Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1901-10-10
ABDUCTED IN BROAD DAY
Philadelphia Woman Says Report
ers Held Her Prisoner.
ROBBED OF JEWELS AND MONEY


At Pistols Point Was Compelled to
Sign checks-kidnapping occurred
In Fairnount Park-cne of the Men
Arrested Makes Confession.
Philadelphia. Oct. Enlarged with
Kidnapping a woman and holding her
q prisoner for four days. robbing her
Of jewels worth more than $4,000. and
compelling her to sign bank checks
for large sums of money. is the story
which the police unfolded here yester.
day, when they announced the arrest of
two newspaper men, stenographer
in another newspaper office and bar
ber. all of whom are charged with
completely in the crime.
The mem now locked up at the cen.
tral police station are Howard X
Sloan. an unemployed reporter; Henry
Wallace. society editor of one of the
morning newspapers; ]. Knight Find
lay. of Wayne. near here. stenogra'
pher in the business Office of another
morning paper. and Oscar S. Dunlap.
a barber employed in one of the most
prominent shops in the city.
The victim is Mrs. Mabel Goodrich.
the proprietress of an establishment
on North Tenth street. The four men
were arrested on Saturday night and
will be given hearing today
Last Monday Mrs. Goodrich went to
police headquarters and told a story
of kidnapping and robbery so daring
that the police at first doubted it's
truth She said that for some time
past young man, who represented
himself as resident of Germantown
had been frequent visitor at her es'
tablishment He was well dressed
and spent money freely. Last Wed
nesday week. she said. he proposed
drive through Fairmourt Park. He
asked her to dress in her best clothes
and for her to wear all her diamonds
and other Jewelry because n the re-
turn from the drive he Intended to
take her to the finest dining room in
the city, and he wanted her to shine
with the other women in the place.
She accepted. and the next day she
went out with him in carriage, with
fine pair of richly caparisoned
horses, and with a coachman on the
box wearing stylish livery AT lone.
ly place in Fairmount Park the car.
riage was stopped by man whom she
said represented himself as ID. Clar'
ence Gibboney. the secretary and at
torney of the Law and Order Society
of this city. This man. she went on
to say. told her that he had a warrant
Act no oh nj
ing a disorderly house. but that the
matter could be fixed up He was in
vited into the carriage, and the next
moment she was gagged and blind
| folded. She was driven somewhere
she did not know, but she noticed
from one corner of the handkerchief
over her eyes that the men paid toll
at two toll gates. and that they took
her into a building where fire en-
| gine and a hook and ladder truck were
standing
| She was kept prisoner from Thurs
day night until Friday night, without
| anything to eat or drink, and was
| then taken on another long drive.
| blindfolded, to house, where she was
kept from Friday until Monday. In
the latter place the men, who were
masked, stripped her of the jewelry,
| and at the point of a revolver com.
PEELED her to sign bank checks for
| various sums of money she had de-
| posted in the Third National Bank.
| They made her sign for more than she
possessed, but compelled her to prom
| ise she would make up the deficiency
when they released her The men.
she said then took her on another
long drive, and put her out at Tenth
and Poplar streets, about a mile from
| her house.
With other information the woman
| gave them, the detectives began to
work on what they believed to be
fairy tale. They got several clues.
which led them to fire house in
| North Wayne, Is miles from this city.
The fire company is volunteer or
ganization. and the key to the place
was kept in the nearest dwelling. The
nearest house was occupied by fam
lily named Findlay, and there the po-
lice learned that one of the sons. J.
Knight Findlay had been home but
little during the past two weeks. Get
ting a description of him, the police
returned to the city. and found the
young man, who is only 81 years old.
in the office where he is employed He
was charged with the crime. and broke
down and implicated three others:
Findlay said that he had imper
sonated the coachman; that Sloan. the
UNEMPLOYED reporter acted the part
Of Attorney Gibboney; that the barber
played the part of the rich German.
town resident. and that Wallace, the
society editor. had rented house in
Germantown, where Mrs. Goodrich
was to have been held captive. He
told substantially the same story as
that narrated by the woman.
He said they kept her confined in