The San Francisco call., 1904-06-16


of the disappearance of Miss Lillian E.
Head has been solved Instead of
having committed suicide in a tragic
manner at the foot of B street in North
Oakland she is quietly residing in
Fanbrook in the southern part Of this
State in the full possession of all her
faculties.
The girl gives as her reason for dis
appearing and setting up false story
Of suicide that she desired to end
life of idIeness and begin making
name for herself
1t was on Tuesday, April u, that the
people of Oakland were startled with
the story of the disappearance OF Miss
Lillian F. Heald Mrs. Sydney Blanch-
ard of s55 Thirty-seventh street report
ed to the police that her sister, MISS
Heald, had disappeared. Shortly after
that Mrs. Blanchard began TO receive
letters signed Mrs. Reynolds, ana II
was this that led to the location OF
Miss Heald. This location and dis
covery were not accomplished for some
time. and not until much money had
been spent in advertising and detec-
tive work, for Miss Heald did every
thing in her power to block the searcn.
She even wrote letters, under the raise
name of Mrs. Reynolds" describing
her own supposed suicide.
1t was these letters, however, that
finally brought to light the where
abouts Of the missing girl.
The supposed Mrs. Reynolds seem
ed to know more about Miss Heald
than did even her sister. Mrs. Key
nolds" wrote TO Mrs. Blanchard and
to the newspapers that she had seen
a woman, answering the description
of Miss Heald. standing at the foot OF
r street. that the woman had sudden
lv thrown herself into the bay at that
point and that she had drowned under
the eye of Mrs. Reynolds. Unfor-
tuuately for the story Mrs. Reynolds
mentioned the time of day, z:3O O'Clock
in the afternoon Mrs. Blanchard con.
suited the tide tables and discovered
that the tide. at that time, was OUT
and that there was nothing but the
mud flats at the foot of B street
HUNTED FOR SISTER.
Then Mrs. Blanchard began adver-
tising for her sister and she spent no
little money in this way. But no an
swer came, and the mysterious Mrs.
REYNOLDS" even remained silent
Then it was that Mrs. Blanchard dis
covered that a young woman was liv-
ing in Bakersfield under the name OF
Mrs. Reynolds" Here again was the
mysterious name-the name OF the
woman who had written the letters
about the missing girl.
Mrs. Blanchard adopted the same
methods that had been used by the
missing woman She wrote letter to
Bakersfield, addressed it to Mrs. Rey-
noIds" and signed an assumed name.
The letter got an answer. and after
that ii was only a question OF fol-
lowing the missing girl in her wander
ings.
WRITE TO EACH OTHER.
A correspondence was kept up be-
tween the two and finally Miss Lillian
Z. Neald confessed to her sister that
she had left home for the purpose of
making her own way in the world. She
admitted>that she had arranged the
suicide story, that she had written the
letters signed Mrs. Reynolds" pur-
porting to give an account of the sui
eide, that she had described herself
and her own clothing in this letter and
that she had done all this in order
that she might be able to support her
self and not be dependent upon others.
She admitted that the only unfortu-
nate feature in her story of suicide was
that the tide was out when she was
supposed to have committed suicide.
When pressed for a reason as to why
she hdQ dllOWed neT TeldliNeS " lnlHh
that she had committed suicide, she
only said that she thought that they
would cease to worry if they thought
that she was dead.
But even after the discovery of her
subterfuge Miss Heald has refused to
return home She finally admitted her
identity and Their disappeared from
Bakersfield. Her next appearance was
at Fallbrook, where she has been re-
siding under the name of Mrs. Mary
Wilson" and she is still supposed to
be there.
Mrs Blanchard has used every means
in her power to induce the young
woman TO return home. but without
avail. She still insists that she wants
to make her own way in the world,
though she has cast off the suicide
story and admits her identity.
Mrs. Blanchard says that she never
believed the suicide story at any time.