The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1882-03-23
KIDNAPPINGI
TEXAS ADDS A CHARLEY ROSS
% THE LIST.
How n Gillespie County Farmer
Lost a Son.

A reporter of the STATESMAN, while il
quest of items for the paper yesterday
incidentally met with a gentleman living
at Frederic ksburg, Gillespie county, anC
from somewhat hurried conversation
the following Statement of kidnapping
affair was gathered:
Frederick Schoenmann is a farmer
and with his wife and children,
seven in number, lives about eight
or ten miles southeast of the town oil
Fredericksburg. On last Saturday he
was visited by a well dressed stranger
who informed him that he had called al
the request Of his THE farmer's) brother,
living in one of the eastern counties of
the state, who is bachelor, very wealthy,
but a cripple and cannot travel.
| Frederick Schoenmanns eldest son.
about thirteen years of age, was named
Heinerich, for his uncle in east Texas.
The stranger said he came at the
earnes. solicitation of the boys uncle,
who wanted TO educate him at the
college at Henderson, Rusk county, and
to that city he desired to take the boy.
At first the sturdy old German farmer
declined to allow his son TO 90 with the
stranger, tut after a good deal of per-
sional encouraging sort of wink from
his frou, he consented, and that even
ing they left the neigbOrhood of the
farm and started in the direction
of Fredericksburg. They never reached
there. On Monday night the stranger
with the boy stopped at a farmhouse,
on the Old stage road between New
Braunfels and Fredericksburg, having
skirted the last named place, to seek shell
ter from the pelting storm.
While the stranger went out TO see
about the animals, the boy told the peo-
pie of the house that the man outside
had stolen him from home, and in the
most piteous manner begged them
to assist him to get back to
his parents. When the stranger
reentercd the house, the old farmer told
him what the boy had said, and demand
ed an explanation. To this the kidnap-
per, for such he really was, replied that
he was an officer of the law that the
boy was wanted in Travis county, for
numerous petty thefts, and that he was
taking him to Austin to be tried. The
story was a plausible one, and had the
desired effect all doubts were removed
from the mind of the now unsus-
pecting old farmer, and after a
hasty supper, everybody retired, the boy
and his captor occupying the same bed.
The next morning the family and their
guests were up by times, and after an
early breakfast the stranger and his boy
prisoner took their departure-'or parts
unknown. Some time during that day,
Schoenmann came along that road, and
stopped at the farm house to make in
quiries of his LOST son. The fathers feel
ings can be better imagined than de-
scribed, when he was told that the
missing boys had left those premises
but a few hours before. In hot
haste the old man set out in the direction
indicated that the strange man and his
captive had taken, but nothing more was
heard of them, and after two days more
of fruitless journeying Schoenmann re-
turned to his home, almost broken
hearted with grief and disappointment.
A telegram from the uncle in East
Texas states that he knows
nothing about the affair; has
never sent for his nephew, and cannot
imagine who the wretch is that has made
use of his name to assist in accomplish
ing so helli>h a purpose.
Every effort has been made to ferret
out the criminal. We trust that the
savage perpetratOr of this crime, eX-
ceeded in turpitude but by few in the
whole catalogue of human enormities,
will be Overtaken and visited with al
adequate punishment, and that the son
may be restored to the arms of his
agOniZed parents.