Los Angeles herald., 1907-05-19
WIFE LEAVES
DESOLA A TED
HOUSEHOLD
Heartbroken Hus-
band Finds Note
Of Farewell
Beautiful, Accomplished
Musician Is
Missing
Mrs. Ben MobIey Takes Little Boy and
Girl and Departs from Home-De-
Mrs. Ben Mobey Takes Little Boy and
Girl and Departs from Home-De-
tectives Conduct Exhaustive
Search in Vain

IOu lltSu IOI lly W Ioiio" 'iiN'
have covered my tracks WELL"
This little note found by Ben H.
Mobley, hidden beneath the sugar bowl
on the dining table at his home, 5000
Mckinley street, about four weeks ago,
has been the cause of more heartaches
and brought more misery than seems
possible for a few words hastily writ
ten to do.
The note was simply a little farewell
message left by Mrs. Mobley, the wife
of Ben H. Mobley and mother of his
two children. In it she not only said
good by for herself, but also gave him
a farewell message from the two little
ones, Lois, little girl of 3 years, ana
Eldridge. a sunny-haired boy one year
her senior. These little ones were taken
by their mother when Mrs. Mobley de-
serted her husband, and since that
morning when the three left their home
together no trace of them has been
found, despite the fact that detectives
have run down every clew found in an
effort to learn their hiding place.
Covers Her Tracks Well
Mobley is employed by the Pacific
Electric as a motorman He did not
find the message which, had been left
for him until several hours after his
wife disappeared. When at last he
found it Mobley could not at first fully
comprehend its meaning. When hnally
the meaning of the words was forced
uron him the anguish stricken father
was driven nearly to distraction. For
hours he paced the rooms in the little
dwelling, endeavoring to puzzle out the
cause which led his wife to desert him
and trying to reconcile hlmself 10 the
fact that she had gone.
At last Mobley decided to do all in
his poWer to learn where she was and
then to obtain possession of the chill
dren An appeal was made to the po-
lice and detectives were placed on the
tracks of the woman. Mrs. Mobley was
correct in the message she had left for
her husband. She had covered her
tracks we'll" Despits the fact that the
Ishrewdest Offices in the city were
nlaced on the case, they were unable to
gain any clew to the movements of the
woman after she left the house. and at
last thev were compelled to admit that
they could not gain trace of Mrs. Mob
lev or the children.
While the detectives sought the Wom-
an the husband continued with his
work doing all in his power to gain
additional funds for carrying on the
search. Each morning he reported for
work and at night returned to the lone
lv cottage formerly made happy by the
merry laughter of his two bright-eyed
children. At last he could stand the
strain no longer, and two weeks ago
decided to give up the cozy little cot
tase and make his future home with his
mother at SO4 West Thirty-second
street.
Mystery Only Deepens
The detectives were instructed to con-
time with the search, and since that
time messages have been flashed to all
places where the missing woman had
friends in the hope that she may have
gone to visit some of them. None of
these inquiries brought back satisfacto-
ry response, and the sore heart or the
husband became sorer and each DAY
the disappointment grew greater.
Then it was whispered by the detect
ives that there was some mysterious
man in the case, and that Mrs. Mobley
had thrown aside her husband and
home for the love of a girlhood sweet
heart who had prevailed upon her TO
accompany him. Tales of love of by
gone days were borne to Mobley' out
he Indignantly denied them anu SWole
that the last thing he would believe or
his wife was that she had deserted him
for another man.
II do not hire you to come to me with
tales of that nature hire you to tind
nv wife and little Ones" he told the
detectives, and the officers again re-
newed their efforts to find the missing
woman and children.
At last it was learned that negro
the driver of a small express wagon,
had been seen by neighbors to haul
away a couple of trunks and number
of packages from the house The day
Mrs. Mobley disappeared.
cIew Comes 20 Naught
Efforts were Immediately made to
find this man. officers were detailed 10
visit the different transfer companies
in Los Angeles, and the driver of nearly
every express wagon in the city was
put through a close questioning. still
tContinued on Page Twoh