The Inter Ocean from Chicago, Illinois • Page 29

1 I if SINCE lb closing c( Sana Soncl park, the Utalt Cliy. and lhr rfioru In tb Tlclnlty or Cotlat Grore arnue and SUty-Ttlrd atreet. midrnia of last nrigh-borhood bav bees objecting to the proximity of the gypay cam pa. bre fortune tellara make tbelr living In the aummer from tbe bandreda of people aoxioua to learn bat tbe future may baTeaor them. Tha lent life of (be gypalea gratea on the rrrn of a id American cltlcaa wbo dwell In bouaea aad wbo hare no empsihy wtib (be wandering atraln In tbe blood of tbe reaileaa borae tradera and fortune tellera who make op the camp.

Tbe dlairlrt la commencing to be built up with large flat building and apartment-bouaea, and in time It la probable tbat the little community will make another move to tbe outakirta of tbe city. 'ronilng on Sina Souel park there are half a dozen airail dwelllnga constructed of can-Tif, with woodenldea. which are the bomea of tbe gypay contingent. It la the largeat camp of gypaiea In tbe city, but they hare long paaed the atac of tbe wagon gypaiea wbo dwell la wagona and are on tb more eooitantly from place to place. They are of Fpeefal Correspondence of The Inter (Wl.

BOSTON. Maaa Dec 23. Is tbe Wilbur Clarke mystery to be aa altogether unsolv-able aa tbat of tbe lost Charlie Rosa? Interest in it la revlTed after three and a half rears by tbe publication of tbe annnal reward on rbo part of tbe boy's father aa follows: I will give IC6 to any ooe wbo will bring my boy back to me, and aak no queatlona; or to aoy-M wbo will furnish Information leading to his discovery, if I have to go to the opposite aide of tbe orld to get him." Thia baa been a standing reward for years. There could no happier man and wife than Mr. and Mrs.

Uarry W. Clarke of Beverly If their lost boy could be their Christ-anas gift this year. Since tbe fateful day of June 17. 1902. when the boy ranlsbed almost from beneath hla parents' eyes, bo tangible clew baa been found.

Tho efforts sallied delectlvea of tbe etate police department, aa well aa th aid of tho local offlcera of all tbe surrounding towns, and a. child hunt made by half tha population of that part of Essex county, tbe use of blood-bounds and tbe offering cf large rewards at tbe time all proved unavailing. As time baa passed the case baa only become more inexplicable, more like the fa-Bioua kidnaping of Charlie Rosa a generation ago. A startling suspicion baa gained ground of late tbat tbe reason of thia profound mystery, and tbe reason why no rewards have rrouzbt any ttn of the boy, ia that tha kidnaper waa a wealthy aummer resident, bo stole tbe boy to adopt him. and that all tbe resources cf wealth.

Influence, and great family name have been used to sop-pres any information about the case. Tbe kidnaping of Wilbur Clarke at the time became a newapaper aensatloa even greater than the Charlie Ross ease. Pagea apoa pages of details about It were tele-gra( h4 aH over tbe country, and tbe reports continued for weeks. Yet all that was ever known about It could bo condensed into two i-aragrapbs. Tke Brief Story.

At 1 o'clock on June 17. 1S2. Mr. Clarke closed his office, as it waa a bair-bollday, got a carriage, and tok bis family. of and bla four boys, Walter, The Horse Trough! "There bave been many philanthropists In tbe past wbo hare left monuments to their names In the shape of drinking troughs for horses, little btLklng that they were con-trlbutlag to tbe spread of through the equine family.

said a prominent reter-inary surgeon tbe other day. To be thor- cchly up to dst. scientifically speaking, drlakicg places for should be Just as san try aa these for human beings. These stationary tanks do more to spread the glanders, farcy. and kindred diseases among horses than anything else.

There should be a law to prevent their build-lag aad use. "Tbe only place for a borae to drink, next to natural running stream. Is from a fountain of clear flowing water. If buckets are used tbey ahouU be sterilized thoroughly after use. "Tbe average trockmaa of any iBteliigenre will never water hla horses at any publia fcrouch, no matter how elaborate It may be.

knowa better. Tbe health authoritiea of tbis couatry are spending millions to prevent the sprtad of tuberculosis and kindred dlsrsses among humane, but ao far as 1 know nothing has been done to proteat tbe health of tbe most useful of domestic animals. Stray Cow's Act. A row. picked up by the police on the South Side, nearly put ths officer out of busJ-tiis aad created lota of fun for tbe urchins In Ibe neighborhood.

The cow was rsptured by the re ly appointed subpollctruan. and. to sMcgulsh himself ty an arreet, be d-termlstd to take the bovine to the station-hojie. Procuring a rope, be faiteced It to tar horns acd trarted down Cottagt Grove The thoroughfare wss slippery from a an4 In a tbe policeman was eowa the asphalt en his stomach, rb the cow on a ad run. Tbe otjer as fixe ir, i burg on to tit csilre for a squire, hn ti'e t-oys beaded the off.

He lard'-J his and thea trfg'd off for tie to cleiin tp." idi'iT I' f- 1 X. 1 i county woods. By chance tbey came to Chebaceo pound, about noon, and were in. rited to eat their lunch at tbe camp of Mr. Ryan, an ex-alderman of Salem, who had gone there for a day's outing.

Mrs. Clarke took tbe baby and tbe two other boys to the cabin, while Wilbur. 4 yeara old. remained with his father whit? Mr. Clarke unhar nessed the borse and hltrbed it to a tree.

When tbe borte was attended to Mr. Clarke looked around for the bey, but he waa gone. A cry was raised and a bunt of tbe woods begun. In an hour or so searchers rough back from a wood road fcalf a mile away a blue cbambray tie which the mother identified as belonging to tbe boy. Near the spot where this was picked up the footprints of a nr.

an aad boy were found. An old pair of Wilbur's ihof were found to fit exactly tbe email footprints In' the mud. Beyond these two bits of evidence nothing definite has erer been discovered, except tbe very significant fact that-a fashionably dressed man with Panama bat and pink striped outing sblrt was seen by on of Mr. Ryan's boys baif an hour previously. Believes Boy la Alive.

Deputy Chief Seal of tbe state police says there is erery reason to believe that tbla is the maa who stole tbe boy; that it la extremely unlikely that tbe child wandered off and Cled In tbe woods or swamp. Tbe boy's parenta and others familiar with tho case believe tbe boy is alive today, either la some strange home, possibly in a wealthy Back Bay family, or cast adrift as a little waif; or perhaps, worse yet. growing np Ilka OMrer Twist In the school of crime. Mr. and Mrs.

Harry W. Clarke live In tbe dally expectation tbat somehow their boy wll be restored to tbem. Just as always happens with the lost children of atageland In tbe last act of melodramas. Mrs. Clarke on ber trips to Boston scans eagerly every 7-year-old lad with blue eyes and golden balr.

Every little newsboy and ragamuffin or begear boy that might by any possibility be ber lost child she follows and eagerly looks at and questions. For she knows not what sad state or vagabondage may have befallen him. But not alone does she look among the children of tbe slums. She has a feeling tbat ber boy Is la a luxurious home, tbe fet cf a wealthy family. She baa even aeen him in dreams coming out of a handsome brown-stone house, in rare of a nune.

Possibly las Wealthy Heads. All up and down the Back Bay Mrs. Clarke bas hunted to find Just the bouse pictured In ber dreams. Then, wearied by tbe search, tho vision falls. She can no longer recall its details clearly, and if she were to pass by the bouse she fears she would not recognize It.

Nor can she give any very definite description, of the plare to thoe aho would aid her In tha carrh nothing but the mere fact that It is a troai bouse, approached by half a doien stej acd a plala bro nttcae larade, a Ce- i I Tirn Tsmzn oceax, sxtsdat jiokxixg, diicoiijeii 24, 1905. WINTER LIFE AMONG CHICAGO'S SOUTH SIDE GYPSIES. l-1 Vv A The "3 pJy -town. tbe tint breed and originated In thia way. bat they now regard thrmselyea aa aettled down, and when tbe realdenta raise a more than ordinary loud objection to them they merely shrug their sbouldera and ask If they erer committed any crimes or did anythlcg to render thetnstlvea bad citizens that tbey should be compelled to pull up atakes.

Tbe little ramp In aummer la rather an attract It looking place. Kach tent occupant cultivates a little garden, and flowere ornament tbe fronts of tbe dwellings. Bat In winter they are dreary looking from the outalde and not at all In keeping with the atately brick and stone structurea that stand near by. When the time cornea for apartment buildings to be erected on Cottage Grove avenue the gypaiea will be forced to more, but at preaent they claim they will atay. And tbe nelghbora are not all antagonistic to tbe campers.

When a petition was circulated soma time ago to tbe autboritlea to compel them to move it got aizty signers, while another petition favoring the occupanta of tbe teat bad more than a hundred. -Caaawerw Prepared for Wlslrr. Meanwhile the rampers are preparing for winter. No true gypay can ever sleep In a 1 Hi i P- MI' house with a solid roof. lie most hear the flapping of tbe canvas over bla bead or he cannot Bleep.

So. no matter what kind of a winter, tbe dwelllnga would never be roofed with any other material than ranvaa. Tbe boya and young men In tbe camp are now busily engaged In patching the worn placea In tbe roofs and banking the aides of th? bousea with earth. The torses are kept In small shantlea and buta near by7, and an abundance of bay acd feed has been laid by for the cold weather. Moat gypaiea are thrifty by nature, and all have asved a little money, ao the coming of the cold weather finds tbem prepared.

Within the tent dwellings everything la kept snug, cosy, and homelike. Ruga are apread over the floors and coal Area keep tbe Interiors at tha needed temperature. English and Irish gypsies predominate In tbe Cottsge Grove avenue ramp, and they arj the kind most commonly found In tbla country. Tbe gypsies originated In Egvpt many generatlona ago. and ibey were Anally driven out of that country because tbey refused to adopt tbe Moslem faith with tbe otber residents of that country.

In the early days, a few ceaturlea ago, they were often driven seriptton tbat would apply to hundreds of bousea in the Back Bay. Every carriage that rolls by ber in the street with a pampered child of wealth looking out through Ita windows she scana earerly. thinking it may be little Wilbur. Tbla bunting through tbe streets of Bos ton whenever she bas an opportunity to slip away from home Is something that Mrs. Clarke aaya abe shall keep op as long aa she lives.

She has a presentiment that in some such way as this she may regain her lost boy. In tbe fond hope that be Is still alive the loving mother still keeps np tbe insurance on ber boy's life. "Not tbat It doea any good." she says, "but somehow It seems as if that were the only thing left that I caa do for poor little Tbe insurance company officials are like wise puzzled by tbe caae. Aa there Is nothing to show that the boy Is dead, they can not pay the policy. Nor do the parenta wish this done.

They refuse to accept any money from the Insurance company, and keen on the paymenta merely as a matter of sentiment Mra. Clarke' Twa Theories. Mrs. Clarke's two widely different theories that her boy mar be either very rich or very poor are neither absurd when the facts of bla strange disappearance are re called. At first It was supposed tbat tbe child was stolen in tha hope of getting a large reward, as ta the case of the Cudahy boy of Omaha, who was abducted about the time of Wilbur Clarke's disappearance for a ran soms of $25,000.

Tha Cudahy boy's kidnaper. Pat Crowe, was only recently arrested. As the rewarda offered for tbe Clarke boy. of S500. anl finally 15.000, brought forth no reironae.

except from blackmailers, who wanted to gst the money and not restore the boy. It cow eeeroe fair to assume that coney was cot tbe otject, th? from place to place, and being kept constantly 00 the move, tbe habit of wandering waa Ingrained in thf Ir blood. Tbe men perforce became borse traders and mountebank, while fortune telling seemed to be the generally accepted and most profitable avocation for the women. When they came to be accepted aa a separate race and public opinion against them died down they gradually adopted the languages of the countriea they found themselves In. Ireland was always a favorite country with tbem.

for in the Irish people they found a race who sympathized with tbem and were hospitably Inclined toward the Kgyptlan outcasts. So It ia that there are ao many Irish gypetes. They are all keen borse traders, and most of tbem eventually Immigrate to this country. Tbe Turkish and Bohemian gypsies are also numerous, but not ao many of them are found In America as on the continent of Europe. This data of gypsies la generally given to exhibiting trained and performing bears aa their method of making a living.

Tbe bears are tbelr stock in trade and tbey exhibit remarkable cleverness In training tbem. Tbe women are also fortune tellera. kldoaper got faint hearted and afraid to claim tbe booty. The other theory of tbe-boy's spiriting away, which far more extraordinary, is that It waa done by a wcalt hy, childless man or woman, who had conceived a passionate lore for this pretty, bright eyed little boy. Perhaps be reminded them of a desd child, with Just such blu; eyes and flaxen balr.

One thing In particular bas gono to strengthen this theory as time has elapsed. The only person aeen In tbe neighborhood before tbe child ranlshed, as already atated. waa a man with a Panama hat and fashion able pink striped outing shirt. This would Indicate that be was not a common crook, nor a tramp, but instead a man of means, per haps a wealthy summer resident or visitor, lie may bare seen tbe boy before at Beverly and aeized this opportunity to steal him In tbe woods. Tho Mass la the Plak Shirt.

It Is this fact tbat haa added to tha bewilderment of the parenta and the police. At tbe time the boy was lost, after hearipg all the circumstances of the case, bow tbe father's eyes bad not been off the child more than fire minutes, st Ryan's camp on tbs border of the woods cear Chebaceo pond, Deputy Chief George C. Neal of the atate police said: "Tbat man with tbe Ink striped shirt took tbe boy. Find him and tbe boy will be recovered." After three and one-balf years Mr. Neal reiterates that statement, and believes it more than ever.

The suspicious man was advertised for In tbe newspapers. Street car conductors and motormen and livery stable keepers in all directions leading away from Chebaceo pond were iB-tcrvlewtd and sharply questioned. When It Is rem rr. tie red hat a hue ac3 cry sis raifed within an tour after the boy's a ppt a ra ct how it tersrre tbe universal ton-'hojl to; io of rtlsi u' s. on, r.ow factories -k yy A' in I yi Vli and their methods are about tbe same aa those of other nationaltiea.

Spanish gypsies usually make a living by exhibiting trained animals. Of late years tbelr women have taken up fortune telling. I'reesisnosrr Asnowat Gypaiea. Among all gypsies a pronounced type of freemasonry exists and the men are usually members of a masonic order. Tbey stand together when In trouble, and will never ae any of their own class go hungry.

"It would be Impossible for me or any otber true gypsy to live In a bouse." said one of tbe principal members of tbe little com munity. She Is known aa Mme. Millner. and has lived In the neighborhood of Cottage Grove avenue and Sixty-third afreet for about ten years. "I am an English gypsy and bava wandered-all over the world.

A true gypsy has tbat strain of blood which preventa him from living In a bouse as otber people do. I am aa near settling down to a permanent residence as any gypsy ever gets. My father befose me. my grandfather, and bla father all led a wandering life, and I do cot know bow much farther back this extended. Tbey all Inherited the same love for wandering and none of them ever aettled Vy Miylia I were closed and thousands of men marched with tho precision of an army through the Essex woods.

It seems all the more Incredible that the boy was stolen by any commonJild-naper or gang of blackmailers, or even by gypsies. All theee possibilities were considered at tbe time and worked upon by the police with tbe greatest thoroughness. Tbe otber alternative, that the thief was a man of wealth, wbo stole the boy to adopt him, was one which gained credence only after long and unsuccessful probing of all other sources. So Oa Saw the Child 1st Roads. A homesick, sobbing child.

Just torn away from ita father aad hardly have escaped eliciting the attention cf somebody along the highway, or on a street car, or in a hired carriage secured at a public stable, ret do auch man and boy were seen on tbat holiday afternoon, tbe 17th of June, tbe first outing day of tbe summer, when multitudes were abroad in this popular resort region or tbe north shore. If tho boy bad been snatched tip and carried away in a private vehicle, presumably a elosed depot carriage, of which there are so many In use, at tbat early part of tbe eea-son by summer residents, then he might, without so much difficulty, have eacaped popular notice. If this bo tbe true solution, then the case Is more remarkable than ever; in fact, without a parallel. This theory Mr. and Mrs.

Clarke have come to have more faith In as time goes by and no word cornea of tbelr boy. Ia this case it would still more difficult to trace him. All mouths that might reveal his Identity would be sealed by wealth and influence. The boy may be In some country, being educated In a foreign tortus and every art used to make him forget the placs of bis birth, mother tecjue, and ths names and faies of tis raritts. "TT" 1 4 Shi is no Fraud us Ycu tiOTnuto dut Truth 1 down.

-1 am an EngTleb gypsy and came to tbla country more than sixty. years ago. For years we went from place to place In a wagon and I bare been all over this country. "Most gypsies manage-to save a llttte money, so ia my old age I am able to take life a little eatler than when I was young, but I have got to hear the canvaa flapping over my bead at night, otherwise I could not sleep. It makes me nervous and-uneasy to be in a bouse.

Fortune telling is an art tbat rannot be acquired with any accuracy. Practice, of course, helps one -to become pro-ncient. -but It Is a gift In tbe beginning. We all believe that tbe seventh daughter of a seventh daughterrtn the third generation is endowed with peculiar powers of healing and fortune telling. Others are probably skeptical on this point, but every one is entitled to bis or her peculiar belief s.

During the Feclan uprlting when tha Jrlsh sympathizers and enemies of England Invaded Canada Mme. Millner was in the Dominion and became acquainted with Captain O'Brien, who led the Fenians in tbe battle of RIdgeway. At that time tbe little army carried a flag which had been made for the Fenians in 1843 and after the battle was THE THREE YEARS' SEARCH FOR LITTLE WILBUR CLARKE. Wilbur. Russell, and Harry, tbe latter a baby in arms, for a drive Into tbe Essex ft At the time Wilbur Clarke disappeared he was only 4 years old.

He had not learned the alphabet or how to. write his name. In a child ao young it is argued that he may by this time have completely forgotten his true name and Identity. There are. Indeed, hyp notic methods which might be employed to make a child much older than thia forget its pa i uie.

The difficulty of the boy being reognlzei even by his own parenta, increases rapidly witn every passing year. But the bright expressive, roguish blues eyes and the shape ot cis iorenead are the featurea which his mother believes-remain tbe most unchanged it is upon the mental image which she carrl of these features that she hopes to some day recognize mm. For the same reason she hopes tbat some one seeing the boy's cloture as he looked when lost may still be. able to identity him. Rewarda Offered for tbe Child.

All the rewards which were offered at the time have lapsed. 'Most of these were made by wealthy summer residents of the north shore out of sympathy for the bereaved par ents. narry w. ciarxe, tne boy'e Lather, was then freight agent ot the Boston tc Maine railroad- at Beverly. His salary was not large, and the expense of huntlnr for hla lost cniia bo involved Him in debt tbat be despaired of ever meeting his obligations.

So be embarked soon afterward in a small grocery store In Beverly. He has been so successrul In the last two years In building up a wholesale aa well as retail business tbat be now offers a cash reward of bis own. I will give 1500 to any one." says Mr. Clarke, "who ill bring my boy back to me and ask no questions; to any one who will furnish Information leading to his recovery. if I have to go to tho opposite side of the world to get him." Every month, spring, aummer.

fall, and winter Mr. Clarke still revisits the scene of the boy's disappearance in the woods near Chebaceo pond. Last winter be skated all through the' swampy parts of the woods, which were covered with water and frozen over. This search, first begun In the expectation of finding the boy's dead body. Is now kept up with the hope of finding some overlooked scrsp of evidence bearing on the boy's disappearance.

A torn bit of clothing on the bushes, or a piece of paper or something else belonging to the kidnaper, Mr. Clarke still tries to find, which will throw aomo light on. the mystery. Ho irdmita that tbe chances of coming upon anything of tha sort at thia late day are rery small. "But what else can I doT" he says.

"Sun-dsys, when I am not at my store, my mind goes back to the place where Wilbur was lost. I have an uncontrollable impulse to go and hunt for him, and I think tbla does more good thsn going to church and praying for him." Mr. Clarke bunt for bis boy through the W00J3 snd swamps, year after year, is almost as ratbetle as the mother's unflujging search throush the streets cf Pneton. Tf.e rsrer.ts sre popio, ccly a 3 over Captain O'Brien retained the flag. Mme.

Millner told his fortune and In this way became well acquainted with the Captain. II promised ber that when he died the flag chould go into her possession and kept bla word. So it Is that the only Fenian flag carried In tbe raid which took place shortly after the wai Is in possesion of the gypsy fortune teller on Cottage Grove aveeue. It Is a unique piece of work, made on wbit silk, and Is now more than half a century old. Its owner baa been offered large sums for It.

but haa always kept it as her most cherished possession, "I would not part with the flag for a good deal of money," said "I happened to be passing through the little town of St. Stephen, Canada, just after Captain O'Brien, died and his wife told me that be said bo wanted I should have tbe flag If I ever camo that way again. -It bears tbe Inscription, 'Presented to tbe Irish Volunteers. Mme. 'Millner claims to be the grand daughter of Lord Belden.

an English commander during the wars of that country with Spain, acd her grandfather was one of tho gunsmiths with Lord Nelson's fleet at tho battlea of tbe Nile and Trafalgar. little orer 30. she with raven black locks and he with light brown hair. Yet three and one-balf years of suspense have drawn lines of silver hero and there in the mother's luxuriant balr and grizzled the father's mustache. But both are brave and hopeful, working hard to bring up their other bright boys-There is Walter, 12; Russell.

9. and Httl Harry. 4, and a wee, 'little girl that baa come this fall to brighten the household. In a bureau drawer Mrs. Clarke keeps as precious relics all the things that used to belong to her lost boy.

There is a pair of battered little shoes tbat he wore tbe morning; ot the day he was lost, and, most significant of all, his blue chambray tie, tbat was picked up on a bush a half mile away from the placo where he disappeared. This and tbe footprints of a little boy beside those of a roan In a muddy path near by were the sole bits of direct evidence tbat the boy was not lost In the swamp or drowned in tbe pond, but kidnaped. But to make doubly sure of this tbe woods were soarched and the pond dynamited and dragged for weeks, till it seemed that the last possibility was exhausted of tbe boy having wandered off of his own accord and been lost In tbe four or five minutes was alone. Then at last tbe police and all others were thoroughly satisfied tbat the boy bad been kidnaped. False Clews the Father Followed.

In the subsequent, search among gypsy ramps and in other places wnore a cnn.i bearing a resemblance to Wilbur Clarkei had been seen tbe boy father traveled from Canada to New York One of the most curious features of tho case was the succession of blackmailing letters that camo to Mr, Clarke. Tbe first of these misleading letters directed the father to go to Oak island and search an old hotel near Chelsea. Another, letter made an appointment to deliver the boy at 11 o'clock at night In tbe Boston Postofflco building. Still other messages, coming from the West, offered to return the child In Chicago for a lareo ransom, to be paid before the boy was delivered. But all of these were palpable blackmailing schemes.

The Sane Pocket "Ob, for s-erenteen pockets and a place to carry my money," sighed the woman shopper at the close of a busy day. "I IhiDk there Is a fortune. In store for the person who can lnrent some, safe and convenient method for a woman to carry her money. A purse in the hand is absurd, a bag is not much better, for you may put it down absent-mindedly or a quick thief may grab it; a chatelaine bag at the waist hitsaKainaf you when you walk, and the little moury caso around your. neck inside your dress is safe.

but not conrenient to get at. Tho other leaned toward ber confidentially. "Did you ever try your stocking?" "Yes, I did." confessed the other. "Jjst once, and it was awful. I had pltnty c.f money with me, but I couldn't get at it.

I had to got everything sent up C. O. and I had to give upMce cream soda simply be cause I couldn get me money witnoui a scene. I felt perfectly Indecent, too. and wss worrying an tne time ior icsr mat something would happen to me and I would be found with a roll of bills In my stocking.

Never again for me." And she shook her bead at the remembrance. "But I am still looking for a cheme that Is really safe and, sane." His Compliment A Chicago business man has a reputation for employing the homeliest stenographers and typewriters in the city. Efficiency rather than beauty Is what he wants, and be know the prettiest ones are not the most efficient. Jusrt tho same. It Is said of.

him that doesn't know a pretty woman when re sc one. Still, bis wife is an unusually hand- some woman. Not longaeo she came Into hlsofnce, wlu re 6he. appeara only at rare intervals, and or.ly when it is abaolutejy necessary. She wh met by an office boy.

a brUht Irinh U1. who had never seen her. asked for Mr. Ilirfnk. "Who shall I say wauts to see him, mem he Inquired.

"His wife." tee replied. looked at licr in open eyrd "rj ana genuine Rirr.lratlon. tirc, ic m. Ml tell him." hp 'art- irsg off. "an i i to thlm l.e t- i no li in ni.".