The Washington herald., 1909-03-21
KIDNAPPING CLBWS
PROVE FRUITLESS
MysteryOf Stolen Whitla Boy
Still UnSOlYed.
RANSOM IS READILY OFFERED
Lads Relatives VIII Not Prosecute
Abductors If Child Is Returned.
search Spreads Over Great Terri
tOry-MiIlIOnnire Uncle Continues
Search-FHther Docs All i'm Power.

/ Cleveland Ohio March 20--Faiiure Of
( the Cleveland clew TO tho whereabouts
( OF the kidnappers Of Willie Whitia, the
I ieight-year-old son OF James P. Whitla, or
Sharon. Pa. to-day scattered the search
over Ohio and Western Pennsylvania.
/ Efforts had been concentrated on
/ Cleveland last night. and il was not until
this noon that Frank r. Bull multi
millionaire uncle OF the boy, who is heir
with his sister and cousin 20 the 100000
/ estate Of the Bull. Porter, and Foraker
/ families. abandoned hope OF recovering
/ the boy here.
I Bull left = sharon al O'Clock after
+ the boy EsD in the Hotei euclid 7 'lrs-
l day nignt. and declared 10 correspond in
appearance 10 Willie Whitla. had pros IL
70 be Raymond Satchel. eleven-yea--oId
son OF F. II. Sstchei. Mrs. Satchel had
sent the child TO her husband by Harry
Ball. the cook, who was held by the police
for six hours last night.
Before Bull left for Sharon he de-
clared himself ready 10 enter into negotia-
tions for the return Of his nephew. and
TO be willing and anxious that the kid
happerS 80 rec
I We want tne boy. 7 have not offered
$4,000. but I stand ready 20 recover the
/ boy. I don't care about the kidnappers.
They can go free" said Bull
HOuse-tO-hOuse Search.
With the failure Of the Cleveland cIew,
James P. Whitla asked permission Of
the TrumbuH County authorities to send
/ Penn nSr-f7-o-fa r,oIf.e g-+o -, os,s- -----
| try. Fred. Mssury, millionaire powder
maker Of Masury. a powder town on
/ the Ohio line just inside Trumbuu Coun-
I ty. sworn in as a deputy sheriff OF
! TrumbuH County. led the Pennsylvania
1 officers These officers are making a
/ house-to-house canvass Of Warren and
/ the district about that city.
I a man with a boy was seen. AT the Erie
I station in Warren soon after the kidnap-
pers' rig was abandoned there Thursday
noon. This man and boy. it is declared
/ by Detective John Beakley. OF the Penn
sylvania Railroad force. we're seen bv
/ him and others on a train arriving IN
| Ashtabula, Ohio. at SIS O'Clock Thurs
| day afternoon. Beakley's description OF
I the boy fits young WhitIa. The man seen
with the boy answers roughly the descrip-
I tion OF the man who drove I'D 10 the
I SchOolhOuse in Sharon Thursday morning
and took away with him the little boy.
( Railroad police. police OF the Pennsvl-
vania docks. and Ashtabula police are
/ searching Ashtabula and Ashtabula har-
/ bor- Il IS their theory the kidnappers
may be I'm hiding in one of the many
! steamers tied up in the harbor.
Toledo Woman Sought.
Two men and a boy are reporte5 n
! have been seen near Sandusky this after
noon in a freight car OF train bound
/ west from Cleveland. The boy is said
to have been restrained by the men when
he attempted 10 wave 10 passengers In 2
passing electric car.
The police Of Toledo are seeking a wo-
man seen with a child in that city's sub.
urbs yesterday. This woman is said "a
| have fed when accosted.
| In Sharon. information as to the search
and as TO possible negotiations with the
| Eidnappers is denied. as 1t was yester-
/ day Volunteer seaTchers' services. how
ever. were declined to-day. with the in
/ formation that the services OF those Of
/ fering aid might be sought later. In Mr..
| Whitlas Office a rumOr that a message
( from the kidnappers, demanding $500
! ransom. instead OF the original $1,000 had
/ been received, was denied. Mr.. WhitIs
denied that negotiations had been opened
with the kidnappers. He said:
] ''Since the failure OF the Cleveland
| clew, we are worse off than before. We
! want the boy. and are willing 10 ne
| gotiate I want TO say that reports that
/ Mr.. Buhl Is to bear the expense are not
/ true I have not much. but I viii meet
all the expense. will pay for the boys
| return"
wild RumOrs I'm Toledo.
/ Toledo. March 20-Although the pOssi-
bbility Of his being in this vicinity is
vague, every member Of the police de-
partment has been instructed to keep a
vigilant watch for Willie Whitla. Wild
rumOrs have been pouring into local head
| quarters. but upon investigation all save
one have proven 10 be groundless.
! The exception is the report of Mrs
Bertha wiIlets. a West Toledo woman
] who declares she saw strange man and
Continued on Page 3. Column g.