Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-03-23
~b1LLY"WH1TLA

where since last Thursday she had suf-
fered anguish. Mrs. Whitla has shown
great fortitude all through her ordeal,
but was on the verge of collapse as she
awaited some word from her husband.
who had gone to Cleveland in response
to the last instructions received from
the kfdnapers. There was "A possibility
that the boy might be given up in
Sharon, for his captors had given a hint
at this. al hougn it turned out later to
be only ruse. So the lights in the
house on State street Were kept burning
brightly in hopes of the child's return.
It was about 9 o'clock when the jingle
of the telephone bell was the signal for
Mrs. WIFI Ia to hurry to the wire. For
a few moments she could hear nothing
save the buzzing sound on the long-dis-
lance wire. Then she heard her hus-
Willie is found he said. He is
here with me-
Mamma, I Am Here
Then she could hear him as he lifted
the little shaver up, and Mrs. Whitla
heard the voice of her son:
Mamma" said Willie. Il am here.
Papa Is holding me up
Mrs Whitla didn't hear anything more
just then. For the first time in five
days she wept. Before that she had
borne UP with a strength that everybody
marveled at, the more so as she Isl frail
little woman. The night before phySi-
clan had given her an opiate to induce
sleep. She had not had any rest to speak
o.. She had gone about the house saying
little. but cherishing hope which others
had begun to abandon and now that she
saw it realized at last she collapsed.
The Whitla home stands on the crest Of
the hill looking down on the clustered
buildings fringing the banks of the Shen-
andoah river. which divides the city in
two. State street is the fifth avenue of
Sharon The houses of the well-to-do
easily the most prominent residence on
the left-hand side of the street and dag
onally across from it is the mansion of
Frank Bull, the boys uncle. with its
broad walks, its port cochere extensive
gardens and costly Conservatives.
Half an hour before the news came. Mr..
Bull was talking with a reporter of The
Star. who had gone up the hill to visit
him. and had said with a gloomy air that
he had heard nothing new. During the
interview he was often interrupted by
telephone messages from spiritualists and
amateur detectives. who told him that if
the case was left entirely to them Willie
would be found shortly. All day long
there had been an unbroken series of
such messages. Finally he cut the last
one short with the impatient reply:
did you get this clue from spiritual
list? Then please excuse me if l wing off.
Wanted No Detectives.
He returned. told his visitor that there
was nothing he could say. and that if he
had had his way no detectives would have
been put on the case, and saw him down
the steps. The interviewer had hardly
reached the bottom of the hilr when an
excited neghbor sped across the street
and rang frantically at the Bull bell.
Then she shouted out the good news. and
the old iron masters face broke into such
smile as his friends had not seen for
many a day.
All night long the lights blazed away in
the Whitla ana Bull homes. and neigh
bors from far and near thronged up the
steps to tell Mrs. Whitla how very, very
glad they We're, and to assure her that
it was just what they had expected. An
interview was sought with the boy s
mother, but young man who had been
stationed as a sentinel at the door said
that she could not be seen.
willie is found!" is the word which
ran around the town like wildtire. Men
and women talked of nothing else on the
streets. and constant stream of persons
passed up and down State street just to
have look at the house which had sud-
denly become the happiest home in all