Indianapolis Times, Volume 44, Number 2, Indianapolis, Marion County, 13 May 1932 — Page 3

MAY 13, 1932

$50,000 PAID 0Y JAFSIE TO MURDER GANG Long Hunt for Kidnaped Lindy Child Ends With Finding of Body. ifontinurd From Face 1) had been dead about two month*. *1 could not say what day ha died, because the body has been exposed and deteriorated faster than if it had been in a receptacle." The traffic culmination of the kidnaping, ending weeks of frantic search throughout the United States, Europe and Central America, came with smashing suddenness iate in the afternoon. Reporters, who for weary weeks have kept vigil at Trenton and Hopewell, were summoned to the Lindbergh home by Colonel Schwarzkopf. Thev came at breakneck speed over the muddv country roads in a dismal ram. and gathered in the Lindbergh garage. The delay seemed endless before all had gathered and Schwarzkopf ordered the doors locked. Then he made his statement, as follows We have to announce that appar?ntly the body of the Lindbergh baby was found at 3 15 p. m today bv William Allen. Negro, of Trenton, who was riding on the M*. Rose road toward Hopwell 'H* was riding ith Orville Wilson on a truckload of timber. “He went into the woods on the Me Rose Hill, in M. Rose. N. J. Going under a bush, he lowered his h**ad and as he raised his head. h* saw a skeleton on the ground.

False Hopes Roused

"He says in his statement that what he saw had a person’s foot on H“ railed bark to Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson ran into the woods, saw what it was and decided to go to Hopewell and get the police "He notified Chief Wolf, who notified these headquarters. Inspector Walsh of Jersey City. Sergeant Moffatt of the Newark police, Lieutenant Keaton of the New' Jersey state police, and a number of other detectives immediately went to the scene. Thev reported finding the body of a child estimated to be between a year and a half and two years old, In a state of bad decomposition, but having blond hair and wearing what appeared to be an undershirt and a flannel band around the bodv.

Ransom Note Withheld

’•Not. .satisfied with this as identification. mpn were sent back into Hopewell to the Lindbergh estate to get, samples of the undershirt the baby wore and of the flannel shirt the baby had on the night of the kidnaping. This flannel shirt had an embroidered .scalloped edge on it. These articles were taken back to the scene and compared with the clothing found on thp body, and matched closely enough to afford an identification of the body as that of the Lindbergh baby. "The statement of William Allen and Orville Wilson says that the body was pretty well concealed by leaves, dirt and brush. The skull had a hole in it about, the size of a quarter, just above the forehead. The body was lying in a depression, as though an attempt had been made to burv it face down. "Mercer county physician. Dr. Charles H. Mitchell, and the county coroner. Walter Swayze. immediately were called in." Not until he had finished his statement would Schwartzkopf permit the doo-s to be opened and the reporters to depart, although they had tried to dash away as soon as he said the body had been found. In a few minutes, the news was flashed to a shocked world. Discovery of the body revealed the eruelfy practiced on Colonel Lindbergh when the kidnapers, or persons pretending to be the kidnapers. extorted $50,000 from him for a child already dead. It revealed the futility of the great hunt that has been going on. , While searchers hunted the Sour1a nd hills, supposedly "combing” every foot and undoubtedly passing along the road within seventy-five feet of the body, it lay undetected in the bushes. While the cold rains of March and April beat down on the stilled form, false hopes were being aroused almost daily by clews that at the time looked plausible. Colonel Lindbergh, through nis intermediaries, was negotiating with the supposed kidnapers, and hopefully paying over his $50,000 to be vilely trirked.

Nation Rushes to Aid

The public watched the “Jafsie* note* published in the papers by Dr. John F. Condon, the colonels intermediary: read. 'The money is ready" and thrilled with hope: read later, "have you crossed me? Please better directions.” and then learned that the money had been paid when the numbers of the bills were broadcast to the world. All the time, Lindbergh was working untiringly, following every hopeful clew, making flying trips to Connecticut sound, over Long island waters and to Virginia, hoping Condon and Curtis had turned up something real With the baby dead, Mrs. Edward B. McLean of Washington was paying over to Gaston B Means, in a generous effort to help. $104,000 which is yet to be recovered. Prominent citizens, lawyers, educators and public officials, co-oper-ated in the most amazing degree in the great hunt. The press called off its men from the Lindbergh estate at the colonel's request, and tried not to publish news that would hinder the progress of th case Those who tried to help ranged from Dr. John Grier Hibben. president of Princeton university, to Salvatore Spitale. New York racketeer. A retired rear admiral. Guy H. Burrage. and the dean of an Episcopal cathedral, she Rev. H. Dobson-Peacock, raised great hopes at Norfolk, but apparently also were duped or on a false trail. The apot where the body was found, almost in sight of the Lindbergh home, is owned by Ft. Michael's orphanage of Hopewell.

. The Home of Vanished Light

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Tb? home of the Lindberghs, in the lonesome Sourland mountain region, where tragedy struck

DYNAMITE TRESTLE Spur Serving Clinton Mine Is Attack Target. By t n'tnt Pi rm CLINTON, Ind.. May !3.—A trestle on a spur of the Chicago <fc Eastern Illinois railroad serving the Vermilion nun* near here was dynamited and burned today. Authorities regarded the attack as another outburst between union and nonunion miners. The Vermilion mine has been operated by nonunion workers since the 1931 contract with operators expired March 31. Two weeks ago trouble flared, resulting in police escorts being provided nonunion men as they went to work. Residents near by said the explosion shook their homes. Miners had not yet started to work and no one was in the shaft when the blast came. The trestle on the spur, which also serves the Miami mine, crosses the Brinllet creek. Railroad detectives from Terre Haute began an investigation. VENGEANCE DEMANDED BY PRINCETON’S CHIEF Law’s Work Previously Hampered by Fear of Harming Child. He Says. fiv 1 nit ft Prrtt PRINCETON. N. J„ May 13. President John Grier Hibben of Princeton university, close friend of the Lindbergh family, believes "a large reward should be offered for any information which will bring the kidnapers of their baby to justice.’’ "Since the kidnaping." he said after he and Mrs. Hibben drove to the Hopewell home, “the forces of law' have been hampered by the fear that a too extensive attempt to track dow'n the criminals might drive them to kill the baby. "Now, that the child has been found. I feel strongly that the polic® forces of the entire nation should make a united, co-operative drive to apprehend the abductors."

Pair Wlw Found Body

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LINDY FELT CHILD SAFE IN HIS HOME

Wide Publicity Given Baby Regarded as Protection Against Kidnaping. BV H ALLEN SMITH rnitrri staff Cnrrunnnrtrnt iCopvrlcht. 1932 bv United Tress' HOPEWELL. N. J., May 13 —Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh long ago gave thought to the possibility that his baby, Charles Jr., might be kidnaped. but he concluded that a child so widely publicized would not be selected as a victim. This conclusion was based largely on the theory that the kidnaping would cause an unparalleled uproar, hampering kidnapers in any design to collect a large ransom. "It did not seem possible that it could occur ” he said afte r the kidnaping. Our baby, through circumstances that are understood, has been publicized widely—probably the most publicized baby in the United States. "We are not particularly wealthy. We felt that if any one even gave *the idea & thought, they quickly would realize that if the baby were kidnaped, the uproar probably would be more than if a less publicized baby were taken, and that the kidnapers would discover that the chances of securing a large sum w'ere not good and the danger was very great. “In that w'e made our mistake.” The world shared Lindberghs amazement and horror when, on the night of March 1, the unoccupied crib was discovered in the nursery of the big white Lindbergh estate on lonely Sourland hill. Citizens o? every land marveled at the daring of the kidnapers. Thought was given, of course, to the theory that a madman did the act. but as time went on certain indications pointed to a kidnaping band of more than ordinary audacity. Never, throughout the torturing

William Allen of Trenton. N. J... Negro truck driver 'above*, who made a brief stop while hauling lumber down a little used road near the Lindbergh estate and happened on the body of the tiny victim. Orville Wi son (below* was riding with Allen when the latter found the Lindbergh baby. Wilson called state troopers to the scene. Coovricht. lasj. VEA Service. Inc . Teleoho'o.' BUY NATIVE MADE WINE By I nihil Pm* STOCKHOLM. May 13—More Swedish wines and liquors are consumed now than ever before, partly due to the nation-wide propaganda to "Buy Swedish.” The import of all alcoholic beverages declined sharply last year. Only 57.000 liters of ’bravennvinn." made of potatoes. were imported, against 25.000.000 liters manufactured and consumed in Sweden.

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

weeks, however, was the theory of a maniac entirely abandoned—and discovery of the skeleton beneath a bush on Mt. Rose hill Thursday revived the belief that no ordinary kidnaper seeking profit had done thsi ghastly thing. Lindbergh, it is true, paid out. $50,000 as ransom through “Jafste” —Dr. J. F. Condon Os the Bronxlast month to a party whom he believed could return the baby. This turned out to be a cruel deception, with Condon and Lindbergh innocent dupes. Efforts were made lo trace the ransom money, but only a few bills have been noted in circulation.

FANTASTIC ‘CLEWS’ GIVEN BY CRANKS

Enormous Number of Mad ‘Tips’ Given Officers in Kidnap Search. H ii I mini Prrt* NEW YORK. May 13.—N0 ease in the annals of American crime ever brought forth so enormous a number of crank letters, false tips, and faulty data as the Lindbergh kidnaping. One of the foremost, criminal investigators in the country told the United Press today that, from his contact with the investigation, he knew- that the number of insane and nearly insane "clews” was unprecedented. It Is well known to psychiatrists that many cases bordering on insanity are stirred up unusually by | striking public events. This proved to be the case with the Lindbergh kidnaping. Crank letters, “chiselers." and the well-meaning, but misguided, piled up tasks for investigators that were almost, superhuman, since no clew, no matter how fantastic, well could be ignored entirely. Some of the strange tips in thp ease which have come to United Press attention are noted herewith: A man in a mid western city offered to produce the baby, told a circumstantial story of how the kidnaping had been effected, and agreed to take an investigator to the kidnaper's "hideout.” Investigation of some of the fantastic de- ! tails developed that the man was | suffering from hallucinations, after a week's debauch. A girl furnished information of a contact w'ith a "bootlegger who had a special job in New Jersey on the kidnaping day.” There were many circumstantial details to link ; this party with a bootlegger ring I who might be undertaking kidnaping as a desperate sideline, due to lack of liquor profits. Her "contact” proved to be a policeman who flirted w’ith her and sought to impress her with his “importance" by boasting of his underworld connections. A man in Canada advised the United Press he knew where the child was—near a body of water, in a nice house, and well cared for. He turned out to be a ’clairvoyant." i A Washington man inserted ads ! for the "kidnapers” and told a fantastic story of "contacts" in Cleveland. A check showed he had nothing tangible. Only Thursday there circulated i in New York a report that Colonel Lindbergh himself had been kidnaped and held for a half million dollars ransom. KIDNAPERS FACE CHAIR Execution for First Degree Murder Possible in Baby Case. fly I'nilrii Prr*t TRENTON. N. J.. May 13.—Kidnapers of Baby Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. now may be punished t by execution in the electric chair on a first degree murder charge. Under New Jersey laws kidnaping • is punishable by life imprisonment as the maximum penalty. Under the same statutes first degree murder is punishable by a maximum penalty of death in the electric chair. The official finding of the Mercer county medical examiner was that Baby Lindbergh had been murdered. RANGER HAULS OWN JAIL Takes Iron Cage With Him in Car When Hunting Prisoners. By f mini /’re#* JOLIET. HI.. May 13.—W. R. Crane. Texas ranger, has his own traveling jail which he takes with him when he goes out for prisoners. He placed Tony Gonzales, convict. in an iron cage. 5 feet by 5 feet, fitted in his auto, and started off for Huntsville. Tex., where Goni ales is wanted for jail breaking.

RACER ‘CRACKS UP’ Detroit Driver Wrecked by Speedway Black Cat. A black cat. Friday the 13th. and the superstition of a race driver caused near disaster at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this afternoon. Chester Miller of Detroit, driving his Hudson Special 105 miles an hour dow’n a straightaway during a practice grind for the Memorial day 500-mile race, saw a cat crossing his path on the bricks. Miller whiplashed his car into a dizzy spin, which was cut short when the rear end careened into a concrete retaining wall. Neither Miller nor the cat was hurt. His car will be repaired in i time for the race.

Bouncing Kick

When Sam Klezmer, 2044 Singleton street, paid his April water bill, he wrote the words “legal holdup” on the check. It “bounced” back. “We are returning the check which you sent us. and will thank you to give us a check which does not carry the words legal holdup."’ an official of the Indianapoilis Water Company wrote. “If you desire, you might pay your check under protest,” the official wrote.

LINDY OFTEN PASSED NEAR BODY OF BABY Spot Where Infant Was Found Is 75 Feet From Road. By In Uni Prr** HOPEWELL. N. .T.. May 13 —The spot where the Lindbergh baby w’as fonnd dead is only four miles from the Lindbergh home and is within seventy-five feet of the road the flier undoubtedly traveled on some of his mysterious trips since the kidnaping. Mt. Rose, a hamlet of a dozen houses and one general store, near the scene of the discovery, lies between Princeton and Hopewell. It is about a mile and a half from the latter. Colonel Lindbergh once lived there w hile his home on Sourland Hill was being built. The tiny village sits near the top of a long sloping hill, from which, in clear weather, the Lindbergh home may be seen. The spot where the body was found is a wilderness, as Indicated by the sight of wild animals such as foxes and skunks crossing the road nearby. • The land at this point is owned by the St. Michael orphanage. MOTHER OF LINDBERGH HEADS FOR HOPEWELL Missc* Classes for First Time Since Baby Kidnaping. By I nil'll Prr** DETROIT. May 13.—Mrs. Evangeline Lodge Lindbergh, mother of Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh, today boarded a train for New Jersey to Join her sorrowed children. After a brief stop at Cass Technical high school she drove on to the station. It was the first time she had •ailed to teach her regular classes during moments of stress in her family. While her son was flying to Paris she steadfastly stayed at her post, and during the trying days following the kidnaping of her grandson she appeared regularly to teach her chemistry classes. MOURNING IN MEXICO President Ortls Rubio Expresses Nation’s Regret and Indignation. By f nilnl Pro* MEXICO CITY. May 13.—President Pascual Ortiz Rubio led the Mexican nation today in expressing regret and indignation at the murder of the Lindbergh baby. “I am deeply impressed by the cruel assassination of the aviator Lindbergh’s son. I send my very sincere condolences to the family and the North American people.” a statement issued bv the president said. CHARGES -SLUSH FUND’ *V Vnitni Pm* WASHINGTON. May 13. Charges that New York cotton brokers had a SIOO,OOO “slush fund” for a campaign to defeat the agricultural marketing act were made in the house today by Representative La Guardia (Rep., N. YJ

LINDBERGH BABY I HIDDEN BACK OF LAUREL THICKET; Pair Who Made Grewsome Discovery Tell Own Story of Finding. By I nitrd Prrtt HOPEWELL. N. J.. May 13Stories of the two men who found the body of the Lindbergh baby indicated today that both had the thought of possible reward In their minds, in unfolding their narratives. The two. Orville Wilson and William Allen, were taking a truck load of lumber to Hopewell late Thursday when they made the grewsome discovery. Allen, a Virginia Negro who lives at Trenton, first spied the body. “I went into the woods.” he said, "and I saw a skull lying in a hole. I walked closer and called Wilson. I said ‘that’s a baby!’ "It* ribs were exposed and there was blond hair lying on the ground. There was a big hole in the baby's head.” Wilson told his version of the discovery in much more detail. Shouts In Horror “Allen,” he said, "who was with me on the truck, went into the woods about seventy-five feet from the road. In a minute he came running back, shouting My God! I think I’ve found the Lindbergh i baby!' "I jumped from the truck, leaped over the fence and ran down a little gully and up the side of the hill. There I saw the body. It was lying i face downward and badly decomposed. A few curly locks still stuck to the back of the skull. More hair was a couple of feet from the child. One leg was missing. The flesh had fallen from the hands. Tried to Cover Body "When we examined the body more closely, it appeared as if the child had been thrown under the bushes and a hurried attempt made to cover it with leaves and grass. "There was a small piece of clothing, dirty and rainsoaked. resting in the small of the back. The spot where the body lay was such a distance from the toad that searchers would be unable to f.nd it unless they happened to go within a foot or two of the body. "A thicket of laurel was within a few feet of the body. It look >d like the person who put the body there had tried to hide it behind the thicket. No Band on Stomach There was no evidence of a band around the child's stomach, such as was supposed to have been worn when kidnaped. "Wp stayed at the spot only a few minutes. Then we ran down the hill and drove to Hopewell, where I reported to Charley Williamson : 'chief of police'. He got the state police and Allen went back with them and they took the body away. "About 5 o’clock they called me to the Lindbergh house to tell how we found the body. I have a little grandson just a few months older than the Lindbergh baby was when kidnaped. I know how sad the Lindberghs feel.” Wilson lives at Woodville, about three miles from Hopewell in the Sourland hills.

FAKE RANSOM NOTES AGAIN IN CIRCULATION Genuine Document Is Withheld as Important Evidence. Rft f nitrd Presa TRENTON. N. .T.. May 13.—Copies of what purported to be the original Lindbergh ransom note, authenticity of which was denied repeatedly by state police, were circulated again today. This purported note first was published a few- days after the kidnaping by some newspapers, which “killed" it before their edition print had been completed. Colonel H. Norman Schwartzkopf of the New Jersey state police announced Thursday night that the genuine note would not be released for publication, because it would be important evidence against the slayers pf the Lindbergh baby. BRIBERY ORDER BARED Dry Agents to Reject Money, but Not Prosecute, Says Woodcock. Ry t nit rd Prr mm WASHINGTON. May 13— Amos W. W. Woodcock, federal prohibition director, today revealed before a house committee that prohibition agent" are instructed to "indignantly reject” bribfs, but not to prosecute those attempting to corrupt the law enforcement officers.

Fails in Kidnap Hunt

i '■ $ NVI m JtZ a, SP

“Jafsie," Professor Condon of Fordham. who claimed to be in communication with the kidnapers.

Area of Death

C Coj*** “^j*K**"* r * f /1 QOAD 1 TQAP"FIC Jj

Map nf the region in which the Lindbergh home is located. The body was found near Mt. Rose, at the. right renter.

House of Woe •Horrible,’ Repeats Lindy: Wife Paces Floor of Her Room.

BY PAUL COMLY FRENCH CniUd Fr- Staff rrrendenf HOPEWELL. N. J.. May 13. Four men sat around a tiny table in the breakfast room of the Lindbergh Sourland mountain home early today. Outside, the rain poured in sheets and a eold wind rattled the window panes. One of the men w'as Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh. He wore a white shirt and over It a blue lumbermans jacket, open at the throat. His hair was disarray and his face was lined. The others were Colonel Henry C Breckinridge, Lindbergh’s personal attorney and adviser; Dr. John F. Condon, the mysterious "Jafsie." who paid $50,000 of Lindbergh's money to men supposed to be the kidnapers, and a man thought to be John Hughes Curtis. Norfolk boatbuilder and would-be negotiator. Breckinridge was talking of the case. Lindbergh interrupted several times to repeat, "it's horrible.” The ground floor of the house was lighted brilliantly. Every light., every room was ablaze. Upstairs, all was dark except for one room. Through a window a lone figure could be seen pacing the floor, back and forth, back and forth. It was Anne Morrow- Lindbergh. Her hair was dowm her back. Repeatedly she clasped her hands behind her neck. The yard was jammed with police cars, which arlved and departed noisily. Police gathered in the garage and beneath the dripping eaves, discussed ihe grewsome find near Rose Hill in solemn voices. HOOVERITE AND BRYAN AIO JOIN WET RANKS Free, of San Jose, Admits Dry Act Failed; Howard For Repeal. Bv Bcripp*-H nirm it \nr*pnper Allinnrr. WASHINGTON. May 9—President Hoover's home towm congressman and William Jennings Bryans former secretary have Joined the referendum parade. Representative Arthur Free of San Jose, Stanford university graduate. and ardent Hooverite admitted today that prohibition is not a success. Representative Edgar Howard 'Dem.. Neb.*, who still wears a Bryan hair-cut. has a plank for the Democratic platform pledging the party to submit a repeal referendum

PAGE 3

BABY TRAGEDY

STUNS NORFOLK NEGOTIATORS Trio Believed Until Last That Infant Would Be Returned. BY CHARLES M. MTAVN rutted Crew Staff Crr*nd*n NORFOLK. Va.. Msv I*. A dream structure based on hope and faith has been shattered for threa of Norfolk's leading citizens, who believed they were returning the son of the Lindberghs to the arma of his mother. They had hoped during two months of fantastic "negotiations.” of airplane and motor trips by night, of secret conferences, of press conferences. They had a taste of glory posed for news reel photographers, evaded questions of newspaper men in true fiction fashion, ducked dramatically round corners. Today thev were hardly able to believe thev had been victims of a hoax. The Very Rev. Harold DobsonPeacock dean of Christ church, most fashionable in Norfolk, and Rear-Admiral Guy H. Burrage. U. S. N„ retired, were left here, haltingly asking questions about the Lindbergh kidnaping announcements at Hopewell, while John Hughes Curtis was questioned by state police at tha Lindbergh home. Had Faith In Court# As late as Thursday afternoon, when news first came that the skeleton of a baby had been found near the Lindbergh estate. Peacock hinted broadly to newspaper men that a picture, a piece of baby clothing, a description of the Lindbergh ransom note were among the means of identification of Charles A. Lindbergh Jr., offered by the men who approached Curtis on March 9, and asked him to be Intermediary for them in the return of the child. At 1 a. m. today, still up. nervously pacing the floors of his home adjourning the church, he said that fie never had personal knowledge of arty identification, that he and Burrage had based their absolute con. fidence that the baby would be returned on their personal faith in Curtis. There was much sympathy in Norfolk w'ith all the negotiators and there was a strong undercurrent of self-sympathy, for townspeople had | been saying for weeks, "what an awful thing it would be for Norfolk if it proved a hoax.” What happened was that Curtis was approached March 9. eight days after the kidnaping, by men who said they represented the men who kidnaped the Lindbergh baby. They wanted Curtis to act a* their intermediary. Tw Knew Lindy Curtis, in the mad first dava after the kidnaping, could not reach Lindbergh, so he went to Burrage and Peacock. Burrage was admiral of the cruiser Memphis, aboard which Lindbergh made hi* triumphal return from Pari*. Peacock had been dean of the. Mexico City cathedral when Lindbergh flew ; there and met and wooed his present wife. Curtis. Peacock and Burrage went to Hopewell and saw Lindbergh. Thereafter Curtis phoned mysteriously, disappeared from town mysteriously, moved about the street* mysteriously. His two associates darkly hinted at developments. Last Friday came one of the occasional "setbacks.” The "kidnapers" were frightened at reports that navy ships or plane* would watch the delivery of the baby, and perhaps attack their boat. Curtis and Lindbergh still was “negotiating’’ Thursday when the news was flashed that the little skeleton had been found. STUDENT FACES ‘TRIAL’ His Indifference Toward Zionism, Subject of Prosecution. “The Trial of the Indifferent Student Toward Zionism” will be presented at the Kirshbaum Center, Tuesday night by the Butler university chapter of Avukah. at the first open meeting of the season. Students partaking in the trial are: Max Einstandig. the indifferent student; Alfred Hollander, prosecuting attorney; Lester Engel, attorney for the defense; Sylvia Ecktmann. Alex Levin and Mollie Zivian. witnesses for the prosecution, and Dorothy Cohen and Melvin Lichtenberg, witnesses for the defense.

LOW FARE EXCURSIONS OVER MEMORIAL DAY FROM INDIANAPOLIS Jl7-00 \°Z D TO New York Atlantic City HC.qo Philadelphia ID— Baltimore Washington, D.C. $15.00 Harrisburg, Pa. GOING Frida? r Saturday. May 17-1* RETURN LIMIT Tuaadar. My 31 Aak Abau All-Expenae Tour to CHICAGO *l3:i 5 MAY 28-30, 1832 Caaah Saraica Only Rbana Rilay >3)l Pennsylvania Railroad