Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1910-02-16
Many Celebrities Who Have
Vanished Like DR.. Cook

parents had spread the alarm Walter
was returned the same night by a
man who had found him crying on a
street corner in Kensington- Walter
told his parents that several days be
fore two strange men lad given candy
to Charley and him. These men had re-
turned 70 the neighborhood July /, in
a wagon, and when the two children
asked them If they had any firecrack-
ers for the coming Fourth they had
invited the youngsters to jump in and
drive to fireworks store. In Ken
sington Walter was given a quarter
to go into store and buy the fire
crackers, but when he emerged from
the shop he found that the wagon had
gone with Charley and the two strang.
ers in 1t.
Charley has never returned to this
day, although his mother, now gray.
i haired old lady, still waits for him In
i the Germantown mansion. During the
days following his kidnapping his IA
Their received anonymous letters de.
handing $4,000 ransom and threat.
ening the child's humiliation" if a
1 police trap we're set when the ransom
was called for. After e0hausting the
ingenuity of the police the father,
through newspaper personals ar.
ranged various meeting places, where
the transaction could be effected, but
each time the kidnappers were scared
away. Then the father made 200
| journeys to run down false clues.
and his vain search cost him in all
/ 100000.
/ The following December Mosher
and Douglas, two burglars, were fat.
ally wounded while robbing the house
of Judge Van Brunt, at Ft Hamilton,
L. l., and Douglas. while dying, whis-
I pered: "Mosher and l stole Charley
Ross"
i But when asked where the boy was.
he but gasped: "Mosher knows all
about the child. Ask him" But
Mosher had already gone to that
realm from which no traveller returns.
and he had taken with him the key to
the MYSTERY of Charley Ross. Last
spring the mother investigated one
more clue that given by one William
q Eyster, of McKees Rocks, near
Plttsburg, who claimed that he was
her long lost boy. His story was that
ne had been reared by a family in
Shamokin, Penn, and that his so.
called parents had refused to make
denial when he accused them of con.
oealing him from his real parents.
The Tichborne Mystery.
The next great disappearance mys.
terry prior to that of Charley Ross
was the Tichborne case. Sir Edward
Tichborne, with an income of 500, 900
had as heir his nephew, James, with
two sons, Roger and Alfred. Roger,
who was born in 1929. fell in love with
his cousin Kate, Sir Edwards daugh-
ter, and the old knight gave Roger
two years in which to reform before
giving him an answer. So Roger, who
was dissipated young army officer
of %, put out for South America,
where he wandered for year or SO
in an unhappy frame of mind Then
in the early ffties Sir Edward died
leaving his baronetcy and vast for.
tune to Rogers father, James Itch,
borne, and Roger, as the elder SON
now became direct heir to both
Learning of this. he sailed from Rio
Janeiro in the ship Bell for New
York, whence he was to cross al
once to england But the Bella never
came to port.
Roger Tichborne's mother, like
Charley Rosss, would never believe
that he was dead. Even after her hus
nand had died and her younger son
had fallen heir to the estates she haC
a Strong presentiment" that Roger
would one day return. She continued
to advertise for him, and in 1866 al
Australian detective agency presented
co her man claiming to be her long
. missing son. His story was that he
had lived in Australia for 13 years
under the assured names of Thomas
Castro. Lady Tlchborne appeared tt
recognize him at once, welcomed hin
as her son and advised him to assert
his rights Relatives and old family
servants also identified the claimant
Then Lady Tichborne died in 1868
and the case later went to trial.
Alfred the younger brother. now
!, holding the title, brought witnesses
, to prove that the claimant was one
Orion, son of London butcher. while
the alleged Roger put on the stand
sailors who declared that they bad
taken him from the wreck of the Bel
la He also displayed birthmark and
wound such as Roger had had, but hS
lost his case, was arrested. tried and
sentenced to IA years for perjury, but
was set free after 10 years. After q
lecture tour in America in 1886 he be
came penniless, and tried to sell q
confession" to New York newspa
per for $4,000. This was afterward
disposed of in England and he died in
1888, many people still believing him
to be the real Roger Tichborne who
had devised the confession" as a
hoax to raise needed money. His
coffin plate was engraved "Sir Roger
Charles Tichborne." Then in 1907 an
aged man, just before his death In
the Kin's County hospital, Brooklyn
made a statement that he was the
q