From the Lawrence Daily World for Dec. 10, 1909: A local daughter sent a telegram to her family saying that she had been “killed” and it turns out it was a ruse for them to send her money under false pretenses. . . . The local poor commissioner says that every day he is beset by “down and out” people seeking money for transportation to other parts of the state. He says he has to be careful about the people he helps because there are too many scoundrels seeking public money for the wrong reasons. . . . Someone has been taking horses standing in the cold for a while to the livery stables and leaving them. Livery people are seeking payments for such actions but nobody is sure who is behind the actions, apparently designed to help the freezing animals. . . . Farmers along the flood-prone Wakarusa River are forming a 4,000-acre drainage district to try to combat flooding losses. . . . The largest group of track and field athletes in local history, more than 125, have turned out for meetings about the coming season. Coach W.O. Hamilton says the prospects are the best he could imagine.