Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-03-24
SOLUTION OF THE WHITLA
! KIDNAPPING CASE IS NEAR

man said his name was John Doe.
The woman claimed they were man
and wife. They have signified their
Willingness to return to Pennsylvania
without requisition papers.
Refused to Talk mt First.
At first the woman refused to talk
to the police. She is said to have
been slightly intoxicated when arrest
ed Hoping her condition might be
better later, the police locked her up
for few hours. Shortly after day
break, Chief Kohler escorted her in
to his private Office and began grill
| ing examination. She appeared
frightened when he threw a nurses
gown over her shoulders. She was
angry, too, and attempted to pull the
chiefs hair but became reconciled in
few minutes and talked about the
kidnapping in a commonplace manner.
Read the Newspapers.
81 used to get the newspapers ev-
cry day." she said, my, l had lot
of fun reading the prophesies of the
different sleuths and near sleuths.
There were lot of things charged
up to folks who had the boy that
were not true
That the woman is clever and of
good education was proven by her
conversation. She carefully warded
off every advance that the police
made which might have caused her
| to answer questions which she is said
not to have answered.
Merely In Charge of Boy.
She has not confessed she kidnap-
ed the boy-far from it-she has
said she was in charge of him, but
| that is as far as her story goes. John
Doe" her mysterious partner, prov
ed a tartar. Every question he was
asked he answered guardedly and
/ but little was obtained from him.
What Woman Says Goes.
Chief Kohler asked him about him.
self, his name and other questions.
"You tell me the answers first and
then I'll tell them back to you. Lis
ten to what the woman tells you.
/, Whatever she says goes Doe told
the chief, the woman said during the
night:
Il am the kid that framed up
this job all right
| Kept In Abandoned House.
Willie Whitla's place of captivity
while he was in Cleaveland was an
old unoccupied and abandoned resi-
dence on Prospect avenue, S. e. The
man and woman ate most of their
meals at the restaurant of the Hotel
| Thorpe across the street from the old
residence. This enabled them to re
turn to the captive without leaving
him alone long.
/ FIRST Seen Five Days Ago.
About five days ago." said Thorn
as Thorpe, proprietor of the hotel
today, "a man and woman began
coming to the hotel for their meals.
| know now they resembled the de-
scriptions | have read of the kidnap-
ers. Neither offered any information
concerning their business"
Suspects Arrested.
Cleveland, Ohio, March PA man
and woman were arrested last night
in the Whitla kidnapping case. The
with currency. When the police
searched the satchel they found So,
lS45.50 in currency Part of the mon
2 ey was found in a satchel carried by
? the man upon being searched at the
police station; more of the money in
a currency form was found Secreted
: in the skirts of the woman.
VIII BE "EelI, I'm Sharon.
When placed in custody at the po
lice station, the woman said:
II am the one who planned the
whole thing. There will be trouble
e for me and hell in Sharon tonight
L Beneath the woman's skirt wa:
: found $9,790 All of it but $40 wa:
4 bound in packages with the origina
slips placed on the money when Whit
!, it. The woman says she spent L
J, lyears of her life in a convent il
Pennsylvania, but denied she had eve
been in trouble before. Both the MAJ
and woman deny they know the nam
= = of each other. They admit they ar
not man and wife.
4 Is n Resident of Cleveland.
ell The man says he has been a res
ldent of Cleveland for II years. H
claims to have a mother and siste
here. Captain Shattuck is said t
have secured the description of tn
kidnaper from Willie Whitla, and thi
description led to the arrest.
Yesterday detectives heard a ma
and woman answering the descriptio
of the kidnapers had been seen on tn
~ outskirts of the city. They came dow
town and bought numerous articles
clothing, rendering SIS and $40 bills
payment, it was learned Later thel
rg was report that the people had lie
s. package in down town stor
which proved to consist of discard
ie clothing. Detectives trailed the CO
lple around the business district Sc
;" eral hours, but delayed taking the
: into custody.