Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-06-12
Strange Disappearance of a Cass
County Family May Reveal
a Crime
DETECTIVES INVESTIGATING
John White, Wife and Baby, Who
Disappeared Over Two Years Ago
are Being Sought by Distracted Par.
ents-some People Believe White
and Baby Were Murdered.
Special to Times-Repablican.

Red Oak. June PA remarkable
story comes from the town of Griswold,
Cass county. 1t concerns the strange
disappearance of the John White fam
lily. About year ago there was good
deal of talk in this and C.ass county
matter died down and it was not
known that anything was being done.
1t appears, however, that the parents
of John White have engaged detectives
and are attempting to ferret out the
Whereabouts of certain parties. If the
theory upon which the officers are
working should be correct, one of the
most sensational crimes in the history
of the state may be unearthed. The
matter has been kept very quiet and
not much has got into the newspapers.
The Griswold Cleaner in its current
issue, however, has taken the matter
up and given it publicity. 1t appears
appeared suddenly from their home on
what is known as The Passmore farm
more than two years ago. At the time
IIlGSS ptilllS uiSd ppGulSa lhOlS NdS III
tla thought about the affair, but late
developments and the fact that moth
ing has ever been heard from the par
ties has caused a world of talk, and
foul play, murder may have been COM
mitted.
In the spring Of 1902 John c. White
moved over from the vicinity of Oak
land, where his parents lived on the
Passmore farm, then owned by gem
tleman by the name of Macafee, in At
lantic. Mr.. White was Industrious and
hard worker He was to give grain
rent As the season went by he raised
fairly good crop of everything plant
ed. He had man working for him
by the name of Al Martin. While no
one in the neighborhood was aware of
any serious disagreement between
White and his wife, yet shortly after
the little baby came to their home
Mrs. White was heard to. say that she
hated the young one and wished it
We're dead.
One evening, late in the fall, we be-
lieve it was in the early part of De-
cember. this man Martin went to the
home of Ira Tye, about a half mile dis
tant, and asked to borrow carriage,
as Mr.. and Mrs. White wished to drive
to Red Oak. Mr.. Tye let the man have
the carriage and when it was returned
the next day shawl belonging to
Mrs White was left in it, Martin said
the Whites had gone to Burlington on
visit A few days after this occur
renee it became nosied about the
neighborhood that White and his wife
had gone away and left no one to care
for his stock etc. 1t was also learned
that the dishes were left on the table
Just as they We're when the meal was
finished. All the parties being COM
parative strangers in the neighborhood
the matter of the sudden disappearance
soon died out and little further at
tention was iven to it.
Martin Disappears.
Two and one-half years have since
elapsed. John c. White and his wife
have not been heard from since the
night that they We're supposed to have
accompanied Al Martin to Red Oak. In
fact 1t is not known that any of these
parties ever left the house in the car
rage, although the wife was seen
around the house after the lights were
lit on the evening they were supposed
to have taken the drive. The parents
of White have been unceasing in their
search for their son. Mrs. White is
PROSTATE on a bed Of sickness from
Worrying over her son. The wife of
John G. White was the elder daughter
of Philander Johnson. who was the
first person to die of smallpox. west of
town, during the scourge OF that dis
ease in this community during the fall
-, ~ t,nr fcf
she and her sister, Bessie, We're sent
to the Soldiers Orphans Home in DAY.
export, where she remained until she
reached the age Of 16. years, when she
was taken into family over. near
Oakland The man, Al Martin, who
said he drove White and his wife to
Red Oak, worked in this vicinity, most
of the time for q. L. Mundorf, for up
wards of year after this drive. He
suddenly disappeared and his present
whereabouts are unknown.
Some six or eight weeks ago the par
ents of White consulted with detec-
tiyes and the officials of Pottawatta-
ME county, and systematic investl-
CATION Of the White affair has been
made and there has been some strong
circumstantial evidence brought to
light corroborating the theory <that
white and his baby never left the
house alive on the nightk they were
supposed to have been driven to Red
Oak, tand that Mrs. White and Martin
were guilty Of the murder. The fnves-
tigation shows that a day or two pre-
yious to his disappearance White CASH
ed notes to the amount on eight or
nine hundred dollars and the wife and
Martin knew Of the transaction.
The officers and detectives are now
busying themselves trying to trace the
family of Martin and they find that his
parents formerly lived at Whitesville,
Mo. but moved from there to Oregon
or Washington a year or SO ago. The
officers are also very anxious to Sc
cure the address Of Bessie Johnson,
the sister of the missing Mrs. White.
She has dropped out of sight almost
as completely as the other parties in
terested.
Since this agitation has been going
on over west OF town, a rumor has been
received that White and his WIFE when
they were driven to Red Oe-k ,bY Al
Martin, went west to southern Nevada
and are now living under AT assumed
name This rumor is hard to believe
from the fact that the.- went away vol
unfairly. They were not involved IN
debt beyond whst they were plenty