The sun., 1919-08-08
NO TRACE Is FOUND
OF VANISHED GIRL
Mother of Sophie Raab, Ia
Years Old, Sure She Is Dead
or Locked Up Somewhere.
PARENT is HEART BROKEN
Police Slow to Take Up the
Search and So Far Have
Z Learned Nothing.

IN her neat little two room fiat at s1s
West 1s4th street, with It's linoleum COW
sred floor. q clean white cloth on the
table and the few cherished bits OF china
on the oak sideboard, Mrs. Tillie Raab
sits at night and cries for her daughter.
Sophie, IA years old, who went out Sun
day afternoon "just to see girl friend"
and dropped out as completely as IL the
street had opened and swallowed her up.
All day Mrs. Raab works In a nearby
laundry, for the poor may not be idle
though the heart IL breaking. But at
night after she has gone silently to her
solitary fat the neighbors hear her sobs
Sometimes we go up to her." the
worn looking janitress said yesterday.
talking to THE SUN woman from the
basement steps. with her two children
ciinsing to her skirts. Last night
heard her crying terribly near midnight
and went and stayed with her for an
hour Then the lady on the floor below
stayed with her till 2 o'clock. 1t is
strange where Sophie went. A quiet,
solid built girl she was. not the kind
that would fiirt or attract men. She and
her mother were alone in the world they
didn't seem to have many friends, and
they thought q heap of each other.
There comes Mrs. Raab now"
The mother came up the street from
her work, neatly dressed, pleasant
faced woman with dark eyes She
looked anxiously at her caller.
Sophie Would Come, IL Alive.
you hat some news of my Sophie? p
she asked. At the shake of the head
which answered her she turned and
went slowly up the steps. "If you hat
ting to come up stairs I will tell you
about it," she said Last night l went
again to Police Headquarters. They
could tell me nothing. l hat given up
hope. 1 will not see Sophie again. Two
hours after o'clock on Sunday, the
time told her to come home. l knew
she would never come. All her life she
would come home when l told her to
come. There was never a difference Of
half an hour. II my Sophie could come
to me-if she was not dead or locked up
where she could never get out-she
would come. She is a brave girl, she
would climb out of a window and down
fire escape-!f 1t was six stories up
che would come"
In the little fat Mrs. Raab took off
her trim blue sailor hat and sat down
in the rocking chair by the window,
which looks out over a wilderness of
clothes lines. She motioned her visitor
to another chair.
at was Sunday afternoon when Sophie
came home from church she said to me.
'Mamme. let us so out to walk But say.
In I my n.
Sophie. and see your girl friend on
10th street that you haven't seen for
so long She tells me 1t Is so far to
walk. but / give her cents and tell
her to walk there and ride back, and
to come home at 6 o'clock because there
is nothing in the house for supper and
she must go and buy something.
''She goes out. no one sees her go. no
one knows If she goes to the east or
the west At o'clock when she has not
come back ! am frightened. and I go TO
her friends house, and she has not been
there. When ii comes midnight. and
she is not here, go to the police station
on 135th street and ask them to send
out an alarm. The Lieutenant says, oh,
II Is nothing to worry about, girls often
stay out late, he says. He tells me to
go home and my daughter will probably
turn up"
Mother Gives Up Hope for Child.
Mrs. Raab shook her head. unresent-
full at the police indifference. as people
are who have had hard life. "I told
him my Sophie had never been out al
late as midnight in her life she re-
sumed. Everybody knows their own
You know your father, your brother
your mother. l know Sophie. and wher
she didn't come at six as told her &c
come, / knew she was dead or KEEP
from me. She went out with FIVE pen
MES, and nothing with her. not even tn,
little things in her bag that she like!
TO carry with her. Well. cannot MAKE
out what has happened to her. but
have lost hope. / will not see he
again"
Sophie was still going to school. he
mother said Since vacation began sh'
had worked a little while at a stor,
near by, but didn't like the place ant
left II. On the Sunday that she disap
peared she had answered an adver
tisement in the paper for young cir
to take care Of a baby. at an address
not far away, and returned to he
mother, saying she had got the plac
and was to start Monday. Both Mrs
Raab and the police have gone to Sc
these people. but Sophie never showed
ur there after leaving them Sunda,
morning.
At the West l35th street police sta
ton and at the Bureau of Missing Per
sons at Police Headquarters it was sail
last night that nothing had been Learned
about Sophie Raab. There Is one sligh
chance, but the mother does not plac
much hope in II. A week or so ago tw'
girls who work at Palisades Amusement
Park lodged with Mrs. Raab for a fey
days and then went away. 1t was sug
Eested that Sophie might have been lure
by them with a promise of good wages
But Mrs. Raab says that Sophie say
hardly anything of these girls. and in
sists that II she meant to Join them 81
would have taken some measures to &c
bundle OF her clothes to them. An
nothing OF her small wardrobe is miss
ing she took nothing but the blue velve
dress, small turban, tan shoes and stock
ings and the little underwear she wore
However. the Palisades clew Is being fol
lowed up.