Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1915-05-15
The Kidnaper - BY lila
Eakins


Once upon time there were thIee
little girls, Their names were BlaHche,
Edith and Mamie. They liked to go out
and play hide and go seek AFTER hisn.
They could hide in 80 many dark anu
shadowy corners
One night the three girls were oul
playing hide and so seek. Name was
'.it." AS Edith and Blanche We're run
ming away to hide in a small 1oresl
which was lust little way from the
! girls house they saw dark opJec'
moving around in the forest.
"Oh! look Edith, what is that Jusl
ahead of us? 1t looks so funny. Ls. ,,,
scare the person whoever 1t is. WIN
YOU" asked Blanche.
Eyes, of course" said Edith.
Come and get behind this bush. we
have white dresses on and we VIII
look like ghosts
The two girls got behlnd iarse
bush and waited with their hearts
BEATING very fast until the man came
up. What they saw almost made their
hearts stop beating. The man had two
little children, a boy and girl he had
their hands tied behind them and was
making them march before him. ne
had gun and whenever they stopped
he would say:
Go on, or else I'll shoot YOU"
The little girl was crying but the
boy said: Never mind. Emily, some
one will make this man let US go
pretty soon because there is house
and I will hollow when we come TO II,
even if he does shoot me-"
Just then their captor shouted stop
right where you are you rascals.
They happened to stop right in front
of the bush where Blanche ana Edltn
were.
Blanche punched Edith and made
motion as if to say Let's move farther
back
They did so and when they We're out
of hearing distance Blanche said ''Tnat
man was sitting with his back to the
bush; let's slip up and grab the gun
out of his hand"
But the girl and boy are facing this
way and they will see u.s. said Edith.
land then we will be caught ourselves"
Eyes, but when they see that we
mean to rescue them, they will not say
thing" said Blanche, come on
The two girls slipped upon the man
and when they got just behind him the
two children saw them and were just
ready to cry out when Blanche signaleo
for them to be quet. They were ana
the gun. AS she did so she stumbled
and fell over the man into his lap.
He was not expecting any one and
/ it surprised him but he got his wits
back in time to say before she got
away, Hands up
Blanche held up her hands and as
she did so she saw Edith's frightened
face She made motion with her
hands for Edith to go back. Edith did
not understand her and she commenced
crying. The kidnaper heard her and
made her march out also. Edith was so
frightened she did not know what to
do.
Just then they heard Mamie in the
woods calling All that's not in get in
free
Help, Mamie come here quick
She started to say more, but the man
put his hand over her mouth and told
her to shut up or he would shoot her.
Mamie kept coming nearer and near
er and pretty soon she was In sight.
The man ordered the four children be-
hind the bush and when Mamie came
beside the bush the man got her too.
He made the children march before
| him until they came within block Of
| the depot. Here he called them together
and told them that they must call him
uncle and If they did not, he would
! shoot the first one that did not call him
! uncle. He got six tickets at the window
| and when the train came in he made
| them all get on. He took them to New
York.
| Meanwhile the girls mother was out
looking for them. She called three or
! four times and as they did not answer
she called her husband and told him to
go over to the next door neighbors and
see if they were over there. He did so
and when he found that they were not
! there he went to the next house. At
last he had gone to every house near
and then he began to get uneasy.
His wife was waiting for him but
when she saw him coming without the
children she turned pale.
Cant you find them?" she asked.
mo, they were not at any Of the
neighbors," he replied.
They hunted through the woods but
when they did not find them they came
back and gave the alarm that the chill
dren were gone.
Many of the neighbors came out to
| help hunt for the lost children. After
they had searched the woods and
every place about they heard wom-
an scream. They turned and saw a
woman running with all her might to-
ward them. They waited until she got
close to them and between her sobs she
told them her little boy and girl were
gone and could not be found.
The men went home again after a
+! while and told the parents that they
I, could not find the children anywhere
| in the woods
Ila Eakins, age 10,
81S Wabash Ave. Ottumwa, Ia.
| (To Be Continued.)
| .