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Show Mil WILLIE WHITLA RETURNED II .." ; HIS FATE AT HOLLENPEN HOTEL Boy Placed on Street Car on Outskirts or City and Started to Hotel Two Boys Recognize Lad, Take Him in Charge and Conduct Him to His Father Letter From Kidnapers Told How to Secure -Boy Unharmed and "Well Fed" Woman at Candy Store Detailed Terras Betcctlvo Reed next answered th telephone. .Whltla praised him for his work and told him of the recovery of the child. Five minutes after th father had entered his room fully 2.000 persons were gathered In the hallways and lobhl09 of the hot51 Again and again they called his nams and Implored his father to bring tha boy out and let them look at him. i Whltla acqulesed. Mounting a rals- ed platform In the center of the lobby, he gave everyone an opportunity to j see his son. Cries of "Speech" caused j Whltla to say a few words. : He said: j "If I live a thousand years, I cannot j do enough to repay the press, the po- i llco and the people who have all done i noble work In helping me find my boy and for their sympathy to mo, my fam- j lly and relative." When Whltla ceased speaking tbere were demands for a few words from the boy. The lad. for the flret time, showed nlgns of fright. The boy turned his face upward. He could not speak. The tears, bigger than raindrops, coursed down hi cheeks. Whltla refused to bo anyone In his room, until after he had personal! thanked the Mahoney and Ramsey boys, who brought Willie to the hotel. He made each of them a substantial gift. j Whitla received the newspaper mei j later. Willie told his story as best n I J could. , j 1 ' (Continued on Page Eight) j I The words were never spoken. Grasping Grasp-ing Willie In his arms, the happy father fath-er lifted the boy Into his arms and, planted a score of kisses on his lips. "It's ray boy, my darling Willie," he crleJ. Tears gushed from his eyes. He pressed the child to his breast and hugged him tightly. Willie smiled a little. He was glad to see his papa, but he did not realize what all the fuss was abnut. When the crowd realized that thf kidnaped child had been returned to his parent, a cheer rang out. For three minutes the handclapplng and shouting continued. There wore cheers for the boy and then cheers for the father Stripping off the boy's cap anil the smoked glasses, Whltla revealed his boy's bare head for the first time. Ho lifted the lai hlpb. above his head go that everyone might get a good view of the now famous youngster, who came near to rivaling the "lo.st Charlio Ross" of kidnaping fame. As soon as ho could push his way through the crowd, Whltla went to his room on the second floor. He carried car-ried the boy in his arms. For several minutes he was alone In the room with his son. Then through the .loor canio these words, spoken by the father fath-er to the boy's mother on the longdistance long-distance telephone: "Oh, mother, I have Willie here In my arms. He Is safe. Glory to God. mama, It Is the happiest night of my ' life." There was a pause. The mother was pleading for her husband to re- j turn the boy to his home at once. "I am sorry, mother," Whltla said "I can't get a train out of here until S o'clock In the morning. But I will come home as soon as possible. You can trust me with him, little mother, ! can't you?" CrovelaTid, March 22. Little Willie I Whltla, who has caused the police ol j the entire country endless worry elnco he was kidnapped from school in Sharon, Pa,, last Thursday, wad I returned to his father at the Hollon- ! den hotel here at 8:30 o'clock this evening. In compliance with an agrec-1 agrec-1 ment entered into with the kUlnin- . ped boy's father and an agent of me I kidnappers here today, the boy was placed on a street car on the outskirts ' of the city and started to the hotel shortly after 8 o'clock. Two boye, G. W. Ramsey and tid-wara tid-wara Me honey, recognized the lad j t on the car and. taking him In charge, Conducted him to his father, who was in waiting, according to a pre-arranged plan, which ho had followed at the dictation of the kidnappers. Thy boy wandered about Hie hotel lobby unannounced for several minutes, ask lug bellboys for his father, before tha later, he returned to the Hollenden hotel and awaited developments. His entrance to the hotel was shrouded in secreeyjUy a previous arrangement made with the hotcd management, he did not register. Detective De-tective C. V. Perkins, who has superintended super-intended the search for the boy In behalf be-half of the father, was in the lobby of the hotel calmly pretending to unconcerned. The hearts of both parent par-ent and detective were beating anxiously. anx-iously. The agent of the kidnapers promised that the boy would be started start-ed toward the hotel shortly arter nightfall. As the hour of the appearance appear-ance of the child approached, Whltla became nervous. He disregarded the advice of the detective, who had told him to keep out of sight of the newspaper news-paper men and the crowd of curious people, who had learned that ho was 1m the city. Emerging from his room, he walked up and down the hall on the second floor with hands clasped across his breast. Then, unable to stand the suspense longer, he vsont into the lobby and seated hlmseir. A few newspaper men walked over to , talk to him, but ho refused to converse. con-verse. ' "In heaven's name, men, do not ay anything to me; I am on the verge ot i nervous prostration," he said. "1 ex-; ex-; peel the boy will he back tonight, but I cannot state positively whether ie . will be returned 6afe and sound. Do not ask mc to reveal the settlement. That might ruin all or the plans." j For more than an hour, Whltla . remained In the lobby smoking cigars . and muttering to himself. ! In the meantime, Willie Whltla. the kidnaped boy, feeling comparatively cafe In the hands of his kidnappers.. was being prepared for his return to ! his father. The woman at the candy , btore had done her duty. She com- munlcated with the capiors of the boy ; and told them that the father bad I made no attempt to trace them. '1 ho : kidnapers wore satisfied Uut Whltla, Whlt-la, Sr., declines to name the woman f In charge of the confectionery and almost al-most dares the police to locate her. So the boy was brought from his hid-; hid-; ing place where It was no one knows i to a car line In the east end of tho i city, which would bring him into town ; quickly. The kidnaper, according to i Willie, was cheerful enough. The ! mysterious man and the youngster Pklppcd in school-boy rash Ion toward J the trolley line, jesting in the mcau-j mcau-j time. A few rods from the car line ttio ' man stopped the boy. Pulling a pair ol smoked glasses from his pocket ne , adjusted them to the boy's head, wita : the remark, "You'll look better in these" I The slides of the black yard cap ; were pulled down carelully over the boy's eara. I A slip, which Willie was to band to the conductor, was put In the boy s pocket. It read: I "Send this bey to the Hollenden ho- I ted, double-quick." - With all of the arrangements raae I and his tracks apparently covered, tho ! kidnaper took the boy's right hand In his brawny oue and they continued briskly along toward tho car line. The lad skipped gaily enough with us 1 companion, the promise of seeing his "dad" and "ma" urging him forward. They chatted with each other. Willie says the man told him that it anybody asked him who took him to the car line to tell them It was "Mr. Jones." "Just tell them your name Is Jones, too. If you want to," said the kidnaper. kid-naper. "All right, Mr. Jones," answered Willie. Presently a cur came Into view and the mysterious ?.lr. Jones drew tho boy closer to him. "Well, Willie, you're going down town now and you will see your papa pretty soon," he said. This delighted Willie. He swung on to the car quickly, according to the conductor. "Mr. Jones" paid the boy's fare and then got oft" the car and disappeared, after waving a friendly adieu. This farewell salute was continued until the car had disappeared Into the Inky darkness of the night. The boy gazed about the car for a familiar face. He saw no one he knew. Presently Edward Mahoney, who is a 17-jear-old boy of Jolly visage, came into the car. He sat down In the seat with the boy. Mahoney, like most every other person In Cleveland last night, was looking for Willie Whltla, the kidnapped boy. So when his eyes lighted on Willie, ho started a conversation. conver-sation. "What's your name," he asked. "Jones." answered Willie, true to his kidnaper friend. But Mahoney was not to be fooled. Ho called his friend Ramsey over from another part of the car and showed him Willie. He suggested that It micht be the missing child. Then Willie. nhowd them his transfer trans-fer slip, saying that he would he put off at the Hollenden hotel, and they were soon convinced that thev had accomplished more than all the sleuths In the country. Tho boys' uow witling companions took Willie to the hotel. He skipped through the doois ahead of them and into the lobby. The boys partly lost track of him In the crowd, so anxious was the youngster to catch a glimpse c-f the face he loved. Willie did not see his father, or sister sis-ter In the lobby. Walking over to tho clerk ho asked; "Have you seen my papa?" "Who Is he, boy?" ho was asked. "Oh, I'm Mr. Whitla s Willie." he replied. re-plied. The crowd nearest the boy who heard the words rushed In aroun I him. The lad was shoed up ngalnst the hotel counter and the scene close- I ly resembled a panic. I " Acioss the lobby, the father, his eyes red from weeping, heard the piping pip-ing voice of his son. Frantic with Joy at the sound, he rushed through the office corridor and In a moment w-as fighting hla way through the specta- I tors. Plunging nnd squirming, knocking knock-ing bystanders right and left, the fren- zled parent made his way to the bewildered be-wildered boy standing solemnly with automobile goggles, In front of the clerk's dak. The kldnflpod boy saw his parent coming. He opened his Hps to speak. latter knew his son was In the big foyer. The moment tho anxious parent par-ent heard that a strangei boy was In tho hotel, he rushed across the lobby, graeped him In his arms and smother-, smother-, ed his face with kisses. . An attempt had beeu made to dls-j dls-j guise the lad. He wore a pair or ; smoked glasses and a large tan cap, which was pulled down over his eyes ! and the father said it would have ' been difficult to have recognized the boy In such a garb had he passed him on the street. Willie Is in perfect health. He say he has been well treated and ever tince his capture has been constantly constant-ly Indoors, lie believes he was taken from Sharon to Warren and thence to Newcastle, Pa. It is bis opinion, expressed ex-pressed iu a happy school boy way. that he was in Ashtabula on Saturday night, at the time his father was lo Jeave his $10,000 in Flatiron Park. Whitla, Sr., refused to state whether wheth-er ho had paid tho ransom. He sal l that he received a letter today lrom the kidnapers at his home in Sharon saying that If he called at a confectionery confec-tionery store In the east end or Cleveland, Cleve-land, ho would bo told how to secure his boy unharmed and "well red." Shortly alter noon he left Sharon for Cleveland. He was unaccompanied unaccom-panied IUb Immediate family and private detectlvt?; he apprised of the proposed secret moetiag, but Insisted that he make the trip alone. Everyone ot them was warned that he must be allowed al-lowed to go unheeded and no attempt at the capture of the kidnapers bo made. Whltla was certain that if h-i spoiled the plans of his son's captor-s tonight he would never eee the boy egniti. His experience at A6btabula served as a warning. About 2 o'clock this afternoon, ho went to a candy store in the oast end With him he carried the 510.000. expecting ex-pecting that it would bo domandod of him there. He was met by a woman -who detailed to him the terms or the kidnapers. With all tho eagerness of a distracted parent, Whitla agreed to them immediately. Detectives in his employ say that he paid the money but on this point the father declines to commit himself. Half an hour - i tafd was Warren, tho .m&n left tho buggy In the road. Then we got on what I think ws aa electric car. i don't Jut remember what It was, out It was something like a street car. t don't know what became of the buggy. I became sleepy when we got on the car and I slept much of the way to the place where we were gcJng. "When we got to a town that the man called Newcastle, they took ni to a big building and. turned me over lo a woman, she . was good to me. . The hospital, or whatever the building was, was a clean place. There was a man there who looked like a doctor, doc-tor, because ho had whiskers short gray whiskers. ; . "The people In the hospital told me that I must do JusVwhat they told me to do. If I did not "obey them they said, they would take me to a place called the peat house, where rolka that have smallpox have to go.. Jt was not a clean or pretty place, they told me. 1 walked the chalkllne Ju.H like a good boy, papa. Ilk you have told me to do. "On Saturday night, I was taken, away from the hospital, and I think we went to a town called Ashtabula. We traveled in a buggy and on toot. Early In the morning1 we went back to the hospital. I heard one of the men eay: 'There will be nothing doing tonight, to-night, I guess.' I must have been right here In Cleveland, though, papa. for some of the town I saw tonight on the car, looked like the place we went on Saturday. "They told me all along that 1 was Just tAklng a little trip. It was not going to hurt me, they told me. So 1 just acted nice and had a good time playing around the hospital. 1 Knew I would get back home all right anl just supposed Mr. Jones was one ot my friends who was treating me nice. That you wanted him to treat me that way, papa dear." The boy told the story slowly. His father sat aa if in a trance. The mush? of his boy's voice seemed to charm him. Stroking the blond locks or Willie, ho said: "God bless you, my darling boy." Whitla handed the boy to Detective Perkins and, reaching Into a grip, produced pro-duced a little night dress for the boy. Whitla stripped the little sweater, pants, stockings. . shoes and underclothes, under-clothes, tho fame ones that the boy wore when he was kidnapped, froia the child's form and, robing him in the nightgown, prepared him for bed. Ho was asleep In a few minutes. At a conference with Captain Sha-tuck, Sha-tuck, of the Cleveland police, Whitla Btld ho believed that the boy had been drugged after being taken from, school by the kidnapper. He came to ' tho conclusion, he paid, because the boy was able to tell' a fairly consecutive Ftory of his capture and trip to the lair of the kidnappers as far aa Warren. War-ren. The fact that Willie fell asleep on the car between Warren and the place the lad believes was Newcastle, Is considered further evidence of drugging. drug-ging. Whitla gave little encouragement to the police, -who wanted to start their search immediately. He' said: "After the lad Is safe at home, 1 will talk about the kidnappers." Before retiring Tor tho night. Mr. Whitla admitted that he had paid ?10,-000 ?10,-000 to the woman In the candy store. It was in currency. The woman did not count the money. Whitla believe-a the woman was an Italian, but refuses to disclose her identity, i LITTLE WILLIE WHITLA RETURNED TO PARENTS (Continued from Page Two) "Papa," said tho boy, in a tone Dt childish prattle. "I have been buggy riding, been on cars and in a nice big white house that looked like a hospital. hos-pital. 1 have been treated nice and had lots of good things to eat. 'One man, tall and with a black mustache, came to the school houso Thursday, and told my teacher, Mrs. Annie Lewis, that you wanted me at your orhee. I went out to a buggy with him. I pot In and he got in. Then we rode away. On the way down town ho asked me to address a letter to you. I did 90, and dropped It In to a mall box. He was awfully kind. "We went from Sharon to Warren. We had the nicest-trip. The man, who was the same one who brought mo to the car line tonight, was inc-s 1 to me. "When we i;ot to a place lUv man |