Many of the crowd had been drinking heavily and insisted that something be done, and if they could not do any better they ought to fire the building and burn up the whole thing, while Brown insisted that most of the property was his and that he would vouch for his partner's honor and reputation as far as that charge went. Whittam by this time had gotten over the blood curdling period of his leadership and was willing to turn the job over to other hands, but no one seemed willing to come to his rescue, and there was no opportunity to put a motion for an adjournment till the violence and the temper of the mob would somewhat abate. Brown wanted to hold the mob as long as possible, having in the meantime sent messengers to notify Harper of what might happen. He realized that the infuriated mob at that stage of the game might hang an innocent man.
Just at this point of the delicate proceedings, the crowd yelling like warlike Indians, and threatening to hang any "copperhead" and to burn the building provided Harper was not brought into the room, a fourteen year old boy, long, lank and lean, who had also crowded into the building wanting to see what was going on, and to get more air, climbed on top of a hogshead which stood in one corner of the room. As he was gazing out over the crowd others tried to get on to the same hogshead, pushing and pulling, when suddenly the end gave way and the boy fell into a mass of lard and dye stuff up to his neck. The stench acted like morphine upon the infuriated mob. Someone called for the rope to pull the boy out and then a general laugh broke out and when the boy ran down through the crowd, dripping with lard and lye, making for the river, the panic became general and they all followed his movements and forgot all about Bill Harper or the words he was supposed to have uttered.
The boy who thus saved the day and perhaps a life or two is no other than O. C. Carpenter, for many years one of the best known constables in Rapids township. Carpenter still insists that he saved the day, although the ordeal he had to pass through was somewhat harsh. The lye burned his legs and spoiled a suit of clothes, and he got a good thrashing at home, in the bargain. The Greek boy of old fell on his sword, but the modern Linn county boy fell into a soap barrel and by that side-stepping cast honors on himself and on members of his family for all time to come.
Bill Harper never uttered the words of which he was accused, and never knew that Lincoln had been assassinated until the evening of the day when the infuriated mob was hunting him with a rope, wishing to put an end to his earthly existence. This shows how dangerous it is to stir up the mob spirit at any time. It always leads to disgraceful acts, from which a community suffers for a long time afterwards.
HERE'S AN INTERESTING BIT OF ANCIENT HISTORY
In running through the files of the early years of the Cedar Rapids Daily Republican, the following interesting historical contribution, from the pen of the late Sampson C. Bever, was found:
"Editor Cedar Rapids Republican:
"I notice in the last 'Daily Republican,' in referring to the City National Bank of this city, in connection with the death of the Hon. Oakes Ames, the following:
"'The death of Mr. Ames recalls to mind the successful aid given S. C. Bever, Esq., in getting the charter of the City National Bank. The First National had already been established and as Cedar Rapids had a population of only 2,000 people at the time the comptroller of currency declined to establish another bank here, but by the assistance of Mr. Ames the charter was finally obtained.'
"The facts in the case are these: The City National Bank received its certificate of authority and had commenced successful business some time before the application for charter or certificate of the First National Bank was granted.