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My 1st cousin, twice removed.
Kidnapping, torture, atrocities too gruesome to print - sounds like a modern day gang killing, but, no - Such was the fate of Dr. J.A. Ramsey, Mathis physician in 1926.
The drama had its roots deep in the mysterious and devious mind of Harry Leahy, a 39-year-old bachelor who was an attorney described as having a "brilliant mentality." Mr. and Mrs. Phil Leahy, Harry's parents, highly respected Mathis residents, had borrowed money from a Dallas Mortgage Company. Hard times caused them to fall far behind in meeting their payments to the point that the land was foreclosed. When the 1500-acre farm-ranch was put up for sale, Dr. Ramsey entered the high bid. At the time Harry Leahy called Ramsey aside and told him: "It will never do you any good." Ramsey paid no attention, despite the fact that Leahy had shot and seriously wounded his uncle, Judge Walter Timon.
The fateful drama started unfolding at about 8 p.m., Thursday, May 20, 1926, when an agitated and distressed Mexican man appeared at Dr. Ramsey's door and requested that the doctor come and attend his sister who was very sick. Dr. Ramsey tried to get out of making the trip, but eventually consented and started off in his Dodge roadster. When the doctor failed to return, his wife sent someone to search for him. The man was a good tracker and traced the tracks of the Dodge out the Spanish Trail to a point where it turned around and returned to the highway.
By mid-morning the entire community was alarmed and Sheriff S. F. Hunt had arrived on the scene to organize a search. Soon hundreds of men were combing the countryside, especially at the point where the roadster had stopped and turned around.
At the end of a fruitless search, the sheriff was handed a postcard, that came in on the 5 p.m. mail, from Ramsey saying that he had taken a patient to Beeville and might go on to San Antonio. Despite the fact that it was in the doctor's handwriting, his wife sensed that the card had been written under gre
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