Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1922-06-23
ABAND0NS HIS CAR
And DISAPPEARS
Hawkes. Comes Here from Green
field and Creates Mystery
Telephones Housekeeper to Come for
Car, and Sends Her Letter-RevoIve
Holster Found Near Bridge

hiDbttt ANtut
I An abandoned automobile and a note
aI }nclo uHe Sich dp probably meaning meaning
are clews connected with the disappear
ancc in Bratteboro of a Greenfield,
Mass, resident for whom the Brattle-
boro police have been searching.
The first that was known here of the
| disappearance was when Undertaken &.
f.. Mccarthy of Greenfield entered the
Batt1eboro garage last Friday morning
and inquired about getting a car from
| the village COMMON and putting it in the
garage until called for.
Sanford 4. Smith of the garage went
after the car, and learned that it had
been on the common. near the road and
opposite Mrs. w. III. Brackets house,
since late Thursday afternoon.
The machine was a Chevrolet bearing
| the Massachusetts number plate 21S740,
which il listed in the Massachusetts book
of registrations in the name of Charles
= Hawkes. of 3G Bank Row, Greenfield,
Mass. 1t was an old machine and CON
tanned some tools and a dark brown over
coat with nothing in the pockets except
a white handkerchief and handful of
matches.
Mr.. Mccarthy showed Mr. Smith a
note which said in substance: This is
u the last time you will hear from me-
Il Don't go to the expense of looking for
me. hope you will always be happy
| Take this money as | shall have no
further use for money" The writer of
the note intmated that he would make
way with himself.
The note was addressed to Ruth Ak
ley, Greenfield, Mass, and was mailed in
Brattleboro Thursday afternoon. Miss
Akley is daughter of Clifford Akley
Of Marlboro and has been keeping house
for Mr.. Hawkes. since his wife died
eight years ago. She is his niece.
Mr.. Hawkes. told Miss Akley Thursday
morning that he might go up to MARI
boro and about go O'Clock that
afternoon he left home in his automobile.
} About 6 o'clock Miss Akley received
telephone message from him asking her
to come to Brattlebero after the auto
mobile, saying that she would find it on
the common. She asked him where he
was going and he made no reply, but
hung up the telephone receiver.
Miss Akley came here Friday morning
to look up the car and after she ha.i
left home the letter from Mr.. Hawkes.
was delivered at the home of MIR. Nc
r Carthy, where Mr.. Hawkes. had a tene-
ment. Mr.. Mccarthy started at once
with it for Brattleboro.
1t was suggested TO Mr. Mccarthy that
: he see Chairman r. w. Gibson of the
/ village commissioners, who would put
some police at work on the csse, but he
: did not do So. Commissioner Gibson was
uOtlUCu pY 1He IHpeniX ana sent P0-
6 liceman w. e. Tyler and Merrill A.
Stark to look around the pond on the
Retreat premises and to see if anything
in the way of evidence could be found on
{ the common, but no clews resulted from
the search
, Mr., Hawkes. was GA years old, had
gray hair, a gray moustache and wore
$ a gray suit, and green felt hat. He is
described as being five feet, six inches
tall, weighing $50 pounds and having n
scar on his right shoulder. He has been
: employed by the Greenfield Tap & Die
Corp. An adopted son, Charles II.
\ Chief, of-Police George Wilson Az and nd
h Policeman Merrill A. Stark. following
= the publication in newspapers Fri
\ day of the story or the disappearance
+ Of Hawkes., learned that Hawkes. went
i into the office of the milk plant of the
o Nindham County Cooperative Milk
445 O'Clock Thursday afternoon and
telephoned to Miss Akley to come up
8 after the car. Miss Akley. who came
n here Friday morning after the machine
: says she received the telephone call in
y Greenfield about 6 O'Clock which agrees
n with information obtained at the milk
c plant as Greenfield is on daylight saw
:. ing time.
Miss Hazel Wentworth. stenographer
t at the plant, whom Hawkes. asked for
: the privilege of telephoning, says that
: Hawkes. paid for the telephone call,
breaking a, dollar, bill. She did not
notice whether he had any other money
or not.
l. On Saturday Policeman w. z. Tyler
r and Merrill Stark went to West
b Chesterfield, where they interviewed
Il different residents and learned from
It Henry Chickering son of NJ. II. Chicken
;. ing. that about $50 o'clock Friday
| morning q man answering the dpspriD-
- tion of Hawkes. called at the Chckerina
farm and told Henry Chickerng that
he had had no breakfast and wanted
II to get some milk. He explained that
d he usually travelled by automobile, but
had lest his car and so was on foot. He
said he was going to the county farm
at Nestmoreland to see if he could
@ get work.
;. When inquiry at the county farm was
made by The Phoenix Saturday the. in
formation was given that no person had
applied there for work Friday or Sat
urday.
81 A holster in which Hawkes. carried his
n revolver was found Saturday in lum
Der pile at the Chesterfield end of tho
Connecticut river suspension bridge, two
% miles north of here by Lowell Wyckoff
Is who works in the Direct Importing Co.'S
4 store here and lives in West Chesterfield
81 in the home of his father, j. r.. Wyckoff
On the afternoon that Hawkes. dsap
% peared Mr.. Wyckoff's sister. Mrs. Clay
he ton Gray of West Chesterfield. was drv
IT ing toward Brattleboro. when a man in q
d car passed her, going in the same direc
d ton A little farther on she came upor
* the car by the roadside and saw the maj
g between the lumber piles. Later h,
passed her again and afterwards on tn,
n same trip she saw the car abandoned OF
" the common.
t, When the story of the disappearance o.
" Hawkes. came out Mrs, Gray told he
p, brother of the incident, with the result
p, that on his way to work he found tn,
Y holster in one of the lumber piles an,
+, gave il to the police. Hawkes. niece
Miss Ruth Akley, who also has been hi
lg housekeeper the past eight years. identi
is fed the holster as belonging to Hawkes.
in The police also learned that Of late ,
a Young man had been coming to tn,
er Hawkes. tenement at 30 Bank Row
n Greenfield, and that Hawkes. had a dis
er like for him and had told Miss Akley so
In his letter to her he wrote that h
ID hoped she always would be happy. Tn
il police understand that before Hawke
Dr left he had substantial amount o
e. money. in Greenfield bank transferred t
Miss Akley.