Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-12-07
LETTER IN RED INK
SENT BY KIDNAPPER
Continued from pnrs One


when the doorbell rang. Meekins ran to
the door, and came back to the dining
room with the orange-Colorcd envelope
III mis- hand. He was pale as a sheet.
Mrs. Meckins seemed to divine at once
what 1t was he held in his hand, and
snatched Mt the letter She tore 1t omen
and unfoded the ominous- looking frar-
mont OF newspaper When she saw the
red ink she steadied herself by clnging
to the back of n chair.
Dear Sir" she read, "your bCv Is all
right dhat's my boy-Oh, what is thiso
lie is not IN Maryland or Delaware, hut
in Philadelphia" At this point Mrs
Meekins sank down in a faint and her
husband seized the letter. while his wife
was slowly brought back to consciousness
by tanning ana cold water. Her husband
read on;
PIN IDENTIFIES BOY.
IF YOU think I have not got him keep
thinking Here the father burst into
tears, ana for a time could not 20 on
while his wife sat in a daze. When Mr.
McelSins reached the point about tho
safety pin In the right side Of the boys
trousers, Mrs. Mcekins exclaimed:
That's true! But | forgot to tell tho
police about that pin in describing Rich
ard and his clothing for them. I used
that pin to keep his trousers and his
blouse together"
The letter was mailed in the district
Of Station n, which is in South Phila-
delpha and in the section where the Nee
kins family used to live, at goth and
Amin streets. one curious feature of it
was that It was dated "philadephia, De
cember T. 1915" That is today, although
1t was mailed at 1880 o'clock yesterday
afternoon
81 have many friends in the part OF
the city this letter was mailed from
said Mr.. Meckins, land ! may have on
cmies in my old neiEhborhood though |
never know Of it when I lived there"
He wrapped the letter up carefully In
newspaper on the suggestion that the
inl. marks should not be rubbed, especial
ly those on the back of the letter. which
were clearly those of fingers or thumbs
lie hurried with the letter to the 65th
street and Woodland avenue station.
careful examination was made OF
both envelope and inclosurc, and they
were photographed and copies of the
finger prints were made. The first work
of the police was to investigate the
noighborhood of the place where the
letter was mailed. The kidnappers had
Il hours start on them, but the polio,
were inclined to believe they had not
left the city.
BOY SEEN WITH ABDUCTOR
The news about the letter came to City
Hall while Lieutenant of Detectives Wood
was in conference with Detectives Lynch
and Timln, who are in charge Of tn,
search. The letter at once confirmed sus.
pCions the detectives had had that they
I had been watched while at work in tn,
vicinity of the boys home This also lee
to the belief that several men were in tn,
plot to kidnap the boy, possibly in tn,
hope that the city would offer reward
| for his return.
1t was possible that there were severa
persons i'm the plot; Mt least one to watcl
the detectives. one perhaps to mail tn,
letter while a third was in charge of tn,
boy in the kidnappcrs' hiding place
Today the detectives learned more nbou
| the conditions under which the boy was
abducted. He was last seen by his fam
| lily playing on n pile of yellow sand at 6ls
| street and Elmwood avenue at 3:2
o'clock on the afternoon of Monday
! November %. An informant later tol,
the police that % minutes after that tim
| he had seen the boy walking east OF
| Woodland avenue with a man. Tha
must have been at 3:i5 o'clock.
This witness told the police a NOR
complete story today. He said the bo!
was crying and seemed to be trying t,
| get away from the stranger who helt
| his hand tightly. The man had his Fc
| dora hat pulled down over his brows ant
! had his coat collar turned up so tina
| his face was hidden.
The informant told the police that h
was going TO interfere and ask why tn
man was abusing the lad, whom he kncy
we'll and today identified from Il photo
graph of Richard MeelSins, hut he sat
he thought the stranger was n reatv
of the boy and so did not want to meddle
Lieutenant Marple, of the Goth stree
and Woodland avenue station, announces
today that he would appeal to Drecto
of Public Safety Dripps to have blood
hounds assist in the search for the boy
| MARBLE. when he made this statement
had not heard of the letter from the alb
| ductor, and 1t was then his belief tina
the boy might have perished in tn
meadows in the vicinity of 18th stree
! and Woodland avenue.
The mysterious letter received today b!
the parents of Richard Meekins eXplaine,
to the police the hints they have re
! ceived from various quarters that re
ward might be offered for the discover!
! of the boy by Councils, as was done il
the case of Warren MCCarrick.