New-York tribune., 1906-06-19
GET MUTH AND CAPTOR
Continued from flrst page.

|
were removed when Charles J. Cooke, real
estate dealer, appeared at headquarters with
! complaint that John Joseph Kean. who had
! acted as collector and agent for him. had en-
| bezzed $500 Specimens of his handwriting
! were shown the police, and they were found to
! be Identical with the writing in the letters which
! the abductor had begun sending to Mr. Muth.
BOY SEEN STANDING ON ROOF.
officers Glare and Vale to-day again instituted a
search of the vacant houses in their district, and
they paid another visit to the houses Nos. 423.
42j and 42T North 62d street When Vale
reached the third floor of No. 425 he observed
Freddie Muth standing on the rear shed of No
427. He called to him. saying Hello, Freddie!"
Freddie said "Helow and Immediately began
to cry Vale leaped through the window and
stepped across the roof to the adjoining house
He was just in time to see Kean hurrylng down
the stairs Drawing his revolver, he fired at
the fleeing man. but missed. He craWled through
the window and followed, catching up with keah
as the latter making for the front door
The policeman again pointed his revolver at the
kdnapper, who threw up his hands, crying
surrender, The child in the mean time had
followed the pair, and reached the first floor as
the arrest made.
The kidnapper and his captive FASTENED
to the nearest police station. and from there
taken in a patrol wagon to the city HAL, InS ne
news of the capture had reached the centresoi
the city, and when the prisoner and the poy
arrived at the City Hall, great crowd had
SdlnereQ. hean, Whlte with rear, lIeHnI0u ~
that he could scarcely walk and begged the de-
tectives not to let the crowd kill him.
The child bore no evidence of Ill treaemeni I4 had
been fed on bread and milk, which hean hao
stolen from doorsteps. When found he held
couple of crusts of bread in his hands, ana ms
schoolbook under his arm He had not
been washed since his abduction and his face
was smudged, while his jacket was much soiled
from sleeping on the dirty floor OF the mousse
KEAN PICTURE OF MISERY.
Kean never left the boy alone until he was
asleep. The abductor, as he sat to be photo
graphed, the picture of misery. He is about
five feet ten inches in height and very thin
His clothing was greatly worn and his collarless
shirt was filthy He had cut off a short I'M
periaI with pair of pocket scissors. but he had
not been shaved since he disappeared he
shTank from the gaze of the detectives ana
newspapermen, and when making his statement
to Police Superintendent Taylor. he broke down
and sobbed He seemed to be in mortal FEAR
that some one intended doing him personal bod
lily injury, and pleaded for protection.
Not since the abduction Of Charlie Ross has
the community been wrought up by the COM
mission Of a criminal act. The newspapers, IN
order TO aid the police in tracing the kdnapper.
we're compelled TO publish misleading stories TOT
the purpose of throwing Kean on his guard IN
the letters which the kidnapper wrote 10 MI
Muth he threatened to kill the boy II his de-
mands were not met, He demanded that Mr, tha
disappearance of his son, in order that the de-
tectives might be withdrawn.
Kean told the police in his statement that he
had abducted the boy primarily to secure the /
S400 he had embezzed from Charles j. Cooke
In addition, he said he was In DEBT with no
means of providing for his family. He said ne
never intended to harm the boy. and declared
the statements he made in his letters 10 Mr. /
AIuth that the child being dosed with whis- /
key were untrue. He kept Freddie quiet by CIV
ing him candy and pennies, he said
Previous to kidnapping the Muth child he had
=f,.I11r YNlliG a.
Iasky a six-year-old boy whose parents he be- /
lieVed were well-to-do.
WELCOMED HOME BY A THOUSAND.
Freddie, with his book still under his arn |
was welcomed home by more than thousand |
persons. The whole fctty had been the anx-
ious bench, it were for week awaiting It'd |
ings of the child and when the news came that !
he had been found it was flashed 10 all parts Of
the city People began to gather in front of the |
Muth home in Columbia avenue to sec the boy |
brought home. In answer to questions the child !
said:
The man took me on one car, and then on an
other, and put me in a house where there We're |
no chairs. He locked the door. l was afraid |
and cried. He told me to stop crying, as l |
would soon see my mamma. l cried all the |
time, and went to sleep The folded a |
coat and put it under me. The next day. in the |
daytime. he brought bread and milk and some
oysters. L cried again, and the man said l |
would see mamma soon. That day he went out |
TO get something, and locked the doors. I went
to a window and a lot Of boys and ladies |
looking up at ne. [ tried to lift the window TO
talk to them, but the man came back. He
closed the shutters, and told me to stay away
from the windows. l asked him why he was
hiding, and he said the police after me. I |
got awful frightened. Two or three times we
heard noises downstairs, and the took me
on the roof, and We went into the next house. |
The man said they were policemen. The man
gave me pennies, and told me not to make a |
noise. We were going some place when lot of
men and policemen caught the
When the boy had finished his story. his father
turned to the reporters and said:
Please thank everybody for Thank the
newspapers 1t was through their kind and eff
cient cooperation that l got my boy back. I
also want TO thank the police. They worked
hard TO find my boy
Mr.. Muth said that he did not know Kean, |
and had never seen him until to-day. Mayor
Weaver and Captain Donaghy tonight formally
thanked the newspapers for the part they PLAYED
in the case.
{" II 4 N RT AK CITEED ,,