Whig and tribune. [volume] (Jackson, Tenn.) 1870-1877, 1876-02-26
AYorkriIIe GlrI,s idrenture.

/ Miss Vonnie Parks, miss of fftcen
| summers, went away from home on the
| 9th inst. and did not return until Sunday
| evening last. Her father, George D.
| Parks is a jeweller at l ,5l4 Third avenue.
She is pupil in the grammar school in
| Eighty ninth street, and is beloved by all
ner schOolmates. On Wednesday last
| after her return from school her mother
gave her q lesson on the piano, but she
| was careless and her mothes scOlded her.
| Within an hour the girl was missing.
| Her outer street garments could not be
| found, bat her jewelry and other wear
| ing apparel were undisturbed. On
| Thursday a thorough search was institu-
ted among friends and relatives, and as
| no trace Of her was found her father ap-
| piled TO Capt. Robbins of the Eighty
eighth street police and his detectives
went to work. Several hundred photo
graphs were distributed by the father,
and on Friday Mr.. Parks obtained clue.
Vonnie had been seen with 2 colOred wo-
man riding sthr9isgts 1 os.s1lls, going
{ uD town. Ie -flssef-s fTssrH rHtzr-- zaEs
this, learned that the girl and the negro
woman stsPped out of the car at Nine
teenth street.
Mr.. and Mrs. Parks, knowing that
Vonnie was acquainted with only one
negro woman, "a servant that had been
discharged from their employ, Della To-
bias by name, made known TO the detect
ives, and they learned that this servant
was at service with Mrs. Cove of 400
East Twenty second street. But she gave
them no satisfaction, and there seemed to
be no hope of finding the missing girl
until Sunday evening, when she vol
ultarily returned to her parents homo.
Vonnie had been four days away and
her clothing was not neat as she was
wont TO wear. She complained too Of
being fOOtsOre and weary, and said she
had walked all the way from Twenty
second street and Ninth avenue. She
said that Della Tobias, who visited Mr..
Parks'E house two weeks ago, put it into
her head that her mother was treating
her too much as a child. She advised
her TO run away if she was again rebuk-
ed, and told her to come to her. The
scOlding after the music lesson was there
fore followed by her flight. The negro
woman was found at Mrs. Cowe's. VOn-
nic was welcomed to the kitchen. Della,
apprehensive that her employers might
discover VOnnie, put her into clos
ct and kept her there during the day and
and as far into the evening as there was
any danger that the mistress might visit
her kitchen. At about 8 o'clock every
evening, when the family was busy about
evening employments and enjoyments,
Della and Nonnie stole past the library
door and up to their bed in the attic.
They then talked over their plans for the
future.
During the first two days, while Won
nie's sense of injury was fresh, she had
no desire to return home, and Della sug-
gested that she should paun her cloak,
buy a morning suit, and have her hair
dyed with the proceeds. The negro wo-
man seemed to be veXed that VOnnie
had not some jewelry. Their want of
money, however, was to be made up by
killing Mr.. and Mrs. Parks and robbing
the store. Then Della would kill her
mother. After this butchcry the two
were to 90 somewhere and live on the
proceeds of the robbery.
After two days of imprisonment in the
closet the girl began to desire to go home,
hut the negro woman threatened to do
something desperate if she mentioned
anv such thing On Friday evening af-
ter dark, instead of going to bed as usual,
the TWO stole out, and walking over to
Third avenue, took the cars, and rode up
as far as Nineteenth street. They then
took a downtown car, and rode back to
Twenty-secOnd street, and returned to
Mrs. Cowe's. Vonnie spent Saturday
alone in the coal hole, all the while devils
lug means of escape. On Sunday even
ing she put ON her wrappings and boldly
ened violence, but the girl paid no fur
ther heed to her, and went te friends
house in Eighty-seconds street, and thence
she was taken home.
Della was taken before Justice Smith
in the Harlem Police Court yesterday,
and is to be examined to-day.