Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-08
STATE OFFERS A REWARD
Bill Railroaded by Legislature and is
Quickly Signed.
STRANGE WOMAN IS SUSPECTED
No Ransom Has as Yet Been Demand
ed, Though Anxious Father
Hourly Expects It.

DOVER. Del, March s-The disappear
ance on Monday OF Horace. the four-year-
old son Of DR.. Horace n. Marvin. from the
Marvin farm on the bay shore is still an
unsolved mystery. While practically every
one In this region has assiduously been
searching for the little chap, no trace of
him has been found. 1t seems certain that
he was abducted with the motive of fore
Ing large sum of money from his father.
supposed. no doubt, by the abductor to be
wealthy
Although DR.. Marvin Is a stranger here.
having recently come from Sioux city.
Iowa, public sympathy with him in his mis-
fortune is deep and widespread. This
was we'll illustrated when the Legislature
took a hand in the matter. There was
railroaded through the house and senate n
bill appropriating s.. 600 to be placed in the
hands of the governor. to be used by him
In employing expert detectives or any other
means possible for locating the child and
for the punishment OF the perpetrators OF
the deed
Thinks One Kidnaper Was a Woman.
Mrs. Charles woodhalrs husband for
merly owned the Marvin farm. The Wood
halls live on the shore a mile from the
Marvins.
Last Sunday afternoon. the day before
the boy disappeared, Mrs. Woodhall saw
two persons hanging around a deserted
shanty on the beach Of the Marvin farm.
The building has not been occupied since
last summer. In telling OF the incident
last night Mrs. Woodhall said:
II saw two persons moving around the
shanty. 1t was visionary. but the persons
were plainly outlined against the beach. One
looked like a woman Naturally was great
ly interested. for my husband was at the
time calling at the Marvin house. only half
A ha .fa
home 1 asked him il he had been at the
shanty He told me he had not, and 1
thought no more of 1t until after the boy
disappeared / am sure that the persons l
saw were the kidnapers, and l believe ono
of them was a woman.
Last Tuesday Mr. Woodhall visited the
shanty with his wife. They found that the
place had been broken into. Part OF tho
ruff1e of a woman's skirt was found on the
floor. The old bed in the shanty bore EVIL
dence of having been slept in. No fire had
been started in the stove. The detectives be-
lieve that the kidnapers feared smoke from
the chimney might be seen.
DR.. Marvin yesterday expressed the belief
that the kidnapers spent Saturday and
Sunday in the shanty, and on Monday
sneaked to the barn near which Horace was
playing and hid In the loft.
1T seems plausible" said the distracted
father. that one OF the kidnapers was
woman. Any crook clever enough to plot
the stealing Of my boy would naturally Sc
lect a woman to care for the child
Ollie Pleasanton. the negro John and a
boy Bob Pleasanton, who live on the
Swamp road a couple OF miles from the
Marvin farm, think they saw the kidnap-
ers a few days before the boy was missed
Expecting Demand for Ransom.
DR.. Marvin. after his return from Will
mington. where he was in consultation with
the state detectives as well as private de-
tectives. remained in Dover until yesterday
morning. expecting to receive by the early
mail a letter demanding ransom, or some
other reward, but nothing beyond kilograms
from relatives in other parts of the country
was received. To all of these the father
could only reply, Nothing heard" Y
Grief over the child's loss is augmented
by the fact that his mother died just three
months ago. Horace, the youngest of her
three children, was cherished by his grand
mother, Mrs. Swift, the very apple OF
her eye. Already stricken by her daugh-
ters death, the aged woman has been COM
pletely Frustrated by her grandson's dis
appearance.
DIR. Marvin was forced to leave the far
west to avoid the rigors of the climate.
While in comfortable circumstances he by
no means considered himself wealthy, and
when he decided that absolute rest from
his profession was necessary he bought a
farm, first in Maryland. and later moved
to Delaware. One OF DR.. Marvn's grown
sons Is here and the second one is on the
way here.