Decatur County Journal Leon, Decatur County, Iowa October 01, 1896 BIRTHDAY PARTY - MISS MARY IRONSIDE. Quite a number of young people gathered at the home of MR. and MRS. JAS. IRONSIDE, four miles northwest of Leon, last Friday evening, and spent the evening with their daughter, MISS MARY IRONSIDE, in honor of her eighteenth birthday. MISS MARY has been attending the Leon public school for a number of years and during that time had gained many friends among the young people of this place. The morning hours had begun to arrive before the guests took their departure, and all report the time spent most pleasantly. A number from Leon were present, among them: MESSRS-- FRED HAMILTON, RALPH BELL, ED BOWMAN, CLAUD LOREY, HARRY LANDES, ROLLA PATTERSON, FRANK SHY, JOHN MERWIN. MISSES-- IDA HEBNER, VERA HEBNER, MAUDE METIER, MAUDE STONE, ALETHA PATTERSON, BERTHA HAMILTON. Copied by Nancee (McMurtrey) Seifert Monday, May 13, 2001

Leon Reporter, Leon, Iowa Thursday, October 1, 1896 Roachdale, Ind., Sept. 26, 1896. To the Leon Reporter: As we have arrived at our place of destination and having all the cream and peaches we can eat, I will write and tell my Iowa friends about it. We had a very tiresome journey; you that want to visit your eastern friends take my advice and don't go on an excursion. We arrived in Indianapolis Wednesday about three o'clock, we looked around over the city until four o'clock, when we boarded the train and arrived at Roachdale at five o'clock. As our relatives were not expecting us you cannot imagine their surprise. We are having a lovely time, have had nice weather so far. Crops seem to be pretty fair this year. There was scarcely any fruit except peaches, there is an abundance of them; a sister-in-law canned 90 quarts, not saying anything about the butter and peach pickles. Politics are raging high. Mr. Bryan will be in Indianapolis about the 15th of October. Of course CHARLEY will go and see him. I want to say to my Iowa friends, the only thing I envy the Hoosier people of is their gravel roads and peach crop. Intiana's Motto: "Free Silver, Vote for Billy Bryan." You will probably hear from us again. --EMMA CHASTAIN. Copied by Nancee (McMurtrey) Siefert November 14, 2002

Leon Reporter, Leon, Iowa Thursday, October 22, 1896 Roachdale, Ind., Oct. 18, 1896. As I promised to write again, I will try and fulfill my promise, although I fear my letter will not be of much interest for all we hear is politics, and I suppose you hear that at home. In my other letter I spoke of Bryan going to speak at Indianapolis, he made three speeches there Oct. 6th, 180 tickets were sold at Roachdale, besides quite a number drove through. Bryan will pass through Roachdale next Thursday and will make a short speech at the depot, everyone even to the gold bug republicans are anxiously awaiting his arrival. We are still having lovely weather, until this morning, snow has fallen but however not enough for sleighing. The farmers are considerably worried now, as the hog cholera is raging, quite a number are selling their hogs, at two and three cents per pound. We visited in Park County last week, about 30 miles from Putnam County; crops looked better in that county than in this, on our return we stopped at Charley's old home place, the old brick house with its fire places, mantels and presses, the house surrounded by pine, beech and persimmon trees, reminded one of the introduction of a novel. We will start home this week, so hoping to see my Iowa home and friends, I will close this missive. Respectfully, EMMA CHASTAIN. Copied by Cordelia Suzann

Decatur County Journal Leon, Decatur County, Iowa October 22, 1896 BABY LEFT ON DOORSTEP OF G.W. JOHNSON. G.W. JOHNSON, who lives on the JERRY LANDES farm a mile east of town, upon returning from the political speaking held here last Friday night, was startled to find an infant one month old in a tomato box, lying upon the door step of his residence. Some marks upon the box had been erased, and the thin cloth in which the child was wrapped, bore nothing which, would reveal the identity of the infant's parents, nor the heartless wretch who placed it there. Toward ten o'clock, MRS. JOHNSON and her children heard somebody drive past their residence, but they did not, however, hear the footsteps of the person who brought the child, nevertheless, ample proof has been discovered that the man who drove up to the residence deposited the child on the door step and drove northward. The tracks of the horse and buggy were very distinct and the following morning MR. JOHNSON followed them expecting to obtain some clue whereby he might find disposition for his young guest. His search, however, so far as could be learned, proved unsuccessful. MR. JOHNSON moved on to the JERRY LANDES farm last spring from Penwick, Ia. He has a large family, is in comfortable circumstances and it is possibly for these reasons that the parents of the child concluded that in the JOHNSON family their offspring would receive the best care. Had the child remained outside through the bitter, cold night, as it surely would have done if MR. JOHNSON had not happened to have noticed it when returning home, its life would have perished. Copied by Nancee (McMurtrey Seifert Monday, May 14, 2001

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