Lawsville – Thieves broke into the home of Mike Dillon last Saturday morning while the family had gone to church and stole two watches, a gold ring, a cross, and about 90 cents in Lincoln pennies. Mr. Dillon saw two men coming along the road when he drove out of his barn. They stopped when within a few rods of the barn and seemed to be lighting cigarettes when Dillon and his wife passed them. Mrs. Mitchell also saw two men near Dillon’s back porch, but thought they were relatives. ALSO The postoffice at Lawsville Center will be a thing of the past after Nov. 1. It will be greatly missed as it has been a postoffice town since the oldest inhabitants can remember.

Brooklyn – The work of resurfacing the section of State aid road in Brooklyn is well under way. H. T. Shadduck, who has had charge, has been at work drawing crushed stone from Foster and cleaning the roadbed and drains. On Monday the Highway department sent an auto oil sprinkler and street sweeper to clean the surface of the roadbed and oil the surface when the gravel and crushed stone will be spread on the oil. It is expected that this will furnish a desirable surface. A large auto sprinkler passed through town on Monday on its way to Oakland, where we understand that section of State road will be treated in like manner.

Rushboro – Our star route, which has run from Laceyville to Rush for about 25 years, has been discontinued much to the inconvenience of all along the line. Some are served by R. D. from Meshoppen, and several go without mail. A petition is being circulated from [the] Springville route, but most of all the star route is wanted back, as the driver, Walter Swisher, ran a car, took passengers and did errands for everybody.  An effort is being made to get the old route back again. All mail is from one to seven days late.

Elk Lake – The stage route from Dimock to Rush has been discontinued.  It is a great inconvenience to many.

Franklin Forks – The Epworth League will hold a Hallowe’en social in Alliance hall on Oct. 29.  Everyone invited. Come and wear a mask and fancy costume. A pumpkin pie, fried cakes, biscuits or salad will be very thankfully received from anyone.  Price of supper 15 cents.

Springville – The first edition of the new paper, the Springville News, made its appearance the first of the week. [Anyone have this newspaper?  We would love to see a copy.]

Susquehanna – Peter M. Kniskern, a helper in the Erie round house, met death in a strange manner Monday night.  He failed to return to his home at the accustomed evening hour, and his wife had a search started for him, which resulted in finding his dead body in 8 ft. of water in the ash pit at about 3 o’clock Tuesday morning. It is supposed that in crawling from under an engine on which he was at work, he struck his head on a protruding portion of the locomotive, dazing him, and he fell backward into the pit. A deep gash on the nose would seem to bear out the theory. He and his wife had removed from Hickory Grove about two weeks previous.

Forest City – At the trustee’s sale of the bankrupt stock of Maurice I. Cimmet, E. C. Tiffany & Son, of Deposit, NY, were the successful bidders. The stock, consisting of 5 cent and 10 cent goods, was sold for $988. Tiffany & Son intend to continue the business at the old stand and will soon take up their residence in Forest City.

Montrose – Last Sunday, Rev. A. T. Brodrick had rounded out 25 years as a priest, 17 of the years having been spent in Montrose and the event was quietly observed at both services at St. Mary’s church Sunday morning. Rev. Brodrick is greatly beloved, not only by the parishioners of his church but by all the people in and around Montrose who hope to assist him celebrate his golden jubilee. Father Brodrick is doing a grand work, particularly among the young people.

S. Harford – October 28, being the 84th birthday of Aunt Ellen Whiting, a surprise was given her at the home of L. J. Conrad, sixteen members of her family being present. The day was very pleasantly spent in visiting and eating, the latter being quite an important part. ALSO The last Book Club [meeting] was very pleasantly entertained by Mrs. Bartholomew.

Hop Bottom – A very enthusiastic meeting was held in Loomis hall, Friday evening, Oct. 15th.  Delegations were present from Montrose and Brooklyn. A fine program was rendered and among the numbers were a vocal solo and a very amusing monologue by Mrs. Louis Tiffany. They were followed by a general song, “A Long Way to Equal Franchise!” A “yellow tea” carrying out the suffrage color and both delicious and elaborate [food] was served after which several toasts and instrumental music followed.

Ararat Summit – Quite a number of ladies attended the sewing bee at the M. E. church, Thursday, and sewed the new carpet preparatory for covering the entire church floor.

East Lynn – Miss Louise Owen, of Binghamton, has a millinery shop in Dyer Taylor’s residence. Miss Owen has been a trimmer in a first class shop in Binghamton for several years.

News Brief: - Dealers in potatoes who a few weeks ago were indifferent about buying them at 35 cents a bushel are now traveling by night and in gum shoes to buy them at any price from 50 to 60 cents. The fact that a South American demand for our potatoes has been discovered has created consternation, while Maine potatoes are not to be compared with Pennsylvania’s product in quality and palatableness, and the size of the crop in other States has been magnified.

The trial for the murder of Jackson Pepper, continued from the week of Oct. 22, 2015.

Tuesday morning the work of securing a jury dragged slowly, but when Court adjourned at about 12:30, the jury had been completed without exhausting the panel and were sworn in, as follows:  Hiram Ball, Forest Lake, farmer; D. Albert Brown, Montrose, teamster; Williston Chamberlain, Gibson, mechanic; John I. Wallace, Dimock farmer; Albert Hilborn, Oakland Twp, farmer; Gardner J. Lewis, Thompson Twp, farmer; John Dixon , Harford, farmer; Philander K. Benson, Jackson, agent; Clarence E. Shay, New Milford Twp, farmer; Andrew Fancher, Bridgewater, farmer; Warren E. Tingley, Montrose, laborer; Fred Sisson, Great Bend Twp, brakeman. On Tuesday afternoon, during the dinner hour, it had become quite generally known throughout the town that a jury had been secured and that the real work of the trial would be commenced without further parley, consequently at 2 o’clock the court room was well filled with eager auditors, many ladies in the galleries, and the crowd being constantly augmented throughout the afternoon until, at the adjournment, there were not nearly enough seats to go around.  But we are digressing; let us go back to the opening scene of the afternoon. Judge Searle is early in his place; the prisoner and counsel, Mr. Davies, are promptly on hand; for the commonwealth appear District Attorney Ainey and A. H. McCollum, Esq. The jury files in and the Court is ready to proceed with the trial.  As D. A. Ainey arises to make the opening address in behalf of the commonwealth a silence falls upon the assemblage and every ear gives attention as the earnest words of the public prosecutor fall in clear cut, incisive sentences, arraigning the prisoner at the bar for the murder of Jackson Pepper. He said that he believed that the commonwealth would be able to present such a chain of evidence the jury could not do otherwise than to render a verdict of “murder in the first degree.”  He then gave a graphic recital of how the terrible crime was planned and executed. The story outlined by the D. A. did not differ materially from that chronicled in the columns of the Republican at the time of the arrests of Shew and Eagan; the most important additional statement made by Mr. Ainey was that he expected to be able to prove that Eagan had endeavored to induce a resident of Rush to enter with him into the scheme of robbing the Peppers, and that it was after his failure in this, that he conspired with Shew to accomplish the same purpose. The first witness called on the part of the commonwealth was Clifton Hickok, a surveyor by occupation and county surveyor-elect of Susquehanna County.

The above article is a murder mystery that took place in 1898 in Rush Twp., Susquehanna County, brought to you in conjunction with “Susquehanna County Reads” program.  See details on the Library website.  The Scavenger Hunt in the museum is now on.  The museum will be open during regular hours.