The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-03-03
VANISHED FROM THE EARTH.
Cases of sudden aud Mysterious Dis
nnncnrnnceS.
(From the New York Press.


When a man or woman is whisket
away ut a moments notice, when he oil
| she leaves his or her office or house to &c
| to the next street and thereupon vanishes
| from the face OF the earth there is "A pecu.
! liar fascination attaching to the case
! there was Mr.. Conant. editor of Har-
] Eers Weekly. He left his office one day
I to go To his home in Brooklyn and from
| the moment he crossed the threshold OF
I his Olhce 10 this moment no living eve has
! seen him as FAR as can be found out He
| stepped into Franklin Square and was
Swiutnwcd up utterly.
IA big cities Ike New York and London
hundreds of people vanish in the course
OF "A year. A considerable number Of
ines ''evanishments are sor cause. but
others are lacking in motive and are
weird in their rnyste rioIsness. There are
plenty of disappearances in which the
character and the environment of the vic
tim absolutely preclude any slppcsition
of voluntary effacemcni.
y few years ago the disappearance of
George Fitch. Il wealthy stockbroker.
Start..u London. The missing man was
of quiet habits and had substantial bal
ance at his banker :. So far as is known
he had no domcstif Worries There was
no reason why he should not have lived
"a prosperous gentleman. but he left his
office one evening for his home in the
suburbs and disappeared. He never
reached his home, aEd, though he was
wen known, no person was ever found
who could swear that they had seen him
e
No trac, of him from that day to this
has ercr been found. though "A reward of
>o..DJ was offered for ANY clue that might
throw light on the mystery.
y few years ago romantic and pain
full case of mysterious disappearance was
engaging the attention of the British For
eign Office c. Fitzgerald. an English
newspaper man of repute had set out on
n journey from Sofia. Bulgaria. 20 Vien-
ma. He never reached his destinat ton, and
although every effort was made to trace
him his movements and his fate after he
left Sofia remain mystery to this day
1t Is said that he was carrying important
dispatches to the Bulgarian Government,
ana If that is true the mystery remains
n mystery no longer, for he probably fell
a victim to one of those oath-bound po-
litical organizations with which that tur-
bulent principality is honeycombed.
fitzgerald.s case brings to mind the
case Of Benjamin Bathurst. a kinsman of
Lord Bathurst, who fell off the earth
early in the last century. He was sent on
a secret mission to Vienna at the time
when England wished Austria to declare
war against Napoleon as diversion from
the campaign in Spain. On reaching Pre-
Iceberg, in Bradenburs. couple of SEN
tries were told off TO guard the inn in
which he rested. On setting forward on
his journey toward nightfall Bathurst
thanked the Sentries and told them that
they might withdraw. They did so and
while the people of the inn were on the
alert to see him of he walked beyond the
circle OF lights and vanished. In the
midst OF all the people assembled Mr..
Bathurst stepped few feet out of a
circle of lights and vanished as complete
ly as If the earth had swallowed him up
England offered $4,000 and Prussia half
that sum for any clew that would lead to
solution of the mystery. but none was
ever forthcoming.
But more weird and uncanny disap-
pearance than these is the case OF an En-
glish farmer named Williamson. living in
Surrey. One morning he started to cross
a big meadow near his house to give some
instructions to worlSmeu on the other side.
He trudged along, whistling and singing.
to the middle of the fled aand there sud
denly and unaccountably vanished. There
was no wall. no ditch, no bush even that
could have concealed him for moment.
His wife, who was standing at a door of
the house with her baby i'm her arms.
was watching him and she suddenly
screamed out. Hes gone, What an aw
full thing" and fell to the floor uncon-
scious.
When she revived her reason had fed.
Two neighbors who had been looking over
the field when Williamson started to
cross it. also saw the strange occurrence
and were so frightened that for weeks
afterward they We're unable to work. No
light was ever thrown on this mystery
and the memory of it haunts the neigh
borhood.
Another uncanny case which is well au-
thenticated tx that of a boy. Charles Ash
more. He lived on farm in Sussex.
England and one day was sent to bring
Il pail of water from well about 100
yards from the house. He did not return
and the family becoming anxious the
father went out with lantern to seek
the boy. light coating of snow covered
the ground. though ncne was falling
then, and the tracks made by the boy
were plainly visible 10 to a spot half
way between the house and the well. At
this point they suddenly ceased and moth
ing but the unbroken surface of the snow
was visible. Nor was any trace of the
boy found from that day to this. He
never reached the we'll. for 1t was found
frozen over and the ice had not been
broken