The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1903-12-11
sI'HENDE EA.I J ALIVE.
"a Man Returns Home After an
B AbsenoeSof Fifty z ears.
81 HAD BEEN MOURNED AS DEAD
After He Deserted His Home He
Never Wrpte a Line to- His
81 wifo or His Helpless
Z y 5sst.f Chfldren. y;
after an absence OF fiftY.four years

After an absence OF fifty.four. years
from his family Jacob Wesley Cloy
wandered into hisson home j Judge John
RI Cloy, at Graniteyille, last Monday
night week ago. The story reads like
ths plot In some romance of the mid
die, ages, but surpasses the ancient Ific.
tldn In the fact. that 1t is a. true tale.
Asreporter for the Augusta Chronicle
heard Of this marvellous story day
or,tWo ago and meeting Judge Cloy on
the streets, who confirmed 1t aud
added more, wonders to the way it had
been told by another. { =, 3 ~ = Il.
he story; ecounted by, udge Cloy
began when heswas only twenty seven
days old and his father disappeared,
leaSing his mother with two helpless
young children, and never returned
until last week. During .the absence
ofsthe father the two children had
advanced past middle age and the good
mother, who toiled for their. support
ar1 education, had died sin ignorance
OK what had become her husband.
Mrs. Cloy departed: this life in 1889. &
Back in the year IS49 jacob Cloy
WIS the overseer on the plantations Of
! Frank Poseyaa prominent planter of
tlte eastern section OF South Carolina:
lac great farmer had a son, Martin
Pesey, who married young wife, and
ZOE while lived happily OH one OF
the places owned by his father. One
|day the young wife disappeared and a
Iisearch was instituted to find her. In
iraJseW days after, the; disappearance
hef mutilated body. was found in "a
swamp nearby, and the evidence was
plain that murder had been com.
Emitteds The strong finger of circum.
stances pointed to her husband, He
Ras arrested and tried:
st5Sf MAIN WITNESS DISAPPEARS.
Jacob Cloy was one OF the witnesses
summoned by. the state at the trial
Hewas one of the party that found
the body Of Mrs. Posey and 1t was
th9pg ght that testimony given by him
i @otisd throw considerable light on the
Case In fact; many thought that
i SioY's evidence would convict Martin
i Rosey of the murdernFrhis wife. All
I were 3iolsly aWai ding s1the time
when Clo9 Woilli aske:s the ssands and
4si the prdsa that; wouids clear up the
chat had shocked the whole
Itry E side by It's ., horrors. The
/ ME for the trial drew Y near and inter-
rs e q, sJnereased Finally the day set for
Y q !. ;rearing arrived and { the court
SJn4 was crowded to th,e doc rs. sHS1 iien
Jacob ,Cloyswas called to 90 on the
stand 1t was found that he had dis-
appeared. Application being made
ri his home it was learned from his
wife that he had not been at the
house sfor several days. Many people
Immediately we're convinced that an
other murder had been committed to
keep the truth about the first one
from coming to the light of day.
lAgain the country was shocked and
all, sorts Of melhods were adopted to
try and locate the whereabout Of Cloy,
but without avail.
After thorough search not few
people came to the opinion. that Cloy
had gone away to keep from convict
Ing his former friend, Martin Posey.
II Mrs. Cloy was left with son twenty
seven days old and a daughter not
quite two years. She immediately
set about supporting them. She un-
dertook such work as woman could
40 and succeeded in raising her de-
serted children in a creditable man
ner and giving them an education.
She often harbored the idea that she
would hear from her husband, but as
the years speed on and not line
came she became convinced that be
was dead.
SON MEETS FATHER.