Marshal Marshall told the city constables to keep an eye on the new visitors and Mathias, and report back to him anything suspicious. Constable Howington mentioned that earlier he had seen Mathias and Jonas ride into the town square and all four men went to the back of the tailor shop to Mathias’s smoking parlor. Shortly thereafter, Mayor Moritz arrived and Mathias fitted the mayor for a new suit.

 

The next day the marshal was walking his beat through the town square and saw Mayor Moritz sitting alone on a bench in the courthouse lawn. The marshal thought it was a good time to see what he could get out of him.

 

“Good morning, Mayor,” the marshal said. “Fine day.”

 

“Yes, it is,” the mayor said. “I was enjoying the breeze and watching my constituents traverse the square.” The Mayor pointed a hand to the bench. “Care to join me?”

 

“Sure, I can for a minute or two,” the marshal said. “I must say, that is a fine looking suit you are wearing.”

 

“Isn’t it? That amazing gentleman Mathias made it for me. And a new businessman in town, Jonas is his name, paid the bill! Wasn’t that a kind gesture?”

 

“I’d say that is very generous, indeed. This Jonas fella, what business is he in?”

 

“You know,” the mayor said, looking upward in contemplation, “I’m not sure. He didn’t say, but I did tell him that our prospering community can always use a good businessman and suggested he get to know the Baron and the Tycoon.”

 

“Maybe he’s in the men’s apparel business,” the marshal said, “like Elgins, and that’s why Mathias brought him to town.”

 

“You know,” the mayor said, “Come to think of it, Jonas did mention that his new shipment would be arriving next week. So maybe you are right!”

 

“They didn’t ask for any political favors, just a new tailored suit and nothing in return?”

 

The mayor looked confused. “If they did, it certainly has slipped my mind.”

 

The marshal stood from the bench and doffed his hat at the mayor. “Better get on with my walk. Great to see you, mayor.”

 

“And you as well, Marshal Marshall.”

 

* * * * *

 

Baron Anderson was at the Clarkdale Livery when Sheriff Cowan rode up. Since he rode in from the west the baron assumed he came from Mystic, a popular spot now with saloon trouble, especially after payday for the miners. But when the sheriff dismounted from his horse, it wasn’t saloon trouble on his mind.

 

“Howdy, sheriff,” the baron said.

 

The sheriff nodded. “Baron, I’m glad I ran into you. I just came from Mystic and Tycoon Strickling found me, and he and that fella Bonus wanted me to share some news with you.”

 

“Okay, what is it?”

 

“Marshal Marshall had mentioned his concern about the Jonas fella coming to town. Well, late last night Mr. Elgin came to me and said he was approached by Jonas and his two comrades, if that’s what you call them, and said he was assaulted. He held his stomach and said that fella Hawk punched his gut several times after Elgin refused to buy supplies from him. Elgin tried to run away but that other fella Oden held him tight so he couldn’t move.”

 

“I see. So what does this have to do with Strickling?”

 

“He heard about the ruckus,” the sheriff said. “Elgin wasn’t about to keep it a secret. Strickling told me that Bonus recognized Jonas and reminded Strickling of their run-in with him in Moline. Jonas has stakes in communities throughout Iowa and Illinois. He has a textile business in Chicago, imports fabric from Europe, some made in New York, as well as thread, needles, and those new-fangled sewing machines. But he has a method of gaining new business that bypasses the salesman. He pays the law to look the other way while he uses muscle to force people to buy from him. Elgin more or less told him to eat manure and that cost him a bellyache.”

 

“I see,” the Baron said. “I guess he doesn’t know our community very well, does he?”

 

“I say we form a posse and run them out of the county.”

 

“I wonder if he has stakes in Monroe or Wapello counties?” the Baron said.

 

“Strickling said they run him out of those counties, just like I suggested.”

 

“Then he just moves on to the next county,” the baron said. “I’d hold off. We are already a step ahead of him. Let’s wait until we are four steps ahead, and then maybe we can stop him altogether. It may cost our citizens a few bellyaches, but sometimes there’s a price like that for real justice.”

 

“I hope it doesn’t get worse than bellyaches,” the sheriff said. “Bonus said that Jonas himself is stronger than his two goons put together. He was an enforcer for an Irish clan in the old days, and Bonus also said that he used to box for prize money.”

 

“This just keeps getting more interesting. I guess we better tell Bonus to prepare for another matchup. That may just be what it takes to keep this man out of Iowa.”

 

* * * * *

 

The newly formed Appanoose County Baseball League created a lot of excitement in the community, and the Daily Iowegian was a great help in getting the word out. Constable Howington was appointed the head umpire, and he called the rules from behind home plate, and the Bargainman, who was the league commissioner, appointed himself field umpire.

 

The first to sponsor a team was the Daily Iowegian, and Magnate Lawson himself team coach. Banker Shahan, fascinated with the sport, became a member of the team and their best player. Lawson found enough players, more than enough, so some of them decided to form another team, the Centerville Merchants, sponsored by Banker Stufflebeam and B. Bushell, who had no trouble attracting enough players from city businesses.

 

Baron Anderson recruited players for his team from his ranch and from Clarkdale. He thought of calling his team the Clarkdale Italians but the teammates argued successfully to be the Clarkdale Barons. Tycoon Harrington did the same with his team, calling them the Numa Tycoons, and had no trouble recruiting stout players from the railroad and the farms around Numa.

 

Tycoon Strickling, not to be left out of the competition, formed the Mystic Miners, being the communities top business, and Bonus was an attraction all on his own, hitting the baseball out of the playing area and into the cornfields. When Bonus was up to bat, children lined up along the edge of the cornfield to try and be the first to find his ball. Some of the balls got quite muddy and forced Strickling to purchase a large supply of backup baseballs.

 

Cattlemen Downey and VanBlaricom formed a team in Cincinnati and recruited their players from farmers to merchants, and since a majority of them were row croppers, they called themselves the Cincinnati Cornhuskers. R. Sleeth and D. Ancell formed a team in Exline and called themselves the Engineers, recruiting both railroad workers and farmers.

 

The Bargainman wanted an even amount of teams, and so the sixth to join was a team from Moravia, and because of a popular Civil War general that once lived there, they called their team the Moravia Generals. Team recruitment was slow, and after getting waxed by the Exline Engineers in the first game, many Moravia men came forward to help provide the team some added strength.

 

The field was made in Centerville according to the rulebook, the land donated by a corn farmer north of town and just off the main road. It was quite a spectacle every Saturday, starting at 10 am, playing four games until late in the afternoon. Hundreds of people from all seven communities sat around the field watching their local heroes, in matching uniforms honoring their town or business, compete with athleticism and occasional comedy.

 

The last game of the day, the Clarkdale Barons took on the Numa Tycoons, and Tycoon Harrington came to the plate with a man on second base. They were behind by one run, with two outs, and this was their last chance.

 

Baron Anderson was on the mound. Harrington pointed his bat at Anderson. “Ever wonder what one of these baseballs tastes like?”

 

“Why,” the baron said. “You want me to throw it in your mouth?”

The crowd around the field laughed loudly.

 

“Yeah, you won’t get it that far, cowboy. Put it in here and tell your boys to expect some heat in the outfield.”

 

Harrington hit it like a rope to right field, that bounced once before the fielder picked it up and threw it to Foreman Wright, the second baseman. Harrington tried to turn it into a double, but Wright was on the throw and as Harrington slid, the Bargainman called him out.

 

Harrington jumped up and ran to the Bargainman. “You don’t see so good! Been slicing too many onions!”

 

The Bargainman got right into his face. “I can see perfectly and you were out! O-U-T, out! And that’s the ballgame!”

 

The men continued to argue and the crowd laughed and cheered them on. Eventually their teammates forced them apart, and Ms. Winona, who sat on a quilt under her umbrella, took notes of it all. She, too, had studied the Spalding Guide, and prepared herself to write a story about the games, with a box score section. The newsboys had something to scream about on Monday mornings, and baseball had captured the hearts and minds of the county.

 

* * * * *

In the next episode of Centerville 1884: Jonas and his men make their rounds and trying to force their hand on the merchants of the community, and they quickly learn that Jonas is in more than just the tailor business. The Appanoose County Baseball League meets again, and Bonus becomes quite a spectacle every time he comes to the plate.