr.. Staples is an abstemious
man. No liquor, and but one cigar day, aftel
the days work. He was postmaster under
Cleveland, but kept the harness business going
all the same The life of such a veteran
should be interesting to harness makers every
where.