The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-10-21
NEW MYSTERY OF THE "
WOODS; LAD IS CONE
Fate of Three-Year-Old Recalls
the Famous Dickinson Case
of 1881.
Special to The Journal.

Special to The Journal
Marquette, Mich, Oct. 2O.-The mys-
terry of the disappearance of the 3-year-
old son of John Karvela, living at the
Allouez location, in in; Houghton county,
ished as if in thin air. Not trace of
the remains Of the little one if dead
has been found, nor-if perchance the
youngster is living-is there clue to
his whereabouts. The parents weeks
ago practically abandoned hope Of ever
seeing the child again.
It was on July 81 that the boy disap-
peared. With others he had started
along road. leading thru a thick
woods, happy in the thought of soon
meeting his father, returning from
| work. Becoming tired, he sat down be-
side the road, while the others went
on adm me- sh the boy to remain :5
later that the father was met but on
the arrival of the party at the spot
where the child had stopped he was
not seen. go
The fate of the child doubtless will
never be satisfactorily explained. The
kidnapping theory has the greatest
number of believers as being the most
plausible. 1t is not thought he wan
dered off and died in the woods, for the
| secured
time and again by hundreds of men
without the slightest success.
Recalls Another Mystery.
The unsolved mystery of the fate of
this Allouez youngster recalls SINH
lar disappearance twenty-five wears
! ago on the Menominee iron range. It
was as if he had been swallowed by
the earth that Willie Dickinson dropped
from sight Nov. l, 1881. He was the
son of Captain William E. Dickinson,
superintendent of the Commonwealth
Iron company's mines. He was years
wealth village school, about mile
from his home, which was at the mine,
between which and the town, itself,
was lonely stretch When the younger
children were dismissed in the after
noon young Dickinson started for home
and was last seen bv the mine doctor
as the latter rode by on horseback.
This was at the bend in the road,
about equidistant from the schoolhouse
and the Dickinson residence. -
The youngster failed to appear at
the mining location, and upon the ar
rival of the older children. at late
hour, the mother became alarmed and nd
a search was Instituted. A band of 100
or more Indians were employed and
there was not foot of ground for
miles around that was not examined,
while every old test-pit was thoroly
explored.
It was strong belief almost from the
start, however. that the boy had been
kidnapped. and the mother, who now
lives in Milwaukee, has continued stead
fast in that theory. A few months pre-
vious to his disappearance CAPTAIN
Dickinson broke up disreputable Joint
on the company's land at the outskirts
threatened to get even with him.
Traced Him to Negro Home.
! While following one of the hundreds
Of clues subsequently developed, the
mother learned that little white boy
who presumably had been stolen, was
in charge of a negro family down in
Virginia. She visited, the place as
find the child gone. She did, however
find clothes that she asserts her son
wore when abducted.
The negro woman said the boy had
been brought there few weeks previ
ously by strange man who paid well
for the care of the youngster, and who
suddenly disappeared in great haste an6
took the boy away. only day OF two
| UG1OIo Illc ulOtutI ARRIVAL. n llCGlt
son Of the negro woman described the
Dickinson home and incidents relating
to the village Of Commonwealth, which
he said he had learned from his moth
er's charge. ~... 's.~
Search Kept Up for Is Years.
Mrs Dickinson has met with many
/ adventures in her search Of quarter OF
| a century for her missing son. She has
visited nearly every state in the union
following false clues, and has beer
systematically robbed by designing
scoundrels who have worked upon he:
sympathies. She has personally seel
g dozens Of boys who were kidnapped
from their homes, and while none wa
her son she has aided many of them tt
better their condition in life.
She has trunkful Of the stories O.
other boys who were kidnapped, am
has been instrumental in restoring t,
their parents several children who iha.
been abducted. But her own son, VIII
if now living would be 81 years O
age, has completely drolped fron