100 years ago, 1918
If speech were silver, as someone has suggested, Marshal Nickerson’s office would be jammed to the doors with that precious metal. He is harboring in the commodious basement of the station the original talker from Talkton. The visitor claims many names, but sticks most persistently to Thomas Francis Henley. Not a great deal is known about him. He says he lives in Marlboro, Mass. He has acquaintance with nearly everyone under the sun. He approached Deputy Roy Mower on Court street Friday and tried to sell that astute officer some shaving soap. His manner made the deputy suspicious so he invited him to come up and sell the marshal a cake. It was evident that the man was not mentally responsible, so he was held for his own safe keeping.

50 years ago, 1968
Auburn police said today that several thousand dollars worth of United States savings bonds stolen recently from a Portland home have been found in the Shoe City. Capt. Leslie F. Stewart said the bonds were discovered in a field off the Stetson Road by a resident of the area. Capt. Stewart said that the bonds were apparently taken in a break within the past week. He said he has been in contact with police officials in Portland concerning the matter and will forward the bonds to them. Included in the packet were 84 of the Series E bonds, in denominations of $25, $50 and $100 and totaled $5,500.

25 years ago, 1993
It’s not just a sect of Mahayana Buddhism anymore. Zen is the name of what may well be the coolest and most popular entity to arrive on the planet since E.T. Zen Intergalactic Ninja is the creation of Steve Stern and Lewiston resident Dan Cote. The character took shape more than five years ago by the pair, who published the Zen stories in their own independent black-and-white comic books, which they produced in Auburn. Zen, now being published by Archie Comics, has elicited a resoundingly positive response from comic book readers. There are Zen comics, posters, masks, a hand-held video game, and a bendable Zen action figure.

The material in Looking Back is reproduced exactly as it originally appeared, although misspellings and errors made at that time may be corrected.

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