Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1909-06-24

Iu0SUdy mOruluS, June Il, dUOuI
1880 o'clock in the morning Agnes
Stratton, 13 years old, and her sis
ter, Lucille, years old, took with
them small pail and cup each, to
go looking for wild strawberries.
Their home is a little southwest of
the County Normal Training school
building and near the North Western
railroad track. They are the daugh-
ters of G. M. Stratton, who is en-
ployed as clerk in Geo. w. Purnell' s
hardware store. Before leaving on
this journey they asked Mrs. Mike
Farrell, near neighbor, to go with
them. She could not because she
was obliged to go down town on
some errands, but she cautioned the
girls not to go very far and
they promised that they would
not because they would have to
be back in time to get their
papa's dinner, and further Mrs. STRAIT
ton and the smaller children are in
the southern part of the state Wis.,
iting relatives. When the father
went home at noon for his dinner,
the two little girls had not return
ed. This Immediately worried him
and he went to the neighbors and
gave the alarm and Immediately, all
the neighbors and friends began to
| inquire and go up and down the
Northwestern track for information
that would lead to their wherea-
bouts. The only information that
they could gather was, that they had
been seen on the Northwestern rail
troad track in the deep cut west of
their home and was about 500
o'clock in the morning.
Mr.. Stratton, Geo. w. Purnell and
few of the neighbors, having come
to the conclusion that the children
in the search of strawberries, had
strayed farther than they expected
and possibly got lost in the woods.
At about four o'clock in the af-
ternoon they returned with no tidings
of the little ones. This aroused the
anxiety of those interested and it
was decided to sound the fire alarm
and ask others who had the time
and willingness to help in the search
| sounded and a large number of the
members of the fire companies on
! both sides of the river with auto
mobiles went in every direction,
and on every road, and permeated
the thickets in all adjacent places
where it was thought the little ones
might have wandered At six O'Clock
in the evening, and by this time it
had commenced to rain quit hard,
there was still no tidings At about
seven O'Clock another fire alarm
! was sounded and more people start
ed out in the rain in search Of the
girls. 1t was then understood by
the searching parties, that when the
children were found that four fire
alarm whistles would be sounded so
that those interested in the search
could relinquish their efforts This
was done about nine O'Clock.
J. B. Muller, who resides in this
city, and is secretary of the Po-
tato Growers Association, still oper-
ates his farm in the town of Sara
toga about five miles from this city
He goes to the farm every morning
and comes back every night He
brought them in from his farm about
nine o'clock in the evening. The
little girls story is told about as
follows:
They left home about 7:30 in the
morning after talking with Mrs. Mike
Farrell, went down on the North
western tracks and followed it till
they struck the wagon road that
leads south of this city off from
Third Street South, intending to go
on the top of what is known as
the sand hill, to look for straw
berries. While on the sand hill look
ing for berries Mr.. Muller came along
} in his wagon about $50 o'clock in
the morning. He asked them to get
into the wagon and come with him
and that he would take them where
: he thought they would find some
straw berries. He took them straight
: to his farm and went out berrying
} with them in the forenoon. After
dinner his house-keeper, who is there