The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-08-27
Case OF LOST IDENTITY
Strange Experience Of Miss Clark. Of
Syracuse.
SCHOOL TEACHERS VACATION
While at Q New York Dry Goods Store
She becomes Insane and Seeks
Employmcn Undcr IN As
sumcd Name.

| Syracuse, N. Y, Aug. 26.-Miss Lucre-
| tia Clark, the school teacher who so
mysteriously disappeared from Plain
| field, N. j., ON Friday morning, Aug.
8. has been found. She was discovered
at an early hour this morning at the
home of ex-Mayor Charles ). Hayden.
at Fitchburg. Mass. by Superintend-
ent Louis j. Beck. of Beck's secret ser
vice bureau, New York, who has been
steadily at work on the case since last
| Friday. Detective Beck arrived In THIS
city tonight with Miss Clark In charge
| Since Miss Clark's disappearance from
| Plainfield, John f. Sweet. her brother
in-iaw. who resides In this city. has fol-
lowed up every clue available. Last
Friday the Beck secret service bureau
We're given charge Of the case Super
irtcndent Beck started out. and as n
result the strange mystery which so
deeply involved Miss Clark has at last
been solved. MIR. Beck. In starting his
| investigation, made himself well ac-
qua.nted with the habits of the woman.
| The first thing he did was to trace her
from Plainfield to New York. 1t was
| discovered that on the Friday noon Of
her disappearance she had visited
,Maceys store. The detective contin-
ued to work upon the case and the
main clue that led to finding of Miss
Clark was received In a letter. Detec-
tive Beck's name had become known In
reference to the case and on the sec
ond day Of his investigation he received
| several anonymous letter threatening
him with bodily harm II he persisted In
the case The postmarks of the letter
were traced out and the place visited.
Beck states that the woman became
mentally deranged and knew nothing
| of what transpired after leaving Ma
cey's store. She boarded night boat
bound for Providence. When she
reached Boston Miss Clark went TO a
| small boarding house on fremont
street. On the morning Of Aug. 10 she
appeared at an employment bureau
and asked for position as
a domestic. She was given a
position in the Hayden family
of Fitchburg. Here she gave her name
as Mary Burke. and from that time
until this morning Miss Clark never
| left the house, attending to her du-
ties as domestic in the closest mon
ner. Meanwhile Detective Beck was on
her track but not until last night was
| he fully convinced that the domestic
Mary Burke and the school teacher
| Miss Clark We're one and the same per-
son. This noon the detective arrived at
| Fitchburg and proceeded to the Hay
den home. He found Miss Clark busily
engaged In dusting the parlor furni-
ture. When he made the object of his
visit known. the entire household could
| hardly believe what he toidthem. Miss
| Clark was taken into room with the
detective and there she was quietly told
she was to accompany the man to
| Syracuse This she positively refused
to do. Then an elderly sister of Miss
Clark, living nearby, was telegraphed
| for. She arrived at noon and then a
| heartrending scene was enacted
Miss Lucretia recognized the woman.
and from that time her mind seemed
to come back to her. With start she
recalled her true name and her family
She fell into her sisters arms and
wept bitterly. How or when she had
left New York she was unable to state
All was a blank from the time she had
left Macey's store. Immediately word
was sent to this city to Mr.. Sweet. Not
until o'clock were the details OF the
! finding of the woman made known to
her family, and when they were re-
lated to Miss Alice Clarke she fell upon
the floor In faint. 1t was some little
time before she could be restored. The
| general appearance of Miss Clarke
since she left Syracuse Is greatly
changed. Part of her hair has been
cut short and when she descended
| from the train she was dressed In
black from head to foot. A long black
veil covered her head and face, and
| she spoke to no one until the Sweet
residence was reached. Mr.. Sweet re-
fused to talk, only stating that Miss
! Ia ka 10 an