Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-03-19
The Argus Daily Story
Kidnaped-By Silas Armstrong.
Copyrighted. 1911. by Associated Literary Bureau

Bile. would appear. Mark had often
heard him tell the story of how by
this means he was assisted to escape.
and 1t occurred to him that If he could
get hold OF that lemon he might write
a note to his father. The idea was
very vague in his mind, but one thing
he determined on, to steal the lemon.
He was permitted to walk around the
room, and watching his opportunity
when the hays back was turned to
him while she stood at the sink, he
pounced upon 1t and put it in his
pocket. That was as far as he got for
some time. Nevertheless, his little
brain was at work. and finally he hit
upon plan. He said to the woman:
please let me write papa to come
and take me away"
"Hushi" grunted the woman "You
no write anybody"
"I'll tell him to pay you q whole lot
Of money"
The woman's eyes frightened at this.
but she made no reply. When one Of
the men came the same afternoon
Mark heard him and the woman dis
cussing something, and evidently he
was the subject of their discussion.
When it was finished the man went
into another room and returned with
pen. ink and paper.
"You write your father to send S10,-
900 and take you home"
Mark sat down at a table to write
without having the slightest idea how
he was going to use the lemon juice.
Indeed, with the two watching him 1t
would be impossible. He wrote a let
ter and on reading 1t over found that
he had left out certain words. He laid
1t aside and wrote another. While writ
ing the second letter 1t occurred to him
that he might have use for the first
and he should secure It But his cap
tors were watching him every moment.
When he finished the second letter and
they were both eagerly reading it he
found an opportunity to put the first In
his pocket. Then when they returned
him his letter they had read that he
might enclose and address 1t, he read
it over, tore 1t up and began to write
another.
The Italians gave him a sound cuf
for what he had done, but he did not
mind that IL he could only follow a
plan he had in view. He wrote another
letter, which he purposely spoiled; then
another, in which he wrote the amount
of the ransom wrong. Then he said
he had changed his mind and wouldn't
write to his father after all. Since his
captors were now bent on his doing so,
they endeavored to force him to write
another letter by repeated thrashings.
But he only said Tomorrow" and at
last they desisted.
When Mark was put to bed-this time
in a room with the windows nailed up
| he wrote in lemon juice with a match
description Of the house in which he
was imprisoned and its location, so far
as he could give 1t. The next morning,
when alone with the bag, he told her
he would write the letter. She gave
him the writing materials and he wrote
! while she did her chores. Finally he
handed her a letter in an envelope. 1t
| was the one he had first written. with
postscript, Burn up this letter when
you have read it."
When the man who had been there
the day before came again the woman
showed him the letter. When he came
to the postscript Mark saw that he
was talking to the woman about II.
They finally seemed to agree to let 1t
stand, probably considering it. If of
any Importance. rather an advantage
to them. The man replaced the letter
| in the envelope and took it away with
him.
Meanwhile the Chandler family were
in continued agony. One afternoon.
on entering his house, Mr.. Chandler
found Marks letter that had been slip
ped under the door. With 1t were in
structions as to how to pay the ram
som. The postscript arrested Mr..
Chambers attention at once. He sur
missed that Mark had been forced to
write the letter and the postscript. At
any rate. he had no idea of burning
the letter. But in time he began to
wonder as to it's meaning. Then he
remembered his fathers story of how
he had used lemon juice to effect his
escape from prison. He held the letter
before hot fire and the problem was
solved.
The same night. with a force of po-
lice, Mr.. Chandler broke into the house
and made a thorough search. They
found nothing and hope was beginning
to desert them when they entered ths
basement. Hearing them. Mark began
to shout Mr. Chandler raised the lid
of a stationary washtub, and Mark
iumuad into his arms
The police took care of those they
found in the house. and Mr.. Chandler
took the boy home to his mother, who
smothered him with kisses.
How did you happen to think of the
lemon juice racket, Mark" asked hIs
father
II wouldn't have thought of It II I
hadn't remembered grandpop's prison
story"
There was no use In the kidnapers
putting In defense. for Mark identi-
fed the woman and the man who had
taken his letter. and they are now
serving a term in state prison. The
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