Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-04-15
Friend of Martin Believes
He is Held for
Ransom.
FIRM is IN BANKRUPTCY
Watch and Chain Belonging to
Missing Man Found, But
No Trace of Him.

London, April IA report is cur
rent today that Joseph W. Martin of
Memphis, Tenn, missing since April
8, has been found There has been
no confirmation. A gold watch and
chain belonging to Martin, which a
boy found few days ago, then lost,
was recovered by the police today
Scotland Yard authorities said this
morning they had made no progress,
but the search was being continued.
/ J. L. Anderson was quoted later as
saying he knows where his friend
Martin is and that he is in the hands
Of a gang OF international crooks"
Little attention is paid to the state
ment Of Anderson. Burns. the Ameri-
can detective employed on the case,
says he has no clew TO Martins where
abcuts.
Scotland Yards said this afternoon
+; had no information TO justify the
report Martin has been found.
London, April I5.-Mystery still sur
rounds the disappearance of Joseph
W. Martin of Memphis, Tenn, who
has been missing since April g. While
+ the discovery of his torn pOcketboOk
/ first suggested to the police that the
American had been murdered and his
body thrown into the Thames, they
are now inclined to the theory that
! he is still aliEe and far-some- reason is
keeping his whereabouts secret.
The river police continue to drag
the bed Of the Thames and to keep a
sharp lookout for the body All the
hotels in London have been visited for
evidence and the police are now max
ing a house to house search among
lodging and boarding houses.
BURNS AIDING IN SEARCH.
What is giving the police the great
est worry is the failure of the cab
man who took Martin from a promi-
neut club to appear. If Martin did
leave the club in a cab, OF which the
door porter is none too certain, the
big rewards offered would, it is
thought. tempt the cabman to give all
the available information TO the police,
but latteTly there have been several
cases in which this has not been done.
and this has made them incline to the
view that a few crooks have gone into
cab driving as in other large cities.
An American insurance company
= I g. . 4 a. a
cabled yesterday for information.
Detectives have been instructed to
make a careful search Of Europe for
Martin, especially in Paris and Brus-
sells. ]. Lockhart Anderson, a friend
OF Mr. Martin, is also employing pri-
va.e detectives.
The police are making a searching
investigation into the report that Mar.
tin was a heavy player in fashionable
gambling dens which he is known to
have freQuented.
CABMAN'S SILENCE WORRIES.
Detective w. ]. Burns has beer. re
tanned by the Martin family to inves
) tigate the mystery OF the disappear
ance of the man. The American de
tective is working Independently Of
the Scotland Yard officials He is US
ing his own European agents and fol
lowing his own lines.
He has only two theOries-one that
Martin is hiding voluntarily or IN
: voluntarily, and the other that he lies
al the bottom Of the river. He scout:
) the idea Of suicide, and thinks it likely
. that Scotland Yard will solve the mys
terry within a couple Of days.
| MARTIN FIRM CLOSES DOORS.
Memphis, enn.. April 15.-A volun
I tary petition in bankruptcy was f.ed
l before United States COMMISSIONS
/ Grant Mathews yesterday by Martin
Phillips company, of which JOSEPH
; Wilberforce Martin. who has beer
mysteriously missing in London fO1
+ more than a week, is the president
The firms liabilities, according t.
? the petition. which was signed b.
W. P. Phillips, vice president, are Civ
en- at $4O3. All, and the assets $430, ,1S5
According to Nj Phillips the filing
: OF the petition was merely a precau
: tionary measure and was done 10 pro
+ tect the firms interests during tn
hunt for the missing president.
r Mt. Phillips stated last night tha
+ one reason for the petition was III,
! fact that q large amount of paper wa
D due 10 be paid by the concern and re
: Quired the missing presidents sigma
= ture. For this reason until somethin.
, definite is learned Of Joseph Mar-inl
3 whereabouts the business of the firm
S is al e stands,iI,.
: D. F Elliott was named receiver 70
the company.