Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-04-29
The Daily Story
KING MURDERER.-BY MARGARET BARR.
Copyrighted. 1918. by Associated
,oc,ated Literary Bureau.

unite the two families and end the
wars. Richmond was in France, but
he crossed the channel and landed in
England at the head Of French force.
The attempt. however. was a failure.
Richard with his accustomed energy
attacked him before the French and
English columns were prepared TO
light and defeated and routed them.
The Duke of Buckingham was captured
by Richard and Immediately beheaded.
A second landing was made by Rich
mond and Richard again sprang forth
to his work.
On the kings way to the battle which
was TO decide his fate he slept in an
inn called the Blue Boar. Richard
took with him his own bed and had it
set up for him to sleep in the night be
fore the battle. He had on his con-
science the crime of murder, his mobiles
were beginning to desert him. and
there was no one to whom he might
turn for comfort.
In house not far away lived a boy
under the care of a man who. though
he gave him every comfort and edu-
/ Gated him. told him that he was not
his father. The boys name was Rich
| ard Plantagenet. and this is all he
! knew of his parentage.
/ The night before the battle OF Bos-
/ worth a trooper rode up TO the house
! where the boy, Plantagenet. lived and
/ told him TO come with him. They
went to the inn where the king was
lodged, and the hoy stood in the royal
presence Richard embraced him and
told him that he was his father. though
the lad had not been born in wedlock.
Tomorrow" said the king, II fight
/ for my crown. If win l win acknowl
edge you, and Won shall hereafter live
with me as my son"
Quite likely Richard contemplated
in case he won the fight-to force this
natural son upon the English people as
his successor. Be this as it may. young
Plantagenet the next day took position
/ on a hill overlooking the battlefield on
which was to be decided whether he
was to live the life Of a royal person
age or that Of an outcast.
The king awoke In the morning
under a terrific dread. His face was
livid, and he complained Of having had
frightful dreams The crime Of muir
der being on his conscience, knowing
that he could not rely upon some OF
the mobiles who had brought their re-
tanners to serve him, 1t Is likely that he
feared defeat and punishment.
And what saw young Richard Plan
tagenet from the hilltop? When the
battle was well on. one of the mobiles
who formed a part Of Richards army
This was the signal for the detection
Of others, and presently the greater
part of both armies were opposing the
king
Then the boy saw his father make a
marvellous dash to turn the tide in his
favor. The king saw the Earl of Rich
mond and. putting spurs to his horse.
followed by only handful of retain
ers, made straight for his opponent.
Coming near the earl, he struck down
single handed those who defended him.
But the struggle was too unequal. A
soldier bore down the king and dis
patched him.
History gives no definite account of
the subsequent life Of the boy who
from the hilltop saw the dashing Of
his hopes. But there is an account of
man who was bricklayer and who
at noontimes. when his fellow work
men were resting. would he found TO
be reading. On one occasion a person.
curious to know what he read, looked
at the book. He found 1t to be written
in Latin.
This man was Richard Plantagenet,
who from hill near Bosworth field
saw his father slain and his sudden
hope Of living the life Of prince go
out forever This man afterward was
for many years known to he the nat
ural son of Richard Ill. king Of Eng
land. On a tombstone over a grave
near by where he lived is his name.
Richard Plantagenet
The king being dead. the bedstead he
had slept in the night before his death
remained in the Blue Boar inn. One
day many years after these events hap
| pened the landlady while cleaning the
room heard something drop on the floor
and roll away. Picking it up, she saw
that it was a gold coin bearing date
Just previous TO Richards death. The
bed was examined and found to have
/, false bottom. which was full of mon.
ey. 1t had been so fitted by the king
, to carry treasure.
The victorious Earl OF Richmond
, went from Bosworth field to London
!, where he was received by the people as
their sovereign. He married the Prin-
, cess Elizabeth, thus uniting the families
of York and Lancaster and ending the
celebrated wars of the roses.
: For four centuries the fate of the
little King Edward v and his brother
has stirred the sympathy Of all peoples
Artists have chosen the children for
themes for pictures, and Shakespeare
made the deeds of King Richard the
, subject Of one of his principal TRACE
dies. 1t was the last act in the real
tragedy, the wars of the roses, in
WHICH multitudes persisted while kings
fought for crown. But when the 9th
or historic events shall have passed
into oblivion the murder of the roya
children will continue to excite tbs