Los Angeles herald., 1907-04-30
Mysterious Disappearance Why
FROM CnrscII's saturday journal.

From CnsseII's
TNHERB is no more remarkable chap
ter In the imprinted records OF
mysterious disappearances thar
that concerning people who step into the
unknown through a turn of fortunes
wheel They go out without the re-
motest idea OF dropping their person.
ality, and for all that soon play parts
in the innumerable dramas of double
lives. rate steps In suddenly, con-
trolling them completely or in part
their identity goes, and then they are
others and yet the same.
After a Big Disaster
Chance operates to bring about
double lives mainly in two ways, one
of which is creating the opportunity.
It provides a disaster on sea or on
land-a disaster which somebody halls
as a godsend since he sees therein a
means of deliverance from the conse-
quences of embezzlement, from press
ing creditors, from a wife of whom
he Is tired, or from some other equally
intolerable incubus. Why not-the
thought, perhaps, only flashes through
his brain as he gazes around on the
dead and the dying-step Into the un-
known be numbered among the miss
ing, ana so StdTI IL IleW era AlSS AAOii
incumbrance?
Such a combination of circumstances
may seem rare; but as a fact, nearly
every great disaster brings about
double lives. Two men supposed to
have been drowned in a terrible acci-
dent on the Thames a few years back
have since been seen alive. 1t was, APP
parently, while he was lowering be-
tween life and death that one of them
to-, fnp N ~
picked UP by a small boat, he re-
quested to be put on shore at a certain
spot, and then, after refusing further
assistance, walked away. He was
eventually classified with the dead.
The motive for disappearance in this
case was that the man had been rob-
bing his employer, who quickly dis
covered his loss, and regarded the ac-
cident as a direct Intervention of
Providence on his special half
VERY said, indeed" he said, in
sympathizing with the bereaved rela-
tives; but with a change of tone) it
was a Judgment-a judgment, GER
tainly!"
Some other Instances
From a more historic disaster, that
to the Princess Alice, at least four per-
sons escaped only to enter on fraudu-
lent careers. OF these, two were after
ward prosecuted for bigamy and wife
desertion, while another was brought
into court on a different charge. AS
for the fourth, he, though legally dead,
lived for years afterward in a Sc
cluded village in the south of England.
Yet nobody doubted till the actual
truth became known that any of these
men had not been drowned. Indeed,
for the widow of the worst of the
batch subscription was made.
Among the victims" in certain
naval disaster, too. was man who,
grocers shop in a Lancashire town.
Washed ashore, he conceived the idea
of hiding his identity to escape further
service. So he gave the people who
found him a false name, and, dressed
in civilian clothes, which were supplied
him without suspicion, as his own were
much torn-left ostensibly to proceed to
the nearest station. Instead he cleared
off and ultimately married a green gro
GERS widow. He often said that he
would take care that the admiralty
should know, after his death, how he
had "bested EN-; but am not aware
whether this very human intention was
carried out.
Returned to His First Love
Arising out of another disaster was a
of a false alarm of fire there was a
stampede in certain theater, with the
result that a number of people were
trampled to death, while their bodies
were afterward charred by the element
to escape which they had fought so
madly. With a full grasp of the situa-
tion a certain man who emerged un-
scathed promptly disappeared. As,he
did not return home inquiries were
ma mr. nf
dence being forthcoming that he was
in the theater on the night of the great
tragedy, 1t was assumed that one of
the bodies was his.
Shortly afterward he committed
bigamy. After living happily with his
wife" for some time he had the eff
frontery to pay visits to his real wife.
Hearing of these secret meetings his
second partner followed him time after
time, and in the end denounced him
in front of his wife, who thereupon
let out the whole TRUTH. Though the
accuser was then temporarily worsted,
she resolved not to be beaten, and con-
sequently gave information to the
police-but when an attempt was made
to arrest the trickster it was found
that he had flown, and-strange to say
taken his wife with him!
At a Railway Station
One other instance goes to show
that "a woman in the case" applies
even to where the disappearance trick
is suspected. A supposed victim in
a recent dlsaster-a fraudulent bank
rupt who in the ordinary course would
have been prosecuted by now-was
seen by his principal creditor on a
railway station platform. There was
no chance to put some salt on the
tricksters tail just then, as the gem
tleman was in a train just moving
off; but an attempt was made to find
the vanished individuals wife, who
had disappeared shortly after his
DEATH" on the presumption that the
two would not be far apart. She,
however, could not be traced.
There are, In fact, always a host of
people in such a position that, no
sooner does an opportunity for ef-
facement present itself than they
jump at it. The means of disappear
ing doubtless suggests the idea.
The other method by which chance
orders double lives is by acting on