The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-11-15
DEEP in MYSTERY.
Was Last Heard Of in
Atlanta Hospital.


When the telegram signed IN. Lyons,
and dated Atlanta, reached them a
week ago, informing them of the death
of a beloved son and brother, they had
good reason to accept the statement as
true, but when later, in response to a
letter of theirs, there came the request
for $102.5O with which to forward the
body north, they became suspicious.
Was the son and brother dead, or had
he fallen into the hands of arch con-
spirators?
A most mysterious case. The chief
of police of Atlanta has been notified
to work on the mystery, and while the
relatives are waiting here to hear of
some clue from Atlanta's police author
tiles, they are forced to suffer grief at
their brothers death, and the horrible
torture of suspicion that he has fallen
into the hands of scheming monsters,
while he was sick and weary in body
and mind.
Alonzo BiXby enlisted in the 18th
United States infantry in June, when
Lieut. Anglum opened his recruiting
station in the Walker building. He
was then Is years of age, was popular,
a boy of good habits, and with q host
Of friends. He was sent south with the
other recruits to Fort Mcpherson, Ga.
While there the change in the climate,
the exacting military routine and eX-
haustion told on his physique, and he
was sent to the hospital, where he was
sick for some time. When his regi-
ment, under Lieut.. William H. Will
liams, was ordered to Jefferson bar
racks. Missouri, he was so thoroughly
sick that the surgeon gave instructions
for him to stay, and the regiment went
away to it's western headquarters,
where it has since been stationed.
to his widowed mother, Mrs. Ellen L.
Bixby, telling her that he was sick in
the hospital, that there was no cause
for her worry, as he would get four or
five days furlough when he recovered
to come north and see her. Up to this
time he had written regularly and
faithfully, and had evidently been in
excellent spirits, in spite of the novelty
of the life. He had written cheerfully
and appeared from his letters to be
enjoying himself. Then Wednesday
came and his mother received a tele-
gram from Atlanta, stating that her
son had died at the hospital, and that
the body would be held twenty-four
hours for instructions. The telegram
was signed N. Lyons, with the intima-
ton that a bill of particulars would
follow. Later a letter was received,
stating that the body would be held "a
hours for orders from the relatives, and
| that the body would be turned over to
an undertaken for $10250 and shipped
north.
When Mrs. Bixby received this note
her son Waldo h Bixby. brother Of
the soldier, Immediately wired to the
effect that he could not afford to send
that sum, and after the message from
the same N. Lyons that charges must
be prepaid, had been received no word
has since arrived. When Mrs. Bixby
learned of her sons death, she wrote to
Lieut.. William H. Williams, who was
in charge of the regiment at Jefferson
Barracks, inquiring about her son, and
he replied that her son was sick and at
the hospital. The lieutenant further
wrote that he could learn about him by
addressing A. G. Lyons, who lived on
Marietta street. in care of a. certain
box at the Atlanta post office. With
this name before the family, the mes
sage sent to Atlanta was addressed to
A. c. Lyons or NJ Lyons, and 1t
reached its destination as the reply
came that the charges on the transpor-
tation of the body must be prepaid.
Waldo H. BiXby, the brother, wired
other officials and government author
tiles at Atlanta, but as yet has re-
ceived no satisfactory reply. A letter
was received bearing IIle HedQ, IIIlCe
of the Highway Commission" at Allan
ia, signed by Highway Commissioner
Danielson, stating that Alonzo Bixby
had died at the general hospital in At
lanta, and that the body would be held
"a hours for burial.
Further inquiries of this official have
awaited nothing. The fact that Lieut..
Williams, in command of the Twelfth
infantry, had referred to A. c. LYONS
as being the party with whom young
Bixby had stayed, gave hope that def
mite information could be obtained. but
such has not been obtained Letters to
the Atlanta general hospital, from
which the surgeon telegrapned to Mrs.
Bixby, have brought back the reply7I
that there was no record of young Blk
by's death there, but that he had de- !
serted Relatives scout this idea, as the
sor and brother always wrote pleasure
ably OF army life, and as his commander
knew that he was sick at the hos
pital. The suggestion that the son
might have asked some one to telegram
for the money so that he could oet
away from Atlanta is further set aside
by the communication from Highway
Commissioner Danielson, that the BODY
would be held for burial
As last resort, Waldo H. Rixbv |
communicated with the adjutant gen |
eral at Washington, to secure the reli- |
dDle statement OF the case, so that he |
might know whether his brother had
died at the hospital had deserted and
then died, or whether he was still liv- |
ing. The adjutant general gave instruc-
tons to Quarternaster Simpson at At |
lanta to look into the matter, stating
the request of Mr.. Bixby to have his
brothers body shipped to Worcester.
Yesterday the denouement came.
when word was received from the quar-
termaster general at Washington, that
the soldier, alive or dead could be
found nowhere in the army depart
ment, but that the search would be in
stituted with great thoroughness. In
vestigation brought to light the fact
that there was no such party as Lyons;
the name was entirely unknown to the
army authorities at Atlanta The dis
patch of the above tenor was shown
to Waldo III. Bixby and his sister, Mrs.
Bartlett. The news did not come as a |
surprise to them, as the affair has
been fraught with the deepest mystery
to them from the beginning, and the
rapid succession of events appears al
most inexplicable.
Saturday Waldo H. Bixby wired the
chief of police of Atlanta to look into
the matter and Mr.. Bixby and his sis
ter are now awaiting the reply, in which
all their hopes seem to lie. They can
not believe that their brother deserted
| the 21st of September, as at first stated
but with the repeated confirmation of
his death, are almost forced to accept
the sad intelligence. If no satisfac-
tory solution of the mystery is gained
| by Atlanta's chief Of police, one of the
l>----A'-- - sSin 90 santh ia ind out