23 Mar 1909
Page 1
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Newspaper
La Crosse Tribune
Location
La Crosse, Wisconsin, United States of America
Date
Mar 23, 1909
Page
1
Billy Whitla, the 8 year old son of a Pennsylvania lawyer, was recovered unhurt at the Hollenden hotel in Cleveland. The boy walked to his father after a tense search, while investigators and officials pursued the kidnapers and followed clues.
At the Hollenden hotel in Cleveland a breakfast crowd cheered and a woman kissed Billy Whitla as he and his father left. Billy bowed amid cheers while reporters and bystanders mobbed the doorway and taxi steps on the way to the station.
Cleveland police issued a general alarm for a pockmarked elderly woman after a boy described being forced to guide the abductors for about five miles and being left on a trolley at Payne Avenue and East 30th Street. A sedicatious woman reportedly called at a local business and phoned Sharon.
A father burst with joy as he cradled his son after captors released him following a ransom payment of 10 000 in greenbacks. Police in Pennsylvania and Ohio coordinate a cross state hunt and use the boy’s descriptions to trace the kidnapers.
In Sharon Virginia on March 23 crowds at the Erie station cheered as James P Whitia and his son Willie White arrived on the Youngstown train. The boy walked with a young man and joined his father on the platform before his mother welcomed him moments later.
A Pennsylvania city boy was abducted in a buggy and ransom was paid. James P. Whitla traveled to Cleveland after a fourth ransom note arrived Thursday. The father, tearful, reclaimed his son at a hotel lobby, while detectives reassessed the case.
Crowds filled the streets of Sharon as a Whitla carriage arrived at the Whitla mansion. Bells rang and whistles shrieked while Whitla carried Billy from the carriage. Mrs Whitla, Grandfather and Grandmother welcomed him with kisses and prayers, noting he was tired but unharmed and happy after his experiences.
Theodore Roosevelt sails from New York aboard the Hamburg American liner bound for Naples en route to British East Africa. A huge crowd on the pier cheers as he waves in army overcoat and slouch hat. Kermit Roosevelt watches, while the speaker proclaims a final farewell amid pandemonium.
Voter turnout is light across most wards with heavy interest centering on nominations for the board of public works city clerk and city treasurer. In the First and Eighth wards Democrats contest. Republicans clash in the Fourth, Seventh, Ninth and Tenth wards as seven candidates vie for two public works seats. James Day noted as a likely candidate for one seat amid a neck and neck field.
Secretary Utermoehl and La Crosse officials weigh Armour Company interest in a new plant. Ruddick, Armour head inspector, visited two weeks ago and surveyed northern grounds, fueling belief La Crosse is being seriously considered for the vast facility. Further contact has yet to yield a reply from Armour about site plans.
London reports from the Pall Mall Gazette that the Nimrod led by Lieut. Shackleton may have reached the South Pole. Conflicting signals say the party gave up within 125 miles of the pole, with official dispatches pending and New Zealand confirming ship arrival.
A special messenger delivered Taft's private farewell greeting to the Hamburg pier before the ship sailed. A gold pencil inscribed Good luck, goodbye was given as a last gift from the president to the former president.
A large crowd of prominent citizens gathered to honor Roosevelt as he departed. Remarks focused on celebrating his service and farewell, with the event drawing a grand send off from the American public.
Madison report details a fierce legislative showdown as Assemblyman Bray moves to end the Stephenson probe and reopen campaigns of defeated opponents. The committee hears R. G. Wayland on Stephenson spending at Outagamie and D. E. Riordan on Eagle River expenditures as tension rises over banking obfuscation and campaign financing.
President Tom L. Lewis opens the tri district anthracite miners convention in Scranton at 10 am. Delegates debate whether meetings should be secret while Lewis plans to invite newspaper men to the platform. The key issue is union recognition and the potential public stance.
A suit filed in Shawnee, Oklahoma, by Mark Goode on behalf of Kickapoo Indians targets Martin Bentley for an accounting of funds from a $215,000 government appropriation. Former Secretary Garfield and Senators Teller and Curtis cited as subcommittee members.
Voter urged to cast ballots for James T. Davy for commissioner of the board of public works with a call that he is the man for the place.
Forecasts show Wisconsin partly cloudy with possible rain in the north tonight or Wednesday and warmer at night. Minnesota partly cloudy with possible rain in the east tonight or Wednesday and colder in the northwest. Iowa unsettled with showers likely late tonight or Wednesday and warmer in eastern and central areas.
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