The Leon Reporter Leon, Decatur County, Iowa Thursday, May 10, 1917, Page 1 FLOWER THIEVES HAVE STARTED. Every year in Leon we have complaint that flower beds are torn up and plants stolen, both at residences and at the cemetery. Tuesday night the fine tulip bed at the home of E. E. Bell was visited and a large number of the tulips were torn up by the roots and carried away. There is no penalty too severe for a person who will steal and destroy flowers. It is a hard thing to catch them, but some of these days they will be caught and then look out. Transcription by Sharon R. Becker

The Leon Reporter Leon, Decatur County, Iowa Thursday, May 10, 1917, Page 1 ENFORCING BLUE LAWS. Attorney General Havner and his assistants have started at state wide enforcement of the Sunday observance laws of Iowa, better known as the Blue Laws, and announces that they will be strictly enforced, and will notify county attorneys to enforce every law on the statute book. We believe he will have pretty hard sledding if he attempts to stop the sale of Sunday newspapers, the sale of ice cream and soft drinks, and closing all places of amusement [On Sundays]. These are things which the public consider a personal privilege, and local sentiment should govern. Transcriber's Note: Attorney General Horace M. Havner (R) served from 1917 to 1921. Iowa's Blue Law was designed to enforce religious standards, restricting retail activities and sales on Sunday. Transcription by Sharon R. Becker

The Leon Reporter Leon, Decatur County, Iowa Thursday, May 10, 1917, Page 1 TOOK CARBOLIC ACID ____________ Miss Lou Sears Took Fiery Acid, Mistaking it for Camphor, But Physician Saves Her Life Miss Lou Sears, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. S. W. Sears, who live just north of Leon, took a dose of carbolic acid Monday morning and for some time was in a very serious condition, but thanks to prompt action she is now recovering. There was a small bottle of carbolic acid kept at the Sears home, the bottle containing only about an ounce. Monday morning, Clem Thompson, a neighbor, went to the Sears home to see if they had any carbolic acid, as he wanted some to use on a horse, and when Mrs. Sears went to get the bottle she found it empy, and then learned that Miss Lou had taken the acid. She hastily called a physician and he advised giving the girl alcohol, and fortunately they had a small quanity. The physician arrived in a few minutes and under his care the girl is recovering, although her mouth and throat are quite badly burned. The girl insists that she had no intention of taking carbolic acid, and thought she was getting the camphor bottle which was kept right beside it on the medicine shelf, and she was in the habit of using the camphor. Transcription by Sharon R. Becker

The Leon Reporter Leon, Decatur County, Iowa Thursday, May 10, 1917, Page 1 A Belated Honeymoon Trip. Mr and Mrs. J. Hoffhines of this city will start next week on a honeymoon trip which has been delayed just fifty years.but that will not prevent them from enjoying it. When they were married Mr. Hoffhines promised his bride a honeymoon trip whenever he could find the time. It has been just fifty years since they were married, and during all that time Mr. Hoffhines has been so busy with business affairs that he could not get away, but now they are going back to visit the scenes of their childhood in Ohio, expecting to be gone a couple of weeks, stopping on the way in Chiicago to visit their two daughters, Mrs. Amy Truesdell and Mrs. C. H. Simmons. Transcriber's Note: Jonas Hoffhines and Alice Frazier were married on Easter Sunday, April 1, 1866 at Lima, Ohio. Transcription by Sharon R. Becker

The Leon Reporter Leon, Decatur County, Iowa May 10, 1917, Page 10 Lamoni Girl Wins Honor at State University. Miss Alice Agnes Hatcher, of Lamoni, who is a student at the State University at Iowa City, was given a most coveted honor last week, being one of twenty-one seniors at the University upon whom was conferred the honor of election to Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest and most distinguished fraternity in the United States. Membership in Phi Beta Kappa is gained soley through achievement in scholarship, as a reward for high class performance in their studies throughout the college course. Each year the chapter at Iowa City selects the highest one-tenth of the senior class in liberal arts for membership. This year the honor was given to ten men and twelve women, and last year eleven men and nine women were chosen. Phi Beta Kappa was founded at William and Mary College in 1776 to encourage patriotism and scholarship. It has consistently held to a strict standard of admission until today election means distinctly that the recipient has made good as a student. So many Phi Beta Kappa men and women have become leaders in the world outside the college also, that gaining the honor has become a prophecy of future achievement. Decatur county is certainly proud that this honor has been conferred upon a resident of this county. Transcription by Sharon R. Becker

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