The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-12-30
BROTHERS UNITED
AFTER MANY YEARS
~
Separated When They Were In
iantss Had Not Seen Each
Other Since.
MET ON CHRISTMAS IRIS: M EVE.
Declare They Will Stick Together
Hereafter and Make Way ii,
World Side by Side.
MET ON CHRISTMAS EVE.
Declare They Will Stick Together

4
World Side by Side.
LET; orphans when one of them could
barely lisp the name OF mother. and
separated for fifteen years. John Stone
and Louis Wyford. met for the first
time ut boswell. in Hanover county,
nn Christmas Eve and laughed and
wcpt like two girl. with sheer JOY
had found each other at last
When they were but toddling babes
their father deserted his wife aftor
drunken spree. and the poor woman
little sons TO the care Of an orphan
asylum in Cleveland O. Louis. the
elder was adopted by w. S. Hobart. of
Willougliby. o.. at the nge of eight:
old, was brought to Virginia with iif-
teen others. and was given into the
kindly care of Mr.. and Mrs. Ira c..
Stone, of boswell. OF the sixteen who
tho homes where they had been placed
and all turned out badly >cxcept John
Stone. He. too. ran away. but re-
turned after siX months. glad once
rents, whose name he took. 1t is a
strange coincidence that both boys
abandoned their homes to so to work,
and that both are now at peace with
tEelT 1OSieT Il pdTGUtS.t JoHu Is llSluS,
with the Stones at boswell.
search for Brother.
At tho age of seventeen years Louis
ran away to Newcastle. Pa. where he
secured position firing on the Pitts
burg and Lake Erie Railroad.
He was. gone three years, but wrote
and a half. Then he started braking
on the Lake Shore, Michigan and
Southern Railroad. All the time he
had vague. dim memories of his broth
er. his only relative in all the world,
and the desire to find this brother.
10 know him and to love him, became
very strong. When he had reached
his majority, he wrote to Cleveland.
but it was at the time that his brother
had run away from the home In Dos
well, and the asylum authorities could
give him no satisfaction. After long
months OF waiting, lie wrote again.
Some time later he received letter
found. Then he lived only for the
day when he would be able to come
10 Virginia and meet his long-lost
brother.
{Plso passed vagrant sort of life. He
has a good home, and his foster pa
rents loved him as one OF their own
flesh and blood. THEY wanted him to
go TO work, and one day in February.
1906, he left boswell.
He wandered about the cbnntry. and
worked day and half II, tile quar-
ries in Goochland county. where ii was
so hot that he had to give up and go
elsewhere. Squire Joseph A. Purdie
az No. 402 West Marshall Street. a
great friend of the Stone family, was
called IN to help trace the boy. He
Followed John twenty five miles in
Goochland county in one day, and then
lost track of him.
Purtlic Got Him.
Six months passed and then Mrs.
Stone received a letter from her adopt
ed son, and Squire Purdie again set
out on the search He was located at
Post Oak, York county. where he was
working for William Lawson. Il mer-
chant. and whore he had sworn in as
a United States mail rider Squire
Iurdie followed him one day on his
soute, and found him at last in Will
!iamsburg. With a big straw hat on
and carving package of turnip seed
down Duke of Gloucester Street, the
main thcroughfare of the little city.
His hat fell off. and he dropped all
his seed when he caugh; sight of his
friend. He hardly wanted In finish
his route and carry the packages to Mr.,
Lawson; but he did, and then came
back homo.
1t was not until last August the day
before his birthday. that lie knew he
had brother
Letters passed between the two and
then word came that Louis was on his
way TO boswell. He arrived Christ.
mas Eve. and John was at the station
Mingled feelings of curiosity and ten.
derness passed through the hearts nj
both boys rs thaS waited for each
other. " was mutual recognition n,
first sight, and the bystanders we've
amazed TO see two boys rush into eacl
others arms as If they had never seer
each other before.
They spent Christmas AT the nom,