The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1900-07-16

/ lie Clerque family. He hurried TO Jackson
/ vile TO find that Willie lie Clerque and
his father were gone. and he could get no
/ trace OF them AT Rochester he had bet
+ ter success The aunt and the doctor " no
had taken the child Uuanitai 10 the or
phans home, were both dead, but the
nurse and others of the family were liv-
! ing. They admitted having spirited the
child away. and a single line in the records
Of the asylum. with the date pieced out
the rest of the story. -Four years after
the birth of the children. the father, lie
ClerQue had returned to Rochester and
had kidnapped the boy from his mother.
Mrs. lie Clerque, frantic with grief. had
gone West to take up the search for her
[ boy, and the relatives and lost trace Of
her. At last accounts she was in Chicago.
Further than this the lawyer could not
get. He turned over to Uuanitai docu-
ments signed by her relatives stating the
facts of her birth, except that they left
IL TO appear, that the mother herself had
been a party to the scheme of placing the
| little girl ia an orphan asylum 1t was
ascertained. too. that the girls mother be
longed to a well-known and prominent
| family, while her father was in the en-
gineer corps of the army.
At this stage of the story the Maywoods
met reverses, losing a large part of their
property They moved from New York to
Indiana a little over two years ago.
Uuanitai conceived a plan of coming 10
Chicago 10 find work. She knew that she
was an adopted child and this made her
anxious to support herself. In edition
she had a childish hope of in some way
finding her mother here She was oppos-
ed by all the family. but finally had her
way. Out of the pin money which had
been hers in prosperous days she had
saved 500. Her father gave her letters 10
many well-known people in Chicago who
had been his friends for years-among
them S f. Gross
Now take these letters, my child he
counseled, land as soon as you are in
Chicago you can present them to my
friends. If they don't find work for you
they will watch over you a little, hope.
But Uunanitai had ideas Of her own,
and 'hese ideas were independent. She
put the letters away in her trunk, rented
a room at the Avon q fiat building on
Prairie avenue, near Cottage Grove, ave
nue., and set out to find work She had
conjectured that she might gee some sort
| of clerical work among the church papers
or church publishing houses.
Nc" they all said, I'VE have more
clerks than we can take care OF. What
you had better do is to become a dea-
coness. You know India and you would
make a irst-class woman missionary"
But Cunanitai had her own opinions
on missionaries and they were not very
| orthodox. She decided that she would
not be a deaconess. She secured the
! city for work, and as time went on she
! began to get discouraged.
! One Of the women in the boarding
! house noticed 1t, and the next Sunday
| she said. Now, we have a club meeting
this afternoon, and I want you 20 GO
along with me. l especially want you
to meet my friend, Mrs Smith and her
son. Mrs. Smith Is very fond of girls.
and although she has none of her own.
she has brought up several. They are all
| gone now, and nothing would please her
| better than TO meet you. She might find
| you some work you know" After several
invitations the girl decided one day to go
to the club meeting. Mrs Smith was
| not there.
IT'S too bad" said Mrs. Shaw. 1--WE
| must go again next week for the meet
ing is at Mrs. Smiths house on Drexel
bouleva ard. You will be delighted with
her son, Willie lie Clerque." Uuanitai
fell into fit of trembling and grew white
| as paper, much to her friends astonish-
ment. The girl said nothing. although she
was all eagerness during the week for
the day of the club meeting to come. She
went. and instantly recognized Mrs. Smith
| as her mother by an old picture taken
when her mother was years younger. Wit
lie lie Clerque was not in the city, and
the girl was able to keep the discovery
| TO herself At once Mrs. Smith took a
fancy TO Uuanitai. and soon invited her
| to her house to spend a few days. The
| girl agreed to go. resolved in her own
mind to find out why her mother had
deserted her, as she believed in her in
fancy.
do you know" said the mother one
day. I'D like so to have you stay here
and be my daughter. if you only could
I have my boy, and a fine fellow he is,
bus I have always wanted daughter"
MY own mother thought differently, -
said the girl. with great self-control. "Shc
deserted me and gave me away when
was tiny baby And then she told her
mother the whole story, only emitting
| names.
II can't UNDERSTAND it." sighed the
mother when the girls story was ended.
ut seems incredible that any woman
should give up her own child"
And here are the papers that prove it
all" said Uuanitai, as she brought out
the packet of documents.
AS the mother read. the truth of the
strange story became apparent to her.
She cried for JOY, and the girl cried with
her
Cunitas foster parents were reconciled
| in q measure 10 the girls reunion with
her mother. for they expect her back soon
as the wife of Fred her foster brother,
| a Young business man In New York City.
Willie lie Clerque is as devoted to hls
sister as though they had not been sweet
| hearts.
The story of the finding of the boy by
his mother. after he had been kidnapped
from her by the father, is another side
Of the romance. Mrs. lie Clerque came
to Chicago in search of her husband and
her boy She found no one here of that
name, but heard that in Connorsville. Ind
there was a man called lie Clerque. She
went there and put up at the only hotel
! in the place.
Did you ever hear of any one i'm this
| town named lie Clerque?" she asked the
landladv after dinner.
! lie Clerque? Yes. a man and his boy.
! They board here regularly. Their room
is the one adjoining yours" said the land
| lady
Mrs. lie Cerque contrived to catch a
! glimpse of the father and boy next morn
! them as her husband and SON She Went
! to the village school that morning, took
! the child away and boarded train for
! Chicago with him, Afterward an ar
/ rangement was made by which the bow
| remained q time with one parent and
! then with the other Mrs. lie Clerque
was divorced and married q Mr.. Smith.
| Uuanitai lie Clerque is now living with
her mother and stepfather in an apart
/ ment building on Cottage Grove avenue,