The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1883-06-02
A FIENDISH SCHEME.
A Young Girls Adventures in New York
City-Decoyed Into Disreputable
House-A Timely Rescue.

4 House-A Timely Rescue
A few weeks ago a young lady, WHOM
for convenience | will call Miss d., wa
walking through one of the upper an,
respectable streets of New York. whcl
her attention was arrested by human
hand thrust through broken pane u
glass in the window of II house. Tb'
hand was moving, and rs Miss ID. pasScC
it dropped crumpled piece of paper t
the sidewalk at her feet. On it was writ
ten, as with II burnt match, these words
"For GOd'S sake, get me Wct this ho"S'
before midnightH'
Startled by the most singular occur
renee, Miss d. turned Immediately back
to her home, and reported it To hen
father. After some necessary delay her
father went to the police station, and IN
officer was sent with him To- make an in
vcStigatiOn.
On reaching the house and ringing
the bell, the men were received with
some surprise, and informed that il
was Il private house; and their story
was listened to with apparent astonish-
'mcnt, certainly with most evident
signs of incrcdulity. The lady Of the
house did not know what TO make of
such story as that! The officer could
come and look where he liked.
The two men went in. They found
no suspicious appearances. Ascending
to the room through the broken window
of which the human hand had been seen,
il proved TO be unoccupicd.
There was no broken pane OF glass in
the window. Butthc officer did quietly
notice that the putty inc,osing one Of
the panes was fresh. rs if the pane had
been recently set. Discovering nothing
that could warrant an arrest or 4 fur
Their inquiry, the men were finally COM
PEELED to go away.
But they were not satisfied. Suspicion
remained. Later in the day, therefore,
they returned to the house, and proceed
ed to make It more thorough search Of
the premises And this was what ut last
they found.
Down in the cellar three young girls.
half dead with fright. One OF them
said she was the girl who had broken
the pane of glass in the window of the
room where she was locked up, and
had dropped the crumplcd piece of
paper with the writing on it to the
lady who was passing. And this was
the story she went on to tell to the
officer.
In the morning of that day, she said,
she was going through that street, whom
the door of this house suddenly opened,
and well-drcssed and entirely respect
woman rushed out, in a
state of great excitement, and called to
her. "My child is taken suddenly and
ill.," said the woman, "the
servants are out, and | have nobody toI
send for the doctor. Would you be will
ing to go?"
Who would, who could refuse such
n request, under such circumstances?
Certainly, the girl said she would 90.
well, come in, them said the
woman, "and will give you the doc
tors address"
The girl, little suSpccting the terrible
trap which had been set for her, as
cended the steps andwent in. No soon
er was she in than the door was sprung
upon her! In an instant the truth |
flashed upon her mind. She was con-
Quoted to the room above and locked |
in, like a victim to be delivered up to |
sacrifice In her horror over her sit.
uation, she broke the glass, and threw
her cry for help out of the window. 1t
was her only chance. and it saved her.
Her companions in the cellar had
had somewhat similar experiences.
What den it was, What devils there
are in human form! A few hours more.
and it would have been too late. And
this in plain daylight, in respectable
thoroughfare, in the year of our Lord
1883.
Thus it is that innocent young souls
are hurled into the waters and swal.
lowed up with no one TO save. How
many ''mysterious diSappcarances''
receive by such an incident as this then
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