The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-03-23
WILLIE WHITLA is
RETURNED TO
HIS FATHER
Kidnapped Boy Has Been Re-
stored to His Parents
SAID TO HAVE PAID $4,000
Child Put on Street Car and OeliVe d
at Hotel According 10 Agree
ment
nnent.

NulNlof WIZ was hluhdpl'Nu llohi NhN
East Ward school in Sharon, Penn
on Thursday last, was returned to his
father, Lawyer j. P Whitla. in the
Hollenden Hotel here shortly after 9
o'clock this evening
Mr. Whitla received word in Shar-
on on Sunday after the fruitless trip
to Ashtabula that he could get his son
in Cleveland if he fulfilled certain
promises and conditions one of which
was that he or his representatives
should visit a certain drug store in
Cleveland, meet a representative of
the kidnappers, pay over the money
and the boy would then be returned
to him at the hotel MIR Whitla
came here, arranged for the return of
his son, and spent the rest OF the day
waiting around the Hollenden lobby
for the boy. Shortly after s O'Clock
a Payne Avenue car stopped in front
of the hotel. the conductor jumped
off with the boy in his arms, called
policeman, and saying, This is Willie
Whitla, take him to his father at the
Hollenden Hotel jumped back on
his car and started away without any
further explanation. The policeman
took the boy to Mr.. Whitla as direct
ed.
AS soon as he could push his way
through the crowd, Whitla, senior,
went to his room on the second floor
He carried the boy in his arms. For
several minutes he was alone in the
room with his schoolboy SON. Then
through the door came these words,
spoken by the father to the boys
mother on the long distance tele-
phone: "Oh, mother, have Willie
here in my arms. He is safe Glory
to God, mama, it is the happiest night
of my life"
There was a pause The mother was
pleading for her husband to return
the boy to his home at once. Il am
sorry, mother" Whitla said 81 can't
get a train out of here until o'clock
in the morning. but will come home
as soon as possible You can trust
me with him, little mother, can't
you?"
Papa said the boy in a tone of
childish prattle, Il have been buggy
riding been on cars and in nice big
white house that looked like a hospi-
tai. | have been treated nice and
had lots of good things to eat
One man, tall and with black
mustache, came to the schoolhouse
Thursday and told my teacher that
you wanted me at your Office went
out to a buggy with him Then we
rode away. On the way down he
asked me to address a letter to you
| did this and then dropped Il into
small mail box. He was awfully kind.
We went from Sharon to Warren.
We had the incest trip. The man,
who was the same one who brought
me to the car line tonight, was nice
to me- Gee. he was good. When we
got to a place the man said was War
rem, the man left the buggy in the
road Then we got on what ! think
was an electric car. | don't just re-
member what it was, but it was some
thing like a street car | don't know
what became of the horse and buggy.
was asleep when we got on the car
and slept much of the way to where
we were going.
when we got to a town that they
called Newcastle they took me to a
big building and turned me over to
woman. She was good TO me- The
hospital or whatever the building
was, was clean place. There was
man there, who think was a doctor
He looked like a doctor, because he
had whiskers, short gray whiskers.
THE people in the hospital told me
that | must do what they told me to
do. If did not obey them they said
they would take me to a place called
the pesthouse, where folks that have
smallpox have to go. II was not a
clean or pretty place to go, they told
me. | walked the chalk just like
good boy, papa, like you've told me to
do.
"On Saturday night was taken
away from the hospital and think
we went to a town called Ashtabula
We travelled in a buggy and on foot
Early In the morning we wet back to
the hospital, ! heard one of the men
say There will be nothing doing
tonight | guess, ] might have been
in Cleveland, though, papa, for some
of the town that | saw tonight on the
car looked like the place we went to
Saturday night
"They told me all along that | was
just taking little vacation was
not going to be hurt they told me-
So just acted nice and had a good
time playing around the hospital.
knew ! would get back home all right
and just supposed Mr.. Jones was
one of my friends who was treating
me nice because you wanted him to
treat me that way papa dear"
The boy told the story slowly. At
times he stopped and kissed and
Rugged his father The father sat as
II in trance The music of the boys
voice seemed to charm him as no
music ever had before After the lad
finished his narrative and the detec-
tives were standing around admring
him, the father said: willie, | am
happier tonight than ever have been
before In my whole life
Mr. Whltla refuses to say whether
he had paid a ransom or not.
Detectives I'm his employ say that
he paid the money. but on this point
the father declines to commit him.
self