Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 41, Number 68, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 May 1909 — L. J. Lane Leaves With Vow Never to Beturn. [ARTICLE]

L. J. Lane Leaves With Vow Never to Beturn.

L. J. Lane, who was brought in from his farm south of town Wednesday as the result of an affidavit made by his 19-year-old daughter alleging that he was Insane, left this Thursday morning for Farmington, 111., and expects to go from there to Arkansas, where he says he owns 900 acres of land on a townsite that he expects to develop. He will, he says, engage in the land business, which he has followed for several years. To all appearances Mr. Lane is entirely rational, and this is the view taken by all the officials with whom he came into contact following his being brought to town. He has had much to wprry him for many months, including the long sickness of his wife and some financial reverses, and he is of a nervous temperament, but nothing seems to Justify the insanity theory. He alleges various family matters as responsible for his domestic unhappiness and blames relatives of his' wife for trying to bring about their separation. He was very cheerful about going away except for the regret of leaving his two little sons, three and one years of age. He says that he Intends to begin legal proceedings to secure possession of them as soon as he gets himself established in a new location.

When asked about the alleged ill treatment of his little boy, he scoffed at the statement.- He Bald that he had never punished the little fellow. On this occasion the boy had been chasing the chickens out of the coop with a stick and had not stopped when his father told him to do so. The father says that he caught the boy "under the arms and lifted h|m over the plowed ground between the cbloken coop and the house and calling him a “little rascal” playfully booted him each time be raised him up. Just as he came to the end of the plowed ground he gave the boy three taps where boys usually get it and the tad fell over the last plowed furrow and set up an awful howl. The daughter claimed that her father had kicked the boy all the way, shamefully abusing him. Mr. Lane besought the officers and a doctor to go to the house and see if there was any sign whatever of cruelty to the child. Mr. Lane attended to some business matters he had in town before leaving on the milk train this morning, and was to all appearances as far from being Insane any of the rest of u*. It Is a very unfortunate case, and evidently Lane’s departure is the easiest adjustment of the difficulty, although mighty hard on him.