The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1919-11-13
IRA c. BURGIN Killed

.IkA u. DUku1W hDlLlU
Popular Van Vert Young Man Killed
BY Electric Shock At 6uda, Ill.,,
last Wednesday Afternoes.
Ira c. Burgin, the twenty year old
son of Mr.. and Mrs. Thomas II. Burs
gin, Of Van Vert, was instantly XII
"a when his spur slipped on an cleo
lric pole at Buda, illinois, on
wednesday of last week, and he
grasped live wire to save himself
from falling, and 22OO volts OF cleo
trlclty passed through his BODY. The
following account OF the sad accident
is taken from the Buda Plain Dealer,
Of November 7th:
Many Buda people witnessed q
terrible accident Wednesday about
1880 p. m. when lineman, working
on the Brown Bros, electric light
lines, was electrOcuted.
1'he unfortunate young man was
Ira G. Burgin, whose home was Van
Vert, Iowa.
He was working alone on the pole
at the Lay sand mixer near the depot,
putting new wires on a transformer
to replace the circuit formerly in use.
He had made one splice and was get
ting ready for the second wire When
his spur slipped and to save himself
from falling, he grasped the wires.
He had the tape on his belt to in
sulate the splice he had made but
had not done it when he fell and
the little space Of bare par 2Sd" %re WAS
passing through his body, probably
causing instant death. Had it been
taped the insulation might have saw
ed his life.
He was seen at once, the cur
rent was shut off and the body was
lowered from the pole where it hung
by. the safety belt; Artificial respirr-
alton was maintained until q pull
Valley but efforts for resuscltation
were without result.
Coroner Malm conducted an in
quest Thursday, the verdict being
accidental death from coming in
contact with wires carrying 22OO
volts. =,
Van Vert, and brother, E. T. Bur-
gin, arrived here early Thursday
morning to take the body home
They left at two o'clock this morn
Ira c. Burgin was born in schuy-
ler Co., Missouri, June IS, 1899, and
died in Buda, Illinois, Nov. 5, 1919,
aged 20 years, months and II
days: ~, ~. o;n ,.o - =,
with the Western Union Telegraph
Company for five years but had been
in Buda only a few months and Of
late had been employed by Brown
Bros. Construction Co.
He served eight months in the
L. l.
tillery. located n! at Camp Jackson, h son s.
home nine days on visit. He was
a member of the Christian church,
and his father said he had always
been a good boy, a simple eulogy
any son might cOvet.
The surviving family include the
narents, Mr.. and Mrs. Thomas H.
Burgin, four brothers and five
of II years and is, buried at Van
The sympathy of the whole COM
munity goes out to the bereaved
family.
He Finds News in the Local Adver-
tiSementS.
There was time when l used to
look with unfriendly eye upon the
in our county newspaper, but no
more,' said Madison county farm
er recently. we've got SO that in
our home that we find as much news
in the advertising as in the locals;
It's a different kind of news, buying
news, but it's worth while in dollars
and cents. 1t tells US what the coun-
ty seat merchants are offering and
early every week it helps us to buy
something to advantage
A country newspaper publisher In
Madison county, Ed Smith, of Win
terser, actually sells his newspaper
subscription as much on the value Of
the advertising he carries as on the
value Of the other news he prints.
He talks both values together when
selling a new subscriber. He says
he can pick up almost any weeks
issue OF his newspaper and demon
strate to a farmer how it's meIchan-
dising suggestions, if carried out,
VIII save The price OF a years SUBJ
scription or mbTe.
The Madison county publisher
above says that sometimes he calls
his county seat newspaper his week
ly merchandise catalogue and market
guide.
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