Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1874-12-21
THE ROSS MYSTERY.
HIS sELF-CONFEsSED ABDUCToRS KILLED
WHILE COMMITTING A BURGLARY.

HIS sELF-CONFEsSED ABDUCToRs KILLED
WHILE COMMITTING BURGLARY.
The mystery surrounding the abduc-
ton of the boy Charlie Ross from Phil
adelphia, several mouths since is
brought into fresh notice, and with ad-
ded interest, by the brief ante-mortem
confession of one of two burglars, killed,
yesterday morning, while robbing the
house of Judge Van Brunt at Bay Ridge,
L. l., that they were the abductors of
the missing child. 1t appears that the
robbers, in entering the house which
was unoccupied, accidently sounded the
burglar alarm. This awoke the inmates
of the neighboring residence of Holmes
Van Brunt, who, with his son, his gar
dener and German, turned out with
firearms to watch for the burglars when
they left the house. The robbers. on
leaving, fired at Van Brunt and the
gardener but without effect, and then ran
to where young Van Brunt and the Ger
man were stationed. The robbers were
called upon to surrender, but not reply
ing, fire was opened on them, when one
fell dead, and the other was so badly
wounded that he died in an hour.
Before dying, the wounded robber said
his name was Joseph Douglass, and that
of the dead robber William Moseley, and
that they both belonged to New York.
He then voluntarily said that he and
Moseley were the men who abducted
Charlie Ross, but he didn't know where
the boy is now; that Moseley had him
concealed somewhere, but had not told
him where. Douglass said that Moseley
was married, and had six children, but
whether Charlie Ross was with them or
not. he did not know. He (Douglass)
wanted minister sent for, and begged
God to forgive him. He was quite SEN
slble when he made the above statement,
and several persons heard him make it.
He died just as doctor arrived from
New Utrecht
OF course, now that the confession has
been made and possible clew obtained.
the detectives must come in for the hogs
share of the game, and both the New
} Workers and the Philadelphia members
OF this class put in claim. They have
suspected these same parties all along,
and have had an eye out for them all
the time. According to the New York
: detectives, they were well.known river.
, thieves, and the fact that their boat was
: found on the shore near Judge Brunt's
r house lends some plausibility to the
! statement. The superintendent of the
, New York police states that they were
, seen, one evening, on Broadway neal
the Metropolitan hotel, and Capt. Irving
e with six men watched Broadway during
: the whole night, but the burglars, NJ
e doubt, got wind of what was going OF
: and made themselves scarce The super
e lntendent was in communication will
S the officers of several other cities in re
d lation to these men, and from time t
g time officers were sent to identify tn
e men who were arrested, but none han
II pened to be the right ones.
d According to the protested knowledg
e OF the Philadelphia wise men of the DC
e lice force, Moseley, or Mosher. as the
e spell his name, resided prior to the al
G duction of Charlie Ross on Monroe stree
n near 22d street, in that city, and at tina
t, time owned horse and carriage. Tn
team was stabbed in a small street in tb
Is extreme lower end of the city, but sine
SIS then the stable has been demolished
lie The Philadelphia officers also say tia
A. Mrs. Mosher was watched over thre
es weeks in hopes that she would commun
re cate with her husband, but she Wa
missed one day, and has not been seen
heard of since.